Song of Solomon 1 explained: Longing and Praise Between Two Lovers

Title and first longing (vv. 1-4)

The title means the finest of songs, and its link to Solomon could mean by him, for him or about him, so the author is uncertain. A woman longs for her beloved's kisses, and in verse 4 translations differ on whether the king has already brought her into his rooms or she is asking him to.

Dark from the sun (vv. 5-6)

She tells the women of Jerusalem she is dark from the sun, like the black tents of Kedar, a desert tribe, and the Hebrew can mean dark and lovely or dark but lovely. Her angry brothers made her work their vineyards, so her own vineyard, probably a picture of herself, was left untended.

Where can I find you? (vv. 7-8)

She asks where he rests his flock at midday so she need not go veiled among his friends' flocks, a phrase scholars are unsure of; it may mean looking like a woman of doubtful reputation, and some old versions read it as wandering about instead. The teasing reply, from him or from the other women, tells her to follow the sheep tracks to the shepherds' tents.

Like a royal mare (vv. 9-11)

He compares her to a mare among Pharaoh's chariot horses, prized and richly decorated animals, and some scholars add that a mare among war stallions would cause a stir, meaning she turns every head. Translations differ on whether he then praises earrings or braids of hair framing her cheeks, and the speakers promise her ornaments of gold and silver.

Fragrance and closeness (vv. 12-14)

The king may be Solomon or a fond name for her man, and while he dines her perfume, nard in the Hebrew, a costly import, fills the air. She calls him as dear as a pouch of myrrh, a fragrant resin, worn between her breasts, or henna blossoms from En Gedi, a lush oasis by the Dead Sea.

Trading praise (vv. 15-17)

He calls her beautiful with eyes like doves, an image whose exact sense is unclear, perhaps softness or gentleness. She answers in kind, and their home seems to be the outdoors, with green growth for a bed and cedars and other evergreens for beams and rafters.

Key verse: Song of Solomon 1:2

Where Christians differ

Christians differ on the chapter's main meaning: many read it plainly as poetry about love between a woman and a man, while much Catholic, Orthodox and older Protestant tradition, building on Jewish readings about God and Israel, has read it as a picture of Christ's love for the church or for the individual soul, and many hold both.

Something to think about

Why do you think a collection of sacred writings would include a poem this openly about desire?