Summary
The Song of Solomon is a series of lyrical poems organized
as a lengthy dialogue between a young woman and her lover. A third party,
or chorus, occasionally addresses the lovers. The first poem is spoken
by the young maiden, who longs to be near her lover and enjoy his
kisses. She explains that she has a dark complexion because her
family sends her to work in the vineyards. She searches for her
lover, comparing him to a wandering shepherd, and the chorus encourages
her to follow the flocks to his tent.
The lovers lie on a couch together. The man praises the
beauty of his beloved, comparing her to a young mare and comparing
her eyes to doves’ eyes. He describes verdant and fertile surroundings.
The maiden calls herself a rose and a lily, covered by the shade
of her beloved, a fruit tree. She compares her beloved to a lively
gazelle that arrives to take her away during spring when the plants
are budding. The maiden boasts that the man now pastures his flocks
of sheep among her lilies. She warns other women, “the daughters
of Jerusalem,” not to fall in love too early (2:7).
While in bed, the maiden dreams that she is
searching the city streets for her lover and that she finds him
and takes him home. She envisions a lavish wedding procession, in
which her happy bridegroom appears as King Solomon. The man speaks,
comparing each part of the maiden’s body to animals and precious
objects. He calls for her to come down from the mountain peaks to
be with him. With intense yearning, he characterizes her as an enclosed
“garden” full of ripe foliage and a flowing fountain (4:12–15).
The maiden bids the wind to blow on her garden and invites the man
into the garden. The man dines in the garden and calls for their
friends to celebrate with the lovers.
In another dream, the maiden hears her lover knocking
at her door late one night, but he disappears. Again, she roams
the streets, but this time the city guards accost the maiden. She
asks the “daughters of Jerusalem” to help her find her lover. The
chorus asks her to describe the young man, and she compares each
part of his body to precious metals, jewels, and animals.
The two find each other in the garden. The man
continues to praise each part of the maiden’s body. He bids her
to dance and likens her to a palm tree with breasts like fruit.
The maiden invites her lover to the fields and villages, promising
to give him her love among the blossoming vineyards. She wishes
that he were her brother so that people would not comment about
their open displays of affection. She urges him to “seal” his heart
with her love, for love is strong. The maiden thinks back on her
earlier chastity but is glad she has lost it peacefully “in his eyes”
(8:10). The man says
that, while King Solomon may have many vineyards, he is happy with
his one vineyard, the maiden.
Analysis
The Song of Solomon is also called “The Song
of Songs,” suggesting that it is the greatest of all songs. The
first title implies that King Solomon composed the collection of
love poems, but Solomon’s name was probably added at a later date
by the song’s editors, perhaps because of references within the
text to the wise and prolific king. This attribution to Solomon
led to the book’s inclusion in the Hebrew Bible and later, Christian
versions of the Old Testament. Early Hebrew and Christian
scholars long maintained that the love story is an allegory of God’s
love for humankind, or of the intensity of divine love within the human
heart. However, it is undeniable that the song celebrates not only human
love but also the sensuous and mystical quality of erotic desire.
