Song of Songs

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Illustration for the first verse - A minstrel playing before Solomon (15th century Rothschild Mahzor)
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The Song of Songs of Solomon, commonly referred to as Song of Songs (Hebrew: שִׁיר הַשִּׁירִים Šîr HaŠîrîm, LXX Greek: ᾎσμα ᾎσμάτων Āisma Āismatōn,[1] Vulgate Latin: Cantĭcum Canticōrum[2]), or Song of Solomon, is a book of the Old Testament—one of the megillot (scrolls)—found in the last section of the Tanakh, known as the Ketuvim (or "Writings"). It is also known in English as Canticle of Canticles or simply Canticles.

The protagonists of Song of Songs are a woman (identified in one verse as "the Shulamite")[3] and a man, and the poem suggests movement from courtship to consummation. For instance, the man proclaims: "As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters." The woman answers: "As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste."[4][5] Additionally, the Song includes a chorus, the "daughters of Jerusalem."

In spite of only having one reference to God in it,[6][7] Song of Songs has often been interpreted as a parable of the relationship of God and Israel, or for Christians, Christ and the Church or Christ and the human soul, as husband and wife.

It is one of the shortest books in the Bible, consisting of only 117 verses. According to Ashkenazi Jewish tradition, it is read in its entirety on Shabbat that falls during the intermediate days of Passover, or on the seventh or eighth day if it happens to be Shabbat.[8] In the Sephardi community these verses are recited every Friday night.

Contents

Etymology [edit]

The name of the book ("The Song of Songs of Solomon") comes from a superscription: "The song of songs, which is Solomon's" (which also constitutes the opening verse of the book).

"Song of songs" is a Hebrew grammatical construction denoting the superlative; that is, the title attests to the greatness of the song, similar to "the lord of lords", "The King of Kings" or "Holy of Holies" (used of the inner sanctuary of the Jerusalem temple). Rabbi Akiba declared, "Heaven forbid that any man in Israel ever disputed that Song of Songs is holy. For the whole world is not worth the day on which Song of Songs was given to Israel, for all the Writings are holy and Song of Songs is Holy of Holies." (Mishnah Yadayim 3:5). Similarly, Martin Luther called it Das Hohelied (the high song). This is still its name in German, Danish, Swedish and in Dutch.

Authorship [edit]

Some people translate the first clause of the title as "which is of Solomon", which could be construed as meaning that the book is authored by Solomon. Rabbi Hiyya the Great said Solomon first wrote Book of Proverbs, then Song of Songs, and afterward Ecclesiastes. Rabbi Jonathan said Solomon first wrote Song of Songs, then Proverbs, then Ecclesiastes. The Talmud, however, states the order of the canon, listing Proverbs first, then Ecclesiastes, and then Song of Songs.

The first clause can also be translated as "which is for Solomon", meaning that the book is dedicated to Solomon. This theory is confirmed in the text itself when the author seems to contrast himself with Solomon "Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon... My vinyard, my very own, is for myself" (8.11-12)[9] It was common practice in ancient times for an anonymous writer seeking recognition for his work to write eponymously in the name of someone more famous.[citation needed] Some[who?] read the book as contrasting the nobility of monogamous love with the debased nature of promiscuous love, and suggest that the book is actually a veiled criticism of Solomon, who, according to 1 Kings 11:3, had seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines.

The Jewish Sages themselves considered this a prophetic work that was written during the time of the Prophet Jeremiah by his colleagues,[10] but these latter prophets then attributed their result to king Solomon, just as other writings of Jewish Scripture have been written by one prophet while being attributed to another, such as the Book of Hosea, Isaiah, and others.

Another approach to the authorship is that offered by Rashi, consistent with allegorical interpretations, rendering the narrator "him to whom peace belongs", i.e.: God. The Hebrew name of Solomon, Shlomo, can also be inflected to mean the constructed form of the noun shalom, peace, which through noun declension can be possessive. This means that the author is in fact Solomon, but he narrates the book from the perspective of God, who is conversing with the Jewish people, his allegorical and future bride.

Twenty first century linguistic work, including re-examining the dating of early Hebrew poetry, according to evidence of dialectic variation, has been applied to the Song by a number of scholars from different traditions. Noegel and Rendsburg, for example, conclude as follows.

The Song of Songs was written circa 900 BC, in the northern dialect of ancient Hebrew, by an author of unsurpassed literary ability, adept at the techniques of alliteration and polyprosopon, able to create the most sensual and erotic poetry of his day, and all the while incorporating into his work a subtext critical of the Judahite monarchy in general and Solomon in particular.[11]

Other scholars have argued that some of the words used in the text are Persian, which sets the written date to the postexilic period. Solomon lived in the tenth century BCE which is much earlier than the postexilic period. Solomon may not have been the author based from some of the words being used.[12]

Language [edit]

Song of Songs for the first time gives literary representation to the everyday post-exilic vernacular. It contains loan words from languages with which Hebrew had contact in post-exilic times, such as Persian, Greek, and Aramaic, and contains numerous items of vocabulary that are otherwise unknown in Biblical Hebrew but are known from Rabbinic Hebrew, and these expressions give the impression of being part of a living language and not the result of an archaic or artificial style. There are longer phrases that are typical of Rabbinic Hebrew in word order and are different from Biblical Hebrew.[13]

Interpretation and use [edit]

Books of the
Ketuvim (Hebrew Bible)
Three poetic books
Psalms
Proverbs
Job
Five Megillot
Song of Songs
Ruth
Lamentations
Ecclesiastes
Esther
Other books
Daniel
Ezra – Nehemiah
Chronicles

Although it is commonly held that an allegorical interpretation justified its inclusion in the Biblical canon, scholarly discussion has not reached any consensus yet on Song of Songs and leaves other possibilities open.[14]

According to Jewish tradition in the Midrash and the Targum, the book is an allegory of God's love for the Children of Israel. In keeping with this understanding, certain verses of it are read by Sephardic and Mizrahi Jews on Shabbat eve, to symbolize the love between the Jewish People and God that is also represented by Shabbat. Italian Jews read these verses on the eve of the first Yom Tov and Yom Tov Sheni of Passover, just before Arvit. Most traditional Jews also read these verses of the Song on Shabbat Chol HaMoed of Passover, or on the seventh day of the holiday, when the Song of the sea is also read.

Kabbalah [edit]

Song of Songs is one of the overtly mystical Biblical texts for the Kabbalah, which gave esoteric interpretation on all the Hebrew Bible. Following the dissemination of the Zohar in the 13th century, Jewish mysticism took on a metaphorically anthropomorphic erotic element, and Song of Songs is an example of this. In Zoharic Kabbalah, God is represented by a system of ten sephirot emanations, each symbolizing a different attribute of God, comprising both male and female. The Shechina (indwelling Divine presence) was identified with the feminine sephira Malchut, the vessel of Kingship. This symbolizes the Jewish people, and in the body, the female form, identified with the woman in Song of Songs. Her beloved was identified with the male sephira Tiferet, the "Holy One Blessed be He", central principle in the beneficent Heavenly flow of Divine emotion. In the body, this represents the male torso, uniting through the sephira Yesod of the male sign of the covenant organ of procreation. Through beneficent deeds and Jewish observance, the Jewish people restore cosmic harmony in the Divine realm, healing the exile of the Shechina with God's transcendence, revealing the essential Unity of God. This elevation of the World is aroused from Above on the Sabbath, a foretaste of the redeemed purpose of Creation. The text thus became a description, depending on the aspect, of the creation of the world, the passage of Shabbat, the covenant with Israel, and the coming of the Messianic age. "Lecha Dodi", a 16th century liturgical song with strong Kabbalistic symbolism, contains many passages, including its opening two words, taken directly from Song of Songs.[15]

Christian tradition [edit]

One possible allusion to the Song of Songs in the New Testament might be Revelation 3:20, which speaks of knocking at doors, as does Song 5:2. John 7:38, speaks of "living water," using the language for spiritual life found in places like Jeremiah 17:13, Jeremiah 2:13, and Zechariah 14:8, but the phrase is also used poetically in Song 4:15. Useful for reference purposes is that the expensive nard perfume spoken of in John 12:3 and Mark 14:3 is mentioned in Song 1:12, 4:13, 4:14. The earliest Christian interpretation is found in a commentary by Hippolytus. This commentary covered only the first three chapters to 3:7. Hippolytus interprets the Song as referring to a complicated relationship between Israel, Christ and the Gentile Church. The commentary returns often to the topic of the anointing of the Holy Spirit and was originally written as a mystagogy, an instruction for new Christians.[16] The commentary survives in two Georgian manuscripts, a Greek epitome, a Paleo-Slavonic florilegium, and fragments in Armenian and Syriac. Origen interpreted the Song largely as an allegory of the soul and Christ. He differed with Hippolytus and felt that the Song should be reserved for the spiritually mature and that studying it might be harmful for the novice. In this he followed third-century Jewish interpretive traditions. His commentary—apart from a few fragments of the original Greek—survives in a Latin translation due to Tyrannius Rufinus. A celebrated medieval series of commentaries was that composed by the Cistercians Bernard of Clairvaux,[17] Gilbert of Hoilandia, and John of Ford over the course of several decades, each continuing the work of the previous.[18] Other prominent and accessible traditional commentaries are those of Apponius and Nilus of Ancyra (Sources Chrétiennes) and Gregory of Nyssa and Rupert of Deutz (Fontes Christiani).

In 1561 Luis de León, a Spanish lyric poet and an Augustinian friar, translated the Song of Songs into Spanish for his cousin, Isabel Osorio, a nun who could not read the Latin text, and wrote an accompanying commentary. This work became highly popular among his peers. However, at this time in Spain, translation of biblical texts into Spanish was not viewed favorably, and the translation of the Song of Songs was one of the main charges of supposed heresy brought against him when in 1572 he was imprisoned in Valladolid - though released after four years with an admonition.

Pope John Paul II in his five-year catechesis on the Theology of the Body dedicates a major portion of the section on marriage to a study of Song of Songs. The Pope speaks of the way in which the lovers in the Song provide a true and liberating vision of the love that results when men and women allow the divine fire of agape to penetrate and permeate eros.

Pope Benedict XVI's encyclical Deus Caritas Est (God is Love) of 2006 refers to Song of Songs in both its literal and allegorical meaning, stating that erotic love (eros) and self-donating love (agape) is shown there as two halves of true love, which is both giving and receiving.[19]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not recognize the book as "inspired scripture,"[20] although it is included in the church's canon and printed in church-published copies of the Bible.

Messianic interpretation [edit]

It has been suggested that the book is a messianic text,[21]:333 in that the lover can be interpreted as the Messiah. It could refer to the Messiah because it often speaks of the Davidic king Solomon. Nathan's prophecy in 2 Samuel 7 showed that the promised Messiah would issue from the progeny of David. Each Davidic king was viewed as a potential Messiah, so the Song's speaking of the Temple-builder Solomon would bring to readers’ minds their Messianic hopes.[21]:336 When the Song references "mighty men" (3:7), it brings to mind David and his mighty men (2 Samuel 23). Describing the lover as "ruddy" (5:10) again brings to mind David (c.f. 1 Samuel 16:12). The Aramaic Jewish targums also interpreted the lover as the awaited Messiah.[22] All these references to kingship, to shepherding, to David, and to Solomon bring to mind the expected Messiah.

In the New Testament, Jesus later claimed his identity as Messiah when he presented himself as greater than Solomon (Matthew 12:42) because, as the builder of the Temple, Solomon was an "obvious messianic model."[23] The king's garden (for example 5:1) can be viewed in the light of the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:8-25),[24] bringing to mind the Messiah who was expected to restore Israel to an Edenic state. The lovers are portrayed as having overcome the alienation produced by the Fall. The state of woman whose "desire shall be for your husband" (Genesis 3:16) has even been reversed: "his desire is for me" (7:10).[25]

Similar works [edit]

Scholars have noted that Song of Songs shows similarities of various kinds with other Ancient Near Eastern love poetry in general,[26] but particularly some Sumerian erotic passages,[27] and the Ramesside Egyptian love poetry.[28] Discussion of similarities with Tamil love poetry was also of interest in scholastic discussion in the late 20th century.[29]

Feminist reading [edit]

The feminist companion to the Bible series, edited by Athalya Brenner, has two volumes (1993, 2001) devoted to the Song, the first of which was actually the first volume of the whole series. Phyllis Trible, however, published "Depatriarchalizing in Biblical Interpretation" in 1973, offering a reading of the Song with a positive representation of sexuality and egalitarian gender relations, which was widely discussed, notably (and favourably) in Marvin Pope's major commentary for the Anchor Bible. Cheryl Exum, whose work on the Song is also widely known and highly regarded, considers, however, that "The subjectivity conferred upon the woman by the poet inevitably reflects a patriarchal worldview; how could it not?".[30]

Cultural references [edit]

In Carl Th. Dreyer's Day of Wrath, a film about sexual repression in a puritanical Protestant family, the first few verses of Song of Songs chapter 2 are read aloud by the daughter Anne, but soon after her father forbids her to continue. The chapter's verse paraphrases Anne's own amorous adventures and desires.[34]

See also [edit]

References [edit]

  1. ^ Rahlfs (ed.), Septuaginta, Volume 2, (Stuttgart: de:Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1979), p. 260.
  2. ^ newadvent.org
  3. ^ Song of Songs 6:13
  4. ^ Song of Songs 2:2-3 (KJV)
  5. ^ Song of Songs 2:2-3 (NIV)
  6. ^ "Online Hebrew Interlinear Bible: Song of Songs". Scripture4All.org. Retrieved 13 February 2013. 
  7. ^ 8:6 (ESV)
  8. ^ Prero, Rabbi Yehudah. "Topic: Shir HaShirim - A Physical Song". Torah.org. Retrieved 16 May 2012. 
  9. ^ Coogan, Michael David. A Brief Introduction to the old Testament: The Hebrew Bible in Its Context New York: Oxford University Press, 2009.
  10. ^ Babylonian Talmud, Bava Batra 14b–15a.
  11. ^ Noegel and Rendsburg, Solomon's Vineyard: literary and linguistic studies in the Song of Songs, (Society of Biblical Literature, 2009), p. 184.
  12. ^ Coogan, Michael. A Brief Introduction to the Old Testament. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 394
  13. ^ Sáenz-Badillos, Angel (1993). A History of the Hebrew Language. Great Britain: Cambridge University Press. pp. 123–4. ISBN 0-521-43157-3. 
  14. ^ Garrett, Duane A. Song of Songs. Word Biblical Commentary 23B. Nashville: Nelson, 2004, 15.
  15. ^ Songs 7:12: lecha dodi neitsei hasadeh....
  16. ^ Yancy W. Smith, "Hippolytus'Commentary On the Song of Songs in Social and Critical Context" (unpublished PhD dissertation; Brite Divinity School, 2008).
  17. ^ St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons on the Song of Songs.
  18. ^ C. J. Holdsworth, "John of Ford and English Cistercian Writing, 1167–1214", Transactions of the Royal Historical Society, Fifth Series, 11 (1961), 117–36.
  19. ^ Pope Benedict XVI. (2005). Encyclical Letter: Deus Caritas Est (Part 1, Section 6). Libreria Editrice Vaticana. [1]
  20. ^ Bible Dictionary: Song of Solomon
  21. ^ a b James Hamilton, "The Messianic Music of the Song of Songs", Westminster Theological Journal 68 (2006).
  22. ^ Sigmund Mowinckel, He That Cometh, (New York: Abingdon Press, 1954), 283.
  23. ^ N. T. Wright, Jesus and the Victory of God, (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1996), 535.
  24. ^ Francis Landy, "The Song of Songs and the Garden of Eden" Journal of Biblical Literature 98:4 (December 1979): 524.
  25. ^ James Hamilton, op. cit., 344.
  26. ^ Gwendolyn Leick, Sex and eroticism in Mesopotamian literature, 1994.
  27. ^ Cheryl Exum, Song of Songs, 2005.
  28. ^ Fox, M.V. The Song of Songs and Ancient Egyptian Love Songs. University of Wisconsin Press, 1985
  29. ^ Chaim Rabin (1973), Abraham Mariaselvam (1987).
  30. ^ 2005:82
  31. ^ Herz, Gerhard (1972). Bach: Cantata No. 140. W.W. Norton and Company. 
  32. ^ Allan, J. Reviews: Live - John Zorn Abron Arts Centre Amplifier Magazine, February 22, 2008.
  33. ^ Smith, S. An Unlikely Pairing on Common Ground NY Times, November 27, 2008.
  34. ^ Bordwell, David (1992-07). The Films of Carl Theodor Dreyer. ISBN 9780520044500. 

Bibliography [edit]

  • Garrett, Duane A. Song of Songs. Word Biblical Commentary 23B. Nashville: Nelson, 2004.
  • Linafelt, Tod. "Biblical Love Poetry (...and God)". Journal of the American Academy of Religion 70 (2) 2002.
  • Pope, Marvin H. Song of Songs: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary. Anchor Bible 7C. 2 volumes. Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1977.
  • Theo Kobusch, Metaphysik, C. Metaphysik als Exegese des Hohenliedes, in Der Neue Pauly, Band 15, La-Ot, Stuttgart Weimar 2001.
  • Ariel Bloch and Chana Bloch, translators. The Song of Songs: A New Translation, With an Introduction and Commentary. Afterword by Robert Alter, Random House, 1995, ISBN 978-0-520-21330-2.
  • Hudson Taylor, Union and Communion or Thoughts on the Song of Solomon, Dodo Press 2009 et.alii pdf download

External links [edit]

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Jewish translations and commentary:

Christian translations and commentary:

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Easton, Matthew George (1897). "article name needed". Easton's Bible Dictionary (New and revised ed.). T. Nelson and Sons. 

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