Song of Solomon 8
About Song of SolomonWritten by AI
The Song of Solomon, also called the Song of Songs, is a collection of love poetry. A woman and a man, often called the bride and the bridegroom, delight in each other, long for each other, and speak their love openly, with friends and the daughters of Jerusalem joining in. Its title links it to Solomon, around 950 BC. Whether he wrote it, or it was written about him or dedicated to him, is debated.
There is no clear plot. The poems move between longing and finding, separation and reunion, in rich images of gardens, vineyards, spices and springtime. Speakers change without warning, so it helps to watch who is talking.
Christians have read the Song in two main ways: as a celebration of love and desire within marriage, a good gift from God, and as a picture of God's love for His people, or Christ's love for the church. Many hold both together. Watch for the repeated refrain urging patience, and for the climax: “love is as strong as death.”
Before you read Song of Solomon 8Written by AI
The closing chapter gathers the book's themes. The refrain about awakening love appears one last time, and the woman asks him to set her as a seal over his heart, for love is as strong as death and many waters cannot quench it. Her brothers speak about a little sister, there is a short word about Solomon's vineyard, and the Song ends with her calling him to come away.
Longing for Her Beloved
O that you were to me like a brother
who nursed at my mother’s breasts!
If I found you outdoors, I would kiss you,
and no one would despise me.
I would lead you and bring you
to the house of my mother who taught me.
I would give you spiced wine to drink,
the nectar of my pomegranates.
His left hand is under my head,
and his right arm embraces me.
O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you:
Do not arouse or awaken love
until the time is right.
The Friends
The Bride
Who is this coming up from the wilderness,
leaning on her beloved?
I roused you under the apple tree;
there your mother conceived you;
there she travailed and brought you forth.
Set me as a seal over your heart,
as a seal upon your arm.
For love is as strong as death,
its jealousy as unrelenting as Sheol.
Its sparks are fiery flames,
the fiercest blaze of all.
Mighty waters cannot quench love;
rivers cannot sweep it away.
If a man were to give all the wealth of his house for love,
his offer would be utterly scorned.
The Friends
We have a little sister,
and her breasts are not yet grown.
What shall we do for our sister
on the day she is spoken for?
If she is a wall,
we will build a tower of silver upon her.
If she is a door,
we will enclose her with panels of cedar.
The Bride
I am a wall,
and my breasts are like towers.
So I have become in his eyes
like one who brings peace.
Solomon had a vineyard in Baal-hamon.
He leased it to the tenants.
For its fruit, each was to bring
a thousand shekels of silver.
But my own vineyard is mine to give;
the thousand shekels are for you, O Solomon,
and two hundred are for those who tend its fruit.
The Bridegroom
You who dwell in the gardens,
my companions are listening for your voice.
Let me hear it!
The Bride
Come away, my beloved,
and be like a gazelle
or a young stag
on the mountains of spices.