OT Lectures, Week 68, Lectures on , Page 1 of 6

Week 68, Lecture 203.1 :1-6:3, Lost and Found!

Preliminary Remarks Following most contemporary scholarship, the NABRE includes 5:1 with the material in chapter 4. It divides the rest of chapter 5 into two main literary sections Part 1 5:2-8 A Fruitless Search Part 2 5:9-16 The Lost Lover Described. The finding of the Lost Lover, the first verses of chapter 6 concludes this section Part 3 6:1-3 Finding the Lost Lover

Part 1. A Fruitless Search 2 5:2-8 [W → D]. Inside (the past). 2 I slept, but my heart was awake. The sound of my beloved knocking! (M) “Open for me, my sister, my darling my dove, my flawless one! For my head is wet with dew my hair3 with the dampness of the night.” (W) 3 “I have taken off my garment How could I possibly4 put it back on? I have washed my feet. How could I possibly get them dirty?” 4 My beloved put his hand to the latch hole and my desire5 was stirred for him. 5 Indeed I arose for my beloved. My hands were dripping myrrh My fingers flowing with myrrh on the handles of the bolt. 6 Indeed I opened for my beloved. But my beloved turned. He left. I almost died at his departure! I looked for him, but did not find him. I called him, but he did not answer me. Outside (the past). 7 The watchmen found me The ones patrolling the city. They struck me; they bruised me They stripped away my cloak6 from me These watchmen of the walls. The Present 8 I adjure you, Daughters of : If you find my beloved What should you say to him? “I am sick with love.”

The Speaker Murphy takes all of verses 2-8 as spoken by the Woman. However: in 2b she is reporting the earlier words of the Man to her. in 3 she is reporting her earlier words to the Man. Spencer, basically agrees, regarding the whole section as the Woman addressing the Daughters.

1 Lectures numbered consecutively. This is this week's 1st lecture, but its number reflects its place in the total sequence. 2 Unless otherwise specified, the literary divisions follow the headings of the NABRE. The translation is my own. 3 Strictly speaking not a hapax, because it also occurs in verse 11 -- the only two times this word is found in the OT. 4 The word for “how,” ʼêkākâ is not the normal word for “how.” This one occurs in only 2 verses of the OT, twice in this verse and twice in Esther 8:6. I added “possibly” to try to catch the emphasis of this rare word. 5 Literally, inner organs. guts; the core of my being (NJB); innermost being (NABRE). 6 Murphy (Song, 165) states that the meaning of this rare word is not clear. It might be a “veil” or an “outer cloak.” OT Lectures, Week 68, Lectures on Song of Songs, Page 2 of 6

Double Entendre. Elsie Stern notes that there is much sexual innuendo verse 2-8. She suggests that “the house may represent the woman’s body.”7 Spencer (Wisdom Commentary) titles 2-6 “Soaked with Desire.” One interpretation (Garrett, WBC) is that the “dew” is symbolic of the male bodily fluids. “Wet with dew” (verse 3) = The man is so excited, he is starting to drip. All of this is done discretely with double entendre.

Verse 2. I slept . . . My heart was awake Is the woman dreaming? Is she day-dreaming? Is this the account of a real event? Is it the account of a nightmare? From the point of view of love poetry, these distinctions are not as important is if this were a history book.

5:3 The Woman’s Refusal. The NABRE suggests that this is a form of “gentle teasing.”8

5:4 My Desire meʻay (plural of meʻê) Literally this refers to internal organs. Many translations give a dynamic equivalent “My heart” (JPS, NJPS, RSV, NAB, NIV) “My inmost being” (NRSV, NABRE) “The core of my being” (NJB) “My feelings (NET) KJV & Douay “my bowels were moved.” This was wonderful in the 16th century. But English has changed!

Verse 6, The Man’s Departure Was he physically present, and then did he walk away? Or did he vanish from her dream? Many feminist interpreters rake him over the coals for his insensitivity. Garrett (WBC) interprets this a part of a story about the “Wedding Night.” He interprets the “departure” metaphorically. After the Man has ejaculated, his passion is gone. He rolls over and goes to sleep. While most commentators do not accept this being the “Wedding Night” he might have a valid point.

The Watchmen. They are much more violent and abusive than the watchmen in the similar scene in chapter 3. Garrett (WBC) interprets them symbolically. They stand for those who uphold social mores. The woman has lost her virginity. Now she is having some second thoughts, perhaps “beating up on herself.”

Part 2. The Lost Lover Described, 5:9-16 [D → W] Question of the Daughters to the Woman 9 How is your lover different from any other most beautiful of women? How is your lover different than any other that you adjure us this way? [W → D] The Woman’s Answer -- He’s a Hunk! 10 My beloved is dazzling and ruddy! He stands out from a myriad! 11 His head is gold -- pure-gold! His hair, palm fronds9-- black as the raven! 12 His eyes are like doves -- doves living beside streams of water! His teeth, awash in milk sitting firmly in fullness!

7 Elsie Stern, Jewish Study , note to Song 5:2-7. 8 NABRE, note to Song 5:3. 9 Unlike “hair,” which also occurs in verse 2, “palm fronds” is a true hapax, appearing nowhere else in the OT. OT Lectures, Week 68, Lectures on Song of Songs, Page 3 of 6

13 His cheeks, like beds10 of spices which put forth blossoms His lips, lilies! Dripping myrrh! Overflowing! 14 His arms, rods of gold adorned with gems of Tarshish! His “belly,” a work of ivory! Studded with sapphires! 15 His legs, pillars of alabaster! Set upon sockets of pure-gold. His appearance, like Lebanon! Choice cedars! 16 His palate, sweetness! He is altogether delightful! Such is my beloved, Daughters of Jerusalem.

Literary Genre. Waṣf. One of 4 in the Song. The only one about the body of the Man. The only description of the male body from a female perspective in the entire bible.

V. 11 Palm fronds. This would be the thick hair of a healthy young man. No receding hairline or premature baldness here!

His Teeth. Murphy argues that this phrase as dropped out of the text. There is absolutely no external evidence in Hebrew manuscripts or ancient translations to support the theory. All the evidence is “internal.” Every other line begins with a body part. Without “teeth” the “eyes” get two lines; while all other body parts just get one. “Teeth” which are white goes better with “milk” than “eyes” do. “Sitting” firmly (literally “in fullness) is an odd description of eyes. It makes better sense when applied to teeth. None of them are loose! Post-Lecture note. A modern English example. Suppose I have written directions to a place, and one line of the directions says: “When you get to the end of the road pots.” My cell phone is not working, so I cannot check this out. Without any external evidence -- only internal context -- I decide the last word is a typo. It is not pots but stop.

V. 12 NABRE note Sitting …: the translation of this line is uncertain; it may continue the metaphor of the lover’s eyes, or refer to another part of his anatomy (e.g., teeth) which has been omitted from the text.11

5:14 “Belly.” The word usually denotes internal organs. For a woman, it often denotes the womb. Her it obviously refers to something external that can be described. One suggestion is that she is admiring his 6-pack abs. Another is that her gaze is a little lower, this is a discrete description of his genitals.

Part 3. The Lost Lover Found, 6:1-3 [D →W] The Question of the Daughters 6:1 Where has your beloved gone to, most beautiful of women? [Tell us] Where has your beloved turned to, so we can help you look for him? [W → D] The Answer of the Woman 2 My beloved went down to his garden to the spice beds To browse in the gardens and to pick lilies. 3 I belong to my beloved; he belongs to me -- the guy browsing among the lilies.

10 MT reads “bed,” but it can be made plural by the addition of a vowel -- no consonants are changed. 11 NABRE, note to Song 5:12 OT Lectures, Week 68, Lectures on Song of Songs, Page 4 of 6

6:2 “Gone down to his garden.” Stern suggests that this is a reference to a sexual encounter.12 It appears that the man has never really been away physically! Garrett sites this in support of his theory of insensitive male behavior after intercourse.

Week 68, Lecture 204. :4-12, Together (Again?)

Verses. 7:1 in Hebrew (also JPS, NJPS, NAB, NABRE, NET) = 6:13 in some English (KJV, RSV, NRSV).

Literary Genre. The chapter begins with a Waṣf. This is the second of three that describe the woman’s body. In this context it is a response to the waṣf of the Woman

Sudden appearance of the Man If he has offended the woman by leaving her physically or emotionally -- there is no indication of this. He seems totally clueless about the earlier distress of the woman.

6:4-10, The Beauty of the Woman [M → W] Beautiful Cities 4 You are beautiful, my darling -- like Tizrah! Charming, like Jerusalem! Formidable as cities that fly banners! Her Face! 5 Turn your eyes from me for they overwhelm me Your hair flows like a flock of goats streaming down the Gilead. 6 Your teeth gleam like shorn sheep coming up from the washing pool All of them come in pairs And not one of them is missing. 7 Like a slice of pomegranate, your forehead behind your veil. Like Royalty! 8 Sixty are the [m] queens; Eighty are the concubines; Maidens without number 9 Unique is she, my dove, my flawless one Unique is she to her mother Special to the one who bore her. Women13 see her, and pronounce her blessed! Queens and concubines praise her. [They say] Heavenly! 10 “Who is this who comes forth like Dawn? Beautiful as the moon-pale-white Radiant as the sun-blazing-hot? Formidable as the starry heavens?

6:4 Tirzah (Tirṣah). First capital of the Northern Kingdom. King Omri later moved the capital to Samaria Cities in Semitic language are always feminine, and are often personified as women. Think of phrases such as “Daughter ” or “Daughter Jerusalem” In Catholicism we use similar imagery when we speak of “Holy Mother Church.” Here the opposite takes place – the woman is imaged as an important city.

Etymology. The Hebrew root RṢH means “pleasant, pleasing” [tiRṢaH is from the root RṢH] Ancient versions often take it as an adjective or an abstract noun. LXX: “Beautiful as Goodwill (NETS). Latin , suavis, “sweet”. Syriac “Desirable.”

12 Stern, “Song,” JSB, note to 6:1-3. 13 Literally, “The daughters” OT Lectures, Week 68, Lectures on Song of Songs, Page 5 of 6

Verse 10, Dawn, Sun, Moon Perhaps “Dawn” is personified. “Dawn” is often a goddess for the ancients. Recall Homer’s “Rosy-fingered Dawn.” The word for “Moon” is not the normal word. It literally means “white.” I stole from the Hymn of St. Patrick “whiteness of the moon at even’” for my translation. Sun -- also not the normal word. It literally means “heat.”

6:10 The Starry Heavens The word is an adjective, and a homonym. The meaning depends on context. Earlier I rendered the same phrase as “bannered cities.” There the context was “Tizrah” and “Jerusalem.” Here the context is “dawn,” “sun” and “moon.”

6:11-12, Love’s Meeting [W? → D(?)] 11 To the nut orchard I will go down to see what is sprouting in the stream bed. Has the vine blossomed? Are the pomegranates in bloom? 12 Before I knew it, my desire made me [the most blessed woman]14 of the prince’s people.

A Difficult Section We are not sure who the speaker is. The word “I” in Hebrew (unlike “you”) is not gender specific. We are also not certain to whom the speaker is speaking. Is the Man addressing the Woman or vice versa? Or is one of them addressing the Daughters?

Verse 11. Nut Orchard, ʼegôz. The word is a “hapax.” It occurs only once in the entire OT. In modern Hebrew the word means “walnuts.” Spencer (Wisdom Commentary) sees some sexual innuendo here. Even today we call testicles “nuts.”

6:12, An Impossible Verse Stern notes, “The meaning of this verse eludes scholars.”15 I would add: scholars “ancient and modern!”

English Equivalents of Ancient Translations Greek LXX My soul was not aware; it made me as Aminadab's chariots (NETS). Latin Vulgate I knew not: my soul troubled me because of the chariots of Aminadab. (Douay, modified) Syriac Peshitta My soul was unaware; it placed me in the chariot of a people who were prepared (PJM?) 16

English Translations from the Hebrew Translating the Hebrew as the LXX and Vulgate did Or ever I was aware, my soul made me like the chariots of Amminadib. (KJV) Before I knew . . . my desire had hurled me onto the chariots of Amminadib! (NJB)

.(.mĕbōreket, blessed, f. sg) מברכת markĕbot, chariots) to) מרכבות Murphy emends 14 15 Stern, “Song,” JSB, note to 6:11-12. 16 The root NDB is a homonym in Hebrew. It can mean either “ready, prepared” OR “excellent, noble → prince”. It seems that the Syriac is taking it in the first sense, whereas modern translations that make it a separate word take the second meaning. I hope to do better after my summer Syriac course! . . . Later -- Roland Murphy (Song, 176) translated the Syriac, and it looks like I got it right! The reasons scholars check ancient versions is the hope that the ancient translator has a copy of the Hebrew before it became corrupted. Alas! It appears that all our ancient translators had the same corrupt Hebrew text we have today. OT Lectures, Week 68, Lectures on Song of Songs, Page 6 of 6

Same Hebrew Letters with Different Word Divisions Before I knew it, My desire set me Mid the chariots of Ammi-nadib. (NJPS) Before I was aware, my soul set me upon the chariots of my princely people. (JPS) Before I realized it, my desire set me among the royal chariots of my people (NIV) Before I was aware, my fancy set me in a chariot beside my prince. (RSV, NRSV) Remarks The root NDB is a homonym in Hebrew. It can mean either “ready, prepared” OR “excellent, noble → prince”.

Revising the Hebrew Consonants Before I knew it, my heart had made me the blessed one of my kinswomen. (NAB) Before I knew it, my desire had made me the blessed one of the prince's people. (NABRE) Before I knew it, my heart made me [the blessed one] of the prince’s people (Murphy, Hermeneia) I was beside myself with joy! There please give me your myrrh, O daughter of my princely people. (NET)

Murphy’s Emendation. How does he get “the blessed one of . . .?? Murphy states that the text is obviously corrupt. He also notes that there has not yet been a solution on which there is a scholarly consensus.. This is simply his best effort to make sense of the corrupt text.

markĕbot, chariots) mar-kuh-VOTE) מרכבות

mĕbōreket, blessed, f. sg.). muh-voe-WRECK-it) מברכת

My Solution Before I knew it, my desire made me [the most blessed woman] of the prince’s people. Basically I am following Murphy, but I have made the adjective superlative, “most blessed.” Take it with a grain of salt! This is a guess from a NT scholar!

Post-lecture note: “Woman” is justified because mĕbōreket is a feminine participle, it means “blessed woman.” Since the participle is feminine, the Hebrew author does not need to write “woman” as a separate word.