Song of Songs Title: Heb. sir hassirim (lit. song of the songs). Also often referred as Song of Solomon. ​ ​ ​ Author: Traditionally Solomon. ​ Date: Unknown. Solomon’s reign 971-931 B.C. ​ Genre: Hebrew (love/erotic) poetry. ​ Characters: ​ Woman/She/Beloved/Shulammite Man/He/Lover Others/Friends/Maidens/Daughters of Jerusalem Woman’s family Interpretations: ​ 1. Allegory of God’s love for Israel. 2. Allegory of Jesus’ love for the church. 3. Love poem between King Solomon and his Shulammite bride. 4. Love poem between a simple shepherd and the Shulammite shepherdess. 5. Love poem involving Solomon, a shepherd boy, and the Shulammite shepherdess. 6. Collection of love poems on a common theme. Key Themes: ​ 1. God’s covenant provides the right framework for marriage and intimacy. a. Intense desire: seeking and finding. 2. Marriage is a gift of God and is to be founded on mutual commitment. a. The joy of mutual attraction. Outline: ​ Title: The Best of Songs (1:1) 1:1 The song of songs, which is Solomon’s. (ESV) The Lovers Yearn for Each Other (1:2-2:17) Poem One: The Woman’s Pursuit (1:2-4) 1:2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth! For your love is better than wine. 1:4 Draw me after you; let us run. The king has brought me into his chambers. Poem Two: Dark, but Beautiful (1:5-6) 1:5 I am very dark, but lovely. O daughters of Jerusalem. 1:6 My mother’s sons were angry with me; they made me keeper of the vineyards. Poem Three: An Invitation to a Tryst (1:7-8) Poem Four: A Beautiful Mare (1:9-11) Poem Five: Intimate Fragrances (1:12-14) Poem Six: Outdoor Love (1:15-17) Poem Seven: Flowers and Trees (2:1-7) 2:1 I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the vallleys. 2:3 As an apple tree among the trees in the forest, so is my beloved among the young men. 2:4 He brought me to the banqueting table, and his banner over me was love. 2:7 Daughters of Jerusalem…[do] not stir up or awaken love until it pleases. Poem Eight: A Poem of Spring (2:8-17) 2:16 My beloved is mine, and I am his; he grazes among the lilies. The Woman Dreams (3:1-6:3) Poem Nine: Seeking and Not Finding (3:1-5) 3:1 I sought him whom my soul loves; I sought him, but found him not. Poem Ten: A Royal Wedding Procession (3:6-11) Poem Eleven: The Man’s Sensuous Description of the Woman (4:1-7) 4:4 Your neck is like the tower of David, built in rows of stone. Poem Twelve: The Invitation (4:8-9) 4:9 You have captivated my heart, my sister, my bride. Poem Thirteen: Eating in the Garden of Love (4:10-5:1) Poem Fourteen: To Search and Not Find, Again (5:2-6:3) 6:3 I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine; he grazes among the lilies. The Lovers Yearn for Each Other Again (6:4-8:4) Poem Fifteen: Awesome as an Army under Banners (6:4-10) Poem Sixteen: A Surprise in the Nut Grove (6:11-12) Poem Seventeen: A Description of the Dancing Shulammite (6:13-7:10) Poem Eighteen: I Will Give You My Love (7:11-13) Poem Nineteen: Yearning for Love (8:1-4) The Lovers Join in Marriage (8:5-14) Poem Twenty: Like a Seal (8:5-7) 8:6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord. 8:7 Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it. Poem Twenty-One: Protecting the Sister (8:8-10) Poem Twenty-Two: Who Owns the Vineyard? (8:11-12) Poem Twenty-Three: Be Like a Gazelle (8:13-14) —— Bibliography Longman, T., III. (2006). Song of Songs (New International Commentary on the Old Testament). Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans. ESV study Bible: English Standard Version. (2011). Wheaton, IL: Crossway. .