Song of Solomon 6

STANZA OF MODERN Mutual Delight in Each OtherThe Shulammites Troubled (Son 5:2 to Son 6:3)The Woman’s Search (Son 5:2 to Son 6:3)The Fourth Song (Son 5:2 to Son 6:3)Fourth Poem (Son 5:2 to Son 6:3)Son 6:1(The Daughters of Jerusalem)Son 6:1 Son 6:1(The Woman)Son 6:1(Chorus)Son 6:1 Son 6:2-3(The Shulammite)Son 6:2-3 Son 6:2-3(The Woman)Son 6:2-3(Beloved)Son 6:2 Son 6:3 Son 6:4-9 Praise of the Shulammite’s Beauty (The Beloved)Son 6:4-7 The Man’s Song of Praise Son 6:4-10 The Fifth Song (The Man)(Son 6:4 to Son 8:4)Fifth Poem (Son 6:4 to Son 8:4)(Lover)Son 6:10 Son 6:10-12 (The Shulammite)6:11-12 The Woman Visits the Garden Son 6:11-12 Son 6:11-12 Son 6:13 -b(The Beloved and His Friend)Son 6:13 -bPraise of the Woman and Her Promise of Love (Son 6:13 to Son 8:4)(The Women)Son 6:13 -b(Chorus)Son 6:13 -bSon 6:13 -d(The Shulammite)Son 6:13 -dSon_6:13(The Woman)Son 6:13 -d(Lover)Son 6:13 -d [Son 7:1]READING CYCLE THREE (see “”) THE AUTHOR’S INTENT AT LEVELThis is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator. Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects (reading cycle #3). Compare your subject divisions with the four translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired, but it is the key to following the original author’s intent, which is the heart of interpretation. Every paragraph has one and only one subject.

1. First paragraph
2. Second paragraph
3. Third paragraph
4. Etc.

Song of Solomon 6:1

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Son 6:1 1”Where has your beloved gone, O most beautiful among women? Where has your beloved turned, That we may seek him with you?” Son 6:1 This is a continuation of the two questions made to the maiden by “the daughters of Jerusalem”:

1. Son 5:9, answered in Son 5:10-162. Son 6:1, answered in Son 6:2-3 The fourth love poem runs from Son 5:2 through Son 6:3. It must be remembered that the chapter and verse divisions of modern Bibles are not inspired. Although some ancient Greek Uncial manuscripts have some textual markers for context divisions in the Gospels, most of the modern markers are from the Middle Ages! Compare modern translations to see the options. ? “That we may seek him with you” This (BDB 134, KB 152) is a Piel used in a sense. Again the identification of the group is uncertain. If it is the harem the reunion will be crowded!

Song of Solomon 6:2-3

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Son 6:2-3 2”My beloved has gone down to his garden, To the beds of balsam, To pasture his flock in the gardens And gather lilies. 3I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine, He who pastures his flock among the lilies.” Son 6:2 “to his garden” This seems to refer to the Shulammite maiden herself (cf. Son 4:12-16; Son 5:2). This is a euphemism for lovemaking. Son 6:3 “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine” She asserts her trust in him and his faithfulness (cf. Son 2:16; Son 7:10). This surely does not fit Solomon.

Song of Solomon 6:4-9

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Son 6:4-9 4”You are as beautiful as Tirzah, my darling, As lovely as Jerusalem, As awesome as an army with banners. 5Turn your eyes away from me, For they have confused me; Your hair is like a flock of goats That have descended from Gilead. 6Your teeth are like a flock of ewes Which have come up from their washing, All of which bear twins, And not one among them has lost her young. 7Your temples are like a slice of a pomegranate Behind your veil. 8There are sixty queens and eighty concubines, And maidens without number; 9But my dove, my perfect one, is unique: She is her mother’s only daughter; She is the pure child of the one who bore her. The maidens saw her and called her blessed, The queens and the concubines also, and they praised her, saying, Son 6:4 to Son 8:4 The fifth love poem runs from Son 6:4 through Son 8:4. As you can see from the first page of this chapter, there are several ways to divide the man’s poems regarding the maiden’s beauty:

1. NASB, TEV, Son 6:4-122. NKJV, Son 6:4-123. NRSV, Son 6:4-124. NJB, Son 6:4-12 The repetition of Son 6:4, line 3 at Son 6:10, line 4 seems to mark off a literary unit (cf. NRSV). Son 6:4 “Tirzah” This is the capital of the Northern Kingdom (Israel) before the reign of Omri (cf. 1 Kings 14:17). The word in Hebrew (BDB 953) means “delight” or “pleasant.” It may be a metaphor, a geographical location, or both! She is distinctive, like a royal city. ? “As awesome as an army with banners” This is a very unusual and doubtful phrase that is repeated in Son 6:10. The term translated “awesome” is literally “terrible” (BDB 33, Exodus 15:16; Exodus 23:27, e.g., Job 33:7; Proverbs 20:2), but is used here in the sense of awesome or awe-inspiring. The second term is a VERBAL , found only here and in Psalms 20:6. It denotes the setting up or carrying of military banners as a show of strength. It seems to denote security or majesty. The TEV follows an Akkadian root meaning “look” (cf. UBS, Handbook for Translators, p. 177). This root used in Son 5:10 (KB 213 I and KB 213 II) is found here and Psalms 20:6. The NET Bible has an interesting interpretation based on the parallelism of Son 6:10. It translates the phrase “as an army with banners” as “as the stars in procession,” thus making a fourfold allusion to objects in the sky. It is surely true that stars are often personified (cf. NIDOTTE, vol. 2, p. 613). The problem comes when this first use of the phrase (Son 6:4) does not fit this parallelism. Son 6:5NASB “Turn your eyes away from me, They have confused me” NKJV “Turn your eyes away from me, For they have overcome me” NRSV “Turn away your eyes from me” For they overwhelm me” TEV “Turn your eyes away from me; They are holding me captive” NJB “Turn your eyes away from me, They take me by assault” The VERB in the first line is Hiphil (BDB 685, KB 738). It denotes urgency! This is surprising because it is addressed to the maiden. It must be used metaphorically and not at all related to the concept of “the evil eye.” The VERB of the second line is also a Hiphil (BDB 923, KB 1192, Hiphil PERFECT), which normally means “act like a storm” or “be boisterous” (cf. Isaiah 3:5), but again that does not fit this context (words only have meaning in contexts). There have been several theories:
2. alarm me
3. awe me
4. disturb me
5. confuse me
6. embolden me (Psalms 138:3)
7. harry me
8. arouse me
9. tremble (Akkadian root) Apparently when she looks at him it causes a tremendous emotional reaction in him (cf. Son 4:9). He cannot keep his mind on anything else. She totally distracts him from his duties and responsibilities! He is helpless (love sick, cf. Son 5:8, line 4) while in her gaze! Son 6:5-7 This is very similar to Son 4:1-6. Son 6:8 “There are sixty queens and eighty concubines, And maidens without number” This seems to refer to a harem. It may be another allusion to Solomon. Is it meant to refer to him directly? I would say no (cf. UBS, Handbook for Translators, p. 180). I think it is an aspect of Hebrew wedding poems which are related to both Egyptian love poems and Arab love poems from Syria. This may be “the daughters of Jerusalem” of Son 5:9; Son 6:1. It is difficult to be certain who is speaking:
10. the chorus, harem, or court women a. are the same group, Son 6:1; Son 6:8b. speak again in Son 6:13, lines 1 and 2
11. the maiden answers them in Son 6:2-3 and possibly Son 6:11-123. the man’s love poem begins in Son 6:4 and runs through Son 6:9 or Son 6:12. He then responds to the group’s comments (Son 6:13, lines 1-2) in Son 6:13, lines 3 and 4 This is all conjecture. There are no textual markers except:
12. gender change
13. subject change
14. the flow of context The “queens” (BDB 573) refers to political marriages, while the “concubines” (BDB 811) are legal sexual partners with limited rights and limited inheritance rights for their children. The “maidens” (BDB 761, “young women of marriageable age”) are attendants to the queens. Son 6:9 “my dove, my perfect one” This affectionate phrase is first used in Son 5:2. There may be large harems, but for this man there is but one special lover (the maiden from the north). She is special to him as she was to her mother (Son 6:9, lines 2 and 3). This specialness is even acknowledged by other women (Son 6:9, lines 4 and 5). NASB “is unique” NKJV, NRSV “is the only one” NJB “my only one” This is first in the sentence. It (BDB 25) is used of the uniqueness and oneness of YHWH in Deuteronomy 6:4. ? “She is the pure child” A better translation would be “she is the favorite child.” The term (BDB 141 II, KB 153 II) means “pure,” “clean” (i.e., Psalms 19:9; Psalms 24:4; Psalms 73:1), but it takes on an added connotation of “chosen” (i.e., 1 Chronicles 7:40; 1 Chronicles 9:22; 1 Chronicles 16:41; Nehemiah 5:18). She is not the only daughter, but the special daughter (cf. “the choice,” LXX). ? “the maidens” Literally this is “daughters” (BDB 123 I). This seems to refer to “the daughters of Jerusalem” (cf. Son 5:8-9; Son 6:1; Son 6:13). The word in Son 6:8 translated “maidens” (BDB 761) is different from the one in Son 6:9 (BDB 123 I). ? “The queens and the concubines also” The NASB implies that Son 6:10-12 are a response from the harem, but this is not at all certain from the Hebrew text. ? “they praised her” This VERB was also used to praise the physical beauty of
15. Sarai, Genesis 12:152. Absalom, 2 Samuel 14:25

Song of Solomon 6:10-12

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Son 6:10-12 10”‘Who is this that grows like the dawn, As beautiful as the full moon, As pure as the sun, As awesome as an army with banners?’ 11I went down to the orchard of nut trees To see the blossoms of the valley, To see whether the vine had budded Or the pomegranates had bloomed. 12Before I was aware, my soul set me Over the chariots of my noble people.” Son 6:10-13 These verses are extremely difficult to interpret and no satisfactory interpretation has been proposed. ? It is uncertain who is speaking in these verses:

1. the man
2. the women of Son 6:8-93. the chorus (NASB)
3. the man’s friends (NKJV) The NASB has
4. Son 6:1-12, the man
5. Son 6:13, lines 1-2, the chorus
6. Son 6:13, lines 3-4, the man The NKJV has
7. Son 6:10, the man
8. Son 6:11-12, the maiden
9. Son 6:13, lines 1-2, the man and his friends
10. Son 6:13, lines 3-4, the maiden Son 6:10 This verse uses celestial objects and events to describe the woman’s beauty:
11. looks down like the dawn
12. beautiful as the full moon
13. pure as the sun She caught everyone’s attention! She radiated light! Son 6:11 The metaphors from the garden appear again:
14. orchard of nut trees (rare term, the UBS Helps for Translators, “Fauna and Flora of the Bible,” asserts that “nut” refers to a walnut, pp. 163, 193)
15. blossoms of the valley
16. budded vine
17. bloomed pomegranates These all imply a readiness for love (i.e. Spring, cf. Son 7:12-13) Son 6:12 This is a strange verse, especially the last line! NASB “over the chariots of my noble people” NKJV “as the chariots of my noble people” NRSV “in a chariot beside my prince” TEV “as a chariot drive is for battle” NJB “onto the chariots of Amminadib” JPSOA “Mid the chariots of Ammi-nadib” No one knows what this means! There are many theories, but none fits well.

Song of Solomon 6:13

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Son 6:13 -d 13-d”Why should you gaze at the Shulammite, As at the dance of the two companies? Son 6:13 cNASB, NRSV “the Shulammite” NKJV “the Shulamite” TEV, NJB “girl of Shulam” JPSOA “maid of Shulem” There have been several theories about the meaning of this NOUN with the ARTICLE:

1. a description of the maiden, coming from the Hebrew root (view of the rabbis) a. “to be perfect” b. “to be peaceful”
2. Possibly “Solomon’s girl” ( ending on a name)
3. Possibly from a place: a. Shulam or Shunem (cf. BDB 1002, LXX, 1 Kings 1:15) b. place unknown
4. KB 1442 suggests as an option: “she who has been substituted”
5. Cultic origin from ancient Near East (most unlikely): a. Canaanite moon goddess b. Mesopotamian war/love goddess The first or third option fits the context best. ? “the dance of the two companies” This is a very uncertain phrase! Several theories have been postulated:
6. it is a proper name, “Mahanaim,” RSV (cf. Genesis 32:2)
7. “as bands of armies,” Septuagint
8. “dancers of the camps,” Vulgate
9. “between two rows of dancers,” NJB and NEB
10. “the scene of two armies fighting,” NIDOTTE, vol. 2, p. 919

This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator. These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought provoking, not definitive.

1. Is the affair between Solomon and this maiden extra-marital, or are there flashbacks throughout this book?
2. What is so unusual about Son 5:7?
3. Why is Son 5:3 so unusual in the context of this book?
4. Does Son 6:8 refer to Solomon’s harem?