The Song of Songs

The song of songs, which is Solomon's.

-- The Song of Solomon 1: 1 (KJV)

If Solomon had actually written the biblical books wholly or partly ascribed to him (Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, The Song of Solomon, and the Apocryphal Wisdom of Solomon), he wouldn't have had much time to govern Israel, let alone attend to his thousand wives.

But the first verse of this book -- which is actually a superscription or title -- boldly proclaims that this "song of songs" is indeed the king's work, a claim virtually no scholar credits today. The Song of Solomon, while occasionally referring to the king, appears rather to be an anthology of popular Hebrew love lyrics, sung and then written down over a period of centuries.

The construction "song of songs" is a Hebrew superlative, meaning "supreme song," as I explain elsewhere [see Vanity of Vanities]. This description, and the book's acceptance into both the Jewish and Christian canons, has led some to read its lyrics as metaphors of divine love. On the other hand, there are many overt references to sex, and not one to God.

Whatever motivated the compilers of the Bible to include this book, it does help balance out some of the drier material -- the books of Chronicles, for instance. Among the lovely phrases still occasionally quoted are:

• "I am black, but comely" (1: 5) -- the "I" cannot be Solomon, since a woman is singing and "black" refers to the dark complexion of a field-laborer;
• "I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys" (2: 1) -- a verse which, via the Latin Bible, lent the name "lily of the valley" to the Convallaria majalis, an especially beautiful springtime flower;
• "Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples: for I am sick with love" (2: 5) -- actually "Sustain me with raisins, refresh me with apples," etc., in the Hebrew. Raisins and apples were apparently considered mild aphrodisiacs;
• "the voice of the turtle" (2: 12) -- referring to the sweet song of the turtledove in springtime; and,
• "our vines have grown tender grapes" (2: 15) -- namely, the fruits of passion.

Beyond these lines, which testify to the popularity of chapter 2, the entire Song of Solomon has remained over the centuries a rich source of allusions and quotations in Hebrew poetry. Some Jews, too, still sing its verses on the eve of the Sabbath, especially during Passover. This tradition seems to have less to do with the book's holiness than with its beauty, which is undeniable.

 
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Michael Macrone is Associate Site Producer of GraceCom and the author of nine books on language, literature, and ideas, including the best-selling Brush Up Your Shakespeare!