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For so long, I could not grasp the Song of Songs. I examined the original Hebrew, traced the personal pronouns, and followed the subjects of the verbs. Who is speaking to whom? Where do the voices change? I kept working through the text. Yet I still could not understand what was being written. Some readers told me they could not understand it either. But to be truthful, the one who understood it least was me. Would this book remain a troubling mystery to the very end? That wa

Song of Songs 1:11 During the little “idle time” before this verse, I decided to add one more perspective as I walk through the Song of Songs: “Let’s follow the movement of the subject.” Who is speaking? Who is being spoken to? Is it singular or plural?And where does the subject change? Now, verse 11. “We will make for you ornaments of gold,studded with silver.” Let’s look at the Hebrew. תּוֹרֵי זָהָב נַעֲשֶׂה־לָּךְעִם נְקֻדּוֹת הַכָּסֶף （torei zahav naʿaseh-lakh ʿim nequddot

Before moving on to Song of Songs 1:11, let’s take a little idle time. When I first began walking through the Song of Songs, I decided on one direction: “Let’s follow the grammatical persons.” Who is speaking?Who is being spoken to? Is it “I”?“You”?“We”? Just as I promised, I’ve been following these shifts in person as I’ve walked this far. Meanwhile, in our morning live sessions, I’ve been sharing observations from Genesis 3. And there, I keep being confronted by the movemen

“Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments, your neck with strings of jewels.” — Song of Songs 1:10 נָאוּ לְחָיַיִךְ בַּתֹּרִים (naʾwu leḥayayikh battorim) צַוָּארֵךְ בַּחֲרוּזִים (tsavvarekh baḥaruzim) This becomes interesting when I slow down and look carefully. נָאוּ　 　　(naʾwu) 　　 “are beautiful / are lovely” לְחָיַיִךְ　　 　　(leḥayayikh) 　　 “your cheeks” בַּתֹּרִים　　 　　(battorim) 　　 “with ornaments / with rows of ornaments” And then, צַוָּארֵךְ　　 　　(tsavvarekh) 　　 “your neck

“I compare you, my love, to a mare among Pharaoh’s chariots.” — Song of Songs 1:9 לְסֻסָתִי בְּרִכְבֵי פַרְעֹה (Le-susati berikhvei Far‘oh) “To a mare among Pharaoh’s chariots” דִּמִּיתִיךְ רַעְיָתִי (Dimmithikh ra‘yati) “I have compared you, my beloved.” She had been calling out to him all along. And then, in verse 9, a voice calls out to her. ...or so I thought. And then suddenly— “I compare you to a mare among Pharaoh’s chariots.” What?! The Song of Songs really doesn

“O most beautiful among women, if you do not know, go out, following the tracks of the flock, and pasture your young goats beside the dwellings of the shepherds.” (Song of Songs 1:8, translated from the Japanese New Japanese Bible 2017) In verse 7, she asked, “Tell me, please.” “Where do you pasture your flock?” Then we come to verse 8. This time, an answer comes back. The Hebrew Text אִם־לֹא תֵדְעִי לָךְ (im-lo tede‘i lakh) “If you do not know,” הַיָּפָה בַּנָּשִׁים (ha

“Tell me, you whom my soul loves, Where do you pasture your flock? Where do you make it lie down at noon? For why should I be like one who veils herself Beside the flocks of your companions?” (Song of Songs 1:7, translated from the Japanese New Japanese Bible 2017) (My walk through the Song of Songs keeps wandering along without a clear path. Just when I think, “I’ve caught hold of the pronouns!” they slip right through my fingers again. Maybe this is part of what makes t

(With the Japanese New Revised Bible 2017 beside me as I read.) In verse 5, the woman said, “I am dark, but beautiful.” But when we open verse 6, we find: אַל־תִּרְאוּנִי (al-tir’uni) “Do not look at me.” What? You just said you were beautiful—and now, “Don’t look at me”? Let’s look at the Hebrew. אַל־תִּרְאוּנִי שֶׁאֲנִי שְׁחַרְחֹרֶת (al-tir’uni she’ani sheharhoret) “Do not look at me because I am dark.” 　　　　אַל　　　　 　　　　　　“do not” תִּרְאוּ　　　　　 　　　　　　“you [plural] look” ־נִי

“O daughters of Jerusalem, I am dark but lovely, like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon.” (Song of Songs 1:5) In verse 4, for the first time, הַמֶּלֶךְ (hammelekh) “the king” appeared. Then we open verse 5 and find: כִּירִיעוֹת שְׁלֹמֹה (kiri'ot shelomoh) “like the curtains of Solomon” Here appears the proper name, שְׁלֹמֹה (Shelomoh) — Solomon Ah, so the king really is Solomon!! But when we move closer and look again, what is actually written is not Solomon

“The fragrance of your perfume is pleasing; your name is like perfume poured out. Therefore the young women love you.” It begins with: יִשָּׁקֵנִי “Let him kiss me.” Immediately after that: מִנְּשִׁיקוֹת פִּיהוּ “with the kisses of his mouth” Here, the body comes into view. him👉his mouth Then: כִּי־טוֹבִים דֹּדֶיךָ “For your love is…” The “him” who was spoken of in the third person suddenly becomes “you,” the second person. him👉his mouth👉 you Then comes verse 3: לְרֵיחַ