My Beloved — Song of Songs 1:9
“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’t make this an easy walk. (◎_◎;)
First, I’ll simply put down what the text says.
In verse 8:
“O most beautiful among women.”
And in verse 9:
“A mare among Pharaoh’s chariots.”
A beautiful woman is compared to a mare.
And not just any mare.
A mare among Pharaoh’s chariots.
That is what the text says.
And this is where my hand stops.
...But why Pharaoh??
Not simply “chariots,” but “Pharaoh’s chariots.”
Not a shepherd’s chariots.
Not a king’s chariots.
Pharaoh.
When I hear “Pharaoh,” the scene from Exodus 14 also comes to mind.
Pharaoh’s chariots pursuing Israel.
Chariot after chariot coming after them.
And there, in the middle of Pharaoh’s chariot force—
one mare.
The greater the force surrounding her,
the more that single mare seems to stand out.
...Is the text really saying something like that?
Here, I’ll borrow just one scene from outside the text.
There is an ancient Egyptian account in which a mare was released among a chariot
force, threatening to throw the stallions into disorder.
If something of that scene echoes here in verse 9,
perhaps she is not simply “beautiful.”
Her very presence is enough to make the chariot force lose its composure.
...What?
But from here on, I’m looking at a borrowed scene.
The Song itself does not explain why it says “Pharaoh.”
So I’ll just circle the word
and leave it there.
Come to think of it,
there was a “king” back in verse 4.
1:4 — “The king has brought me into his chambers.”
1:7 — “Tell me, where do you pasture your flock?”
1:9 — “A mare among Pharaoh’s chariots.”
King → the world of shepherds → Pharaoh.
Once again, language suggesting a world of great power has appeared.
It adds another layer to something I noticed earlier:
“I thought he was a king, and now he’s tending sheep.”
Just when we seemed to have stepped out of the royal chambers and into the fields,
now we find ourselves among Pharaoh’s chariots.
The Song still won’t let me get a firm hold on him.
And apparently,
it won’t even let me get a firm hold on the scenery.
For now,
I’ll just circle “Pharaoh” with my pencil.
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