“What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?”
The daughters of Jerusalem respond by asking how the beloved's lover is distinguished from other lovers, what makes him so special that they should help her seek him, establishing the community as requiring justification for their intervention. The community's question challenges the beloved to articulate what makes her beloved worthy of such complete devotion and suffering, suggesting that authentic love must be able to defend itself and articulate the beloved's distinctive worth. The daughters of Jerusalem implicitly suggest that the beloved should be able to describe her lover in such a way that his superiority is evident and his location becomes possible. This verse theologically suggests that authentic love can be articulated and defended, and that the beloved's commitment must be able to withstand community scrutiny.
COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS
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