Song of Solomon 1

The song of songs, which is Solomon’s.

Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth: for thy love is better than wine.

Because of the savour of thy good ointments thy name is as ointment poured forth, therefore do the virgins love thee.

Draw me, we will run after thee: the king hath brought me into his chambers: we will be glad and rejoice in thee, we will remember thy love more than wine: the upright love thee.

I am black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon.

Look not upon me, because I am black, because the sun hath looked upon me: my mother’s children were angry with me; they made me the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept.

Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions?

If thou know not, O thou fairest among women, go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock, and feed thy kids beside the shepherds’ tents.

I have compared thee, O my love, to a company of horses in Pharaoh’s chariots.

Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels, thy neck with chains of gold.

We will make thee borders of gold with studs of silver.

While the king sitteth at his table, my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof.

A bundle of myrrh is my wellbeloved unto me; he shall lie all night betwixt my breasts.

My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphire in the vineyards of En–gedi.

Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves’ eyes.

Behold, thou art fair, my beloved, yea, pleasant: also our bed is green.

The beams of our house are cedar, and our rafters of fir.

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Song of Solomon 1:13

“A bundle of myrrh is my wellbeloved unto me; he shall lie all night betwixt my breasts.”

Study Summary

The beloved describes her lover as a sachet of myrrh that lies between her breasts, intimately close to her heart and body, suggesting that the lover's presence is both cherished and incorporated into her most intimate self. Myrrh, associated with death, funerary rites, and the anointing of bodies, carries connotations of both loss and sacred consecration, suggesting that erotic love encompasses vulnerability to loss and mortality. The placement between the breasts establishes the beloved's body as the space where the lover resides, transforming her physical form into a shrine or dwelling-place. This verse theologically suggests that love involves a kind of sacred indwelling, wherein the beloved body becomes the locus of the lover's presence and importance, resonating with incarnational theology wherein the divine indwells the material world.

Community Reflections

Sarah Okafor (test user)7h ago

Mercy and justice — Song of Solomon 1

Today it speaks comfort; a year ago it spoke conviction.. Reading the Psalms alongside this gives a fuller picture of what the author was experiencing — both the anguish and the hope.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. Faith isn't the absence of doubt — it's choosing to believe despite it.. Today it speaks comfort; a year ago it spoke conviction.. Faith isn't the absence of doubt — it's choosing to believe despite it.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. Today it speaks comfort; a year ago it spoke conviction.. It implies covenant loyalty, steadfast love that never wavers.. Now I understand why — it's a daily declaration of dependence on God.. Now I understand why — it's a daily declaration of dependence on God.. This connects directly to the promise made to Abraham. I think this is a call to trust beyond what…

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