Christianity
Song of Solomon 1Better Than Wine
Summary
Song of Solomon 1 opens with the title, the song of songs, which is Solomon's, and plunges into a woman's longing: let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth. She asks to be drawn after her beloved, the king. She tells the daughters of Jerusalem she is dark but lovely, darkened by the sun while tending her brothers' vineyards. The lovers exchange praise, comparing each other to a mare among Pharaoh's chariots, myrrh and henna blossoms, under a roof of cedar.
Key verse
“Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth: for thy love is better than wine.”
Song of Solomon 1:2
Themes
- Longing
- Mutual Praise
- Beauty
- Desire
Text
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 well-beloved unto me; he shall lie all night betwixt my breasts.
My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphire in the vineyards of Engedi.
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.
Text: King James Version (1611/1769), public domain.
Across traditions
Judaism
Song of Songs 1 (JPS 1917): The Allegory of God and IsraelClassical Jewish interpretation, including the Aramaic Targum and the midrash Song of Songs Rabbah, reads the poem as an allegory of the love between God and Israel, with the Targum mapping it onto Israel's history from the exodus onward.
Christianity
Hosea 2: I Will Allure HerHosea 2 portrays God as a husband who will allure Israel into the wilderness, speak tenderly to her and betroth her for ever. Its marriage imagery is one reason Jewish and Christian readers found an allegory of divine love in the Song.
Islam
Surah Ar-Rum (30): Love and Mercy Between SpousesQuran 30:21 counts among God's signs that he created mates so that people may find rest in them, and placed love and mercy between them. Like the Song, it treats human love as a good gift, though in far more restrained language.
Questions about Song of Solomon 1
Who wrote the Song of Solomon?
Song of Solomon 1:1 links it to Solomon, and tradition has often credited him. The Hebrew phrase can mean by, for or about Solomon, and many scholars see it as a later anthology of love poems.
Why is it called the Song of Songs?
The Hebrew title shir hashirim is a superlative meaning the greatest or most excellent song, like holy of holies or king of kings.
What does I am black, but comely mean?
In Song of Solomon 1:5 to 6 the woman says she is dark yet lovely because the sun has darkened her while she worked in the vineyards. Translations vary between black and comely or dark and lovely.