About Song of Solomon

Song of Solomon celebrates romantic love and marriage, while also picturing the love between God and His people.

Author: SolomonWritten: c. 965 BCReading time: ~2 minVerses: 14
LoveBeautyDevotionMarriageDesireCovenant

King James Version

Song of Solomon 8

14 verses with commentary

The Bride Yearns for Her Beloved

O that thou wert as my brother, that sucked the breasts of my mother! when I should find thee without, I would kiss thee; yea, I should not be despised. I should not: Heb. they should not despise me

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>O that thou wert as my brother, that sucked the breasts of my mother!</strong> (מִי יִתֶּנְךָ כְאָח לִי יוֹנֵק שְׁדֵי אִמִּי)—the bride expresses longing for the freedom to show public affection without social constraint. In ancient culture, siblings could show physical affection publicly without scandal, but romantic couples faced restrictions. The Hebrew <em>mi yittenekha</em> (מִי יִתֶּ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

**VIII.** (1) **O that thou wert as my brother.**—The poet makes his beloved recall the feelings she had for him before the obstacles to their union were removed. She dared not then avow her affection for him as a lover, and wished that their relationship had been such as to allow of their meeting and embracing without reproach. Marg., “They (*i.e.*, her family and friends) should not *despise *(*...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**17. Bread ... sweet--**either as unlawfully (Pr 9:17) or easily obtained. **mouth ... gravel--**well expresses the pain and grief given at last.

I would lead thee, and bring thee into my mother's house, who would instruct me: I would cause thee to drink of spiced wine of the juice of my pomegranate.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>I would lead thee, and bring thee into my mother's house, who would instruct me</strong> (אֶנְהָגֲךָ אֲבִיאֲךָ אֶל־בֵּית אִמִּי תְּלַמְּדֵנִי)—the bride imagines bringing her beloved to her mother's house, a place of safety, intimacy, and instruction. The Hebrew <em>enhaghakha</em> (אֶנְהָגֲךָ, I would lead you) and <em>avi'akha</em> (אֲבִיאֲךָ, I would bring you) show active initiative. '...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(2) **Juice of my pomegranate.**—**“**The Orientals,” says Dr. Kitto, “indulge largely in beverages made of fresh juice of various kinds of fruits. Among these, sherbet made of pomegranate juice is particularly esteemed; and from its agreeable and cooling acidity, the present writer was himself accustomed to prefer it to any other drink of this description.” The meaning of the verse is explained b...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

18. (Compare Pr 15:22). Be careful and considerate in important plans.

His left hand should be under my head, and his right hand should embrace me.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>His left hand should be under my head, and his right hand should embrace me</strong> (שְׂמֹאלוֹ תַּחַת לְרֹאשִׁי וִימִינוֹ תְּחַבְּקֵנִי)—this exact phrase appeared earlier in 2:6, demonstrating the Song's recurring themes and the bride's continued delight in intimate embrace. The imagery is tender and protective: the left hand supporting the head, the right hand embracing. The Hebrew <em>...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

19. Those who love to tell news will hardly keep secrets. **flattereth ... lips--**(compare Margin; Pr 1:10). **meddle ... him--**literally, "join," or "associate with."

I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, until he please. that: Heb. why should ye stir up, or, why, etc

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KJV Study Commentary

The bride repeats for the third time: 'I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, until he please.' This final occurrence of the refrain (see 2:7; 3:5) comes near the Song's conclusion, after celebrating covenant love's fullness. The warning remains relevant even in mature relationship: respect love's rhythms, don't force or manipulate. The absence of the oath ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(4) **I charge you.**—See Note, Song of Solomon 2:6-7.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**20. his lamp--**(Compare Pr 13:9; 24:20).

Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved? I raised thee up under the apple tree: there thy mother brought thee forth: there she brought thee forth that bare thee.

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KJV Study Commentary

The scene shifts: 'Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved?' The question 'Who is this' (mi zot, מִי־זֹאת) expresses wonder and admiration. The bride comes 'from the wilderness' (min-hamidbar, מִן־הַמִּדְבָּר)—place of testing, trial, and spiritual formation. The key phrase 'leaning upon her beloved' (mitrappeqet al-dodah, מִתְרַפֶּקֶת עַל־דּוֹדָהּ) describes depen...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(5) **Who is this that cometh.**—This begins a new section, which contains the most magnificent description of true love ever written by poet. The dramatic theory encounters insuperable difficulties with this strophe. Again we presume that the theatre and the spectators are imaginary. It is another sweet reminiscence, coming most naturally and beautifully after the last. The obstacles have been re...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**21. gotten hastily--**contrary to God's providence (Pr 28:20), implying its unjust or easy attainment; hence the man is punished, or spends freely what he got easily (compare Pr 20:17).

Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame. cruel: Heb. hard

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KJV Study Commentary

The bride makes a profound declaration about love's nature: 'Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame.' The seal imagery requests permanent, visible identification—seals in ancient Israel were signet rings or cylinder seals marking ownership, author...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(6) **Seal.**—See Jeremiah 22:24; Haggai 2:23, &c. A symbol of something especially dear and precious. **Jealousy.**—*Strong passion, *from a word meaning *to be red with flame; *not in a bad sense, as the parallelism shows:— “Strong as death is love, Inexorable as Sheol is ardent passion.” **Grave.**—Heb. *sheôl. *Perhaps, as in the LXX., *Hades, *with its figurative gates and bars (Psalm 6:5, No...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

22. (Compare Psa 27:14; Ro 12:17-19).

Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned.

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KJV Study Commentary

Continuing the meditation on love's nature, the bride declares: 'Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned.' This verse presents love's indestructibility and priceless value through two powerful affirmations. First, love's endurance: 'Many waters cannot quench' and 'floods drown it' em...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(7) **It would utterly be contemned.**—Better, *he would be, &c*, and literally, *to despise, they would despise him; *infinitive absolute before finite verb expressing intensity. (Comp. 1Samuel 20:6; Amos 9:8, &c) This fine passage, with its reference to the invincible might and untempted constancy of true love, hardly leaves a doubt that the poem, while an ideal picture of the passion, is also a...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

23. (Compare Pr 20:10; 11:1).

The Bride's Brothers Speak

We have a little sister, and she hath no breasts: what shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for?

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>We have a little sister, and she hath no breasts</strong> (אָחוֹת לָנוּ קְטַנָּה וְשָׁדַיִם אֵין לָהּ)—the bride's brothers speak, expressing concern for their younger sister who hasn't yet matured to marriageable age. The phrase 'no breasts' indicates sexual immaturity—she's still a child, not ready for marriage. <strong>What shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(8) **We have a little sister.**—Commentators are almost all at one in the feeling that the poem properly ends with Song of Solomon 8:7. Those who construct the poem on the plan of a drama can find no proper place for what follows (unless as a meaningless epilogue), and the want of cohesion with the main body of the work is so evident that many scholars have rejected it as a later addition; others...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**24. Man's goings--**literally, "Stately steppings of a strong man." **a man--**any common man. **understand--**or, "perceive."

If she be a wall, we will build upon her a palace of silver: and if she be a door, we will inclose her with boards of cedar.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>If she be a wall, we will build upon her a palace of silver</strong> (אִם־חוֹמָה הִיא נִבְנֶה עָלֶיהָ טִירַת כָּסֶף)—the brothers propose two scenarios based on the younger sister's character. If she's a 'wall' (<em>chomah</em>, חוֹמָה), meaning firm, strong, chaste, resistant to improper advances, they will honor her by building a 'palace of silver' (<em>tirat kasef</em>, טִירַת כָּסֶף)—a...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(9) **If she be a wall.**—The *wall *and *door *are emblems of chastity and its opposite. The *palace of silver *some commentators explain by reference to the custom (among the Druses) of wearing an ornament like a horn on the head. But this is unlikely. The metaphors of the *wall *and *door *are naturally expanded. If the maiden grows up virtuous and inaccessible to seduction *we will build upon ...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**25. devoureth ... holy--**or, better, "who rashly speaks promises," or "devotes what is holy," consecrating any thing. This suits better the last clause, which expresses a similar view of the results of rashly vowing.

I am a wall, and my breasts like towers: then was I in his eyes as one that found favour. favour: Heb. peace

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>I am a wall, and my breasts like towers</strong> (אֲנִי חוֹמָה וְשָׁדַי כַּמִּגְדָּלוֹת)—the younger sister responds confidently to her brothers' concern (verse 8-9). She declares herself a 'wall' (<em>chomah</em>, חוֹמָה)—strong, chaste, resistant to improper advances. Her breasts 'like towers' (<em>kamigdalot</em>, כַּמִּגְדָּלוֹת) indicate she has matured to womanhood and strength. Towe...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(10) **I am a wall **. . .—The heroine interrupts with a protestation of her purity, and of her right to marry, being of age, and conscious of being beloved.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

26. (Compare Pr 20:8). **bringeth ... over them--**The wheel was used for threshing grain. The figure denotes severity (compare Am 1:3).

Solomon's Vineyard

Solomon had a vineyard at Baalhamon; he let out the vineyard unto keepers; every one for the fruit thereof was to bring a thousand pieces of silver.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon; he let out the vineyard unto keepers</strong> (כֶּרֶם הָיָה לִשְׁלֹמֹה בְּבַעַל הָמוֹן נָתַן אֶת־הַכֶּרֶם לַנֹּטְרִים)—the bride introduces a parable about Solomon's vineyard. Baal-hamon (בַּעַל הָמוֹן) means 'possessor of multitude' or 'master of wealth,' possibly a place name or symbolic of Solomon's vast holdings. Solomon leased his vineyard to keep...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(11, 12) **Solomon had a vineyard . . .**—Here the poet repeats the sentiment of Song of Solomon 6:8-9—the contrast of his love for one chosen bride with the state of feeling and morality fostered by polygamy. But while in the former passage the contrast lay in number only, here it lies also in the *value *which comes to be set on the possession. Any one member of the harem of Solomon is no dearer...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**27. The spirit ... Lord--**Men's minds are God's gifts, and thus able to search one another (compare Pr 20:5; Pr 18:8, 17; 1Co 2:11).

My vineyard, which is mine, is before me: thou, O Solomon, must have a thousand, and those that keep the fruit thereof two hundred.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>My vineyard, which is mine, is before me</strong> (כַּרְמִי שֶׁלִּי לְפָנָי)—the bride declares ownership and agency over her own vineyard (herself). Earlier (1:6) she lamented, 'mine own vineyard have I not kept.' Now she confidently presents her vineyard (her life, her sexuality, her whole self) to her beloved. The phrase <em>lefanai</em> (לְפָנָי, before me) suggests she's in control, p...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(12) **Thou, O Solomon **. . .*—i.e., *“Let Solomon keep and enjoy his possessions (his harem of mercenary beauties), which cost so much to obtain and keep; I am happier in the secure love of my one true wife.” The mention of “two hundred to the keepers of the fruit” seems added to show the cost of a polygamous establishment on a great scale.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

28. (Compare Pr 3:3; 16:6, 12).

Thou that dwellest in the gardens, the companions hearken to thy voice: cause me to hear it.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Thou that dwellest in the gardens, the companions hearken to thy voice: cause me to hear it</strong> (הַיּוֹשֶׁבֶת בַּגַּנִּים חֲבֵרִים מַקְשִׁיבִים לְקוֹלֵךְ הַשְׁמִיעִינִי)—the bridegroom addresses the bride who 'dwells in the gardens' (<em>hayoshevet bagannim</em>, הַיּוֹשֶׁבֶת בַּגַּנִּים), recalling earlier garden imagery (4:12-5:1; 6:2). The 'companions' (<em>chaverim</em>, חֲבֵרִים)...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(13) **Thou that dwellest.**—In Song of Solomon 8:13 we have another brief reminiscence of the early days of courtship, when the lover envied every one near the maiden, the companions who could see and hear her, and sighed for tokens of affection which she lavished on them.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**29. The glory of young men ... the beauty of old men--**Each age has its peculiar excellence (Pr 16:31).

Make haste, my beloved, and be thou like to a roe or to a young hart upon the mountains of spices. Make: Heb. Flee away

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KJV Study Commentary

The Song concludes with the bride's invitation: 'Make haste, my beloved, and be thou like to a roe or to a young hart upon the mountains of spices.' The imperative 'make haste' (Hebrew 'berah,' בְּרַח, flee quickly/hurry) expresses urgent longing for the beloved's arrival. The comparison to 'a roe or a young hart' (gazelle or young deer) echoes earlier imagery (2:9, 17)—these animals are swift, gr...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(14) **Make haste, my beloved.**—Song of Solomon 8:14 recalls the answer made at last to the sighs. It repeats the metaphor of Song of Solomon 2:17, where we see that the Authorised Version, *make haste, *is more correct than the margin. Thus the poem ends with two short verses that compress into them all that has been over and over again related under different figures: the wooing and the wedding...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**30. blueness--**literally, "joining," the process of uniting the edges of a wound throws off purulent matter. **stripes ... belly--**So punishment provides healing of soul (Pr 18:8), by deterring from evil courses.

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