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6:1 Where has your beloved gone In Song 5:9, the daughters of Jerusalem asked why the woman’s beloved was worth seeking. Now, after she has described him, they express their desire to seek him with her.
6:2–3 In this short poem, the woman describes sexual intimacy with the man. As she describes their intimacy, the woman emphasizes that they completely belong to each other. |
6:2 to his garden Likely a euphemism for sexual union. See note on 4:12.
6:3 I belong to my beloved Nearly identical to 2:16.
6:4–10 In this section, the man describes the woman’s beauty. Many of his descriptions echo 4:1–7. This section also includes the responses of other women as they praise her for her perfect beauty. |
6:4 beautiful, my beloved, as Tirzah The man compares the woman’s appearance to two cities: Tirzah and Jerusalem. Tirzah was the capital of the northern kingdom circa 920–880 bc (1 Kgs 15:33). Jerusalem was the capital of the southern kingdom and of united Israel.
Tirzah EDB
Jerusalem EDB
6:5 Turn away your eyes from before me In an earlier description of her beauty, the man compared the woman’s eyes to doves (Song 4:1). Here, he is so overwhelmed by them that he asks her to turn away.
6:6 there is none bereaved among them A mouth full of perfect, healthy teeth was rare in the ancient world. See note on 4:2.
6:8 Sixty queens there are, eighty concubines, and maidens The man lists three royal classes of women to show the superiority of his woman. The numbers are likely irrelevant, and are simply given for parallelism (60 to 80 to innumerable).
Concubines
were considered the king’s secondary wives; their status was below that of the queen. The Hebrew word used here, almah (often translated “virgin” or “maiden”), refers to any unmarried woman. Here, the virgins were likely young female royal attendants. The women described here occupied positions of privilege, and were most likely beautiful.
Parallelism in Hebrew Poetry Table
6:9 my perfect The man emphasizes the unique superiority of his woman. The repeating of the Hebrew word echad (“one”) in the verse emphasizes that she is a one-of-a-kind beauty.
the favorite of her mother who bore her Could indicate that the woman was favored by her mother. A contrast can be seen in the foolish son who is “bitter” to her who bore him (Prov 17:25).
praise her The woman’s beauty is not just extolled by the man; even the queens and concubines praise her.
6:10 Who is this This verse most likely presents the praise given by the women of 6:9 toward the woman. They compare her radiant beauty to the dawn, moon, and sun.
6:11–12 The speaker in these verses is unclear. Also, the Hebrew phrasing used in Song 6:12 is very difficult, which means that an exact translation cannot be rendered. The scene seems to present some kind of rendezvous between the man and woman in a garden setting. It could be real or imaginary, like the woman’s search for the man in 3:1–5.
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6:11 the orchard of the walnut trees This Hebrew word occurs only here and in Esther, where it refers to a royal palace garden (Esth 1:5; 7:7–8).
6:13 O Shulammite This term only appears here in the ot. It may be a feminine form of the name Solomon—implying a woman affiliated with him. It could also be a name associating the woman with Shunem, a town in the tribe of Issachar (Josh 19:17–18; 1 Kgs 1:3–4).
Shulammite AYBD
Shulammite ZEB Q—Z
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About Faithlife Study BibleFaithlife Study Bible (FSB) is your guide to the ancient world of the Old and New Testaments, with study notes and articles that draw from a wide range of academic research. FSB helps you learn how to think about interpretation methods and issues so that you can gain a deeper understanding of the text. |
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