שִׁיר הַשִּׁירִים אֲשֶׁר לִשְׁלֹמֹה
The song of songs, the most special of poems, which is Solomon’s. Solomon king of Israel is said to have composed a great number of poems.
יִשָּׁקֵנִי מִנְּשִׁיקוֹת פִּיהוּ כִּי־טוֹבִים דֹּדֶיךָ מִיָּיִן
The poem opens without identifying its speaker, but its grammatical context, which addresses a male beloved, leaves no doubt that these are the words of a young woman: May he kiss me with the kisses of his mouth, as your love is better than wine. Alternatively: The wetness of your mouth is better than wine. The speaker’s transition from employing third person pronouns to directly addressing her subject likely alludes to a process in which passionate fantasies feel more and more real, eventually giving the impression that the beloved is present even if he is not.
לְרֵיחַ שְׁמָנֶיךָ טוֹבִים שֶׁמֶן תּוּרַק שְׁמֶךָ עַל־כֵּן עֲלָמוֹת אֲהֵבוּךָ
The woman continues to praise her beloved: By the fragrance of your good oils, even your name is pleasant like poured oil [shemen turak], and therefore, the young women love you. The young woman speaks not only of love for her partner and a yearning for personal closeness to him, but also of her admiration for him, noting that he is loved by all.
מָשְׁכֵנִי אַחֲרֶיךָ נָרוּצָה הֱבִיאַנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ חֲדָרָיו נָגִילָה וְנִשְׂמְחָה בָּךְ נַזְכִּירָה דֹדֶיךָ מִיַּיִן מֵישָׁרִים אֲהֵבוּךָ
Draw me; after you we will run together. The verse portrays a budding romance: The young man woos the young woman, and she takes hold of his hand and runs with him. However, they do not run aimlessly: The king brought me to his private chambers. At this point, another layer is added to the poem, as the woman discovers that her beloved is no ordinary man but the king himself. Although the beloved will sometimes be described as a shepherd, perhaps the king prefers to appear as a simple man rather than a ruler when courting his loved one. However, when they finally run together, the king takes her specifically to his palace chambers. Alternatively, in the eyes of the woman, her beloved shepherd is a king, and she feels like a queen whose groom, the king, is leading her to his home. This motif does not seem typical of a love poem. It reveals another layer of meaning: The soul, which until now has wandered in the familiar outside world, finds itself inside the chamber of the beloved king. There let us exult and rejoice in you. We will recount your love, which is sweeter and more intoxicating than wine. Rightly [meisharim] do they love you, or upright individuals love you.
שְׁחוֹרָה אֲנִי וְנָאוָה בְּנוֹת יְרוּשָׁלִָם כְּאָהֳלֵי קֵדָר כִּירִיעוֹת שְׁלֹמֹה
The woman declares: I am black but lovely, daughters of Jerusalem. The city of Jerusalem serves as the backdrop for the poem. I am black like the tents of the tribes of Kedar. These tents were made from the wool of the local goats, which were typically black, like the curtains of Solomon, which were most splendid, and perhaps also black. The woman’s black and beautiful appearance is illustrated by a pair of contrasting images: coarse wool and royal drapes.
אַל־תִּרְאֻנִי שֶׁאֲנִי שְׁחַרְחֹרֶת שֶׁשְּׁזָפַתְנִי הַשָּׁמֶשׁ בְּנֵי אִמִּי נִחֲרוּ־בִי שָׂמֻנִי נֹטֵרָה אֶת־הַכְּרָמִים כַּרְמִי שֶׁלִּי לֹא נָטָרְתִּי
Do not gaze at me disrespectfully, seeing that I am dark, for this is not my natural color; rather, the sun has tanned me. The woman now addresses how a fair and modest daughter of Jerusalem faced such exposure to the sun: The sons of my mother were incensed at me; they placed me as guard of the family vineyards, to chase away any animals that attempted to infiltrate. However, because of the task imposed upon me, my own vineyard I did not guard. I too have a vineyard of my own, but the members of my family who quarreled with me cared only for their vineyards, while mine was left abandoned. This verse can be understood as the personal struggle of a woman who wishes to extricate herself from the plight of her perceived external ugliness, and to reveal her hidden beauty. However, the verse can also be interpreted metaphorically as a declaration by the Jewish people: Admittedly we are not clean and pure as snow, but the blackness of our sins is not a natural blemish, nor was it caused by circumstances of our own choosing. As a nation, we have been forced to wander frequently. Because of the other nations, we were forced to fulfill various roles for the benefit of the world, to preserve their vineyards. Therefore, we were left without the time or opportunity to protect our own vineyard.
הַגִּידָה לִּי שֶׁאָהֲבָה נַפְשִׁי אֵיכָה תִרְעֶה אֵיכָה תַּרְבִּיץ בַּצָּהֳרָיִם שַׁלָּמָה אֶהְיֶה כְּעֹטְיָה עַל עֶדְרֵי חֲבֵרֶיךָ
Tell me, you whom my soul loves, where do you herd your flock? Where do you rest your flock at noon? Why should I be as one bound to the flocks of your colleagues? Alternatively: Why should I wrap myself up or veil myself for reasons of modesty, in following the flocks of other shepherds? If you tell me where to find you, I will not be forced to wander in the company of strangers.
אִם־לֹא תֵדְעִי לָךְ הַיָּפָה בַּנָּשִׁים צְאִי־לָךְ בְּעִקְבֵי הַצֹּאן וּרְעִי אֶת־גְּדִיֹּתַיִךְ עַל מִשְׁכְּנוֹת הָרֹעִים
For the first time, the lover’s response is heard: If you do not know where I am, you, the fairest among women, go out in the footsteps of the sheep and herd your kids. Apparently, in addition to being a keeper of vineyards, the woman is also a shepherdess. A young shepherdess would generally be given a small flock of kids, while the larger flocks were shepherded by men. The matriarch Rachel likely shepherded such a small flock. You must seek me by the tents of the shepherds. The beloved is unable to give the young woman an address where she can find him. Rather, she must go out to seek him. Similarly, the final destination of the soul’s great journey, like that of Israel’s travels in the wilderness, lies beyond the horizon.
לְסֻסָתִי בְּרִכְבֵי פַרְעֹה דִּמִּיתִיךְ רַעְיָתִי
The lover briefly expresses his love for the woman, even more emphatically than her expressions of affection for him: To a mare in Pharaoh’s chariots I have likened you, my love. Horses are generally considered beautiful creatures. A horse harnessed to one of Pharaoh’s chariots would be perfect and adorned with decorations.
נָאווּ לְחָיַיִךְ בַּתֹּרִים צַוָּארֵךְ בַּחֲרוּזִים
Like the horse in Pharaoh’s chariot, your cheeks are lovely and decorated with rings, apparently large earrings that rest on the cheeks; your neck is decorated with beads.
תּוֹרֵי זָהָב נַעֲשֶׂה־לָּךְ עִם נְקֻדּוֹת הַכָּסֶף
You are worthy of even grander jewelry: We will make you golden rings with studs of silver. Silver studs stand out prominently on a golden background, like white spots on dark fur. Allegorically, the chariots of Pharaoh recall Israel’s exodus from Egypt, while the various ornaments are reminiscent of the great wealth taken from there by the children of Israel. This combination of gold and silver has been given many other interpretations, some of them mystical.
עַד שֶׁהַמֶּלֶךְ בִּמְסִבּוֹ נִרְדִּי נָתַן רֵיחוֹ
The young woman’s response again expresses her desire to be close to her beloved: While the king was at his feast, my lavender emitted its fragrance. Among all the fragrances at the king’s feast, the scent of my lavender is the most pronounced.
צְרוֹר הַמֹּר דּוֹדִי לִי בֵּין שָׁדַי יָלִין
A bundle of myrrh is my beloved to me, lying between my breasts. The young woman dreams: If only my beloved were like a bundle of myrrh hanging from my neck and resting in my bosom.
אֶשְׁכֹּל הַכֹּפֶר דּוֹדִי לִי בְּכַרְמֵי עֵין גֶּדִי
A cluster of henna, a fragrant plant whose fruit grows in clusters, my beloved is to me, in the vineyards of Ein Gedi, where henna apparently grew. Perhaps the woman anticipates meeting her lover there.
הִנָּךְ יָפָה רַעְיָתִי הִנָּךְ יָפָה עֵינַיִךְ יוֹנִים
As the pace of the exchange between the beloved and his lover increases, the beloved speaks again: Behold, you are fair, my love; behold, you are fair; your eyes are like doves. Doves are a symbol of beauty and grace; the comparison of the woman’s eyes to doves is also indicative of perfection and tranquility, which arouse the man’s love.
הִנְּךָ יָפֶה דוֹדִי אַף נָעִים אַף־עַרְשֵׂנוּ רַעֲנָנָה
The young woman responds: Behold, you are fair, my beloved, your company is pleasant too; indeed our bed is fresh. She fantasizes of a shared home and bed.
קֹרוֹת בָּתֵּינוּ אֲרָזִים רָהִיטֵנוּ בְּרוֹתִים
The beams of our houses are made of cedars, and our rafters are junipers. Two aspects of the lovers’ relationship are intertwined in this passage. Alongside passionate love, there is a motif of calm and the stability of home. When the woman calls to her lover, “Draw me; after you we will run” (verse 4), the intention is not to run and play aimlessly, as the same verse concludes: “The king brought me to his chambers.” The blossoming love between them, which is expressed by the fresh bed of the previous verse, is followed by the dream of sharing a home. Their relationship must eventually be brought into a stable framework. The young man and woman, though completely engulfed in a passionate love, still set as their goal a shared home, symbolizing the nation of Israel in Egypt or in the wilderness who, caught up in their romance with God, still yearned to reach their homeland.
