Song of Songs 2 (abbreviated [where?] as Song 2) is the second chapter of the
Song of Songs in the
Hebrew Bible or the
Old Testament of the
ChristianBible.[1][2] This book is one of the
Five Megillot, a collection of short books, together with
Ruth,
Lamentations,
Ecclesiastes and
Esther, within the
Ketuvim, the third and the last part of the Hebrew Bible.[3]Jewish tradition views
Solomon as the author of this book (although this is now largely disputed), and this attribution influences the acceptance of this book as a canonical text.[3] This chapter contains a dialogue in the open air and several female poems with the main imagery of flora and fauna.[4]
Inscription "The lily of the valleys" from "Song of Solomon 2:1" on "Joyous Festivals 5713" stamp of Israel - 40 mil
Verse 1 closes a poetic section providing a 'picture of the bed as a spreading growth', using a theme of nature's floras, starting from
the previous chapter with verses 1:16–17 focusing on the subject of trees and verse 2:1 on the subject of flowers.[10]
Verse 1
Sharon plain in Israeli Coastal Plain regionPlain of Sharon from the Tower of Ramleh. Jaffa to Jerusalem (between 1950 and 1977)
"
Rose": is translated from the Hebrew word ḥăḇatzeleṯ, that occurs two times in the scriptures, beside in this verse also in
Isaiah 35:1, which reads, "the desert shall bloom like the rose". The word translated as "rose" in KJV is rendered variously as "lily" (Septuagint: "κρίνον",[17] Vulgate: "lilium",[18] Wiclif: "lily"[19]), "jonquil" (
Jerusalem Bible) and "crocus" (
RSV).
Verse 2 links to
verse 1 on the use of "lily" (or "lotus"), and forms a parallel with
verse 3 on the word order and the use of particles ("as" or "like", "so") as well as the 'terms of endearment' ("my love", "my beloved", or "my darling", "my lover").[21]
Verse 2
As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters.[22]
"My love" (or "my [female] friend"; Hebrew: רעיתי, raʻyāṯî[23]) a specific term of endearment used by the man for the woman that is used nine times in the book (
Song 1:9,
15; 2:2,
10,
13;
4:1,
7;
5:2;
6:4).[24][25] The masculine form of the same root word to call the man ("my [male] friend"; Hebrew: רעי, rēʻi[26]) is used in a parallel construction with "my beloved" (Hebrew: דודי, doḏi[26]) in
Song of Songs 5:16.[24]
Female: A pastoral scene (2:3-7)
The verse 3 shows an 'excellent synonymous parallelism' with
verse 2 on the word order and the use of certain words, such as "as" or "like", "so", "among" or "between", "my love"/"my beloved" or "my darling"/"my lover".[21] Each verse begins with a preposition of comparison ("as"), followed by three Hebrew words consisting of a singular noun, a preposition ("among" or "between"; be^n) and a plural common noun with a definite article.[21]
Verse 3
As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons.
I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.[27]
The sensual imagery of "apple tree" as a place of romance is still used in modern times in songs such as "In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree" and "Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree".[28]
Verse 4
He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.[29]
"The banqueting house" is a rendering of the phrase bet hayyayin, which is only used here in the Bible, literally meaning "house of the wine".[30] Some near synonyms include "house of the drinking of wine" (bet misteh hayyayin) in
Esther 7:8, and "house for drinking" (bet misteh) in
Jeremiah 16:8 and
Ecclesiastes 7:2.[30]
The first two lines of this verse form a 'distinctive structure', using verbs and preposition of the same ideas: "refresh (sustain) me"/"revive (refresh) me", "with raisins"/"with apples".[32] The word "apple(s)" links to the first word of
verse 3, while the word "love" links to the last word of
verse 4.[32]
The names of God are apparently substituted with similar sounding phrases depicting 'female gazelles' (צְבָא֔וֹת, tseḇā’ōṯ) for [God of] hosts (צבאותtseḇā’ōṯ), and 'does of the field'/'wild does/female deer' (אילות השדה, ’ay-lōṯ ha-śā-ḏeh) for God Almighty (אל שדי, ’êlshaddai).[36]
Female: Her lover pursues her (2:8–9)
This section starts a poetic exposition of lovers who are joined and separated (
Song 2:8–
3:5).[37]
Verses 8–17 form a unity of a poem of the spring by the woman,[38] beginning with 'the voice of my beloved' (qōldōḏî; or 'the sound of his [approach]'), which signals his presence before he even speaks.[39]
Andrew Harper suggests that the scene moves now from
Jerusalem ("daughters of Jerusalem" in verse 7) to "some royal residence in the country", probably in the northern hills.[40] Verse 8b refers to her beloved "leaping upon the mountains, bounding over the hills".[41]St. Ambrose comments by way of a
paraphrase,
Let us see him leaping; he leaped out of heaven into the virgin, out of the womb into the manger, out of the manger into Jordan, out of Jordan to the cross, from the cross into the tomb, out of the grave into heaven.[42]
Male: Invitation to come away (2:10-14)
Inscription "The fig tree puteth forth her green figs" from "Song of Solomon 2:13", "Joyous Festivals 5713" stamp of Israel - 15 mil.
Verse 13
The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away.[43]
"Green figs": is translated from the Hebrew word paggâh, which occurs in its Aramaic form in the city name, "Bethphage".[40] The plural form paggîm are used to call unripe fruits of the early fig (Hebrew: bikkûrâh), which takes about four months to ripe, usually towards the end of June, in contrast to the late figs (Hebrew: tě’çnîm) that grow continuously on the new branches and ripen usually they ripen from August onwards in Palestine.[44]
Inscription "O my dove that art in the clefts of the rock" from "Song of Solomon 2:14", "Joyous Festivals 5713" stamp of Israel - 110 mil.
Verse 14
O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely.[45]
"Dove" (as in
Song 5:2,
6:9) serves as a 'metaphor for inaccessibility'.[46]
"Foxes": or "jackals".[48] The foxes are associated with the obstacle of the blossoming romantic relationship.[49]
Female: Love affirmed, gratification delayed (2:16-17)
Unlike the ambiguity of the speaker (or speakers) in the previous verse, the two verses in this section are no doubt spoken by the woman, affirming the mutual affection with her lover.[49]
Verse 16
My beloved is mine, and I am his: he feedeth among the lilies.[50]
Bergant, Dianne (2001). Cotter, David W.; Walsh, Jerome T.; Franke, Chris (eds.).
The Songs of Songs. Berit Olam (The Everlasting Covenant): Studies In Hebrew Narrative And Poetry. Liturgical Press.
ISBN9780814650691.
Brenner, Athalya (2007). "21. The Song of Solomon". In Barton, John; Muddiman, John (eds.).
The Oxford Bible Commentary (first (paperback) ed.). Oxford University Press. pp. 429–433.
ISBN978-0199277186. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
Longman, Tremper (2001).
Songs of Songs. The New International Commentary on the Old Testament. Vol. 26. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing.
ISBN9780802825438.