Fifth chapter of the Song of Songs
Song of Songs 5
|
---|
|
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Vienne_en_son_jardin_04225.JPG/250px-Vienne_en_son_jardin_04225.JPG) French tapestry with the text of the
Vulgate
opening of Song 5:1 in Latin "
Veniat dilectus meus in hortum suum
" ("Let my beloved come into his garden"). Palais du Tau, Reims,
Hauteville, Aisne
(17th century).
|
Book
| Song of Songs
|
---|
Category
| Ketuvim
|
---|
Christian Bible part
| Old Testament
|
---|
Order in the Christian part
| 22
|
---|
Song of Songs 5
(abbreviated
[
where?
]
as
Song 5
) is the fifth chapter of the
Song of Songs
in the
Hebrew Bible
or the
Old Testament
of the
Christian
Bible
.
[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.
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.
This chapter opens with the man's response to his lover's
consent
in the closing verses of
chapter 4
, but the second part of the chapter relates the refusal of the woman to welcome the man into her room at night, and when she changes her mind, he already disappears; in the next part she looks for him in the city and in the final section (verses 10 onwards) she describes to the daughters of Jerusalem how fair the man is.
Text
[
edit
]
The original text is written in
Hebrew language
.
This chapter is divided into
16 verses.
Textual witnesses
[
edit
]
Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in
Hebrew
are of the
Masoretic Text
, which includes the
Codex Leningradensis
(1008).
[a]
One fragment containing a part of this chapter was found among the
Dead Sea Scrolls
, assigned as
4Q107 (4QCant
b
)
; 30 BCE-30 CE; extant verse 1).
[7]
[8]
[9]
There is also a translation into
Koine Greek
known as the
Septuagint
, made in the last few centuries BCE. Extant ancient manuscripts of the Septuagint version include
Codex Vaticanus
(
B
;
B
; 4th century),
Codex Sinaiticus
(
S
;
BHK
:
S
; 4th century), and
Codex Alexandrinus
(
A
;
A
; 5th century).
Structure
[
edit
]
The
Modern English Version (MEV)
identifies the speakers in this chapter as:
The start of the fifth chapter and the close of the fourth chapter are not in the same verse in all versions of the Bible: the
Vulgate
version of chapter 5 starts with "
Veniat dilectus meus ...
",
[11]
which is the end of the woman's speech in the
last verse of the fourth chapter
in most other versions:
[12]
Analysis
[
edit
]
Male and chorus: tasting and enjoy the garden (5:1)
[
edit
]
This verse contains the man's closure of the dialogue at the end of the previous chapter; the call to eat and drink implies consummation.
John Gill
notes that the words closing the dialogue should not have been separated from the rest of the exchange in chapter 4.
[13]
Verse 1
[
edit
]
[The Beloved/the Man]
- I have come to my garden, my sister, my spouse;
- I have gathered my myrrh with my spice;
- I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey;
- I have drunk my wine with my milk.
[To His Friends]
- Eat, O friends!
- Drink, yes, drink deeply,
- O beloved ones!
[14]
Female: A second search at night for her dream lover (5:2-8)
[
edit
]
In this part, the woman refuses to welcome her lover into her room at night (either in reality or a dream; cf.
3:1-5
), but when she changes her mind, the man already disappears. She looks for him in the city, then the watchmen (the guards) found her and beat her up. She appeals for help to the daughters of Jerusalem about her lovesick condition.
Verse 2
[
edit
]
Book cover by
Ephraim Moses Lilien
for
Das Hohelied
, depicting the themes of doves and lilies.
- I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night.
[16]
- "My love" (or "my [female] friend"; Hebrew:
?????
,
ra'-y?-?i
[17]
) a specific term of endearment used by the man for the woman that is used 9 times in the book (
Song 1:9
,
15
;
2:2
,
10
,
13
;
4:1
,
7
;
5:2
;
6:4
).
[19]
The masculine form of the same root word to call the man ("my [male] friend"; Hebrew:
???
,
re-'i
[20]
) is used in a parallel construction with "my beloved" (Hebrew:
????
,
???i
[20]
) in
Song 5:16
.
The repetition of "my (sister), my (love), my (dove), my (undefiled) is thought to enact the "knocking" of the beloved.
- "Locks": "curls" or "hair"
[22]
Chorus: Challenge to compare the male lover (5:9)
[
edit
]
The "daughters of Jerusalem" want to know what the male lover looks like.
Female: descriptive poem for the male (5:10-16)
[
edit
]
The woman describes her lover from head to toe in a
wa?f
or descriptive poem, using the imagery of fauna and flora for his head, then metals and precious stones for the rest of his body.
This
wa?f
and the other ones (
4:1-8
;
6:4-10
;
7:2-10a (7:1-9a English)
) theologically demonstrate the heart of the Song that values the body as not evil but good even worthy of praise, and respects the body with an appreciative focus (rather than lurid).
Hess notes that this reflects 'the fundamental value of God's creation as good and the human body as a key part of that creation, whether at the beginning (
Genesis 1:26?28
) or redeemed in the resurrection (
1 Corinthians 15:42
,
44
)'.
Verse 16
[
edit
]
- His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
[24]
- "Sweet": refers to a drink in
Nehemiah 8:10
(cf.
Song 7:10
).
- "My friend" ("my [male] friend"; Hebrew:
???
,
re-'i
[20]
): is a specific term of endearment used by the woman for the man that is only used here in the whole book,
[b]
in a parallel construction with "my beloved" (Hebrew:
????
,
???i
[20]
).
The feminine form of the same root word to call the woman ("my love" or "my [female] friend"; Hebrew:
?????
,
ra'-y?-?i
[17]
) is used 9 times in the book (
Song 1:9
,
15
;
2:2
,
10
,
13
;
4:1
,
7
;
5:2
;
6:4
).
[19]
Musical settings
[
edit
]
The phrase
Veniat dilectus meus
and variant texts such as antiphons based on it have been set to music, for instance in
Gregorian chant
, and by composers including
Alessandro Grandi
and
Pietro Torri
.
[27]
[28]
[29]
[30]
See also
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
Since 1947 the current text of
Aleppo Codex
is missing Song of Songs 3:11, after the word
????
("Zion"), to the end.
[6]
- ^
Another use of
re·'i
in the Hebrew Bible is in
Job 31:9
(as "my neighbour").
[26]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Holman Illustrated Bible Handbook. Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. 2012.
- ^
P. W. Skehan (2003), "BIBLE (TEXTS)",
New Catholic Encyclopedia
, vol. 2 (2nd ed.), Gale, pp. 355?362
- ^
Ulrich, Eugene
, ed. (2010).
The Biblical Qumran Scrolls: Transcriptions and Textual Variants
. Brill. p. 745.
ISBN
9789004181830
. Retrieved
May 15,
2017
.
- ^
Dead sea scrolls - Song of Songs
.
- ^
Fitzmyer, Joseph A.
(2008).
A Guide to the Dead Sea Scrolls and Related Literature
. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. p. 42.
ISBN
9780802862419
. Retrieved
February 15,
2019
.
- ^
CANTICUM CANTICORUM 5
at
Vatican
website.
- ^
Song of Solomon 4:16b
World English Bible
- ^
Gill, J.,
Gill's Exposition
on Song of Solomon 5, accessed 14 January 2023
- ^
Song 5:1
NKJV
- ^
Song 5:2
KJV
- ^
a
b
Hebrew Text Analysis: Song of Solomon 5:2
. Biblehub
- ^
a
b
Strong's Concordance: 7474. rayah
. Biblehub
- ^
a
b
c
d
Hebrew Text Analysis: Song of Solomon 5:16
. Biblehub
- ^
Note [b] on Song of Solomon 5:2 in NKJV
- ^
Song 5:16
KJV
- ^
Englishman's Concordance: re·'i ? 2 Occurrences
. Biblehub
- ^
Veniat dilectus meus in hortum
at
gregorien
.info
- ^
Alessandro Grandi: Celesti fiori ? Motetti
at
www
.muziekweb
.nl
- ^
RISM
455034494
.
- ^
Veniat dilectus meus
from Mus.ms. 30299
at
Berlin State Library
website.
Sources
[
edit
]
- 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.
ISBN
9780814650691
.
- 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.
ISBN
978-0199277186
. Retrieved
February 6,
2019
.
- Coogan, Michael David
(2007). Coogan, Michael David; Brettler, Marc Zvi; Newsom, Carol Ann; Perkins, Pheme (eds.).
The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books: New Revised Standard Version, Issue 48
(Augmented 3rd ed.). Oxford University Press.
ISBN
9780195288810
.
- Exum, J. Cheryl (2005).
Songs of Songs: A Commentary
. Old Testament library (reprint ed.). Westminster John Knox Press.
ISBN
9780664221904
.
- Halley, Henry H.
(1965).
Halley's Bible Handbook: an abbreviated Bible commentary
(24th (revised) ed.). Zondervan Publishing House.
ISBN
0-310-25720-4
.
- Hess, Richard S. (2005).
Songs of Songs
. Baker Commentary on the Old Testament Series. Baker Academic.
ISBN
9780801027123
.
- Longman, Tremper (2001).
Songs of Songs
. The New International Commentary on the Old Testament. Vol. 26. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing.
ISBN
9780802825438
.
- Wurthwein, Ernst
(1995).
The Text of the Old Testament
. Translated by Rhodes, Erroll F. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans.
ISBN
0-8028-0788-7
. Retrieved
January 26,
2019
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
Bible
chapters
| |
---|
Places
| |
---|
People
| |
---|
Phrases
| |
---|
Analysis
| |
---|
In art
| |
---|
Manuscripts
| |
---|
Sources
| |
---|
|