Song-of-Songs-Chap-2

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“Song of Songs Chapter 2”

With Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens, PhD.

Foreword:

Song of Songs Chapter 2 centres on an intimate, poetic dialogue between a young woman (the Shulamite) and her beloved, generally interpreted as King Solomon or a shepherd lover. It portrays the intense ‘longing’, ‘courtship’, and ‘deep affection’ of a romantic couple using vibrant nature imagery, such as ‘lilies’, ‘apple trees’, and ‘springtime’.

Introduction:

Song of Songs Chapter 2 utilizes vibrant, springtime imagery to explore the blossoming of love, moving from intimate scenes to the open countryside. It emphasizes the sensory experience and natural progression of affection, highlighting the delicate balance of a growing, exclusive bond.

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Let us read Song of Songs Chapter 2, verses 1 to 17: (JPS-1917 version of the Torah). Below this chapter you will find my commentary on same.

1. “I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valleys. 2. As a lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters. 3. As an apple-tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. Under its shadow I delighted to sit, and its fruit was sweet to my taste. 4. He hath brought me to the banqueting-house, and his banner over me is love. 5. ‘Stay ye me with dainties, refresh me with apples; for I am love-sick’. 6. Let his left hand be under my head, and his right hand embrace me. 7. ‘I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles, and by the hinds of the field, that ye awaken not, nor stir up love, until it please’. 8. Hark! my beloved! behold, he cometh, leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills. 9. My beloved is like a gazelle or a young hart; behold, he standeth behind our wall, he looketh in through the windows, he peereth through the lattice. 10. My beloved spoke, and said unto me: ‘Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. 11. For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; 12. The flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land; 13. The fig-tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines in blossom give forth their fragrance. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away. 14. O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the covert of the cliff, let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely’. 15. ‘Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vineyards; for our vineyards are in blossom’. 16. My beloved is mine, and I am his, that feedeth among the lilies. 17. Until the day breathe, and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be thou like a gazelle or a young hart upon the mountains of spices”.

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Let us now look at this Chapter’s commentary:

This passage is one of the most lyrical sections of the Song. It moves between the voices of the woman (the Shulammite), the man (often interpreted as the shepherd/lover), and a poetic chorus of nature. The imagery is lush, spring like, and deeply symbolic. Jewish tradition reads these verses on multiple levels: ‘literal love poetry’, allegory of אֱלֹהִים - Elohim (God) and Israel, and spiritual yearning.

The text opens with the ‘beloved’ describing ‘herself’ as a ‘humble’, ‘distinct flower’, to which she is elevated by her partner in a display of mutual commitment. The “banqueting-house” acts as a metaphor for a secure and public declaration of this love, protected by a “banner”. A central message is the warning to the “daughters of Jerusalem” not to force or rush affection, advising that love has its own proper timing. The scene moves to a flourishing, springtime landscape, where the lover is welcomed, and the “little foxes” represent the small, seemingly insignificant, problems or external pressures that can threaten to spoil a new relationship. The chapter ends with a profound declaration of mutual respectful belonging, where the two, partners feel, deeply, connected to one another, requesting the beloved to, return quickly like a, gazelle, on the mountains.

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My Closing Message:

This chapter highlights the beauty of natural, timing and the need to protect the tender, early, stages of a relationship, likened to the, “springtime”. By, nurturing, connection and, addressing, small, challenges, a, ‘strong, and, lasting, bond’, can, be, developed, and, enjoyed!

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שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם Shalom Aleichem - Peace be with you!

Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens, PhD.

 

 

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