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Maiden’s Soliloquy
Maiden’s Self-Description
Dialogue between Shepherdess and Shepherd
Man’s Poetic Praise of His Beloved
Maiden’s Poetic Praise of Her Beloved
Mutual Admiration
?:? This construction conveys a superlative connotation, e.g., “The most exquisite song”
?:? Or “by Solomon” or “about/concerning Solomon”
?:? In the maiden’s soliloquy, she thinks about her beloved in her thoughts (“May he kiss me!”), then poetically speaks to him as if he were in her presence (“for your love is better than wine”). To avoid confusion, the translation uses the second-person form throughout vv. 2–4
?:? Literally “May he kiss me”
?:? Literally “with the kisses of his mouth”
?:? The shift from the third person “he … his” to the second person “you … your” in vv. 2–4 should not be interpreted as suggesting two different referents, that is, one male whom the maiden is addressing as “you,” and another to whom she refers as “he.” Rather, this shift is a poetic device (called “grammatical differentiation”) that is not uncommon in Hebrew poetry (e.g., Gen 49:4 ; Deut 32:15 ; Psa 23:2–5 ; Isa 1:29 ; 42:20 ; 54:1 ; Jer 22:24 ; Amos 4:1 ; Mic 7:19 ; Lam 3:1 ; Song 4:2 ; 6:6 ). This shift is characteristic of a soliloquy, a dramatic or literary form in which a character reveals her thoughts without addressing a listener who is actually present (e.g., 2 Sam 19:4 ). In this case, the maiden’s private thoughts about her beloved (v. 2a ) shift to an imaginary address to her beloved (vv. 2b–4a )
?:? Literally “your oil lotions”
?:? Literally “good”
?:? Literally “oil lotion”
?:? Or “The king has brought me into his chambers”
?:? Or “black and beautiful”
?:? Literally “O daughters of Jerusalem”
?:? This is figurative for the maiden’s physical appearance; her skin was darkly tanned
?:? Literally “my vineyard that for me”
?:? Literally “soul”
?:? Literally “For to what will I be like”
?:? The reading of the MT (“like one who is veiled”) is supported by the LXX. However, several ancient versions (Syriac Peshitta, Latin Vulgate, Symmachus) reflect an alternate Hebrew textual tradition in which two letters are transposed, resulting in the reading “like one who wanders about.” This makes good sense contextually, since the maiden does not know where her beloved would be at noon
?:? Literally “in the tracks”
?:? Or “your kids”
?:? Or “my mare”
?:? Or “chariot horses”
?:? Or “droplets”
?:? Literally “the bag”
?:? Or “he lays”
?:? Literally “green”