OET interlinear SNG 4:3

Section 3:6–5:1: The man and woman married and the man praised her

In 3:6 a new section begins. The author indicates this by several obvious changes from (3:1–5):

1. The scene changes from a nighttime dream to a public daytime event.

2. There is a change of speaker.

3. The search theme in the preceding verses changes to a wedding theme in this section.

4. The mood changes from anxious searching to joyful celebration.

In this section the author describes the couple’s wedding day. The section has several parts:

3:6–11 The man and woman came to their wedding in a grand procession

4:1–15 The man described his beautiful bride

4:16–5:1 The man and woman consummated their marriage

Paragraph 4:1–7 The man told his bride how beautiful she is

In 4:1–7 the man used figures of speech to tell his bride how beautiful and majestic she was.Bergant (page 42) explains the two aspects of the description in this way: “It is a descriptive song that uses metaphors and similes both representationally (highlighting physical similarity) and presentationally (eliciting an emotional response).” This type of physical description of one’s beloved is called a “wasf” (an Arabic word). It was a common type of poetry in the ancient Near East. Such figures of speech were common in the love poetry of nearby cultures. The man also describes his bride in 6:4–10 and 7:1–9. In one example (5:10–16) the woman describes the man. He first praised her eyes and hair, then he praised her mouth, lips, and teeth. He described her temples and neck and then her breasts. Paragraph 4:1–7 begins and ends with similar statements that summarize her beauty:

:1 How beautiful you are, my darling—

how very beautiful!

:7 You are altogether beautiful, my darling;

there is no flaw in you.

Cultures have different ideas about what is beautiful. In some cultures the figures of speech that the man used to describe the woman may seem strange or insulting, but in his culture, they were powerful ways to praise her. Sometimes they described the man’s feelings about her instead of describing her appearance. For example, in 4:4 the man compared the woman’s neck (or her necklaces) to the tower of King David. Her neck did not look like the tower, but to him she seemed as majestic as that tower where warriors’ shields hung to represent their power.

Standards for respectful speech and actions in the Song

In 4:1–7 the man often referred to the woman’s body. In most cultures certain parts of the body are “private” or “sexual,” and those parts should not be uncovered in public. In some cultures, women must be covered from the waist to the ankles.In some cultures certain references may embarrass people who read or hear them. It may not be modest to mention a woman’s breasts or her belly or navel (as in some verses of the Song). Other cultures have different standards. Scholars are not sure about the specific standards in Israel when the Song was written, but the Song does not violate the standards of modesty in the OT. Two facts about the Song may help to indicate the standards of modesty in Israel’s culture in OT times:

1. The Song refers to parts of the female body more than 40 times, but only three of these mention areas below the waist.Two of these references are to the feet, which were usually uncovered. The other is to “rounded thighs” in 7:1. It probably refers to the general shape of the thighs, which may be obvious even when a woman is fully clothed. This may imply that the area below the waist was the “private” area, which must be covered in public.

2. In 8:8–10 both the woman and her brothers spoke casually about her breasts. This probably indicates that in that culture a woman did not always cover her breasts. For example, it was common to breast-feed babies openly (as in 8:1 and other OT verses).

These two facts imply that the author described the woman’s body in a more modest way than some scholars assume. When the man described the woman’s beauty (as in 4:1–7 and 7:1–9), he did it in a proper way. He did not describe “private sexual” parts. In some languages it may be helpful to include a footnote to explain that cultures have different standards of what is proper, decent, and respectful. Translate in a way that does not violate your culture’s standards.

Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon,

• Your lips are like a red ribbon,

• Your lips attract/delight me with their lovely color.

and your mouth is lovely.

• and your mouth is beautiful.

• Oh, how beautiful they are!

Your brow behind your veil is like a slice of pomegranate.

• Your cheeks behind your veil are like pomegranate halves.

• Your cheeks under your veil fascinate/draw me like two halves of a pomegranate.