Song of Songs - Chapter 1

1 The Song of Songs, which is Solomon's.

CSP The CSP note apparatus is massive and interesting, mostly left unchanged, written in italics
n.: The best song (to express the superlative in the plural / The Mega Song / The best of Solomon's songs
n.: song cycle [(i.e. a composition of several songs, e.g. wedding songs; similar songs are traditionally sung in the region). This would imply that a continuous plot cannot be sought in a collection of several songs. However, in various parts of this composition there are repetitions and echoes of passages from, and reactions to, earlier parts. Thus, if there are multiple songs, they were interrelated. Rather, we can speak of different songs. 'Song' can also mean poem, lyric and here love poetry. In Jewish liturgy, this first of the five so-called festival scrolls is read regularly on Pesach (i.e., Passover)].
From S. (i.e. authorship) / For S. (i.e. dedication) / About S. (i.e. topic).
authorship is undoubted
In Czech Salomon (with the letter "a" probably the more common form of his name
Solomon was the best at absolutely everything. God made him (thanks to the famous episode at the beginning of his reign in 1 Kings 3) the most intelligent man on the planet ever. He was capable in every field of human thought and knowledge
But the Most High did not leave it at that: as an added value (undoubtedly according to Christ's principle: Seek first the kingdom of God and the rest will be added to you), He added to his intelligence (He wrote, for example, three thousand proverbs) everything imaginable - unimaginable wealth, artistic talent (a thousand songs) or an endless sexual appetite (a thousand women).
Initially, Solomon was also very godly, though he almost certainly never gained the personal relationship with God that his father David did.
it is interesting that people who have been gifted (or given gifts) by God quite often receive them in "clusters": I know several people who are excellent scientists, but also speak several languages, are excellent musicians, are athletically gifted, and are attractive to women
sometimes it would seem to me better (than the accumulation of talents) if the gifts were distributed equally - but who am I to speak into the distribution of talents to the Most High?
to cope with too many and too large endowments, however, is difficult for the individual. We know from Christ that the rich have difficulty in entering the kingdom of God (rather, the camel goes through the eye of the needle...), and this is not exclusively related to material wealth, but also to abilities
Solomon certainly didn't bury his talents - he is the author of several books of the Bible in various genres, and here we see that he was also great at love poetry. In all areas of life he tested the limits, went to the very edge of the possible - as we read in Ecclesiastes
But in the end, he probably didn't get the most important thing right - and he didn't keep his relationship with the Lord. So perhaps in his case, less would have been more

2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth! For your love is better it wine;

[probably the comparing of ability of pleasantness
h. dódéchá (your lovemaking) is vocalized by the LXX and Vul as daddéchá (your breasts) This is an old tradition (as early as the 3rd century A.D. h. interpretation), but here the term dad would indicate a man's chest, whereas dódím (pl.) as an intimate expression of love and physical lovemaking occurs frequently in Scripture
Nevertheless, I put aside my skepticism of Solomon and let myself be drawn into the love verses
with the first one we cannot but agree - few things in human life (if anything) are able to compete with lovemaking
God has banished mankind from paradise and left them to the raw world. Men toil and women labor in pain. However, in his grace, God has also ensured that life on this planet is not just suffering without clues: there are many things that are both pleasent and legitimate
Food, wine, physical work, sleep and sex are typically cited as sources of endorphins. Coming home after work, eating dinner, taking a nap, or having a glass of wine or making love is a series of activities that are undoubtedly pleasurable. Some of these activities are "for everyday use" and are necessary for life, wine and sex are more of a kind of super-standard. Also, their prioritisation changes according to circumstances
(there are also illegitimate sources of pleasure, e.g. drugs, but we leave that aside)
we will, as it were, in this book of the Bible, deal mainly with sex

3 ⁽your anointing oils are fragrant;⁾ your name it ⁽is oil poured out;⁾ therefore virgins love you.

h.: as for smell, your oils are good; LXX: the smell of your ointments is above all perfumes; [fragrant oils served as perfumes and were used by the rich on rare occasions]
["The name smells" meant (e.g., in Egypt) "to be liked," as the following sentence confirms. The poem plays with the words shem (name) and shemen (oil)].
h.: oil + with an obscure adj. or verb: either (1) "spilled"/"pouring" (LXX; Vul) - but not gender-matched; or (2) cognate Ugaritic t-r-q for high-grade cosmetic oil (finely filtered?), but not attested. The translation attempts to combine the two possibilities. [In antiquity, fragrances were (and still are in this region) preserved on an oil base, not an alcohol base as is common here].
young women (the term does not specifically refer to virgins
it doesn't have to be just perfume. Women simply smell good to men

4 Draw me after you; let us run. The king has brought me into his chambers. We will exult and rejoice in you; we will extol your love more than wine; rightly do they love you.

[figurative expression may have the image of a captive (animal or human) in the background, when a woman wants to be a willing captive of love;
three verbs create a striking example of a sudden change of persons (heterosis);
[Not necessarily Solomon. In wedding songs the newlyweds still appear as king and queen, and on wedding festivals they often wear a crown on their heads and are treated as a royal couple.]
or.(Pš and Symm with a slight change in vocalization): lead me, king...
Pš and Symm emend to 2. sg.
also known as: to remind / praise
h.: your lovemakings (pl.);
h.: of wine; n.: better than wine (v. 2)
h.: direct / proper (Vul); or.: correctness (LXX)
n~: How easy it is to love you
the mutual enthusiasm of the lovers for each other, the desire to be alone quickly, so that they do not have to hide with desire

5 I am very dark, but lovely, O daughters in Jerusalem, like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon.

[i.e. tanned by the sun (v. 6) and therefore unattractive]
[The fabric of Bedouin tents made from the hair of black goats and sheep has a coarse appearance.]
[Name of the North Arabian Bedouin tribe sounds like qádar (dark; Arabic: dirty).]
Inner curtain in a tent (could be decorated) or figuratively another term for a tent
or (with different vocalization): salma [another Bedouin tribe in roughly the same area] - improves parallelism
the girl seemed too a natural for the court. Probably in the sense of a naturally plain peasant girl compared to the pale and "frilly" court ladies we know from the fairy tales

6 Do not gaze at me because I am dark, because the sun has looked upon me. My mother's sons were angry with me; ⁽they made me keeper of the vineyards, but my own vineyard⁾ I have not kept!

h.: fixed its eyes on;
"To be hot by anfry" may mean "to be angry," but it is no accident that it corresponds here with another heat: from the sun;
n~: they made me the guardian ("keeper") of the vineyards;
At home, the girl experienced perhaps even a form of bullying from her brothers. She was put to unattractive work in the heat outside. Perhaps she was a little wild, too free-spirited or non-conformist;
"coincidentally" she was guarding the vineyard, which was leased to the brothers by the king himself. But there do not exist any coincidences

7 Tell me, you whom my soul loves, it where you pasture your flock, where you make it lie down at noon; for why should I be like one who veils herself beside the flocks of your companions?

h.: You whom my soul loves;
h.: where you graze ;
i.e., either veiled because of sadness, impurity, or shame (she could be considered a prostitute), or. she needs to be anonymous. (Vul, Pš, and Symm translate as if the letters were switched in h.: why should I wander)
the girl may have been mocked - at noon the young people herding the flocks were retiring to rest, apparently teasing or taunting each other. The girl may have been a laughing stock. She was covered up, probably mainly because of the heat;
The girl fearlessly asks where her potential lover will rest (Solomon is apparently disguised as a common shepherd). She is not afraid to show her interest. She repays him for his polite behaviour (the beloved seems to have treated the girl with respect, unlike the others);
For an ostracized individual, it is extremely encouraging to be spoken to, taken seriously, cared for or even protected. The story of the despised tax collector Zacchaeus, whom Jesus invites to dinner, is one of the most moving in the Bible;

We can perhaps draw a simple "Cinderella" story of a school class attended by a simple village girl. Unlike the others, she does not wear designer clothes and does not have a smart phone. No one wants to be friends with her, she sits alone during breaks, and when the blackboard needs wiping, the others always throw it at her. 
One day a well-known music star, admired by all, comes to visit the school. The girls go crazy, get dressed up and have a bet on which of them will manage to "seduce" the visitor. But he falls in love with a village girl and takes her as his bride.

8 If has you ⁽not know, O most⁾ t beautiful among women, follow in the tracks of the flock, and pasture your young goats beside the shepherds' tents.

LXX, Vul: If thou knowest not thyself; even h. may be so understood
h.: the most beautiful of women; modified because of the rhyme which here compensates for other poetic devices
i.e. a flock of sheep and/or goats
If you're interested, girl, track me down and then encamp near me.

9 I compare you,my love, to a mare ⁽among⁾ Pharaoh's chariots.

[A bred animal with a graceful body and wise eyes - a fitting and not uncommon comparison at the time. (Especially since cattle or donkeys were more likely to be used for hard labour. Theocritus similarly praises Helen of Troy.) The ending of this expression sounds in standard H. like "my mare" (LXX, Vul, Pš), but it is probably an archaic genitive].
the term rekeb has a broad meaning: chariot / horse to chariot / charioteer. Here probably horses. [One mare could drive a whole team of royal steeds crazy.]
h.: I likened you;
h.: mate; or. (in lyrics): darling;
we don't know much about horses these days. How about: You're like the Ferrari of cars?

10 ⁽Your cheeks are lovely⁾ with ornaments, your neck with strings of jewels. of jewels.

h.: Thy bows are lovely, (but used to illustrate the meaning of the following word);
h: with rows/strings, usually: lovebirds (so LXX, Vul). It is not clear whether hair is meant or some ornament;
everything about the girl you adore is pretty.

11 We will make for you ⁽in ornaments of gold, studded with silver.⁾

h.: with dots of silver. It is not clear what the "dots" are. Pendants in the shape of drops n. beads? Tiny ingots?

12 While the king was on his couch, my nard gave forth its fragrance.

[The expression denotes a round place, usually a table for dining, virtually a place set around a table, also a dining company or a company in general. Also private. It may perhaps also refer to the privacy of lovers].
[A fragrant ointment imported from India. From the root of the Himalayan plant Nardostachys jatamansi (nard or nard tree). Its intense scent used to be associated with eroticism.]
when lovers are together, they smell very much of each other. The same in other verses (nard, myrrh, henna)

13 My beloved is it to me a sachet of myrrh that lies between my breasts.

[A bag with grains of scented resin, worn under the neck or freely between the breasts.]
[A golden brown resin from the bark of the Balsamodendron myrrha bush imported from South Arabia, Ethiopia or India. It could be liquid or solid. It was also mixed with fat, and when it slowly melted on the body (sometimes overnight), it spread an attractive scent around the woman
h.: he nights between my breasts; (like a bundle of myrrh)

14 My beloved is to me it a cluster of henna blossoms in the vineyards of Engedi.

[A shrub growing in Israel, Lawsonia inermis, with clusters of pale, very fragrant flowers (this inflorescence is here meant "shrub", h.: grape), which are put in the hair, in the armpits, or made into perfume. The petals and bark are used for dyeing, typically for decorative ornaments on the body. Henna takes care of a woman's hair, adds fragrance, and beautifies the body].
[An oasis with waterfalls, pools and dense vegetation in a cleft of rocks in the middle of the hot Dead Sea wasteland];

15 Behold, you are beautiful, my love; behold, you are beautiful; studded your eyes are doves.

h.: Behold, you (i.e. you are)
[The eyes used to be (and somewhere still are) the most easily accessible to admiration on a woman. Like doves, white, graceful in shape (or contoured), and (which is important for spiritual interpretation): pure];

16 Behold, you are beautiful, my beloved, truly delightful. Our couch is green;

h.: Behold, you (i.e. you are)
h.: and (moreover)
n.: lovely / charming
[bridal or with canopy]
[Rich, abundant and lush greenery of grass and especially leaves of shrubs and trees. LXX: lovely "shades" the bed; Vul.: the bed is "adorned with flowers"]
the lovers are in a romantic place and have eyes only for each other. They're excited about each other

17 the beams of our house are cedar;. má our rafters are pine

n.: walls made of wooden logs / planks;
i.e. either the main beam or rafters (whose connection forms the truss)
they were probably together in some romantic gazebo or shepherd's hut in the countryside

Vít Šmajstrla

Vit.Smajstrla@bormed.cz