FrameworksSongs4

FRAMEWORKS: Song of Solomon 4:

Preliminary Comments: Please ensure you have read the notes in the Introduction. Very well, to begin with, the study which simply seeks to help the reader absorb the text more easily:

Possible breakdown [ignoring ‘the Friends']:

v.1-15 The young man simply extols her beauty with extravagant illustrations

v.16 She simply desires that their intimacy will grow,

v.1 [again he declares her beauty] How beautiful you are, my darling!
    Oh, how beautiful!
     [your eyes reveal your modesty] Your eyes behind your veil are doves.
[your hair cascades down your shoulders] Your hair is like a flock of goats
    descending from the hills of Gilead.
v.2 [even your teeth, revealed as you smile, are perfect] Your teeth are like a flock of sheep just shorn,
    coming up from the washing.
Each has its twin;
    not one of them is alone.
v.3 [your lips stand out invitingly] Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon;
    your mouth is lovely.
Your temples behind your veil
    are like the halves of a pomegranate.
v.4 [your neck holds your head proudly high, adorned with beautiful gems] Your neck is like the tower of David,
    built with courses of stone;
on it hang a thousand shields,
    all of them shields of warriors.
v.5 [your hidden breasts invitingly disclose even more beauty] Your breasts are like two fawns,
    like twin fawns of a gazelle
    that browse among the lilies. divulge
v.6 [until day breaks I will stay and enjoy you] Until the day breaks
    and the shadows flee,
I will go to the mountain of myrrh
    and to the hill of incense.
v.7 [you are utterly perfect] You are altogether beautiful, my darling;
    there is no flaw in you.

v.8 [leave the mountainous areas of the north and come to me] Come with me from Lebanon, my bride ,
    come with me from Lebanon.
Descend from the crest of Amana,
    from the top of Senir, the summit of Hermon,
from the lions' dens
    and the mountain haunts of leopards.
v.9 [you have captured my heart] You have stolen my heart, my sister, my bride;
    you have stolen my heart
with one glance of your eyes,
    with one jewel of your necklace.
v.10 [how amazing the love we share – my bride!] How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride!
    How much more pleasing is your love than wine,
and the fragrance of your perfume
    more than any spice!
v.11 [your lips speak wonders] Your lips drop sweetness as the honeycomb, my bride ;
    milk and honey are under your tongue.
[the perfume of your clothes envelops me] The fragrance of your garments
    is like the fragrance of Lebanon.
v.12 [you are like a secret garden [to be explored]] You are a garden locked up, my sister, my bride ;
    you are a spring enclosed, a sealed fountain.
v.13 [and like that garden you have so many wonderful qualities [to be explored]] Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates
    with choice fruits,
    with henna and nard,
v.14   nard and saffron,
    calamus and cinnamon,
    with every kind of incense tree,
    with myrrh and aloes
    and all the finest spices.
v.15 You are a garden fountain,
    a well of flowing water
    streaming down from Lebanon.

She

v.16 [may the varying winds of life bring us ever closer together] Awake, north wind,
    and come, south wind!
Blow on my garden,
    that its fragrance may spread everywhere.
Let my beloved come into his garden
    and taste its choice fruits.

[Concluding Comment: Yet again this fourth chapter gives no clue as to the identity of the couple and yet again Solomon is not mentioned. The big difference is that now he refers to her as his bride, five times in verses 8-12.]

And now the drama:

The Text:

The Drama:

4 1 How beautiful you are, my darling! Oh, how beautiful! Your eyes behind your veil are doves. Your hair is like a flock of goats descending from Mount Gilead.

2 Your teeth are like a flock of sheep just shorn, coming up from the washing. Each has its twin; not one of them is alone.

3 Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon; your mouth is lovely. Your temples behind your veil are like the halves of a pomegranate.

4 Your neck is like the tower of David, built with elegance; on it hang a thousand shields, all of them shields of warriors.

5 Your two breasts are like two fawns, like twin fawns of a gazelle that browse among the lilies.

6 Until the day breaks and the shadows flee, I will go to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of incense.

7 All beautiful you are, my darling; there is no flaw in you.

8 Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, come with me from Lebanon. Descend from the crest of Amana, from the top of Senir, the summit of Hermon, from the lions' dens and the mountain haunts of the leopards.

9 You have stolen my heart, my sister, my bride; you have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes, with one jewel of your necklace.

10 How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride! How much more pleasing is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your perfume than any spice!

11 Your lips drop sweetness as the honeycomb, my bride; milk and honey are under your tongue. The fragrance of your garments is like that of Lebanon.

12 You are a garden locked up, my sister, my bride; you are a spring enclosed, a sealed fountain.

13 Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates with choice fruits, with henna and nard,

14 nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, with every kind of incense tree, with myrrh and aloes and all the finest spices.

15 You are a garden fountain, a well of flowing water streaming down from Lebanon.

SHE

16 Awake, north wind, and come, south wind! Blow on my garden,

that its fragrance may spread abroad. Let my lover come into his garden

and taste its choice fruits.

(As the lights come back up, the backdrop is of the royal apartments. The couple are together in the middle of the stage and he is on one knee before her, holding her hand. She is in royal robes, but veiled, as if hidden from prying eyes. He speaks)

“My darling, how beautiful you are, how fortunate I am. Behind the bride's veil, your dovelike, gentle and tender eyes capture me. Your long dark hair over your shoulders is like a stream of my black goats coming down over the hillside path, so beautiful.

The whiteness of your teeth as you smile at me, is like the whiteness of my newly shorn and washed flocks. The red of your mouth stands out like a red ribbon and makes my heart beat fiercely. The curve of your head behind your veil is as smooth and soft as a fresh pomegranate. What more may I compare you to. I do it so that when I again see these things I will be reminded of your wonderful beauty.

The strength and beauty of your neck with its necklace reminds me of the beautiful tower of David hung around with ornamental shields.

The soft curves of your breasts put me in mind of the soft and gentle fawns I see, half hidden in the woodland.

Now we have the time together, I can enjoy the double fragrance of your beauty in its entirety, for in you is perfection, my love.

(The lights dim and when they come back up, he is holding her at arms length and she no longer wears a veil)

Leave your past behind now, my love, let the memories of the hard times be banished.

You have won my heart my dearest wife, with one glance of your eyes you captured me, with your very simplicity I was taken.

How wonderful your love to me has been, my wife, how much more wonderful than any pleasures from wine or fragrance from perfume!

The touch of your lips on mine melts me, your gentle fragrance captivates me.

Yet these are early days, my love, for you have been held back for me, an untouched garden, a fountain spring waiting to burst forth with ever greater wonders.

Every aspect of you is like an orchard, holding such delights as to be almost indescribable. As our love is expressed you are like a fountain that just pours out more and more love on me. You are so wonderful.

(She responds)

My dear, if I am a garden let the seasons come and open me that I may be an even greater pleasure to the one who has my heart.

(The light fades with the two of them gazing into each other's eyes).

Continue to Songs 5