The Song of Songs, also known as the Song of Solomon, is notable mostly because there's no good explanation for what the heck it's doing in the Bible. It makes no reference whatsoever to Yahweh, any concept of a god or gods for that matter, to the law, to the covenant, or even to morality or wisdom. It's purely an erotic love poem. The date of composition is uncertain, but most scholars put it on the Third Century BCE based on linguistic evidence. The ascription to Solomon is, as always, entirely fanciful.
Apologists try to read it as a metaphor for the relationship between God and Israel, or Christ and his church. But that makes sense only if they want to have a sexual relationship, because that is entirely what this is all about. The structure has a man and a woman alternately expressing their physical desire for each other, with interpolations by a chorus. And believe me, this is not about the marriage of two minds, it's 100% about their bodies. Some scholars believe this is actually the script for a pagan fertility ritual. I'm not going to post the whole thing here because it would be pointless. Here's the first chapter, to give you a flavor. If you want to read the whole thing (which you probably don't), you can go to Bible Gateway.
In fact its acceptance into the Canon was controversial, but it's there. Make of it what you will.
1 Solomon’s Song of Songs.
She[a]
2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—
for your love is more delightful than wine.
3 Pleasing is the fragrance of your perfumes;
your name is like perfume poured out.
No wonder the young women love you!
4 Take me away with you—let us hurry!
Let the king bring me into his chambers.Friends
We rejoice and delight in you[b];
we will praise your love more than wine.She
How right they are to adore you!
5 Dark am I, yet lovely,
daughters of Jerusalem,
dark like the tents of Kedar,
like the tent curtains of Solomon.[c]
6 Do not stare at me because I am dark,
because I am darkened by the sun.
My mother’s sons were angry with me
and made me take care of the vineyards;
my own vineyard I had to neglect.
7 Tell me, you whom I love,
where you graze your flock
and where you rest your sheep at midday.
Why should I be like a veiled woman
beside the flocks of your friends?Friends
8 If you do not know, most beautiful of women,
follow the tracks of the sheep
and graze your young goats
by the tents of the shepherds.He
9 I liken you, my darling, to a mare
among Pharaoh’s chariot horses.
10 Your cheeks are beautiful with earrings,
your neck with strings of jewels.
11 We will make you earrings of gold,
studded with silver.She
12 While the king was at his table,
my perfume spread its fragrance.
13 My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh
resting between my breasts.
14 My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms
from the vineyards of En Gedi.He
15 How beautiful you are, my darling!
Oh, how beautiful!
Your eyes are doves.She
16 How handsome you are, my beloved!
Oh, how charming!
And our bed is verdant.He
17 The beams of our house are cedars;
our rafters are firs.Footnotes
- Song of Songs 1:2 The main male and female speakers (identified primarily on the basis of the gender of the relevant Hebrew forms) are indicated by the captions He and She respectively. The words of others are marked Friends. In some instances the divisions and their captions are debatable.
- Song of Songs 1:4 The Hebrew is masculine singular.
- Song of Songs 1:5 Or Salma
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