Innuendo—Song of Songs 3:6-5:1
The Song of Solomon, Part 3
In the Song of Solomon, there are many erotic images, such as caresses and deep kissing, with references to tasting the beloved’s mouth. Beyond that, the meaning of some metaphors about love is unclear, but some are obvious. This post is for adults, so if you are under the age of consent where you live or prefer not to read about sex, please leave now.
6 What is that coming up from the wilderness
like columns of smoke,
perfumed with myrrh and frankincense,
with all the fragrant powders of a merchant?
7 Behold, it is the litter of Solomon!
Around it are sixty mighty men,
some of the mighty men of Israel,
8 all of them wearing swords
and expert in war,
each with his sword at his thigh,
against terror by night.
9 King Solomon made himself a carriage
from the wood of Lebanon.
10 He made its posts of silver,
its back of gold, its seat of purple;
its interior was inlaid with love
by the daughters of Jerusalem.
11 Go out, O daughters of Zion,
and look upon King Solomon,
with the crown with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding,
on the day of the gladness of his heart.He
4 Behold, you are beautiful, my love,
behold, you are beautiful!
Your eyes are doves
behind your veil.
Your hair is like a flock of goats
leaping down the slopes of Gilead.
2 Your teeth are like a flock of shorn ewes
that have come up from the washing,
all of which bear twins,
and not one among them has lost its young.
3 Your lips are like a scarlet thread,
and your mouth is lovely.
Your cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate
behind your veil.
4 Your neck is like the tower of David,
built in rows of stone;
on it hang a thousand shields,
all of them shields of warriors.
5 Your two breasts are like two fawns,
twins of a gazelle,
that graze among the lilies.
6 Until the day breathes
and the shadows flee,
I will go away to the mountain of myrrh
and the hill of frankincense.
7 You are altogether beautiful, my love;
there is no flaw in you.
8 Come with me from Lebanon, my bride;
come with me from Lebanon.
Depart from the peak of Amana,
from the peak of Senir and Hermon,
from the dens of lions,
from the mountains of leopards.
9 You have captivated my heart, my sister, my bride;
you have captivated my heart with one glance of your eyes,
with one jewel of your necklace.
10 How beautiful is your love, my sister, my bride!
How much better is your love than wine,
and the fragrance of your oils than any spice!
11 Your lips drip nectar, my bride;
honey and milk are under your tongue;
the fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon.
12 A garden locked is my sister, my bride,
a spring locked, a fountain sealed.
13 Your shoots are an orchard of pomegranates
with all choicest fruits,
henna with nard,
14 nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon,
with all trees of frankincense,
myrrh and aloes,
with all choice spices—
15 a garden fountain, a well of living water,
and flowing streams from Lebanon.
16 Awake, O north wind,
and come, O south wind!
Blow upon my garden,
let its spices flow.Together in the Garden of Love
She
Let my beloved come to his garden,
and eat its choicest fruits.He
5 I came to my garden, my sister, my bride,
I gathered my myrrh with my spice,
I ate my honeycomb with my honey,
I drank my wine with my milk.Others
Eat, friends, drink,
Song of Songs 3:6 – 5:1 ESV UK
and be drunk with love!
Intimacy
The Song of Solomon, also known as the Song of Songs, contains sensual songs in the Bible. It uses attraction and romance to symbolise the love of God.
The Solomon episode in 3:6-11 is an interlude that ends with a call to the Women of Jerusalem. It’s important to note that Solomon, who had 700 wives and 300 concubines from various countries, is not one of the lovers in this poem. The lovers express their physical love for each other alone when together and their longing when apart, which intensifies as the poem goes on.
The intimacy is growing stronger. They begin to express the joy of their physical attraction to each other. In several instances leading up to Chapter 7, they pause to describe each other’s appearance using vivid metaphors. These metaphors should not be taken literally. For instance, “Your neck is like the tower of David, built in rows of stone; on it hang a thousand shields,” highlights the beauty of her neck, which, while not made of stone, is likely round and strong like a tower.
This is also where the innuendo comes in. The ones that are still understood talk about “extravagant lovemaking, male and female oral sex, yearning and searching and hiding and finding, all between two unmarried people, one dark-skinned, and one light.
“Breasts are compared to fawns; a man’s penis as sweet fruit and his genitalia as a bag of myrrh; the woman’s as a garden of pomegranates that should be eaten; lips and mouths are honey and milk.” (Rev. Dr. Alyce M. McKenzie).
When the woman says, “Let my beloved come to his garden and enjoy its best fruits,” we understand her meaning. I mentioned that this is an erotic poem.
This poem isn’t a story and doesn’t follow a timeline; it circles back on itself, retelling the same themes from different viewpoints. I’ve always misunderstood this book by trying to view it logically, but it’s more than that. The Song of Songs is simply a collection of songs meant to be enjoyed.
But there is a problem. This couple is not married in any traditional sense. It’s a Jewish book, and the writers approach intimacy more openly than Christians do. However, this collection of erotic songs isn’t focused on ceremonies; instead, they are poems about loyalty.
Faithfulness in sexual relationships is an important Biblical tradition. We are meant to be loyal to God and to each other in our sexual lives, as seen in the Song of Songs. However, taking these analogies too far can be strange; for example, asking how cunnilingus relates to to God is weird. In the Old Testament, sex is not considered sinful, and Proverbs 30 even celebrates sexual attraction. While the Wisdom books like Proverbs and Ecclesiastes warn against prostitution and adultery, which are against the Commandments, the feelings of two young adults for each other in an erotic context, such as in the Song of Songs, can be sweet and align with the overall message of love in Scripture.
Why not read the Song of Songs together with your wife or husband, express your loyalty and faithfulness for each othe any way you like, and take a pomegranate.
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