Song of Solomon (Song of Songs) Chapter 4 Summary

The Groom is Gaga

  • You can't have a decent love poem without a nice big section where a guy gets all mushy, right?
  • In this chapter, the groom talks about everything from the bride's beauty to her smell to the way she makes him feel. (Get your mind out of the gutter!)
  • Take a stroll over to our discussion on "Love" for more details about this, but remember: this is not about intellectual stimulation or land grabs by powerful families through marriage. Song of Songs is all about young love, plain and simple.
  • Okay, so after telling us how much he digs his girl, the groom laments that she is so far away. Sounds kind of like a rerun of the escape fantasy we've seen throughout the song, right?
  • And how do you escape your pesky families when they're not cool with your current squeeze? By fleeing north to a secret metaphorical garden, of course!
  • The garden represents the closed space of the bride's sexuality; yep, the groom is looking to be the only suitor there. In 5:1, everyone seems to be gathered at this garden to watch the two lovers marry. The groom declares, "Eat, friends, drink, and be drunk with love." Sounds like an interesting party.