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Song of Songs 4

KJV · Chapter 4/8

1Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves’ eyes within thy locks: thy hair is as a flock of goats, that appear from mount Gilead.

2Thy teeth are like a flock of sheep that are even shorn, which came up from the washing; whereof every one bear twins, and none is barren among them.

3Thy lips are like a thread of scarlet, and thy speech is comely: thy temples are like a piece of a pomegranate within thy locks.

4Thy neck is like the tower of David builded for an armoury, whereon there hang a thousand bucklers, all shields of mighty men.

5Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins, which feed among the lilies.

6Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, I will get me to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense.

7Thou art all fair, my love; there is no spot in thee.

8Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse, with me from Lebanon: look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, from the lions’ dens, from the mountains of the leopards.

9Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck.

10How fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse! how much better is thy love than wine! and the smell of thine ointments than all spices!

11Thy lips, O my spouse, drop as the honeycomb: honey and milk are under thy tongue; and the smell of thy garments is like the smell of Lebanon.

12A garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed.

13Thy plants are an orchard of pomegranates, with pleasant fruits; camphire, with spikenard,

14Spikenard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices:

15A fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon.

16Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

The lover describes the beloved's beauty in detail, from head to foot, using images from nature. He calls her a locked garden and a sealed fountain, symbols of exclusivity and purity in love.

Explanation

This kind of descriptive poem, later called a "wasf" in Arabic tradition, praises each part of the beloved's body through comparisons with familiar things: flocks, towers, pomegranates, mountains. To modern readers these comparisons may sound strange, but to the ancient audience they conveyed abundance, strength, fruitfulness, and perfection. The image of the "locked garden" and "sealed fountain" expresses the exclusivity of married love, reserved only for one's spouse. Application for today: expressing verbal admiration for one's spouse, with creativity and tenderness, strengthens the intimacy of marriage.

Fun facts

  • Mount Lebanon and Mount Hermon, mentioned here, were snow-capped peaks visible from great distances, symbols of majesty and purity in Hebrew poetry.
  • The word "bride" (kalah) used by the lover in this passage is the same word used elsewhere in the Old Testament for a woman promised in marriage.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Song of Songs 4:1Comparing the beloved’s hair to a “flock of goats” coming down Mount Gilead sounds strange to modern ears, but it was a compliment: it described wavy, full hair in motion, like the dark coats of those goats moving in a line down the hillside.
  2. Song of Songs 4:2Comparing white, even teeth to freshly shorn, washed sheep, all bearing twins and none missing, is a good-humored compliment to the perfection and symmetry of a complete smile, with no teeth missing.
  3. Song of Songs 4:3Comparing the cheeks to a slice of open pomegranate, with its rosy color and speckled texture, is a very specific sensory image drawn from a fruit common in the region, used to describe the skin’s natural blush.
  4. Song of Songs 4:4Comparing the neck to a tower decorated with hanging shields is a compliment to an elegant, upright posture, joining physical delicacy to an image of strength and protection borrowed from military architecture.
  5. Song of Songs 4:5The image of twin fawns grazing among lilies combines softness and symmetry, a delicate comparison that avoids direct language while still describing the body with clear admiration.
  6. Song of Songs 4:6Repeating the same poetic expression from chapter 2 about shadows fleeing at dawn suggests that this particular encounter will last the whole night, until the light of the following day arrives.
  7. Song of Songs 4:7This simple, direct statement of flawless perfection works as the conclusion of the long physical praise that has been building since the start of the chapter, before the scene shifts in tone in the next verse.
  8. Song of Songs 4:8Inviting her to come down from distant mountains associated with lions and leopards is more poetic fantasy than literal geography — a way of dramatically inviting her to leave a dangerous place and come near him.
  9. Song of Songs 4:9Calling her “sister” here does not indicate literal kinship, but was a common term of endearment in ancient Near Eastern love poetry, used between couples to express intimacy and closeness.
  10. Song of Songs 4:10Repeating the comparison of love to wine, already used near the start of the book, shows how certain images work as threads tying different chapters of the poem together.
  11. Song of Songs 4:11Associating her kiss with honey and milk combines literal sweetness with an expression that also appears describing the promised land elsewhere in the Bible, elevating the compliment to almost a level of blessing.
  12. Song of Songs 4:12The phrase “a garden inclosed... a fountain sealed” describes the exclusiveness and reserved intimacy between the couple, an image of something precious kept safe and not open to just anyone.
  13. Song of Songs 4:13Describing the beloved as a cultivated orchard, full of rare, fragrant plants, extends the “garden inclosed” metaphor from the previous verse into a detailed list of what that garden would contain.
  14. Song of Songs 4:14This list of spices gathers products from distant trade routes, India, Arabia, as well as the Mediterranean — a way of saying that she brings together the best of everything that came from foreign lands.
  15. Song of Songs 4:15Running water, called “living” in contrast to the still water of a cistern, was a valuable resource in the region’s dry climate — the image of such a spring describes something rare, pure, and continuously renewed.
  16. Song of Songs 4:16The invitation for the wind to blow through the garden and for the beloved to come eat its fruit is sensual language about the couple’s union, using nature as a metaphor for the romantic encounter without describing anything explicitly.

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