The Song of Songs.

(Song of Solomon)

This book was written by Solomon during the better years of his reign, shortly after construction

of the temple was completed. It takes the form of a drama and consists of conversations between

the Lover and his Beloved.

  During the first reading this book may appear to be just another ancient lyrical song. This is

the way it is understood by many free-thinking commentators who do not take into account the

voice of the Church. One needs to read the prophets in order to see that, in the Old Testament,

the image of the Lover and the Beloved was used in an elevated sense to represent the union be-

tween God and His faithful. This book was included in the canon of Jewish sacred books because

it was in this elevated symbolic sense that the Old Testament tradition understood the book and

prescribed it to be read on Passover. The Apostle Paul uses the same symbolism in the New Tes-

tament, though not in the form of poetry, when comparing the love between husband and wife to

that between Christ and the Church (Eph. 5:22-32). We often hear the same image of bridegroom

and bride in the hymns of the Church where it is used to symbolize the fervent love of a Christian

soul for the Savior of the soul. The same strong love of soul for Christ is found in the writings of

Christian ascetics.

  It is instructional to compare the following passage from the Song of Songs with a similar

depiction of love by the Apostle Paul.

.Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal

upon thine arm: for love is strong as death;

jealousy  is cruel as the grave: the coals

thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most

vehement flame. Many waters  cannot

quench love, neither can the floods drown

it: if a man would give all the substance of

his house for love, it would utterly be con-

temned. (Song. 8:6-7).

.Who shall separate us from the  love  of

Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or per-

secution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril,

or  sword?  Nay,  in  all  these  things  we  are

more than conquerors through him  that

loved us. For I am persuaded, that  neither

death, nor life, nor angels,  nor  principali-

ties, nor powers, nor things  present,  nor

things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor

any other creature, shall be able to separate

us from the love of God, which is in Christ

Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:35-39, see also

1 Cor. 13).