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Being Known

Sexuality and Spirituality in The Song of Solomon

A garden locked is my sister,
my bride,
a garden locked, a fountain sealed.
Your channel is an orchard of pomegranates,
henna with nard,
nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon,
with all trees of frankincense,
myrrh and aloes,
with all chief spices-
a garden fountain, a well of living water,
and flowing streams from Lebanon.
--The Song of Solomon 4:12--15 (nrsv)

Why is The Song of Solomon included in the Bible? Why are we privileged to listen in on such a private relationship? What about all the vivid imagery and frank talk about sex? What does it all have to do with God? What does it have to do with me?

God is not mentioned in The Song of Solomon-a distinction shared with the book of Esther-and yet, where there is love there is God and as loving human beings, The Song of Solomon offers us glimpses of ourselves, our relationships with other human beings and our relationships with God.

The Highest Compliment

Scholars do not know when the book was written, but The Song of Solomon has many similarities to Egyptian love poetry written around 1567--1085 b.c.e. Because many of the passages appear to be written from a woman's perspective, many scholars believe that the author of the book was a woman. The mention of King Solomon is thought to be a scribe's way of making sure the book became part of the Bible's wisdom literature and would be taken seriously. In addition, King Solomon, with his 300 wives, some 600 concubines, as well as legendary wealth and wisdom, was the subject of much folklore.

Another way to see the comparison with King Solomon and his wives or concubines is as a form of admiration. Both the Lover and Beloved seek to honor the other by comparing him or her to the highest standards-the epitome of a man or woman. King Solomon, a known sage who is ascribed more than 1,000 truths, is a man filled with God's wisdom. Noble as they are, Solomon's wives and concubines offer praise and call the Beloved "blessed."

Both the Lover and Beloved describe each other in terms of rich fragrances-fruit, honey, myrrh, nard-as well as likening the other to the image of gardens, animals and nature. While we are certainly being treated to some of the beauties of love, it is as though we are also being shown little snippets of what God is-in the richness and variety that only nature can share with us. C. S. Lewis points out in The Case for Christianity, that just as some essence of the artist exists in every painting, despite not being physically present in the artwork, so some essence of God is visible in each of us. By extension, some essence of God is also in every image of nature or fragrance that the author of The Song of Solomon describes for us. In sexuality is spirituality.

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