The "Charming Confusion" of the Song of Songs
The renowned German poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe once remarked about the Song of Songs:
[It is] the most tender and inimitable expression of graceful yet passionate love that has come down to us. Unfortunately the poems cannot be fully enjoyed—since they are fragmentary, telescoped, or driven into one another, and mixed up; but it is delightful to divine the conditions under which the poets lived… We thought repeatedly of selecting and arranging something out of this charming confusion, but this enigmatic
and inextricable condition invests those few leaves with a peculiar
charm. Many a time well-meaning methodical minds have been
tempted to find or establish an intelligible connection, but a subsequent student must do the work all over again.1
One Austrian scholar tried to show in 1884 that the confusion was due to a mistake by a bookbinder who misplaced parts of the manuscript.2
But given that we live in the age ruled by the “doctrines of demons” which restrict the sexual union (1 Timothy 4:1-3), I do not at all believe the confusion was an accident. There was indeed a council of demons who schemed how to plunge humanity into a long age of darkness and misery by concealing the glory of God and the true nature of the sexual union. By so doing, they ensured humanity could neither give thanks to God nor ever find satisfaction or relief from their “base desires.”
Like a starving man cannot contemplate the joys of fine food, neither can a sex-starved man contemplate the joys of fine sex. The idea of using intense eroticism to express true thankfulness to God is almost non-existent. Our desires are “dark” and “shameful,” never something “of God,” and certainly not cause for open celebration.
The 19th century Semitic scholar Paul Haupt wrote words that gives me chills when I read them. I imagine these words may have been overheard from the demonic council itself:
“Let us save the attractive book for the Congregation, but we will pour some water into the author's strong wine.” Not satisfied with the obscuration of the original book, the theological revisers tried to cut up and dislocate the text as much as possible, destroying the original order and logical sequence, so that in the present form of the book there is no proper arrangement, no logical connection between the individual verses : it seems like a conglomeration of disjecta membra [scattered fragments.]3
Rest assured, this (lengthy) post will pull back the veil on the Song of Songs—the Holy of Holies. You might need a few sittings to take it in. It is like walking into bright sunlight after spending a lifetime in the dark. You need time to adjust.
All that said, let’s dive in. First, the problem…
There are at least three witnesses today that testify that the Song of Songs, as we read it in our bibles, is out of order:
Witness #1: The Dead Sea Scrolls
This is the “hard evidence” against the received text…
The Dead Sea Scrolls are ancient Hebrew manuscripts that were found in the Qumran Caves in the Judean Desert. The collection includes 981 different manuscripts, including the largest and second oldest known manuscript collection of the Hebrew scriptures.
The Dead Sea Scrolls provide remarkable evidence that the Old Testament scriptures have been accurately and carefully preserved through the centuries.
Except for one book… the Song of Songs.
There are four fragmented manuscripts of the Song of Songs, technically referred to as 4Q106, 4Q107, 4Q108, and 6Q6.
4Q106 and 4Q107 are especially remarkable because they significantly differ from the text in our bibles. Specifically:
Song 4:8-6:10 is completely omitted from where it “should” be
3:6-8 are omitted; 3:5 continues straight into to 3:9
4:4-7 are omitted; 4:3 continues straight into 4:8
Not only that, but the manuscripts themselves contradict each other. 4Q106 shows 3:6-8 (the scene with Solomon and his sixty mighty men) transitioning straight into 3:9-11 (the wedding scene.) But 4Q107 clearly omits the mighty men scene and goes straight from 3:5 into the wedding scene of 3:9-11.
Furthermore, 4Q108 is a fragment of the questioned mighty men scene of 3:6-8. The fragment was found in the same cave as the other two manuscripts, but is in different handwriting.
So what’s going on here?
I believe this is evidence of early efforts to alter the text. 4Q107 is probably a copy of the original text and 4Q106 and 4Q108 are the fragments of two different scribes attempts at “fixing” the text.
It is commonly believed that the Dead Sea Scrolls were the library of a Jewish sect called the Essenes. The Jewish historian Josephus identifies the Essenes as one of the three sects of Jewish philosophy (alongside the Pharisees and Sadducees.) The Essenes were noted by both Josephus and the Roman writer Pliny the Elder to be distinguished by their dedication to voluntary poverty, asceticism, and celibacy. Today, the Essenes could be considered a pre-curser to Christian monasticism.
As a group of ascetics who believed celibacy was the ideal, they were no doubt greatly embarrassed by the exuberant celebration of all kinds of erotic pleasure found in the Song. A sanitized (albeit nonsensical) arrangement of the text was necessary. And such a text would soon find a popular audience as mainstream Judaism and Christianity adopted more ascetic religious practices and opted for an allegorical, rather than erotic, interpretation of the Song of Songs.
Witness #2: The Masoretic Punctuation
The Masoretes were a group of renowned Jewish scribes active between the 7th and 10th centuries A.D. The Masoretic Text is still used today as the primary Hebrew source text for most Protestant English bibles and some Catholic bibles to this day. The most notable invention of the Masoretes was a sophisticated system of diacritic marks which standardized the pronunciation, paragraph divisions, and cantillation of the Hebrew Bible. (Prior to this, the Hebrew scriptures depended on an oral tradition to correctly read or chant the text.)
Most usefully, the Masoretes introduced the practice of the parashah or parashot (plural). Parashah means “portion.” The Masoretes would use parashot to mark the end of a “portion” of extended poetry in the scriptures. At the end of a section, there’d be a little punctuation mark and a space to indicate a break in the text. Very similar to how, in English, we use multiple spaces and some sort of symbol like a large tilde mark to indicate a change of scene in an epic poem.
The Song of Songs includes 20 parashot, indicating 21 scenes (the final scene has no parashah since the text simply stops at that point. Evidently, the dislocation of the original text had no effect on the placement of the parashot since they were determined from oral tradition rather than any visible punctuation of the text.
These parashot give us both evidence of disorder and fixed foundation points by which we can reconstruct the Song. Since we know which verses mark the end of a scene, we can look at the context immediately before and after the scene ending to see if it makes sense.
A quick example…
Song 1:8 is the ending of a scene:
If you do not know for yourself, loveliest among women,
Go forth for yourself at the heels of the flock,
And graze your kids by the tabernacles of the shepherds. [parashah]
Then in 1:9, before the shepherdess can even begin to seek out the king, someone (presumably Solomon) appears out of thin air with no introduction and starts praising the shepherdess’ beauty with a metaphor that has no context. This is terrible writing and kills the erotic suspense. The obvious follow up to 1:8 is 3:6-8:
Who is this ascending from the wilderness
Like pillars of smoke,
[…]
Behold, his couch, that which is Solomon’s!
Sixty masterful men surround it…
The shepherdess asks the maidens where she can find the king. The maidens tell her to follow the flock. So she does… out into the wilderness. There, she finds not only Solomon, but a mysterious and awe-inspiring scene involving the couch of Solomon, lots of incense, and sixty mighty warriors. Now all the characters of the poem are introduced and the erotic intrigue intensifies.
Witness #3: Nonsensical Writing
Plain and simple: the Song of Songs, as presented in the Bible, does not make a damn bit of sense.
Just a few examples:
A man (who has not been introduced) appears from thin air and starts waxing poetic about chariots with no context (1:9)
A man sees a woman of awe-inspiring beauty and therefore decides he needs to immediately go check on his vineyard, but before he knows it he’s whisked away by the chariots of his noble people where he is immediately greeted by the sight of a dancing Shulammite girl! (6:10-13)
A woman prefaces her request for undying love from the king by reminding him of the birth pains of his mother (8:5-6)
Not to mention there is no sensible plot development. Something is happening, but we have no idea what.
To be honest, the Song of Songs, as presented in the bible, reads more like a bad acid trip than the crowning literary achievement of a man who had “breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore.”
For the sake of Solomon’s honor, and our own benefit, I believe we can restore this glorious work of art.
The Song of Songs Restored
Now that I’ve laid out the case against the “traditional” Song of Songs sequence, I will give you what I believe is the correct sequence of the Song of Songs. This is based on the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Masoretic parashot, and good old fashion literary sense.
What follows is simply a sweeping overview of the restored poem to demonstrate a cohesive plot structure and hint at the depth of erotic intensity and variety contained within. The true glory is in the details, however, so I’m only giving this as a “Cliff’s Notes” summary to help you get oriented.
There are 21 scenes divided into four acts and an epilogue. The first three acts end with a repeated aside addressed to the female audience, exhorting them to “not rouse up love until it delight” (an exhortation to wait until the breasts are fully developed and “ripe” before pursuing sexual pleasure.) The final act ends with an exuberant exhortation to enjoy all the delights of erotic love.
Act I, Scene 1: Joining the Harem (1:1-4)
A shepherdess girl is brought into the king’s harem. Upon joining, she finds that all the women are enamored with the king and joyfully sing his praises.
Act I, Scene 2: Seeking the King (1:5-8)
The shepherdess is self-conscious because of her low social status and darkened skin from manual labor in the sun. Nevertheless, she desires to see the king and asks where he might be found. The women tell her to follow the flock and she will find the shepherd king.
Act I, Scene 3: Pillars of Smoke (3:6-8)
The shepherdess finds the king outside the city. And not only does she find King Solomon, but she witnesses a mysterious and awe-inspiring scene involving the couch of Solomon, lots of incense, and sixty mighty warriors.
Act I, Scene 4: Exciting the Stallions (6:12; 1:9-11; 4:4-7)
The shepherdess discovers that she is pleasing to the king and his mighty men. The king compares her to a mare that excites the war stallions of Pharaoh’s chariots; he praises her beautiful features and promises to spend the night with her that very night.
Act I, Scene 5: The Vineyards of En-Gedi (1:15-17; 7:11-13; 1:12-14)
The king and the shepherdess enjoy a series of intimate erotic encounters in the countryside. This appears to last for at least a few days.
Act I, Scene 6: The Return (8:5a; 2:1-3; 8:5b; 8:1-3)
The king returns to the city with the shepherdess leaning on his arm. A crowd gathers to marvel at the new girl. The shepherdess reflects fondly on her intimate time with the king while she yearns to be even more intimate with the king.
~ END of ACT I ~
Act II, Scene 1: Praise Her (6:4-9)
The shepherdess is dressed like a fearsome queen and given a royal beauty treatment for the king. All gather around to admire and praise her preeminent awe-inspiring beauty.
Act II, Scene 2: The Dance (6:13-7:5; 6:10)
The shepherdess, now dubbed the Shulammite, performs an erotic dance for the audience and drives the men into a frenzy as they admire her body and her movements.
Act II, Scene 3: Fertilizing the Palm Tree (7:6-10)
The king compares the Shulammite’s figure to a palm tree and declares it is time for the palm tree to be fertilized.
Act II, Scene 4: The House of Wine (2:4-7)
The Shulammite, now “ailing with love” is brought to the wine house where she is given all the love she can endure.
~ END of ACT II ~
Act III, Scene 1: The Dream (5:2-6:3)
The Shulammite has now returned to the harem quarters. As she sleeps, she has a vivid dream in which she replays her past erotic encounters with the king in a dreamy setting. Her desire is reignited and upon waking, she asks some maidens if they know of his whereabouts. After praising the king’s surpassing excellency as a lover, the maidens pledge to join her and seek out the king with her.
Act III, Scene 2: Springtime Blooms (2:8-13)
The fig ripens and the vineyards are in bloom… love is in the air! The Shulammite is overjoyed to hear the king returning to her house. He entreats her from her window and tells her to “go forth” so the springtime festivities can begin.
Act III, Scene 3: Dove Hunting (2:14)
The Shulammite hides and the king hunts her down as if she were a dove.
Act III, Scene 4: Fox Hunting (2:15-17)
After “capturing” the Shulammite, the king tells her to “catch the foxes” that spoil the “vineyards,” for the vineyards are now in bloom. The Shulammite remains at home though while the king “gathers flowers.” She tells him to return to him at night.
Act III, Scene 5: Mother’s Blessing (3:1-5)
Nighttime comes and the king has not returned. The Shulammite grows distressed and is overcome with desire. She decides to take matters into her own hands. She ventures out into the city and. when she finds him, she clings to him. She does not let him go until she brings him into her mother’s house…
~ END of ACT III ~
Act IV, Scene 1: The Wedding (3:9-11)
With the blessing of her mother, the king takes the Shulammite as his bride. Wedding festivities commence.
Act IV, Scene 2: Milk & Honey (4:1-3, 8-11)
More wedding festivities…
Act IV, Scene 3: The Garden of Delights (4:12-15; 6:11; 8:13; 4:16-5:1a; 8:14; 5:1b)
Even more wedding festivities… and much joy for all.
~ END of ACT IV ~
Epilogue, Scene 1: Strong as Death (8:6-7)
The bride entreats her groom to make her his most treasured possession. As she does so, she provides a profound commentary to the audience on the nature of sexual desire, jealousy, sexual temptation, and true love.
Epilogue, Scene 2: A Virgin in Bloom (8:8-10)
The next Shulammite comes of age.
Epilogue, Scene 3: The Lord of Abundance (8:11-12)
The glory of Solomon’s “vineyard” (harem) is described in brief. And acknowledgement is given to the “keepers” of the vineyard… a relatively invisible, but essential, role to the erotic drama.
—
As you can see, the Song of Songs, when properly arranged, makes perfect sense. While there are many wonders left to be discovered by studying and contemplating the details, there is at least a cohesive plot which we can use as a mental framework to explore the erotic wonders of God’s creation.
Quoted in “Biblical Love-Ditties,” by Dr. Paul Haupt
“Difficult Passages in the Song of Songs,” by Dr. Paul Haupt
Ibid.