Song of Solomon 3 Study Notes: The Night Search and the Royal Wedding
At night the woman searches the city streets for the one she loves, passes the watchmen and finds him. She repeats her charge about waiting for love, King Solomon’s carriage arrives in a grand procession, and the women of Zion are called to see him crowned on his wedding day.
General
In 3:11, on what day had King Solomon’s mother crowned him?
Answer: His wedding day, a day of great joy
The daughters of Zion are called to come out and see King Solomon in the crown his mother placed on him for his wedding, a day when his heart overflowed (3:11). Readers differ on whether the beloved throughout the Song is Solomon himself or another man, but this scene clearly celebrates a royal wedding. Scripture often pictures a wedding as a time of gladness and rejoicing (Psalm 45:15; Jeremiah 33:11), and Isaiah uses a bridegroom’s joy over his bride to describe God’s joy over His people (Isaiah 62:5).
- Song of Solomon 3:11 (BSB)“Come out, O daughters of Zion, and gaze at King Solomon, wearing the crown with which his mother crowned him on the day of his wedding—the day of his heart’s rejoicing.”The daughters of Zion are called to see Solomon crowned on his wedding day.
- Psalm 45:15 (BSB)“They are led in with joy and gladness; they enter the palace of the king.”A royal wedding procession enters the king’s palace with joy and gladness.
- Jeremiah 33:11 (BSB)“the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of the bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those bringing thank offerings into the house of the LORD, saying: ‘Give thanks to the LORD of Hosts, for the LORD is good; His loving devotion endures forever.’ For I will restore the land from captivity as in former times, says the LORD.”The voices of bride and bridegroom are named among the sounds of joy.
- Isaiah 62:5 (BSB)“For as a young man marries a young woman, so your sons will marry you; and as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so your God will rejoice over you.”A bridegroom’s joy over his bride pictures God’s joy over His people.
Theological
What occasion is linked in 3:11 with the crown Solomon’s mother placed on him?
Answer: His wedding day, a day of great joy
The daughters of Zion are summoned to behold King Solomon in the crown his mother set on him for his wedding, a day when his heart was glad (3:11). Readers differ over whether the beloved of the Song is Solomon or another figure, but the scene plainly celebrates a royal wedding. Scripture associates weddings with gladness and rejoicing (Psalm 45:15; Jeremiah 33:11), and Isaiah takes up a bridegroom’s rejoicing over his bride as an image of God’s delight in His people (Isaiah 62:5).
- Song of Solomon 3:11 (BSB)“Come out, O daughters of Zion, and gaze at King Solomon, wearing the crown with which his mother crowned him on the day of his wedding—the day of his heart’s rejoicing.”The daughters of Zion are called to see Solomon crowned on his wedding day.
- Psalm 45:15 (BSB)“They are led in with joy and gladness; they enter the palace of the king.”A royal wedding procession enters the king’s palace with joy and gladness.
- Jeremiah 33:11 (BSB)“the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of the bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those bringing thank offerings into the house of the LORD, saying: ‘Give thanks to the LORD of Hosts, for the LORD is good; His loving devotion endures forever.’ For I will restore the land from captivity as in former times, says the LORD.”The voices of bride and bridegroom are named among the sounds of joy.
- Isaiah 62:5 (BSB)“For as a young man marries a young woman, so your sons will marry you; and as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so your God will rejoice over you.”A bridegroom’s joy over his bride pictures God’s joy over His people.
General
What happens just after the woman passes the watchmen (3:3-4)?
Answer: She finds him and brings him to her mother’s house
She meets the watchmen as they go around the city and asks them whether they have seen the one she loves (3:3). No answer is given, but she has barely gone past them when she finds him. She holds on to him tightly until she has brought him to her mother’s house (3:4). Watchmen were the guards who kept watch over a city day and night (Isaiah 62:6), though Scripture reminds us that the city’s true protection is the LORD (Psalm 127:1).
- Song of Solomon 3:3-4 (BSB)“I encountered the watchmen on their rounds of the city: “Have you seen the one I love?” I had just passed them when I found the one I love. I held him and would not let go until I had brought him to my mother’s house, to the chamber of the one who conceived me.”She asks the watchmen about him and finds him just after passing them.
- Isaiah 62:6 (BSB)“On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have posted watchmen; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD shall take no rest for yourselves,”Watchmen were posted on a city’s walls to keep watch day and night.
- Psalm 127:1 (BSB)“A song of ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain; unless the LORD protects the city, its watchmen stand guard in vain.”The watchmen guard the city, but its true protection is the LORD.
Theological
What follows immediately after the woman’s encounter with the watchmen in 3:3-4?
Answer: She finds him and brings him to her mother’s house
She questions the watchmen patrolling the city about the one she loves (3:3). Their reply is not recorded; she has scarcely passed them when she finds him, holds him fast, and brings him to her mother’s house (3:4). The watchmen are the city’s guards, posted to keep watch day and night (Isaiah 62:6), though the city’s ultimate security rests with the LORD (Psalm 127:1).
- Song of Solomon 3:3-4 (BSB)“I encountered the watchmen on their rounds of the city: “Have you seen the one I love?” I had just passed them when I found the one I love. I held him and would not let go until I had brought him to my mother’s house, to the chamber of the one who conceived me.”She asks the watchmen about him and finds him just after passing them.
- Isaiah 62:6 (BSB)“On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have posted watchmen; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD shall take no rest for yourselves,”Watchmen were posted on a city’s walls to keep watch day and night.
- Psalm 127:1 (BSB)“A song of ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain; unless the LORD protects the city, its watchmen stand guard in vain.”The watchmen guard the city, but its true protection is the LORD.
General
When the woman cannot find the one she loves at night, what does she do (3:1-2)?
Answer: She gets up and searches the whole city
At night she looks for the one she loves but cannot find him (3:1). So she resolves to get up and go all through the city, through its streets and open places, looking for him, yet at first she still does not find him (3:2). The scene shows how deeply she longs for him. A similar search appears later in the Song, when she again looks for him and cannot find him (5:6) and asks the daughters of Jerusalem to tell him of her longing (5:8).
- Song of Solomon 3:1-2 (BSB)“On my bed at night I sought the one I love; I sought him, but did not find him. I will arise now and go about the city, through the streets and squares. I will seek the one I love. So I sought him but did not find him.”She seeks the one she loves at night and goes through the city to look for him.
- Song of Solomon 5:6 (BSB)“I opened for my beloved, but he had turned and gone. My heart sank at his departure. I sought him but did not find him. I called, but he did not answer.”In a later scene she again seeks him and does not find him.
- Song of Solomon 5:8 (BSB)“O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you, if you find my beloved, tell him I am sick with love.”She asks the daughters of Jerusalem to tell him she longs for him.
Theological
How does the woman respond in 3:1-2 when her search for her beloved at night fails?
Answer: She gets up and searches the whole city
Her search by night ends in failure (3:1), so she resolves to rise and go throughout the city, its streets and squares, seeking him, though at first without success (3:2). The episode dramatizes the intensity of her longing. The Song returns to the motif later, when she again seeks him without finding him (5:6) and asks the daughters of Jerusalem to tell him how she longs for him (5:8).
- Song of Solomon 3:1-2 (BSB)“On my bed at night I sought the one I love; I sought him, but did not find him. I will arise now and go about the city, through the streets and squares. I will seek the one I love. So I sought him but did not find him.”She seeks the one she loves at night and goes through the city to look for him.
- Song of Solomon 5:6 (BSB)“I opened for my beloved, but he had turned and gone. My heart sank at his departure. I sought him but did not find him. I called, but he did not answer.”In a later scene she again seeks him and does not find him.
- Song of Solomon 5:8 (BSB)“O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you, if you find my beloved, tell him I am sick with love.”She asks the daughters of Jerusalem to tell him she longs for him.
General
True or False: In 3:5 the woman repeats to the daughters of Jerusalem the same charge about love that she gave in 2:7.
Answer: True
This is true. After the night search ends with finding the one she loves, she again charges the daughters of Jerusalem, invoking the gazelles and wild deer, not to stir up or wake love before its proper time (3:5). The words match her earlier charge (2:7), and they return once more near the end of the Song (8:4). The repeated charge marks the main sections of the poem and stresses that love should wait for its right time, since every matter has its season (Ecclesiastes 3:1).
- Song of Solomon 3:5 (BSB)“O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you by the gazelles and does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until the time is right.”The woman repeats her charge to the daughters of Jerusalem.
- Song of Solomon 2:7 (BSB)“O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you by the gazelles and does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until the time is right.”The same charge first appears here.
- Song of Solomon 8:4 (BSB)“O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you: Do not arouse or awaken love until the time is right.”The charge appears a third time near the end of the Song.
- Ecclesiastes 3:1 (BSB)“To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven:”Wisdom teaches that every matter has its proper time.
Theological
True or False: The charge to the daughters of Jerusalem in 3:5 is a repetition of the charge given in 2:7.
Answer: True
This is true. Following the night search and its resolution, she renews her oath-bound charge to the daughters of Jerusalem not to rouse love before its fitting time (3:5), in the same words as before (2:7) and again later (8:4). The refrain structures the poem and underscores that love must await its proper season, in keeping with the wisdom that every matter has its appointed time (Ecclesiastes 3:1).
- Song of Solomon 3:5 (BSB)“O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you by the gazelles and does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until the time is right.”The woman repeats her charge to the daughters of Jerusalem.
- Song of Solomon 2:7 (BSB)“O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you by the gazelles and does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until the time is right.”The same charge first appears here.
- Song of Solomon 8:4 (BSB)“O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you: Do not arouse or awaken love until the time is right.”The charge appears a third time near the end of the Song.
- Ecclesiastes 3:1 (BSB)“To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven:”Wisdom teaches that every matter has its proper time.
General
What is the procession that rises out of the wilderness in 3:6-10?
Answer: Solomon’s carriage, guarded by mighty men
Something rises out of the desert like a pillar of smoke, fragrant with myrrh and other spices (3:6). It turns out to be King Solomon’s carriage, with sixty of Israel’s strongest warriors around it, each armed with a sword against dangers in the night (3:7-8). Solomon built the carriage from Lebanon timber, with silver posts, a gold base and a purple seat, and the daughters of Jerusalem lovingly decorated its interior (3:9-10). Kings shows Solomon bringing cedar from Lebanon for his building work (1 Kings 5:6) and making a great throne overlaid with gold (1 Kings 10:18).
- Song of Solomon 3:6-8 (BSB)“Who is this coming up from the wilderness like a column of smoke, scented with myrrh and frankincense from all the spices of the merchant? Behold, it is Solomon’s carriage, escorted by sixty of the mightiest men of Israel. All are skilled with the sword, experienced in warfare. Each has his sword at his side prepared for the terror of the night.”A fragrant procession rises from the wilderness: Solomon’s carriage with its armed escort.
- Song of Solomon 3:9-10 (BSB)“King Solomon has made his carriage out of the timber of Lebanon. He has made its posts of silver, its base of gold, its seat of purple fabric. Its interior is inlaid with love by the daughters of Jerusalem.”The carriage is made of fine materials and lovingly decorated.
- 1 Kings 5:6 (BSB)“Now therefore, order that cedars of Lebanon be cut down for me. My servants will be with your servants, and I will pay your servants whatever wages you set, for you know that there are none among us as skilled in logging as the Sidonians.””Solomon orders cedars of Lebanon for his building work.
- 1 Kings 10:18 (BSB)“Additionally, the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with pure gold.”Solomon makes a great throne overlaid with pure gold.
Theological
How is the procession rising from the wilderness identified in 3:6-10?
Answer: Solomon’s carriage, guarded by mighty men
A cloud like a pillar of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and costly spices, rises out of the desert (3:6) and proves to be King Solomon’s carriage, attended by sixty of Israel’s finest warriors, swords ready against the perils of the night (3:7-8). It is fashioned of Lebanon timber with silver posts, a gold base and a purple seat, and the daughters of Jerusalem lovingly adorned its interior (3:9-10). The splendor fits the portrait in Kings, where Solomon imports Lebanon cedar for his building projects (1 Kings 5:6) and fashions an ivory throne overlaid with gold (1 Kings 10:18).
- Song of Solomon 3:6-8 (BSB)“Who is this coming up from the wilderness like a column of smoke, scented with myrrh and frankincense from all the spices of the merchant? Behold, it is Solomon’s carriage, escorted by sixty of the mightiest men of Israel. All are skilled with the sword, experienced in warfare. Each has his sword at his side prepared for the terror of the night.”A fragrant procession rises from the wilderness: Solomon’s carriage with its armed escort.
- Song of Solomon 3:9-10 (BSB)“King Solomon has made his carriage out of the timber of Lebanon. He has made its posts of silver, its base of gold, its seat of purple fabric. Its interior is inlaid with love by the daughters of Jerusalem.”The carriage is made of fine materials and lovingly decorated.
- 1 Kings 5:6 (BSB)“Now therefore, order that cedars of Lebanon be cut down for me. My servants will be with your servants, and I will pay your servants whatever wages you set, for you know that there are none among us as skilled in logging as the Sidonians.””Solomon orders cedars of Lebanon for his building work.
- 1 Kings 10:18 (BSB)“Additionally, the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with pure gold.”Solomon makes a great throne overlaid with pure gold.