At a Glance
Song of Solomon at a Glance
The Song of Solomon is a poem of married love, sung between a bride and her husband. It is the only book of the Bible given wholly to romance.
- Author. Solomon (Song of Solomon 1:1). He wrote a thousand and five songs (1 Kings 4:32), and this is the song of songs, the best of them.
- Date. During Solomon's reign, probably early, about 965 BC. The Song counts threescore queens (Song of Solomon 6:8), far fewer than the seven hundred wives Solomon would later have (1 Kings 11:3).
- Written To. God's people, and especially husbands, wives, and those hoping to marry.
- Setting. Israel in Solomon's day. A bridegroom and his bride speak, and a chorus that the book calls daughters of Jerusalem answers them (Song of Solomon 2:7).
- Key Verse. My beloved is mine, and I am his (Song of Solomon 2:16).
- Key Word or Theme. Love in marriage: delight, devotion, and commitment.
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Further reading
For Deeper Study
- The Song of SolomonAmazon G. Lloyd CarrA concise evangelical commentary (Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries) on the Song's setting and structure.
- The Message of the Song of SongsAmazon Tom GledhillA readable exposition (The Bible Speaks Today) that applies the Song to marriage today.
- Union and CommunionAmazon J. Hudson TaylorA devotional reading of the Song as Christ and the believer. We differ: we read the Song first as a true marriage, but his devotion to Christ is worth meeting.
- Foxe's Book of MartyrsAmazon John FoxeThe classic Protestant record of those who died for the faith, from the early church to the English Reformation.
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How the Bible Fits Together
The Bible is sixty-six books written by about forty men over some fifteen hundred years, yet it tells one story of God's redemption from creation to the new earth, and its center is Jesus Christ.
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