Introduction to Song of Songs

Questions regarding the Song of Songs abound: Was King Solomon the author, as apparently implied by the title: “The Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s” (1:1)? What is it fundamentally about? Is it literally about a wedding and sexual union between Solomon and a Shulammite woman? or is it better read as an elaborate allegory of the spiritual union between God and his people? All of these questions are intertwined and hard to separate.

Outline of the Song of Songs

1. Courtship (1:1–3:5)
2. Wedding Procession (3:6-11)
3. Expressions of Love (4:1–5:1)
4. Conflict and Solution (5:2–6:13)
5. More Expressions of Love (7:1–8:4)
6. Conclusion (8:5–14)

— From the Classic Reference Bible, New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition (Zondervan, 1999).

Themes and Typology of Song of Songs

Portions of the prophetic material outside of the Song of Songs use the metaphor of YHWH’s marital bond with his people.

1. Hosea 1–3 — the foundational prophetic presentation of the marriage metaphor.
2. Jeremiah 2:1–3 — Israel’s wilderness devotion as “the love of a bride.”
3. Jeremiah 3:1–14 — covenant apostasy as marital adultery.
4. Jeremiah 31:31–32 — the Sinai covenant broken although YHWH was Israel’s husband.
5. Ezekiel 16 — YHWH marries Jerusalem by covenant; her idolatry is adultery.
6. Isaiah 54:4–8 — Looking ahead to the new covenant: “Your Maker is your husband.”
7. Isaiah 62:4–5 — “As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.”

These passages form an elaborate allegory: Covenant as marriage → Israel belongs exclusively to YHWH → idolatry is adultery → judgment as divorce → YHWH graciously restores and renews the marriage covenant.

We can see the legitimacy of this Christological reading when we recognize that the relationship between YHWH and his covenant people is described frequently in the Old Testament as that of a bridegroom and a bride. Thus, the Song of Songs, taken in light of the entire marriage allegory in the prophets (above), prepares the way for the NT’s Christological use of the marriage typology.

The New Testament does not quote the Song of Songs directly, but it does make major use of marital love as a powerful lens for viewing the love between Christ and his church. Jesus explicitly refers to himself as a bridegroom in the Gospels (Matt 9:15 / Mk 2:290 / Lk 5:34-35; Matt 25:1-10). The apostle Paul expounds the love of Christ for his bride and her responsive submission to him (Eph 5:22-33). And John likewise paints the glorious picture of the church as the bride of Christ (John 3:29; Rev 19:7-9; 21:2, 9; 22:17).

If we are committed to the unity of Scripture, it is impossible not to read the Song of Songs in light of that broader canonical horizon. That does not mean we take every detail in the Song of Songs in a fanciful allegorical manner, but we do recognize its fundamental typological structure within redemptive history.