In American churches, the Song Of Solomon is traditionally thought of as an allegory of the love between Jesus, and the church. In Hebrew tradition, it is an allegory about the love of God for the Hebrew people, or "Jehovahas Wife" While both interpretations can be considered accurate, there is a third and mostly overlooked interpretation, and that is that it is a poetic representation of the earthly life, ministry, crucifixion, death burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, & His continued ministry to the church, through the Holy Spirit from Heaven. This commentary is an attempt to outline this third interpretation in clear, concise language for the edification of the church and the body of Jesus Christ.
Lured South by tales of buried treasure, Milkman embarks on an odyssey back home. As a boy, Milkman was raised beneath the shadow of a status-obsessed father. As a man, he trails in the fiery wake of a friend bent on racial revenge. Now comes Milkman’s chance to uncover his own path. Along the way, he will lose more than he could have ever imagined. Yet in return, he will discover something far more valuable than gold: his past, his true self, his life-long dream of flight. ‘A complex, wonderfully alive and imaginative story’ Daily Telegraph ‘Song of Solomon...profoundly changed my life’ Marlon James INTRODUCED BY BOOKER PRIZE WINNING AUTHOR MARLON JAMES **Winner of the PEN/Saul Bellow award for achievement in American fiction**
Exploring the poetry, themes, and wisdom of this song from a Christocentric perspective, O'Donnell elucidates on the greatest subject of all time--love.
The Song of Solomon, as its Hebrew title indicates, is "the best of songs." In it we hear the passionate melody of romantic love. But whose love is described? Is it a couple's love for each other, God's love for Israel or Christ's love for the church? This Old Testament book has fascinated and perplexed interpreters for centuries. They have felt uncomfortable--even embarrassed--when confronted with its strange and erotic imagery."The Song is a celebration of the nature of humanity---male and female created in God's image for mutal support and enjoyment. There is nothing here of the aggressive male and the reluctant or victimized female. They are one in their desires because their desires are God-given." So writes Lloyd Carr in this introduction and commentary to the Song of Solomon. With his own unique style, Carr skillfully explains the meaning of this ancient love story in a way that can be clearly grasped and applied for Christians living in today's world.
We live in a world where sexuality is ruined by sin, its beauty obscured by our brokenness. We need a divine vision for the way love was meant to be, with a gospel that offers forgiveness for sin and grace to live in the way that God has made us to be. In the Song of Songs, we encounter a love story that is part of the greatest love story ever told. Philip Ryken walks through this biblical love poem verse by verse, reflecting on what the Bible says about God's design for love, intimacy, and sexuality and offering insights into not only human relationships but also our relationship to God himself—learning more about the One who has loved us with an everlasting love.
In American churches, the Song Of Solomon is traditionally thought of as an allegory of the love between Jesus, and the church. This commentary is an attempt to outline this third interpretation in clear, concise language for the edification of the church and the body of Jesus Christ.
James Kugel’s essential introduction and companion to the Bible combines modern scholarship with the wisdom of ancient interpreters for the entire Hebrew Bible. As soon as it appeared, How to Read the Bible was recognized as a masterwork, “awesome, thrilling” (The New York Times), “wonderfully interesting, extremely well presented” (The Washington Post), and “a tour de force...a stunning narrative” (Publishers Weekly). Now, this classic remains the clearest, most inviting and readable guide to the Hebrew Bible around—and a profound meditation on the effect that modern biblical scholarship has had on traditional belief. Moving chapter by chapter, Harvard professor James Kugel covers the Bible’s most significant stories—the Creation of the world, Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Noah and the flood, Abraham and Sarah, Jacob and his wives, Moses and the exodus, David’s mighty kingdom, plus the writings of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and the other prophets, and on to the Babylonian conquest and the eventual return to Zion. Throughout, Kugel contrasts the way modern scholars understand these events with the way Christians and Jews have traditionally understood them. The latter is not, Kugel shows, a naïve reading; rather, it is the product of a school of sophisticated interpreters who flourished toward the end of the biblical period. These highly ideological readers sought to put their own spin on texts that had been around for centuries, utterly transforming them in the process. Their interpretations became what the Bible meant for centuries and centuries—until modern scholarship came along. The question that this book ultimately asks is: What now? As one reviewer wrote, Kugel’s answer provides “a contemporary model of how to read Sacred Scripture amidst the oppositional pulls of modern scholarship and tradition.”
