The Flock at Noon
Song. 1:7.—Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon.
REV. JOSEPH ROBERTS.—Before noon, the shepherds and their flocks may be seen slowly moving towards some shady banyan, or other tree, where they recline during the heat of the day. The sheep sleep, or lazily chew the cud; and the shepherds plait pouches, mats, or baskets, or in dreamy musings while away their time.—Oriental Illustrations, p. 375.
Jewels and Perfumes
Song. 1:10.—Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels, thy neck with chains of gold.
D'ARVIEUX.—The Arabian ladies wear a great many pearls about their necks. and caps. They have gold chains about their necks, which hang down upon their bosoms with strings of colored, gauze; the gauze itself bordered with zechins and other pieces of gold coin, which hang upon their foreheads and both cheeks. The ordinary women wear small silver coins with which they cover their forehead-piece like fish-scales, as this is one of the principal ornaments of their faces. Pearls, beads, etc., are also often to be seen.—In Dr. A. Clarke's Comment.
Song. 1:13.—A bundle of myrrh is my well beloved unto me; he shall lie all night betwixt my breasts.
DR. HENRY J. VAN-LENNEP.—The blossoms of the henna are white and grow in clusters. Their sweet perfume makes them special favorites with the women, who are fond of placing bunches of them in their bosoms.—Bible Lands, p. 143.
Song. 1:14.—My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphire in the vineyards of Engedi.
PROF. H. B. TRISTRAM, LL. D., F. R. S.—The Lawsonia Alba of botanists, here rendered " camphire," is a small shrub, eight or ten feet high, with dark bark, pale green foliage, and clusters of white and yellow blossoms of a powerful fragrance. Not only is the perfume of the flower highly prized, but a paste is made of the dried and pounded leaves, which is used by the women of all ranks, and by men of the wealthier classes, to dye the palms of the hands, the soles of the feet and the nails. The continued existence of the camphire plant at Engedi alone of the Holy Land, from the time of Solomon to the present day, is a most interesting illustration of the Biblical reference.—Nat. Hist. of Bible, p. 339.
Song. 2:3.—As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.
DR. W. M. THOMSON.—The whole area occupied by ancient Askelon is now planted over with orchards of the various kinds of fruit which flourish on this coast. It is especially celebrated for its apples, which are the largest and best I have ever seen in this country. When I was here in June quite a caravan started for Jerusalem loaded with them, and they would not have disgraced even an American orchard.... As to the size and shade of the tree, the smell and color of the fruit, all the demands of the Biblical allusions are fully met by these apples of Askelon, and no doubt, in ancient times and in royal gardens, their cultivation was far superior to what it is now, and the fruit larger and more fragrant.—The Land and the Book, Vol. II., p. 328.
The Roe
SONG. 2:9.—My beloved is like a roe or young hart.
PROF. H. B. TRISTRAM, LL. D., F. R. S.—There is no doubt that the "roe” or "roebuck" of our version is the ghazal of the Arabs, the gazelle of modern writers and poets. The gazelle is by far the most abundant of all the large game in Palestine. It appears to be at home everywhere. It shares the rocks of Engedi with the wild goats; it dashes over the wide expanse of the desert beyond Beersheba; it canters in single file under the monastery of Marsaba. We found it in the glades of Carmel, and it often springs from its leafy covert on the back of Tabor, and screens itself under the thorn bushes of Gennesaret. Among the gray hills of Galilee it is still “the roe upon the mountains of Bether;" and I have seen a little troop of gazelle feeding on the Mount of Olives, close to Jerusalem itself.—Nat. Hist. of Bible, p. 127-130.
The Fox
Song. 2:15.—Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes.
THEOCRITUS.—
A boy, to watch the vineyard, sits below!
Two foxes round him skulk: this slyly gapes,
To catch a luscious morsel of the grapes.
—Idyl., I., v. 48.
PROF. H. B. TRISTRAM, LL. D., F. R. S.—The fox is common in Syria, especially about ruins. The fondness of the fox for grapes is well known in the East; but not less so that of the jackal, which, going in packs, often commits great devastation in the vineyards.—Nat. Hist. of Bible, p. 85.
Pomegranate
Song. 4:3.—Thy temples are like a piece of pomegranate within thy locks.
DR. W. M. THOMSON.—The average size of a pomegranate is about that of the orange, but some of those from Jaffa are as large as the egg of an ostrich. Within, the " grains" are arranged in longitudinal compartments as compactly as corn on the cob, and they closely resemble those of pale red corn, except that they are nearly transparent and very beautiful. A dish filled with these " grains" shelled out is a very handsome ornament on any table, and the fruit is very sweet to the taste.—The Land and the Book, II., 392.
Odor of Lebanon
Song. 4:11—The smell of thy garments is like the smell of Lebanon.
REV. GEORGE E. POST, M. D.—The fresh mountain breezes on Lebanon, filled in early summer with the fragrance of the budding vines, and throughout the year with the rich odors of numerous aromatic shrubs, call to mind the words of Solomon, "The smell of thy garments is like the smell of Lebanon." —Smith's Dict. of Bible, p. 1622.
Pools of Heshbon
Song. 7:4.—Thine eyes are like the fish-pools in Heshbon, by the gate of Bath-rabbim.
PROF. H. B. TRISTRAM, LL. D., F. R. S.—At Heshbon, just below the hill on which the city stands, flows a little stream, which winds round the base of Nebo. There are in it, to the southeast of the ruins, some interesting remains, which illustrate the expression in Canticles: " Thine eyes, like the fish-pools in Heshbon, by the gate of Bath-rabbim." A large tank, now dilapidated, once collected, for summer use, the scanty waters of the brook, and was doubtless utilized at the same time for the conservation of the fish which still abound in the stream.—Nat. Hist. of Bible, p. 286.
Spiced Wine
Song. 8 :2—I would cause thee to drink of spiced wine of the juice of my pomegranate.
REV. WILLIAM HOUGHTON, M. A., F. L. S.—Mention is made in Canticles of “spiced wine of the juice of the pomegranate; "with this may be compared the pomegranate-wine of which Dioscorides speaks, and which is still used in the East. Chardin says that great quantities of it were made in Persia, both for home consumption, and for exportation, in his time.—Smith's Dict. of Bible, p. 2562.
Seal of Love
Song. 8:6.—Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; and jealousy is cruel as the grave.
REV. JOSEPH ROBERTS.—When a husband is going to a distant country, the wife says to him, "place me as a seal upon thy heart; " that is, Let me be impressed on thy affections, as the seal leaves its impression upon the wax. " Let not your arms embrace another; let me only be sealed there! " “For love is strong as death, jealousy is cruel as the grave."—Orient. Illust., p. 378.