Does Song of Solomon encourage pre-marital sex?

score:2

Accepted answer

No, what the heck!

Deuteronomy 22:28-29

28 ¶If a man find a damsel that is a avirgin, which is not betrothed, and lay hold on her, and lie with her, and they be found;

29 Then the man that lay with her shall give unto the damsel’s father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife; because he hath humbled her, he may not put her away all his days.

Does that sound to you like "encouraging"?

As to p**nography, just look at how David got into a big mess that caused him much trouble with God:

2 Samuel 11:2

2 ¶And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king’s house: and from the roof he asaw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to blook upon.

Aaaaaaand, he commits adultery after that, and murder to cover up the adultery. Doesn't sound like encouraging looking at naked women that aren't one's wife (aka p**nography). And of course what Jesus taught:

Matthew 5:27-28

27 ¶Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit aadultery:

28 But I say unto you, That whosoever alooketh on a bwoman to clust after her hath committed dadultery with her already in his heart.

Of course you can say "oh he's not talking pre-marital here", but I tell you: you are on the wrong path here.

1 Corinthians 6:18

18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.

Also, Song of Solomon 5:1 (KJV)

1 I am come into my garden, my asister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.

The KJV has for 8:10

10 I am a wall, and my breasts like towers: then was I in his eyes as one that found favour.

With the image being not necessarily virginity, as the verses before read:

8 ¶We have a little sister, and she hath no breasts: what shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for?

9 If she be a wall, we will build upon her a palace of silver: and if she be a door, we will inclose her with boards of cedar.

So, the image used here is buildings, and as we should probably assume the sister in question is a virgin, wall vs. door isn't necessarily about virginity.

As to verses 1 and 2, it is mostly about sucking breasts, I will now give a free translation to explain my understanding:

Verse 1: Oh that you would be like my little brother who sucks my mothers breasts = Suck my breasts. If I should find you without, I would kiss thee and no one would despise me = I want to kiss you, and no one would despise me, because you are my spouse

Verse 2: We go in a house and you suck my breasts.

The issue is really the second part of verse 1, but ask yourself: Does this really imply that they would be despised now for kissing in the open, and that him being like a little brother would change that, or that they would not be despised in the first place. Also, would married people kissing in the open be despised or not? Do you have enough knowledge of customs in these days to judge that? Does your friend have? As for me, I don't see the implication that something despicable is happening here.

Upvote:2

When read without preconceptions, the Song of Solomon is certainly about the delights of premarital sex. Whether we say that it therefore encourages premarital sex depends on our interpretation of it.

Christians over the centuries has tended to insist that the Song is about marital sex, or at least extramarital sex with King Solomon (who seems to be exempt from moral criticism). This is the alternative interpretation, but it does not stand up to a careful reading of the text. Apparently, it was only in the Middle Ages that the great Jewish scholar, Rashi, lifted the veil and said that it was acceptable to read the Song of Solomon literally.

A brief summary of the text

The singer is portrayed as a farm girl and her lover as a shepherd. “Do not stare at me because I am swarthy, because the sun has burned me. My brothers have been angry with me; they charged me with the care of the vineyards: my own vineyard I have not cared for (Songs 1:6).” They make love in the fields, and she calls him her king, pretending that the trees are a palace – “the beams of our house are cedars, our rafters, cypresses.”

In 2:1-7, she lies waiting for her lover, dreaming of his left hand is under her head and his right arm embracing her. Then she sees him coming, running across the hills like a gazelle (2:8-9). They are together until the shadows lengthen, and he is like a young stag on the mountains of Bether. The location of Bether within Israel is unknown, yet it seems the intended audience should have understood this reference. The etymology of the word relates to ‘cleft’ so, in context, it is plausible that it is a reference to the female mons veneris.

Through the eyes of her lover, we learn in chapter 4 how beautiful the female singer is and how earnestly he loves her. The last two lines are again from the girl, who (4:16) invites him into her ‘garden’ to enjoy her fruits. He lover responds in 5:1 – “I have come to my garden,” calling her sister and spouse.

The girl wishes that he were her brother, so that she could kiss him in public without being teased, and they would be together in the home of her mother (8:1-2). In 8:8, she speaks of her young, prepubescent sister and wonders what will happen when it is her turn to fall in love. Now she has no breasts, but the singer’s breasts are like towers. In 8:11-12, she seems to compare her virtue to Solomon’s vineyard. Solomon sold his produce, but her vineyard is for her ‘Solomon’ to enjoy. Just come quickly, my lover and be like a young stag on my mountain of spices (8:14).

More post

Search Posts

Related post