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Introduction

Song of Solomon 7 opens with Solomon offering an extended poetic praise of his bride’s physical beauty, this time beginning with her feet and moving upward, reversing the pattern of previous descriptions that began with the face. He praises her feet in sandals, calling them beautiful, and describes her thighs as jewels crafted by a skillful workman, imagery emphasizing careful design and value.

He continues describing her navel as a round goblet filled with wine, and her waist or belly as a heap of wheat set about with lilies, symbols of abundance, nourishment, and fruitfulness. Her breasts are compared to two fawns, similar to earlier imagery, reinforcing gentleness and natural beauty. Her neck is likened to a tower of ivory, suggesting elegance and dignity, while her eyes are compared to the pools of Heshbon, reflecting depth and clarity.

Her nose is compared to the tower of Lebanon, and her head is likened to Carmel, with her hair compared to purple, imagery that conveys majesty and richness. Solomon expresses being captivated and held by her beauty, comparing his desire for her to a king being held captive by her tresses, showing the depth of his attraction and devotion.

He continues by comparing her stature to a palm tree, and her breasts to clusters of grapes on the vine, expressing his desire to climb the palm tree and take hold of its branches, poetic language reflecting his longing for physical closeness and intimacy. He anticipates the sweetness of her presence, comparing her breath and mouth to the best wine, again symbolizing pleasure, delight, and satisfaction found within marital love.

The woman then responds, affirming that the wine goes down smoothly for her beloved, causing the lips of those asleep to speak, expressing mutual desire and readiness for intimacy. She declares that she belongs to her beloved and that his desire is toward her, reflecting continued mutual devotion.

She then invites him to go with her into the countryside, to lodge in the villages, and to rise early to see if the vines have budded and the pomegranates are in bloom. This invitation into nature reflects a desire for shared experience, renewal, and continued closeness beyond physical intimacy alone. She promises to give him her love there, and mentions the mandrakes giving forth fragrance, an ancient symbol associated with fertility. The chapter closes with her stating that she has kept both new and old fruits in store for him, symbolizing the ongoing richness and readiness of her love for him.

Chapter 7

1 How beautiful are your feet in their shoes, O king’s daughter! The curves of your legs are like jewels, the work of the hands of a good workman:
2 Your stomach is a store of grain with lilies round it, and in the middle a round cup full of wine.
3 Your two breasts are like two young roes of the same birth.
4 Your neck is as a tower of ivory; your eyes like the waters in Heshbon, by the doorway of Bath-rabbim; your nose is as the tower on Lebanon looking over Damascus:
5 Your head is like Carmel, and the hair of your head is like purple, in whose net the king is prisoner.
6 How beautiful and how sweet you are, O love, for delight.
7 You are tall like a palm-tree, and your breasts are like the fruit of the vine.
8 I said, Let me go up the palm-tree, and let me take its branches in my hands: your breasts will be as the fruit of the vine, and the smell of your breath like apples;
9 And the roof of your mouth like good wine flowing down smoothly for my loved one, moving gently over my lips and my teeth.
10 I am for my loved one, and his desire is for me.
11 Come, my loved one, let us go out into the field; let us take rest among the cypress-trees.
12 Let us go out early to the vine-gardens; let us see if the vine is in bud, if it has put out its young fruit, and the pomegranate is in flower. There I will give you my love.
13 The mandrakes give out a sweet smell, and at our doors are all sorts of good fruits, new and old, which I have kept for my loved one.

Important Verses

  • Song of Solomon 7:6 “How fair and how pleasant art thou, O love, for delights!” This verse reflects deep appreciation for the joys found within marital love.
  • Song of Solomon 7:10 “I am my beloved’s, and his desire is toward me.” This affirms mutual belonging and continued attraction within the marriage relationship.
  • Song of Solomon 7:11-12 The invitation to go into the countryside and observe the vineyards reflects the value of shared experiences and renewal within marriage.
  • Song of Solomon 7:13 “I have laid up for thee” reflects the wife’s ongoing devotion, symbolizing continual readiness to love and please her husband.

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