# Song of Songs 08 đź“–: Love Strong as Death
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> [!info] Table of Contents
> [[#đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)]]
> [[#đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary]]
> [[#🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]]
> [[#🧠Chapter Summary]]
> [[#✝️ Christ in This Chapter]]
> [[#🔎 Key Principles / 🛟 Life Application]]
> [[#đź’¬ Discussion Questions]]
> [[#✍️ Key Verses to Remember]]
> [[#đź”— Related Passages/Cross Reference]]
> [[#🙏 Devotional Reflection]]
> [[#đź“‚ Internal Notes]]
## đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)
(The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005)
### The Beloved’s Wish Song
#### The Beloved to Her Lover:
[[#Verse 01.]] Oh, how I wish you were my little brother,
nursing at my mother’s breasts;
if I saw you outside, I could kiss you—
surely no one would despise me!
[[#Verse 02.]] I would lead you and bring you to my mother’s house,
the one who taught me.
I would give you spiced wine to drink,
the nectar of my pomegranates.
### Double Refrain: Embracing and Adjuration
#### The Beloved about Her Lover:
[[#Verse 03.]]Â His left hand is under my head,
and his right hand embraces me.
#### The Beloved to the Maidens:
[[#Verse 04.]] I admonish you, O maidens of Jerusalem:
“Do not arouse or awaken love until it pleases!”
### The Awakening of Love
#### The Maidens about His Beloved:
[[#Verse 05.]]Â Who is this coming up from the wilderness,
leaning on her beloved?
#### **_The Beloved to Her Lover:_**
Under the apple tree I aroused you;
there your mother conceived you,
there she who bore you was in labor of childbirth.
### The Nature of True Love
#### The Beloved to Her Lover:
[[#Verse 06.]] Set me like a cylinder seal over your heart,
like a signet on your arm.
For love is as strong as death,
passion is as unrelenting as Sheol.
Its flames burst forth,
it is a blazing flame.
[[#Verse 07.]]Â Surging waters cannot quench love;
floodwaters cannot overflow it.
If someone were to offer all his possessions to buy love,
the offer would be utterly despised.
### The Brother’s Plan and the Sister’s Reward
#### The Beloved’s Brothers:
[[#Verse 08.]]Â We have a little sister,
and as yet she has no breasts.
What shall we do for our sister
on the day when she is spoken for?
[[#Verse 09.]]Â If she is a wall,
we will build on her a battlement of silver;
but if she is a door,
we will barricade her with boards of cedar.
#### The Beloved:
[[#Verse 10.]]Â I was a wall,
and my breasts were like fortress towers.
Then I found favor in his eyes.
### Solomon’s Vineyard and the Beloved’s Vineyard
#### The Beloved to Her Lover:
[[#Verse 11.]]Â Solomon had a vineyard at Baal Hamon;
he leased out the vineyard to those who maintained it.
Each was to bring 1,000 shekels of silver for its fruit.
[[#Verse 12.]] My vineyard, which belongs to me, is at my disposal alone.
The thousand shekels belong to you, O Solomon,
and 200 shekels belong to those who maintain it for its fruit.
### Epilogue: The Lover’s Request and His Beloved’s Invitation
#### The Lover to His Beloved:
[[#Verse 13.]]Â O you who stay in the gardens,
my companions are listening attentively for your voice;
let me be the one to hear it!
#### The Beloved to Her Lover:
[[#Verse 14.]]Â Make haste, my beloved!
Be like a gazelle or a young stag
on the mountains of spices.
## đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary
###### Overall.
###### Verse 01.
###### Verse 02.
###### Verse 03.
###### Verse 04.
###### Verse 05.
###### Verse 06.
###### Verse 07.
###### Verse 08.
###### Verse 09.
###### Verse 10.
###### Verse 11.
###### Verse 12.
###### Verse 13.
###### Verse 14.
## 🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights
1. A seal (8:6) was a signet ring or cylinder worn on a cord around the neck or on the hand, used to mark ownership and identity (Genesis 38:18).
2. The Hebrew for "a mighty flame" in 8:6 ends with *yah*, which may mean "the flame of the Lord," the only possible mention of God's name in the book.
3. Love being as strong as death (8:6) means love is just as unyielding and impossible to resist.
4. "Many waters" (8:7) was a common biblical picture of chaos and overwhelming danger (Psalm 93:3-4).
5. The question "Who is this coming up from the wilderness?" (8:5) repeats 3:6.
6. The refrain about not awakening love until it pleases appears for the last time in 8:4.
7. The brothers' plan for their little sister (8:8-9) pictures protecting her purity like a wall or a door.
8. Solomon's vineyard at Baal Hamon (8:11) earned a thousand pieces of silver, but the bride says her own vineyard is hers to give (8:12).
9. The bride's wish that he were like a brother (8:1) reflects a culture where public affection between a couple was not accepted.
10. The book ends with longing rather than a final scene (8:14), echoing 2:17.
## 🧠Chapter Summary
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## ✝️ Christ in This Chapter
Christ is the love that is strong as death (8:6). He went into death for His bride and rose again, and many waters cannot quench His love (8:7; Romans 8:35-39). He has set us as a seal upon His heart.
## 🔎 Key Principles / 🛟 Life Application
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## đź’¬ Discussion Questions
1. Set me as a seal on your heart (8:6). What does it look like to belong to someone fully and publicly?
2. Many waters cannot quench love (8:7). How has God's love proven stronger than the floods in your life?
3. The Song ends with longing: "Make haste, my beloved" (8:14). How does this longing point us to the return of Christ?
## ✍️ Key Verses to Remember
- đź“– verse 6: Set me as a seal over your heart, for love is as strong as death.
- đź“– verse 7: Many waters cannot quench love, and rivers cannot overflow it.
- đź“– verse 14: Make haste, my beloved, like a gazelle on the mountains of spices.
## đź”— Related Passages/Cross Reference
- đź”— [[Romans 08#Verse 35.|Romans 8:35-39]] - Nothing can separate us from Christ's love.
- đź”— [[John 15#Verse 13.|John 15:13]] - No greater love than to lay down one's life.
- đź”— [[2 Corinthians 01#Verse 22.|2 Corinthians 1:22]] - God has sealed us and given us His Spirit.
- đź”— [[Revelation 22#Verse 20.|Revelation 22:20]] - Come, Lord Jesus.
- đź”— [[1 John 04#Verse 18.|1 John 4:18]] - Perfect love drives out fear.
## 🙏 Devotional Reflection
đź“ť SOAP: [[Song of Songs 08 - SOAP|Come Away]]
## đź“‚ Internal Notes