Day 328: Song Of Songs 7-8
The Bible Dept.
Interpretive Approaches and the Allegorical Layer
Dr. Manny explains four interpretive approaches and why allegory has a legitimate layer for Song of Songs.
God isn’t embarrassed by intimacy—and neither is the Bible. As we close out Song of Songs with chapters 7–8, we unpack the final poems celebrating covenant love, marital desire, and the restoration of Eden-like union between a man and a woman. These chapters explore seals, jealousy, garden imagery, and the powerful metaphors that point to commitment, purity, and the sacredness of erotic love. Whether you’re married, dating, parenting teens, or healing from purity culture, today’s episode brings clarity, depth, and hope.
✈️ Overview:
• Song of Songs 7–8 concludes the lovers’ journey with bold garden imagery, physical admiration, and covenant language
• Chapter 8 introduces the “seal on the heart and arm”—a symbol of exclusivity, commitment, and marital authority
• The poems highlight the difference between jealousy and envy, purity and purity culture, boundaries and openness
• Song of Songs ends with a return-to-Eden vision: a couple who stands naked and unashamed in mutual desire and delight
🔎 Context Clues:
• Song of Songs is one of the five Megillot—read publicly at Passover, symbolizing Israel’s covenant with Yahweh
• Ancient Jewish tradition viewed the book allegorically at times (Yahweh + Israel), giving legitimacy to an allegorical “layer,” not the entire interpretation
• The “seal” imagery reflects ancient signet authority—only the giver and recipient could open what was sealed
• Jealousy (defending what is yours) and envy (desiring what belongs to others) are distinct in Scripture—explaining why God calls Himself “jealous,” not envious
• The “door vs. wall” metaphor reflects the community’s responsibility to shepherd young women toward wisdom, purity, and agency
🤓 Nerdy Nuggets:
• The lovers often meet “under the apple tree”—a symbol of fertility, life, and Eden restored
• Garden imagery (trees, fountains, vineyards, fragrance) consistently points back to Genesis 1–2 and the call to be naked without shame
• “Place me like a seal over your heart” evokes Revelation’s sealed scroll imagery: only the rightful beloved can open what belongs to them
• The vineyard metaphor contrasts the faithful lovers with Solomon—implying he is the villain, not the hero, due to his excessive harem and compromised heart
• Love described as “strong as death” reflects ancient Near Eastern poetry where passion, devotion, and covenant loyalty were compared to cosmic forces
✅ Timeless Truths:
• Parents: the first voice to talk to your children about sex becomes the “expert” in their minds—disciple them intentionally
• Purity and purity culture are not the same; Scripture celebrates purity while rejecting shame, fear, and bad theology
• Marital love requires three dimensions of love: friendship (philia), sacrificial love (agape), and erotic passion (eros)
• Boundaries matter—wisdom helps us become “walls,” not “doors,” in the seasons before marriage
• God’s design for intimacy is sacred, beautiful, and meant to be enjoyed within covenant trust
Song of Songs ends where the Bible began—in a garden. Here, the lovers stand as a new Adam and Eve: naked, known, and unashamed. The invitation of this book is simple but profound—return to God’s design for love, honor, and intimacy without fear, shame, or distortion.
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