Author and Date
Verse 1 appears to ascribe authorship to Solomon (see note on but see also Title above).
Solomon is referred to seven times (), and several verses
speak of the "king" (), but whether he was the author remains an open question.
To date the Song in the tenth century b.c. during Solomon's reign is not impossible. In fact, mention of Tirzah and Jerusalem in one breath ( see note there) has been used to prove a date prior to King Omri (885-874 b.c.; see ), though the reason for Tirzah's mention is not clear. On the other hand, many have appealed to the language of the Song as proof of a much later date, but on present evidence the linguistic data are ambiguous.
Consistency of language, style, tone, perspective and recurring refrains seems to argue for a single author. However, many who have doubted that the Song came from one pen, or even from one time or place, explain this consistency by ascribing all the Song's parts to a single literary tradition, since Near Eastern traditions were very careful to maintain stylistic uniformity.
Theme and Message
In ancient Israel everything human came to expression in words: reverence, gratitude, anger, sorrow, suffering,
trust, friendship, commitment, loyalty, hope, wisdom, moral outrage, repentance. In the Song, it is love that
finds words -- inspired words that disclose its exquisite charm and beauty as one of God's choicest gifts.
The voice of love in the Song, like that of wisdom in , is a woman's voice,
suggesting that love and wisdom draw men powerfully with the subtlety and mystery of a woman's allurements.
This feminine voice speaks profoundly of love. She portrays its beauty and delights. She claims its exclusiveness ("My lover is mine and I am his," ) and insists on the necessity of its pure spontaneity ("Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires," ). She also proclaims its overwhelming power -- it rivals that of the fearsome enemy, death; it burns with the intensity of a blazing fire; it is unquenchable even by the ocean depths (). She affirms its preciousness: All that one possesses cannot purchase it, nor (alternatively) should it be exchanged for it (). She hints, without saying so explicitly (), that it is the Lord's gift.
God intends that such love -- grossly distorted and abused by both ancient and modern people -- be a normal part of marital life in his good creation (see ). Indeed, in the Song the faithful Israelite could ascertain how to live lovingly within the theocratic arrangement. Such marital love is designed by the Creator-King to come to natural expression within his realm.