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Song of Songs 8:10-12
New Catholic Bible
Song of Songs 8:10-12
New Catholic Bible
Bride:
10 I am a wall,
and my breasts are like towers.
So now in his eyes
I have become one who brings peace.
My Vineyard Is under My Control[a]
11 [b]Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon,[c]
and he entrusted that vineyard to tenants.
For its fruit each one would have to pay him
a thousand pieces of silver.
12 My vineyard[d] is under my control.
You, O Solomon, may have the thousand silver pieces,
and those who tend the fruit may have two hundred.
Footnotes
- Song of Songs 8:11 The great monarch Solomon had a large harem, which had to be guarded by officers of the palace. The bridegroom, a poor shepherd, has his beloved all to himself. She awaits his call and will then flee her tactless companions: the two of them alone! Love is an ever renewed quest.
In this final song of love, the community of Christ can also express its expectation. It is above all a call: “Come, Lord Jesus, come”; and it is also and above all a certitude: I am coming soon. Maranatha. It is with this Hebrew word, maranatha, that the last Book of the Bible comes to a close (Rev 22:17-20). Human love is most suitable to be a symbol of divine love. - Song of Songs 8:11 These verses are capable of various interpretations. In addition to the one given in the previous note, they may be interpreted as the bride saying to an imaginary Solomon that his vineyard has only monetary value while she is making a free gift of her vineyard (which is herself) to her bridegroom—in keeping with the text of verse 7b that insists that there is no price great enough to buy love.
- Song of Songs 8:11 Baal-hamon: an unidentified place, which is said to have a vineyard worth a thousand pieces of silver. Since it means “Lord of multitudes,” it may be intended to contrast the single beloved of the Song with the many wives of Solomon.
- Song of Songs 8:12 My vineyard: i.e., the bride herself as in Song 1:6. It is contrasted with the vineyard of Solomon in 8:11. In what may be a satirical note, she offers Solomon the owners’ portion for her vineyard and two hundred pieces of silver to the tenants.
