Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Song of Solomon 7:2
Thy navel [is like] a round goblet, [which] wanteth not liquor: thy belly [is like] a heap of wheat set about with lilies.
2. Thy navel ] Better, Thy body.
which wanteth not ] This should be let not liquor be wanting.
liquor ] Heb. mezegh is wine mixed with snow or water.
thy belly is like a heap of wheat ] The point of the comparison is the yellowish-white colour of wheat threshed and winnowed, which is considered in Syria the perfect colour of the human skin. The soft curves of such a heap may also be referred to. The lilies may possibly indicate some part of the dress, but most probably belong to the simile only. Heaps of corn are still decorated with flowers on festal occasions, and the contrast of the scarlet lilies or anemones would bring out the colour of the grain.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Or, Thy lap is like a moon-shaped bowl where mixed wine faileth not. The wine in the bowl rising to the brim adds to the beauty of the vessel, and gives a more pleasing image to the eye. Some interpret, thy girdle is like a moon-shaped bowl, or bears a moon-shaped ornament (compare Isa 3:18).
Set about with lilies – The contrast is one of colors, the flowers, it may be, representing the purple of the robe. The heap of wheat is not seen because covered by the lilies.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 2. Thy navel is like a round goblet] This may also refer to some ornamental dress about the loins. These suppositions are rendered very probable from hundreds of the best finished and highly decorated drawings of Asiatic ladies in my own collection, where every thing appears in the drawings, as in nature.
A heap of wheat set about with lilies.] This is another instance of the same kind. The richly embroidered dresses in the above drawings may amply illustrate this also. Ainsworth supposes the metaphor is taken from a pregnant woman; the child in the womb being nourished by means of the umbilical cord or navel string, till it is brought into the world. After which it is fed by means of the mother’s breasts, which are immediately mentioned. Possibly the whole may allude to the bride’s pregnancy.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Thy navel is like a round goblet, to which it is not unfitly compared, because it is of a round form, and hollow, and hath windings and circlings in it,
which wanteth not liquor; thy navel is not only comely, but fruitful. For the navel is the proper instrument of nourishing the child or children which are in the womb. And so this seems to signify the churchs fruitfulness, partly in herself, in cherishing and improving all the graces and good motions of Gods Spirit within her; and principally in reference to those many children which she bears and feeds in her womb with the wholesome liquor of Gods ordinances. Thy belly, in which thy children are for a time contained and fed, is like a heap of wheat, i.e. of wheat corn, round and swelling, as it is in women with child, and full of nourishment, not only of liquor, as was last said, but also of meat, which may note the various provisions which Christ hath laid up in his church according to the several capacities of her children, milk for babes, and stronger meat for those who are grown up. Set about with lilies; not for defence, which the church doth not need, having the strong God for her Protector, but for ornament and beauty; whereby is implied that she is not only fruitful, but beautiful, and that her children are not only numerous and well fed, but also comely and delightful to the eye, as lilies are, and withal pure and innocent, in which respect both Christ and the church are compared to lilies, Son 2:1,2.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
2. navelrather,”girdle-clasp,” called from the part of the personunderneath. The “shoes” (So7:1) prove that dress is throughout presupposed on allparts where it is usually worn. She is “a bride adorned for herhusband”; the “uncomely parts,” being most adorned(1Co 12:23). The girdle-claspwas adorned with red rubies resembling the “round goblet”(crater or mixer) of spice-mixed wine (not “liquor,”Son 8:2; Isa 5:22).The wine of the “New Testament in His blood” (Lu22:20). The spiritual exhilaration by it was mistaken for thatcaused by new wine (Act 2:13-17;Eph 5:18).
bellythat is, thevesture on it. As in Psa 45:13;Psa 45:14, gold and needleworkcompose the bride’s attire, so golden-colored “wheat” andwhite “lilies” here. The ripe grain, in token of harvestjoy, used to be decorated with lilies; so the accumulated spiritualfood (Joh 6:35; Joh 12:24),free from chaff, not fenced with thorns, but made attractive bylilies (“believers,” Son 2:2;Act 2:46; Act 2:47;Act 5:13; Act 5:14,in common partaking of it). Associated with the exhilarating wine cup(Zec 9:17), as here.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Thy navel [is like] a round goblet,…. According to some, not the navel itself is meant; but a covering of it, a jewel or plate of gold in the shape of it; and because the word for “round”, in the Chaldee language, signifies the “moon”, and so Ben Melech interprets it, some have thought of the “round tire like the moon”, Isa 3:18; though that was rather an ornament about the neck. Bishop Patrick is of opinion that it refers to “the clothing of wrought gold”, Ps 45:13; which had, on the part that covered the belly, a raised embossed work, resembling a heap or sheaves of wheat; about which was an embroidery of curious flowers, particularly lilies; and, in the midst of the whole, a fountain or conduit, running with several sorts of liquor, into a great bowl or basin: and Fortunatus Scacchus n interprets it of a garment, covering this part, embroidered with lilies. All which may represent the beautiful robe of Christ’s righteousness the church is adorned with. But rather the part itself is meant, and designs the ministers of the Gospel; who, in the administration of the word and ordinances, are that to the church as the navel is to a human body; that is in an eminent part of it, is the strength of the intestines, conduces much to the health of the body, and by which the child in the womb is supposed to receive its nourishment: ministers are set in the highest place in the church; are strong in themselves, through the grace and power of Christ and the means of strengthening others; and of keeping the church a good plight and healthful state, by the wholesome words and sound doctrines they preach; and also of nourishing souls in embryo, and when new born, with the sincere milk of the word: and as the navel is said to be like a “round goblet”, cup, bowl, or basin, this aptly describes that part; and may express the perfection of Gospel ministers, their gifts and grace, not in an absolute, but comparative sense, the round or circular form being reckoned the most perfect; and also the workmanship bestowed on them, the gifts and grace of the Spirit, a round goblet being turned and formed by some curious artist; and likewise their capacity to hold and retain Gospel truths. And they are compared, not to an empty one, but to one
[which] wanteth not liquor; meaning the large and never failing supplies of gifts and grace from Christ; so that they never want the liquor, the oil and wine of Gospel truths, to communicate to others, Zec 4:12. The word used signifies a “mixture”, or a “mixed liquor” o, as of wine and milk, So 5:1; or rather of wine and water, much used in the eastern countries; so the wine of Sharon used to be mixed, two parts water and one wine p: and this designs, not a mixture of divine truths and human doctrines, which ought not to be made; but the variety of Gospel truths ministers deliver to others, and that in a manner they are most capable of receiving them. Some q render the words as a wish, “let there not want”, c. and so they declare the tender concern of Christ, that his church might have a continual supply in the ministry of the word
thy belly [is like] a heap of wheat; which denotes the fruitfulness of the church in bringing souls to Christ, comparable to a pregnant woman; and whose fruit, young converts born in her, are compared to “a heap of wheat” for their number, choiceness, and solidity, being able to bear the fan of persecution: it was usual with the Jews to scatter wheat on the heads of married persons at their weddings, three times, saying, “increase and multiply” r; see Isa 66:8. This heap of wheat is said to be “set about”, or “hedged, with lilies” s; which suggests, that it was not a heap of wheat on the corn floor which is meant, but a field of standing wheat, enclosed and fenced, not with thorns, but lilies; and these lilies may signify grown saints, who are often compared to lilies in this book, by whom young converts are encompassed and defended; or the beauties of holiness, in which they appear as soon as born again, Ps 110:3.
n Eleochrysm. Sacr. l. 3. p. 1016. o , Sept. “mixtio”, Mercerus, Junius Tremellius, Piscator “mixtura”, Marckius, Michaelis. p T. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 77. 1. Nidda, fol. 19. 1. q So Junius Tremellius, Ainsworth. r Vid. Selden. Uxor. Heb. l. 2. c. 15. p. 195. s , Sept. “vallatus”, V. L. “circumseptus”, Tigurine version, Michaelis “septus”, Pagninus, Montanus, Brightman, Cocceius, Marckius, & alii.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
2 Thy navel is a well-rounded basin –
Let not mixed wine be wanting to it
Thy body is a heap of wheat,
Set round with lilies.
In interpreting these words, Hitzig proceeds as if a “voluptuary” were here speaking. He therefore changes into , “thy pudenda.” But (1) it is no voluptuary who speaks here, and particularly not a man, but women who speak; certainly, above all, it is the poet, who would not, however, be so inconsiderate as to put into the mouths of women immodest words which he could use if he wished to represent the king as speaking. Moreover (2) = (Arab.) surr , secret (that which is secret; in Arab. especially referred to the pudenda, both of man and woman), is a word that is
(Note: Vid., Tebrzi, in my work entitled Jud.-Arab. Poesien, u.s.w. (1874), p. 24.)
foreign to the Heb. language, which has for “ Geheimnis ” secret the corresponding word ( vid., under Psa 2:2; Psa 25:14), after the root-signification of its verbal stem (viz., to be firm, pressed together); and (3) the reference – preferred by Dpke, Magnus, Hahn, and others, also without any change of punctuation – of to the interfeminium mulieris , is here excluded by the circumstance that the attractions of a woman dancing, as they unfold themselves, are here described. Like the Arab. surr , (= shurr ), from , to bind fast, denotes properly the umbilical cord, Eze 16:4, and then the umbilical scar. Thus, Pro 3:8, where most recent critics prefer, for , to read, but without any proper reason, = , “to thy flesh,” the navel comes there into view as the centre of the body, – which it always is with new-born infants, and is almost so with grown-up persons in respect of the length of the body, – and as, indeed, the centre. whence the pleasurable feeling of health diffuses its rays of heat. This middle and prominent point of the abdomen shows itself in one lightly clad and dancing when she breathes deeply, even through the clothing; and because the navel commonly forms a little funnel-like hollow (Bttch.: in the form almost of a whirling hollow in the water, as one may see in nude antique statues), therefore the daughters of Jerusalem compare Shulamith’s navel to a “basin of roundness,” i.e., which has this general property, and thus belongs to the class of things that are round. does not mean a Becher (a cup), but a Bechen (basin), pelvis; properly a washing basin, ijjanah (from = ajan , to full, to wash = ); then a sprinkling basin, Exo 24:6; and generally a basin, Isa 22:24; here, a mixing basin, in which wine was mingled with a proportion of water to render it palatable ( , from , temperare ), – according to the Talm. with two-thirds of water. In this sense this passage is interpreted allegorically, Sanhedrin 14 b, 37 a, and elsewhere ( vid., Aruch under ). .) is not spiced wine, which is otherwise designated (Son 8:2), but, as Hitzig rightly explains, mixed wine, i.e., mixed with water or snow ( vid., under Isa 5:22). is not borrowed from the Greek (Grtz), but is a word native to all the three chief Semitic dialects, – the weaker form of , which may have the meaning of “to pour in;” but not merely “to pour in,” but, at that same time, “to mix” ( vid., under Isa 5:22; Pro 9:2). , with , represents the circular form (from = ), corresponding to the navel ring; Kimchi thinks that the moon must be understood (cf. , lunula ): a moon-like round basin; according to which the Venet., also in Gr., choosing an excellent name for the moon, translates: . But “moon-basin” would be an insufficient expression for it; Ewald supposes that it is the name of a flower, without, however, establishing this opinion. The “basin of roundness” is the centre of the body a little depressed; and that which the clause, “may not mixed wine be lacking,” expresses, as their wish for her, is soundness of health, for which no more appropriate and delicate figure can be given than hot wine tempered with fresh water.
The comparison in 3b is the same as that of R. Johanan’s of beauty, Meza 84 a: “He who would gain an idea of beauty should take a silver cup, fill it with pomegranate flowers, and encircle its rim with a garland of roses.”
(Note: See my Gesch. d. Jd. Poesie, p. 30 f. Hoch (the German Solomon) reminds us of the Jewish marriage custom of throwing over the newly-married pair the contents of a vessel wreathed with flowers, and filled with wheat or corn (with money underneath), accompanied with the cry, be fruitful and multiply.)
To the present day, winnowed and sifted corn is piled up in great heaps of symmetrical half-spherical form, which are then frequently stuck over with things that move in the wind, for the purpose of protecting them against birds. “The appearance of such heaps of wheat,” says Wetstein ( Isa. p. 710), “which one may see in long parallel rows on the thrashing-floors of a village, is very pleasing to a peasant; and the comparison of the Song; Son 7:3, every Arabian will regard as beautiful.” Such a corn-heap is to the present day called subbah , while aramah is a heap of thrashed corn that has not yet been winnowed; here, with , is to be connected the idea of a subbah , i.e., of a heap of wheat not only thrashed and winnowed, but also sifted (riddled). , enclosed, fenced about (whence the post-bibl. , a fence), is a part. pass. such as , scattered ( vid., under Psa 92:12). The comparison refers to the beautiful appearance of the roundness, but, at the same time, also the flesh-colour shining through the dress; for fancy sees more than the eyes, and concludes regarding that which is veiled from that which is visible. A wheat-colour was, according to the Moslem Sunna, the tint of the first created man. Wheat-yellow and lily-white is a subdued white, and denotes at once purity and health; by wheat one thinks of – heaped up wheat developes a remarkable heat, a fact for which Biesenthal refers to Plutarch’s Quaest. In accordance with the progress of the description, the breasts are now spoken of:
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
(2) Heap of wheat set about with lilies.Wetstein (quoted by Delitzsch in his Appendix) remarks that in Syria the colour of wheat is regarded as the most beautiful colour the human body can have; and after remarking on the custom of decorating the heaps of winnowed corn with flowers in token of the joy of harvest, says:The appearance of such heaps of wheat, which one may see in long parallel rows on the threshing-floors of a village, is very pleasing to a peasant; and the comparison of the Song (Son. 7:5) every Arabian will regard as beautiful.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
2. Which wanteth not liquor Hebrew, Spiced wine should not be lacking. Set about, etc. Grain threshed in the fields and left in a heap was “set about” with thorn bushes, to protect it from animals. From that usage this figure is taken, lilies, fair and white, being substituted for thorns. Plumpness and corpulency have always been reckoned in the East as elements of beauty in the feminine person. There can be no doubt that the writer here represents the King’s fatal disregard of the moral sentiment stated by our Lord, Mat 5:28.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Son 7:2. An heap of wheat It was usual with the Jews, when their wheat had been threshed out and fanned, to lay it in heaps, Rth 3:7. Hag 2:16 and as their threshing-floors were in the open air, they stuck them round with thorns in order to keep off the cattle, Hos 2:5-6. These, as a mark of respect to the spouse, are here converted into a fence of lilies; or, we may suppose with Lamy, that Solomon here alludes to a custom which, according to him, they had in Palestine, of throwing flowers round the heaps of corn after it was winnowed. Wheat and barley were, among the ancient Hebrews, emblems of fertility; and it was usual for the standers-by to scatter these grains upon the new-married couple, accompanying it with a wish that they might increase and multiply. The passage in the text is therefore a prediction of the glorious fertility of the church of Christ. The next verse should be rendered as in ch. Son 4:5. See the New Translation, and Selden, Uxor. Heb. lib. ii. ver. 15.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Son 7:2 Thy navel [is like] a round goblet, [which] wanteth not liquor: thy belly [is like] an heap of wheat set about with lilies.
Ver. 2. Thy navel is like a round goblet, &c. ] There are those who expound this text as the two sacraments. The navel is baptism, that nourisheth newborn babes in the womh of the Church. See hence the use of it, even to infants, who can receive nourishment by the navel, though they can neither take nor chew nor suck meat with hand or mouth. Note this against Anabaptists, saith Mr Cotton upon these words, this navel never wants liquor; there is a continual matter of instruction and comfort to be fetched from baptism against all temptations. A Christian, saith Chrysostom, should never step out of doors, or lie down in his bed, or go into his closet, but he should remember that word, Abrenuncio, I forsake the devil and all his works, &c. Luther tells of a certain holy virgin, that used to quench the devil’s fiery darts with the water of baptism: for as often as she was tempted to do anything not beseeming her profession, she would resist the devil, steadfast in the faith, and stop his mouth with this short but full answer, Christiana sum, I am a Christian; I have been “baptized into the death of Christ”; I have also “put on Christ by baptism”; I am a votary, the vows of God are upon me, &c. But what a horrible shame is that to the Papists, and what a sore stumblingblock must it needs be to the poor Jews that live among them, that in Rome a Jewish maid may not be admitted into the stews of whoredom, unless she will be first baptized? This is related and bewailed by Espencaeus, a a moderate Papist.
Thy belly is like an heap of wheat, set about with lilies.
a De Contin., lib. iii. cap. 4.
b A .
c
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
liquor = spiced wine.
belly = body.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
navel: Pro 3:8
liquor: Heb. mixture
thy belly: Son 5:14, Psa 45:16, Isa 46:3, Jer 1:5, Rom 7:4