The shepherd-lover announces his intent in 4:6 in words that are charged with emotion that is masked for all but the two lovers themselves — we watch only by entering into the imagery:
\nUntil the day breathes
\nand the shadows flee,
\nI will hasten to the mountain of myrrh
\nand the hill of frankincense.
\nHer fragrance is described with words she has used of his fragrance (3:6). But he delights in her aroma, her love, her body, and he says so. He is speaking here of her breasts. The fawns dancing among the lilies are now aromatic hills.
\nSo taken is he by his delight in her he must stop now and repeat himself:
\nYou are altogether beautiful, my love;
\nthere is no flaw in you.
\nShe’s perfect — she had summoned the women earlier to see his beauty; now he echoes those words back to her.
\nHe now summons her to him
\nCome with me from Lebanon, my bride;
\ncome with me from Lebanon.
\nDepart from the peak of Amana,
\nfrom the peak of Senir and Hermon,
\nfrom the dens of lions,
\nfrom the mountains of leopards (4:8).
\nShe excites him to new images — bold, wild, and earthy: mountains and peaks and dens of lions and wild animals. What can this mean? This is not a map of geography but a poem of love — one in which his images race from her mountainous breasts to her wild inaccessibility. He images her as a scary, wild woman.
\nAnd all this is in the Bible.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The shepherd-lover announces his intent in 4:6 in words that are charged with emotion that is masked for all but the two lovers themselves — we watch only by entering into the imagery:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":298,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2098","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-love-and-marriage"],"yoast_head":"\n