SONG
OP
THE
THREE
HOLY
CHILDREN
tion')
which
the
bride
sings
as
she
goes
through
the
sword-dance
on
the
wedding
night.
These
facts
have
induced
a
large
number
of
expositors
to
believe
that
Ca.
is
a
coliection
of
love-songs,
composed
expressly
for,
or
at
any
rate
suitable
for
use
at,
marriage
festivals.
Budde,
who
strongly
advocates
this
view,
admits
that
the
boois
is
not
without
marks
of
unity,
Ijut
holds
that
these
are
sufficiently
accounted
for
on
the
supposition
that
all
these
folk-songs
originated
in
a
single
district
and
{)enod.
Haupt
entirely
rejects
the
idea
of
a
unity,
and,
ooking
on
the
book
in
its
present
state
as
a
disorganized
mass,
re-arranges
it
into
twelve
poems.
The
extent
to
which
he
carries
the
liberty
of
re-casting
may
be
seen
in
his
No.
3,
'Brothera
of
the
Bride,'
which
is
made
up
of
6^*
7"
21
15-8
88-10
gi
2.
Even
Budde's
less
drastic
treatment
scarcely
does
justice
to
the
tokens
of
plan
and
unity
which
the
book
presents.
The
recurrence
of
certain
phrases
(2'
3^
8*:
2"
48
8")
is
meant
to
indicate
connexions
and
transitions
of
thought,
and
there
is
no
overwhelming
reason
against
our
ascribing
them
to
the
original
writer.
The
sentiments
and
the
style
are
so
similar
throughout
as
to
justify
our
thinking
of
a
single
author
who
composed
erotic
and
nuptial
pieces
tor
several
occasions,
and
after-wards
wove
them
into
a
garland
of
verse
(of.
2'
5';
1>'
4'
;
4'
6";
2"
6';
6'
6'»;
2'
8i').
A
few
of
the
smaller
parts
have
probably
been
removed
from
their
intended
place,
and
it
hardly
admits
of
doubt
that
4^
is
a
belated
frag-ment,
unintelligible
where
it
now
stands.
But
when
we
remember
the
apparent
irrelevance
of
the
occasional
.verses
sung
in
Palestine
to-day,
we
shall
be
slow
to
deny
that
the
singers
and
auditors
of
Ca.
grasped
allusions
and
perceived
a
fitness
which
we
fail
to
apprehend.
And
in
studying
the
song
from
this
point
of
view
it
is
well
to
bear
in
mind
the
facts
collected
by
Dalman
(,Pal/ist.
Divan,
p.
xii.).
He
points
out
that
the
wast
is
not
limited
to
wedding
festivities,
but
is
sung
by
the
tent-fire,
in
the
village
inn,
in
the
coffee-house
where
townsmen
gather
at
night;
that
it
is
usually
brief
when
descriptive
of
the
beauty
of
bride
or
bridegroom;
that
in
Palestine
itself
—
however
true
Wetzstein's
account
of
Damascus
and
the
Hauran
—
there
are
but
scanty
traces
of
the
temporary
royalty
of
the
bridal
pair,
and
none
of
the
threshing-sledge
throne.
2,
Contents.
—
These
fall
into
what
we
may
call
seven
cantos.
I.
(1^2'):
in
I*-'
the
bride
declares
her
affection;
in
v."-
deprecates
unfavourable
criticism;
in
v."-
inquires
for
her
beloved.
In
l'-2=
we
have
their
praise
of
each
other;
in
2*-'
her
experience
of
love.
II.
(28-2"):
vv.»-"
a
spring
visit,
v."
the
foxes,
v.'"-close
of
the
canto.
III.
(3'-3"):
vv.''
a
dream,
vv.»"
interlude.
IV.
(4i-5'):
in
4'-'
he
sets
forth
her
charms;
V.'
afragment,
vv.'-"
his
ecstasy
of
love,
4'^5'
a
'garden.'
V.
(S^-e'):
5»-»
a
dream,
5'-6'
wasf
sung
by
bride;
vv.'-»
his
praise
of
her.
VI.
(B^-S'):
6><i
inquiry
by
women,
v.'"-
her
rapture,
e'^T'"
wasf
sung
during
sword-dance
('dance
of
camps,'
7'),
7"-8*
songs
of
the
bride.
VII.
(gs-u);
T.5
a
reminiscence,
v."'-
the
power
of
love,
vv.'-""
the
solicitude
of
the
brothers,
v."'-
an
apologue,
v.'"-conclusion.
We
cannot
regret
that
these
canticles
of
human
love
have
been
preserved
for
us
in
the
OT.
The
mutual
attraction
of
the
sexes
is
Divinely
ordained.
The
love
which
finds
expression
in
Ca.
is
regulated
by
marriage.
The
imagery
is
too
luscious
and
the
detail
too
complete
for
our
taste,
but
they
were
produced
by
an
Oriental
for
Orientals.
More
reticence
does
not
necessarily
mean
more
genuine
purity.
We
should
indeed
have
been
glad
to
find
some
recognition
of
the
loftier
side
of
marriage,
or
something
to
remind
us
of
Pr.
31.
But
the
occasions
for
which
these
verses
were
composed
and
a
comparison
of
the
effusions
which
are
still
current
on
like
occasions
effectually
disarm
criticism.
Dalman
(.Pal.
Divan,
p.
xiii.)
remarks
justly
concerning
the
folk-songs
which
he
has
brought
together:
'The
fact
that
the
poems
dwell
only
on
the
physical
excellences
of
the
beloved
corresponds
with
the
degree
of
civilization
to
which
the
Palestinian
populace
has
attained.
It
does
not
follow
that
the
Oriental
ascribes
no
value
to
a
woman's
excellences
of
disposition
and
character.'
3.
Authorship
and
date.
—
The
title
(1'),
according
to
which
Solomon
was
the
poet,
is
entirely
destitute
of
authority.
Its
late
and
artificial
origin
is
betrayed
by
the
absence
of
the
full
form
of
the
relative
pronoun,
which
occurs
nowhere
in
the
poems
themselves.
The
ascription
of
the
authorship
to
the
famous
king
is
due
partly
to
his
being
mentioned
in
V
8"
(3'"
are
doubtful),
and
partly
to
his
reputation
as
the
typically
wise
man,
the
composer
of
songs
a
thousand
and
five
(1
K
4'^).
But
the
canonicity
of
the
book
would
not
have
remained
an
open
question
until
the
Ist
cent,
of
the
Christian
era
if
it
had
then
been
extant
a
thousand
years
as
an
acknowledged
product
of
his
hand.
Moreover,
the
language
in
which
it
is
written
belongs
to
the
very
latest
stratum
of
Biblical
Hebrew.
The
exclusive
use
of
the
abbreviated
pronoun
occurs
in
no
early
document,
and
cannot
be
explained
as
a
peculiarity
of
the
northern
dialect.
And
there
is
no
proof
that
the
writer
was
specially
connected
with
the
North;
if
he
mentions
Lebanon,
Amana,
Shenir,
Hermon,
Tirzah,
he
also
knows
En-gedi,
Heshbon,
the
wilderness
(of
Judah),
the
'daughters
of
Jerusalem.'
Considering
the
brevity
of
the
book,
there
is
a
very
considerable
number
of
words
which
are
seldom
or
never
found
elsewhere,
or
are
employed
here
in
place
of
more
common
ones,
or
are
to
be
seen
only
in
late
writings.
One
of
them
pardes,
is
Zend;
another,
'egSz,
is
Persian;
'appiryHn
may
be
the
Gr.
phoreion;
several
are
Aramaic.
We
should
not
look
for
these
phenomena
earlier
than
the
period
when
Hebrew
was
yielding
place
to
Aramaic,
and
if
the
exact
age
cannot
be
determined,
the
3rd
cent.
B.C.
is
at
least
approximately
correct.
4.
Style.
—
It
would
be
a
dull
eye
that
should
miss
the
beauty
of
these
poems.
The
verse
moves
lightly
and
gracefully,
the
imagery
is
charming.
Our
poet
was
deeply
susceptible
to
the
loveliness
of
nature,
and
fully
capable
of
appreciating
the
art
of
his
time.
He
carries
us
with
him
into
the
open
air,
to
the
vineyards,
-the
villages,
the
mountains,
He
is
awake
at
daybreak,
to
inhale
the
scent
of
the
forest
trees,
to
gather
the
apples
and
the
pomegranates,
to
listen
to
the
tinkle
of
the
rills.
Flocks
of
wild
pigeons,
timid
and
swift
gazelles,
fields
embroidered
with
lilies,
the
breath
of
spring
—
all
appeal
to
him.
On
the
other
hand,
he
is
stirred
by
the
pomp
of
a
court,
the
magnificence
of
a
royal
litter,
the
glittering
whiteness
of
an
ivory
tower,
martial
trophies,
the
rich
attire
of
women,
their
jewels
and
perfumes.
As
a
poem
there
is
nothing
else
in
the
Bible
to
compare
with
this.
Had
it
indeed
been
Solomon's,
it
would
have
been,
as
the
title
asserts,
his
Song
of
Songs,
the
ftne
fteur
of
his
poetry.
5.
Text.
—
This
is
not
in
a
satisfactory
state,
but
the
critic
should
proceed
with
much
caution.
There
are
many
passages
where
our
view
of
the
interpretation
suggests
alterations
(l^-
*■
s-
s
2'
3"i
4"-
«
51.
6
^.
e.
s
78.
9.
i3)_
but
it
is
obviously
easy
to
allow
ourselves
too
much
licence.
Bearing
in
mind
what
might
be
advanced
on
both
sides,
who
shall
determine
whether
Nergal
is
to
be
substituted
for
nidhffaloth
('
banners
')
at
6^"?
The
Versions,
especially
LXX
and
Syr.,
supply
a
few
better
readings
(!'•
'■
'■
'»
2"
S'-
'■
'°
48
12
511.
18
66
7'
8').
There
are
obvious
errors
of
transcrip-tion:
nard
should
not
follow
nards
(4>8').
Emendations
suggested
by
the
metre
deserve
attention
(1^^
3^-
u
7^),
but
this
has
been
carried
much
too
far,
not
only
by
Bickell,
but
also
in
Kittel's
edition
of
the
Heb.
Bible.
Littmann
(ZATW
xxiv.
p.
43)
pertinently
remarks
that
in
many
of
the
popular
Arabic
poems
which
he
has
collected
there
is
an
absence
of
definite
verse-measure,
and
considers
that
'in
the
OT
also,
verses
of
that
Idnd,
without
definite
metre,
are
at
least
possible.'
There
has
been
also
a
little
too
much
readiness
to
delete
verses,
sentences,
or
words^
on
the
ground
that
they
occur
in
other
parts
of
the
poem
in
more
suitable
con-texts.
Martineau
would
omit
3*-''
because
of
its
resem-blance
to
52^-
We
must
not
forget
that
catchwords
and
refrains
are
characteristic
of
tiiis
class
of
poetry.
J.
Taylor.
SOITG
OF
THE
THREE
HOLY
CHILDREN.—
See
Apockypha,
§
6.
