The Song of Songs - (Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies) by Yair Zakovitch (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

The Hebrew Bible is religious literature, the fundamental interest of which lies in the relations between humankind, especially the people of Israel, and God. The Song of Songs, on the other hand, is interested in the relations between men and women. In this volume Yair Zakovitch examines the presence of the Song of Songs in the Hebrew Bible, and questions how this enigmatic collection of poetic writings came to be within the Bible.

Zakovitch poses and addresses a range of enticing questions in the eight chapters of this volume, including: what does this erotic poetry have to do with Israel's formative texts? What do the poems tell us about gender relations in those years, and about early Israel's attitudes towards beauty, love, women, and sex? Do we finally get to hear women's voices in the Song, where the rest of the Bible gives a male perspective? How, despite our astonishment, is the Song of Songs nonetheless intrinsically biblical? What does it have in common with the Bible's other books? Was the allegorical interpretation of the Song just an excuse in order to include the book in Scripture?

Review Quotes

"Zakovitch raises a range of exciting questions about the Song. This volume differs from many other studies on the Song, which focus one-sidedly on the dependence of the Song on other biblical texts. It is impressive how many connections between the Song and other parts of the Hebrew Bible Zakovitch discovers... Zakovitch has long and intensively examined the Song but also many other biblical texts. Some things that he only hints at in his 2004 commentary are developed in detail in the individual chapters. This is especially true for questions concerning the emergence of the Song, its intertextuality, and its ambiguity as a poetic text. For this reason alone, it is enriching to read this volume."" --Melanie Peetz, Society of Biblical Literature

About the Author

Yair Zakovitch is the Emeritus Father Takeji Otsuki Professor of Bible at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel.