Song of Songs

The Song of Songs of Solomon, commonly referred to as Song of Songs (Hebrew: שִׁיר הַשִּׁירִים Šîr HaŠîrîm, LXX Greek: ᾎσμα ᾎσμάτων Aisma Aismatōn, Vulgate Latin: Cantĭcum Canticōrum), or Song of Solomon, is a book of the Old Testament—one of the megillot (scrolls)—found in the last section of the Tanakh, known as the Ketuvim (or "Writings"). It is also known in English as Canticle of Canticles or simply Canticles.

The protagonists of Song of Songs are a woman (identified in one verse as "the Shulamite") and a man, and the poem suggests movement from courtship to consummation. For instance, the man proclaims: "As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters." The woman answers: "As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste." Additionally, the Song includes a chorus, the "daughters of Jerusalem."

In spite of the lack of explicitly religious content, Song of Songs has often been interpreted as a parable of the relationship of God and Israel, or for Christians, Christ and the Church or Christ and the human soul, as husband and wife.

It is one of the shortest books in the Bible, consisting of only 117 verses. According to Ashkenazi Jewish tradition, it is read in its entirety on Shabbat that falls during the intermediate days of Passover (or on the seventh or eighth day if it happens to be Shabbat). In the Sephardi community these verses are recited every Friday night.