Date
7-15-2024
Department
Rawlings School of Divinity
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy
Chair
George Carraway
Keywords
Song of Songs, allegory, Ancient Near East, Solomon, temple, love poetry, covenant
Disciplines
Christianity | Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion
Recommended Citation
Kline, Tricia Lee, "The House That Love Builds: An Allegorical Interpretation of the Song of Songs" (2024). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 5804.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/5804
Abstract
Over the last two hundred years, natural interpretations of the Song of Songs have become predominant among scholars. Shying away from the earlier, sometimes fanciful, allegorical interpretations of ancient Jewish and Christian interpreters, these modern-day scholars have argued that the plain sense of the text is of an ideal marriage relationship between a man and woman, and that the Song of Songs is simply a picture of the beauty of love and sex. This dissertation challenges this more modern view and argues again for an allegorical interpretation in which the man represents God and the woman represents His faithful covenant people. The argument is supported through conservative comparative studies in ancient love literature, biblical canonical connections, and consideration of ancient thought and religion. Specifically, the argument is framed according to the Song's chiastic structure as it addresses the spheres of order common in ancient cosmology. In addition, a biblical-historical context of the Davidic covenant and Solomon's temple dedication is proposed based on the Song's specific mentions of names and places, as well as its extended metaphor of seeking peace and security through a very unique relationship that moves outside the boundaries of the earthly realm. This dissertation concludes that the Song of Songs was always meant to be read as an allegory that speaks uniquely – even polemically - into its original, ancient cultural milieu. It addresses the shared ancient concern of finding security through a divine-human relationship and reworks the traditions of ancient love poetry and fertility myths to communicate that ultimate security is found in a faithful, generational, covenant relationship with Yahweh alone.
