Song of Solomon 1:9

“I have compared thee, O my love, etc.] The church having taken the direction of Christ, had now found him, and was with him; and when for her encouragement and comfort he greets her as his love, an appellation very usual among lovers; and in the chastest sense between husband and wife; the church was Christ’s love, being both the object and subject of it; to whom he had showed love, and whose love was shed abroad in her heart; or “my friend”f43, another name used among lovers; there is a mutual friendship between Christ and his people; they are Christ’s friends, and he is theirs, (<220501>Song of Solomon 5:1,16). The Septuagint render it “my neighbour”, whom Christ loves as himself; and they…”

“This and the next Song of Solomon 1:15-7 sections are regarded by ancient commentators (Jewish and Christian) as expressing “the love of espousals” Jeremiah 2:2 between the Holy One and His Church, first in the wilderness of the Exodus, and then in the wilderness of the world Ezekiel 20:35-36. Song of Solomon 1:9 Or, to a mare of mine in the chariots of Pharaoh I liken thee, O my friend. (The last word is the feminine form of that rendered “friend” at Song of Solomon 5:16.) The comparison of the bride to a beautiful horse is singularly like one in Theocritus, and some have conjectured that the Greek poet, having read at Alexandria the Septuagint Version of the Song, may have borrowed these…”

“Compared thee - For strength and courage, to overcome all thine enemies. For horses are famous for that property, and the strength of the battle was then thought to consist much in horses, and chariots, especially in a company or multitude of them. And the church in this book is represented not only as fair and beautiful, but also as terrible to her enemies. Song of Solomon (Canticles) 1:10”

“1:9 The shepherd frequently calls the woman darling (literally companion) to show his respect for her as a partner and friend as well as a lover (1:15; 2:2, 10, 13; 4:1, 7; 5:2; 6:4). • In the ancient Near East, a charge of horsemen on stallions was sometimes diverted by letting loose a mare in heat. This so distracted the attacking horses that they broke the charge. Similarly, the woman’s beauty drives other men to distraction.”

“O my: Sol 2:2, Sol 2:10, Sol 2:13, Sol 4:1, Sol 4:7, Sol 5:2, Sol 6:4; Joh 15:14, Joh 15:15 to a: Kg1 10:28; Ch2 1:14-17; Isa 31:1 Song of Solomon (Canticles) 1:10”

“Solomon, while he was absent during the first scene, is now present. It is generally acknowledged that the words which follow were spoken by him: 9 To a horse in the chariot of Pharaoh Do I compare thee, my love. 10 Beautiful are thy cheeks in the chains, Thy neck in the necklaces. 11 Golden chains will we make for thee, With points of silv. Till now, Shulamith was alone with the ladies of the palace in the banqueting-chamber. Solomon now comes from the banquet-hall of the men ( Sol 1:12); and to Sol 2:7, to which this scene extends, we have to think of the women of the palace as still present, although not hearing what Solomon says to Shulamith. He addresses her, "my love:" she is not yet…”