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Song of Solomon 5:8

Old Testament Poetry/Wisdom ASV (1901)

What does Song of Solomon 5:8 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, If ye find my beloved, That ye tell him, that I am sick from love.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, If ye find my beloved, That ye tell him, that I am sick from love.
Song of Solomon 5:8 — American Standard Version

Context — Song of Solomon 5

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
5I rose up to open to my beloved; And my hands droppeth with myrrh, And my fingers with liquid myrrh, Upon the handles of the bolt.
6I opened to my beloved; But my beloved had withdrawn himself, [and] was gone. My soul had failed me when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer.
7The watchmen that go about the city found me, They smote me, they wounded me; The keepers of the walls took away my mantle from me.
8I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, If ye find my beloved, That ye tell him, that I am sick from love.
9What is thy beloved more than [another] beloved, O thou fairest among women? What is thy beloved more than [another] beloved, That thou dost so adjure us?
10My beloved is white and ruddy, The chiefest among ten thousand.
11His head is [as] the most fine gold; His locks are bushy, [and] black as a raven.
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, etc.] Young converts, as before observed; who, upon the hideous outcry the church made in the streets, came to her to know what was the matter, whom she addressed as after related; this shows the humility and condescension of the church, in desiring the assistance of weaker saints in her present case, and her earnestness and resolution to make use of all ways and means she could to find her beloved; and it becomes saints to be assisting to one another; and conversation with one another, even with weak believers, is often useful. And these the church “adjures”, or “causes to swear”f329; charged them on oath, as they would answer it to God; which shows…”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“The bride, now awake, is seeking her beloved. The dream of his departure and her feelings under it have symbolized a real emotion of her waking heart. return to 'Top of Page'”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“O daughters - The church having passed the watchmen, proceeds in the pursuit of her beloved, and enquires of every particular believer whom she meets concerning him. Tell him - That I am ready to faint for want of his presence. Song of Solomon (Canticles) 5:9”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“5:8-9 The woman enlists the young women of Jerusalem to help her find her lover. They ask her to describe him, and this leads into the second descriptive poem (wasf) of the Song (see study note on 4:1–5:1). 5:8 I am weak with love: The woman’s trauma is an image for her lovesickness (cp. 2:5).”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“charge: Sol 2:7, Sol 8:4 if ye: Rom 15:30; Gal 6:1, Gal 6:2; Jam 5:16 that ye: Heb. what ye I am: Psa 42:1-3, Psa 63:1-3, Psa 77:1-3, Psa 119:81-83 Song of Solomon (Canticles) 5:9”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · 19th-century historical commentary
“All this Shulamith dreamed; but the painful feeling of repentance, of separation and misapprehension, which the dream left behind, entered as deeply into her soul as if it had been an actual external experience. Therefore she besought the daughters of Jerusalem: 8 I adjure you, ye daughters of Jerusalem, If ye find my beloved, - What shall ye then say to him? "That I am sick of love." That אם is here not to be interpreted as the negative particle of adjuration (Bttch.), as at Sol 2:7; Sol 3:5, at once appears from the absurdity arising from such an interpretation. The or. directa, following "I adjure you," can also begin ( Num 5:19.) with the usual אם, which is followed by its conclusion.…”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification