The Song of Songs

the long version

"This commentary foregrounds at every turn the poetic genius of the Song of Songs, one of the most elusive texts of the Hebrew Bible. J. Cheryl Exum locates that genius in the way the Song not only tells but shows its readers that love is as strong as death, thereby immortalizing love, as well as in the way the poet explores love's nature with a mature sensitivity to how being in love is different for the woman and the man. Many long-standing conundrums in the interpretation of the book are given persuasive solutions in Exum's verse-by-verse exegesis. This, however, is not atomistic commentary. The focus throughout is on the poetry of the book - the illusion of immediacy it creates; the blurring of distinctions between anticipation, enjoyment, and satisfaction; and the resistance to closure."--BOOK JACKET.