Even with the inclusion of the Song during the Feast of Passover, and even with the identity and covenant of the Tabernacle as an interpretive framework, there is still not enough evidence to vouch for the scriptural authority of the text. There is no obviously religious content. In fact, the Song would be viewed as a secular document if it was detached from biblical context and tradition.
Even Solomonic authorship is not enough to validate the scriptural authority of the Song. There are other texts claiming Solomonic authorship that were not included in the canon: Wisdom of Solomon, Psalms of Solomon, a short letter, and certain spells. Of course, the later dating of the text shows it to have been composed much later, in the period of Persian influence following the return from Babylonian exile. Just as the poem is very contemporary in exhibiting Persian influence, it is also quite ancient in the Egyptian influences from which it draws. It is a timeless piece. And it is drawn from the best period of Hebrew literature. Perhaps this feature, along with its inclusion in Passover festivities, gives this text the authority to speak to the Judeo-Christian experience for ages.
In trying to establish the authority and function, the canonicity and value of the Song, we must be careful to not apply our Western, modern modes and minds to the task. Authority and authorship were not tied so tightly in the ancient world as they are in the modern. Context and relevance also related to one another differently. Science and art, too, were viewed differently. Rabbi Aqiba says that “had not the Torah been given, Canticles would have sufficed to guide the world.” Being a creative person, a songwriter and rhetorician, Rabbi Aqiba’s words resonate with me. Taking a step back, one can easily see from this statement that creative writing forms were as valuable as technical and legal documents.
Sources used in this post:
Roger Beckwith, The Old Testament Canon of the New Testament Church and its Background in Early Judaism (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1985)
Dennis F. Kinlaw, “Song of Songs,” in Expositor’s Bible Commentary with the New International Version: Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Vol. 5, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1991)
Tremper Longman III & Peter Enns, eds., Dictionary of the Old Testament: Wisdom, Poetry & Writings (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2008)
Herbert Edward Ryle, The Canon of the Old Testament: An Essay on the Gradual Growth and Formation of the Hebrew Canon of Scripture (New York: MacMillan and Col, 1892)
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