Single lesson
Song of Solomon 6: Together in the Garden
Song of Solomon 6:1–13
This poem speaks in shifting voices that ask, answer and praise. Garden images, city names and bright comparisons express delight and belonging without turning the song into a story beyond what the passage itself says.
Before you teach
Friends ask where the beloved has gone so they can seek him too. The woman answers with garden imagery and states, “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine.” The lover then praises her beauty and uniqueness. The passage closes with a return call to the Shulammite and a final question about gazing at her.
Explain the central teaching of Song of Solomon 6: Together in the Garden, using two details from the reading. This passage uses poetic images to express seeking, belonging and honouring another person as uniquely precious.
Welcome: Song of Solomon 6: Together in the Garden
5 minIntroduce “Together in the Garden” and locate Song of Solomon 6:1–13. This passage uses poetic images to express seeking, belonging and honouring another person as uniquely precious. Invite each learner to name a detail or question they will listen for.
Song of Solomon 6:1, Song of Solomon 6:7, Song of Solomon 6:13
Read and explain the passage
12 minThe friends ask where the beloved has gone and where he has turned. The answer does not give a travel report but a poetic picture: he has gone to his garden, among spice beds, gardens and lilies. Then comes a clear line of mutual belonging: “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine.”
The lover praises the woman as beautiful and lovely, comparing her to Tirzah and Jerusalem, and also “awesome as an army with banners”. Her eyes affect him deeply. He continues with images for hair, teeth and temples. These comparisons are poetic compliments, using familiar sights to express admiration.
After mentioning many queens, concubines and countless virgins, the poem says this woman is unique, praised by others and called blessed. Another voice compares her to morning, moon and sun. The passage ends with movement to a grove, an unexplained line about chariots, and repeated calls for the Shulammite to return.
Read the selected verses together, pausing at “Together in the Garden”. Use the source reading below and check the explanation against the words of the passage.
Song of Solomon 6:1, Song of Solomon 6:2, Song of Solomon 6:3, Song of Solomon 6:4, Song of Solomon 6:5, Song of Solomon 6:6, Song of Solomon 6:7, Song of Solomon 6:8, Song of Solomon 6:9, Song of Solomon 6:10, Song of Solomon 6:11, Song of Solomon 6:12, Song of Solomon 6:13
Discuss the details and their meaning
8 minUse the three questions below. Begin with “How does the passage answer the friends’ question about where the beloved has gone?” and allow time to find the supporting verses. This passage uses poetic images to express seeking, belonging and honouring another person as uniquely precious. Ask learners to explain which details support their answer and to identify a question they would like to explore further.
Song of Solomon 6:1, Song of Solomon 6:2, Song of Solomon 6:3, Song of Solomon 6:8, Song of Solomon 6:9
Make and respond: Words and images response sheet
12 minWork on “Song of Solomon 6: Together in the Garden: Words and images response sheet”. Follow the materials and steps below, using “Together in the Garden” as reading headings. Each learner should include at least two accurate details and their verse references. Share one observation from the finished sheet and explain how it connects with the central teaching.
Song of Solomon 6:1, Song of Solomon 6:7, Song of Solomon 6:13
Closing: return to Together in the Garden
3 minRevisit Song of Solomon 6:1–13. Invite a learner to summarise what the group has learned about Together in the Garden and another to support the summary with a verse. Give learners a moment to complete their response sheet. They can share a question or, if appropriate for the group, join the optional prayer.
Song of Solomon 6:1, Song of Solomon 6:7, Song of Solomon 6:13
Questions to explore
How does the passage answer the friends’ question about where the beloved has gone?
Notice that the answer uses garden words such as spices, gardens and lilies, rather than giving plain directions.
Song of Solomon 6:1, Song of Solomon 6:2
What exact words show mutual belonging between the two people in the poem?
Quote the line itself and consider why it stands out before the long section of praise.
Song of Solomon 6:3
Which phrases show that the woman is presented as unique among many others?
Look for the contrast between the large numbers in verse 8 and words like “unique”, “only daughter”, “blessed” and “praised” in verse 9.
Song of Solomon 6:8, Song of Solomon 6:9
Make, think or respond
Song of Solomon 6: Together in the Garden: Words and images response sheet
What you’ll need
- plain paper or card
- pencils or pens
- a Bible or the source reading on this page
Try it together
- Fold a sheet into three panels or draw three columns. Label them “A repeated word or image”, “Its verse reference”, “What it expresses”.
- Read Song of Solomon 6:1–13. Use “Together in the Garden” as your reading headings and add a short quotation or detail with its verse reference to each panel.
- Compare your notes with a partner. Check that every quotation is accurate and every conclusion has support in the passage.
- Choose one image and add a short written response or a simple drawing. Explain how it connects with the passage.
The finished sheet keeps the details of Song of Solomon 6: Together in the Garden connected to their Bible references and gives the group a way to explain what they noticed.
Adapt for your group
- For learners who need more support, prepare the reading headings “Together in the Garden” and let them match short quotations to the correct heading.
- For confident readers, compare two sections of Song of Solomon 6:1–13. Ask for a written explanation with two supporting references and one question that the text leaves open.
An optional closing prayer
“God, help us listen carefully as we read Song of Solomon 6:1–13. Help us understand what we have read, ask thoughtful questions and respond with care for others. Amen.”
Read the Bible passage World English Bible Classic
Song of Solomon 6
1 Where has your beloved gone, you fairest among women? Where has your beloved turned, that we may seek him with you? Beloved
2 My beloved has gone down to his garden, to the beds of spices, to pasture his flock in the gardens, and to gather lilies.
3 I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine. He browses among the lilies. Lover
4 You are beautiful, my love, as Tirzah, lovely as Jerusalem, awesome as an army with banners.
5 Turn away your eyes from me, for they have overcome me. Your hair is like a flock of goats, that lie along the side of Gilead.
6 Your teeth are like a flock of ewes, which have come up from the washing, of which every one has twins; not one is bereaved among them.
7 Your temples are like a piece of a pomegranate behind your veil.
8 There are sixty queens, eighty concubines, and virgins without number.
9 My dove, my perfect one, is unique. She is her mother’s only daughter. She is the favorite one of her who bore her. The daughters saw her, and called her blessed. The queens and the concubines saw her, and they praised her.
10 Who is she who looks out as the morning, beautiful as the moon, clear as the sun, and awesome as an army with banners?
11 I went down into the nut tree grove, to see the green plants of the valley, to see whether the vine budded, and the pomegranates were in flower.
12 Without realizing it, my desire set me with my royal people’s chariots. Friends
13 Return, return, Shulammite! Return, return, that we may gaze at you. Lover Why do you desire to gaze at the Shulammite, as at the dance of Mahanaim?
World English Bible Classic. Public domain.