Single lesson
Song of Solomon 7: Admiration by the Bridegroom
Song of Solomon 7:1–13
Song of Solomon 7:1-13 is a love poem in which the beloved is praised with rich comparisons drawn from beauty, fruitfulness and delight. The passage stays in the language of poetry, speaking through images rather than plain description.
Before you teach
In this passage, one voice admires the beloved from feet to head and calls her beautiful and pleasant. The poem then turns to mutual love: the beloved says she belongs to her beloved and that his desire is toward her, and she invites him to go out among fields and vineyards. The text is given as poetry and song, so its comparisons should be read as poetic praise.
Explain the central teaching of Song of Solomon 7: Admiration by the Bridegroom, using two details from the reading. This poem presents mutual delight and affectionate admiration through poetic images of beauty, fruitfulness and belonging.
Welcome: Song of Solomon 7: Admiration by the Bridegroom
5 minIntroduce “Admiration by the Bridegroom” and locate Song of Solomon 7:1–13. This poem presents mutual delight and affectionate admiration through poetic images of beauty, fruitfulness and belonging. Invite each learner to name a detail or question they will listen for.
Song of Solomon 7:1, Song of Solomon 7:7, Song of Solomon 7:13
Read and explain the passage
12 minThe speaker begins with admiration from the feet upward, using comparisons to jewels, a goblet, wheat, lilies and fawns. These are poetic images, not literal descriptions. The repeated word “like” shows that the poem expresses beauty through comparison and crafted language.
The speaker openly calls the beloved beautiful and pleasant, then uses the image of a palm tree and fruit to speak of desire. The comparisons to clusters of the vine, apples and wine continue the poem’s language of sweetness, enjoyment and delight.
The beloved answers, “I am my beloved’s. His desire is toward me.” She then invites him into the field, villages and vineyards. Fruit, blossoms, fragrance and precious fruits all deepen the poem’s picture of shared love, welcome and readiness to give affection.
Read the selected verses together, pausing at “Admiration by the Bridegroom”. Use the source reading below and check the explanation against the words of the passage.
Song of Solomon 7:1, Song of Solomon 7:2, Song of Solomon 7:3, Song of Solomon 7:6, Song of Solomon 7:7, Song of Solomon 7:8, Song of Solomon 7:9, Song of Solomon 7:10, Song of Solomon 7:11, Song of Solomon 7:12, Song of Solomon 7:13
Discuss the details and their meaning
8 minUse the three questions below. Begin with “What words or images show that this passage is poetry rather than plain description?” and allow time to find the supporting verses. This poem presents mutual delight and affectionate admiration through poetic images of beauty, fruitfulness and belonging. Ask learners to explain which details support their answer and to identify a question they would like to explore further.
Song of Solomon 7:1, Song of Solomon 7:2, Song of Solomon 7:4, Song of Solomon 7:9, Song of Solomon 7:6, Song of Solomon 7:10, Song of Solomon 7:11, Song of Solomon 7:12, Song of Solomon 7:13
Make and respond: Words and images response sheet
12 minWork on “Song of Solomon 7: Admiration by the Bridegroom: Words and images response sheet”. Follow the materials and steps below, using “Admiration by the Bridegroom” 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 7:1, Song of Solomon 7:7, Song of Solomon 7:13
Closing: return to Admiration by the Bridegroom
3 minRevisit Song of Solomon 7:1–13. Invite a learner to summarise what the group has learned about Admiration by the Bridegroom 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 7:1, Song of Solomon 7:7, Song of Solomon 7:13
Questions to explore
What words or images show that this passage is poetry rather than plain description?
Look for repeated comparisons such as “like jewels”, “like a round goblet”, “like the pools”, and “like the best wine”.
Song of Solomon 7:1, Song of Solomon 7:2, Song of Solomon 7:4, Song of Solomon 7:9
How does the poem show that love here is mutual, not one-sided?
Notice both the speaker’s praise and the beloved’s own words, especially “I am my beloved’s” and her invitation to go together.
Song of Solomon 7:6, Song of Solomon 7:10, Song of Solomon 7:11, Song of Solomon 7:12
What effect do the vineyard, blossoms, fragrance and fruits have on the meaning of the poem?
These images connect love with abundance, sweetness and enjoyment within the poem’s own language.
Song of Solomon 7:12, Song of Solomon 7:13
Make, think or respond
Song of Solomon 7: Admiration by the Bridegroom: 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 7:1–13. Use “Admiration by the Bridegroom” 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 7: Admiration by the Bridegroom 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 “Admiration by the Bridegroom” and let them match short quotations to the correct heading.
- For confident readers, compare two sections of Song of Solomon 7:1–13. 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 7:1–13. 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 7
1 How beautiful are your feet in sandals, prince’s daughter! Your rounded thighs are like jewels, the work of the hands of a skillful workman.
2 Your body is like a round goblet, no mixed wine is wanting. Your waist is like a heap of wheat, set about with lilies.
3 Your two breasts are like two fawns, that are twins of a roe.
4 Your neck is like an ivory tower. Your eyes are like the pools in Heshbon by the gate of Bathrabbim. Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon which looks toward Damascus.
5 Your head on you is like Carmel. The hair of your head like purple. The king is held captive in its tresses.
6 How beautiful and how pleasant you are, love, for delights!
7 This, your stature, is like a palm tree, your breasts like its fruit.
8 I said, “I will climb up into the palm tree. I will take hold of its fruit.” Let your breasts be like clusters of the vine, the smell of your breath like apples.
9 Your mouth is like the best wine, that goes down smoothly for my beloved, gliding through the lips of those who are asleep. Beloved
10 I am my beloved’s. His desire is toward me.
11 Come, my beloved! Let’s go out into the field. Let’s lodge in the villages.
12 Let’s go early up to the vineyards. Let’s see whether the vine has budded, its blossom is open, and the pomegranates are in flower. There I will give you my love.
13 The mandrakes produce fragrance. At our doors are all kinds of precious fruits, new and old, which I have stored up for you, my beloved.
World English Bible Classic. Public domain.