Author: Hollisa Alewine

The Song of Songs is more than a love song between Israel and the Holy One; it is prophecy. We’ve worked our way through three chapters in the Footsteps of Messiah series to see if any of these Good News footsteps on the mountains fit our generation. As it turns out, the prophecies are a huge encouragement to those who find the Light of the Torah as part of their walk with the Beloved Yeshua. Loving the commandments as Yeshua urged is part of responding to those footsteps of return.

In Chapter Two, we saw the Beloved compared to a gazelle, a fast-moving animal. He returns at the cool of the day when the shadow flee; that is, they disappear quickly.

“Until the cool of the day, when the shadows flee, turn, my beloved, and be like a gazelle…” (So 2:17)

Now we have arrived at Chapter Four of the Song of Songs, which contains some repetition from previous chapters. This allows the reader…if he or she has parsed the previous three chapters…to read more intelligently, to see more fine print of prophecy. This is a good opportunity to introduce a study tool for all Scripture study; it is handy to have in your toolbox!

The pattern is one of twins and pairs, or zugot. In the late Second Temple period, there were famous zugot, or pairs of rabbis, who complemented (and sometimes antagonized!) the work of another. Ezra and Nehemiah complemented the work of the other. Joshua and Caleb. You get the idea.

Why is this important?