He is distinguished as the cedars.
16 His voice is exquisitely sweet;
Yea, his whole person is exceedingly lovely.
Such is my beloved, such my friend,
O daughters of Jerusalem.
DAUGHTERS OF JERUSALEM.
Chap. VI. 1 Whither is thy beloved gone,
O thou fairest among women?
Whither is thy beloved turned away?
Say, that we may seek him with thee.
even Lebanon" (Deut. iii. 25), being so luxuriant in its vegetation and rich in scenery, appeared very beautiful and majestic at a distance. "Lebanon is a noble range of mountains, well worthy of the fame it has so long maintained. It is cultivated in a wonderful manner, by the help of terraces, and is still very fertile. We saw on some of its eminences, more than 2,000 feet high, villages and luxuriant vegetation; and on some of its peaks, 6,000 feet high, we could discern tall pines against the clear sky beyond. At first the clouds were on the lofty summit of the range, but they cleared away, and we saw Tannin, which is generally regarded as the highest peak of Lebanon. There is a deep ravine that seems to run up the whole way, and Tannin rises to the height of 10,000 feet. The rays of the setting sun gave a splendid tint to the lofty brow of the mountain."—Mission of Inquiry to the Jews, p. 240, &c.; comp. also Isa. xxxv. 2; Rosenmüller, Alterth. i. 2. p. 239; Volney, Travels, i. 293.
He is distinguished as the cedars, i.e., in his stature. The lofty cedar, towering above all other trees, is easily distinguished from the rest (Ezek. xxxi. 3-16; Amos ii. 9). A similar comparison occurs in Theocritus, xviii. 30, as quoted above, i. 9. The Chald., Ewald, Magnus, Philippson, &c., take [HE: b.ahv.r] for young man, youth; comp. Ruth iii. 10; Isa. lxii. 5, "A young man like the cedars;" but the point of comparison is lost in this case. Besides, we should then expect the sing. [HE: 'erez], and not the plur. [HE: 'a:roziym/]. Moreover, 2 Kings xix. 23, and Jer. xxii. 7, where the same phrase [HE: mib^eHar 'a:roziym/] is used, is against it.
16. His voice is exquisitely sweet, &c. The members, after being analysed separately, have been viewed as a whole; but the beautiful person thus described is inanimate, like the splendid marble columns or the lofty cedars, to which she had compared him. In this verse the Shulamite represents the charms of his speech; and thus affirms his whole person, bodily and mentally, as most lovely. "Such," she triumphantly exclaims, "is my friend; and now, ye daughters of Jerusalem, judge for yourselves wherein my beloved is more than another beloved." [HE: HEk/^e], prop. palate, is used for the organ of speech, and speech itself, Job vi. 30; xxxi. 10; Prov. v. 3. That [HE: HEk/^e] here does not mean any part of the body, is evident from the context; for it would be preposterous to recur to the palate or mouth after the whole person had been described. [HE: mam^et.aq.iym/] and [HE: maHa:mad.iym/] are abstracts (see i. 2), adjectively used (Gesen. § 106, 1, Rem. 1), to give intensity to the idea; comp. Gen. i. 2. [HE: k.ul.vO], his whole person, bodily and mentally.
1. Whither is thy beloved gone, &c.? The court ladies, moved by this charming description, inquire of the Shulamite what direction he took, and offer to seek him. The word [HE: han.idiy is omitted after [HE: dvOrEk/^e], for the sake of brevity and pathos. For the superlative force of [HE: hayopoh b.an.oS/iym/], vide supra, i. 8.
