Bible Strands
Song of Solomon 2:16
My beloved is mine and I am his; he pastures his flock among the lilies.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The Shulammite woman speaks to her beloved immediately after requesting protection for the blooming vineyards, placing the declaration in a moment of agricultural vigilance and relational intimacy.
The words — The Hebrew רֹעֶה (ro.'Eh) literally means "grazing" or "pasturing," and שׁוֹשַנִּים (sho.sha.Nim) means "lilies," grounding the pastoral image in a specific botanical setting.
The thread — The mutual belonging statement reappears in Song of Solomon 6:3 with the identical pastoral image, while Song of Solomon 7:10 preserves only the belonging declaration, and Psalm 48:14 transfers the shepherd motif to God’s permanent guidance.
Why it lands — The text records reciprocal ownership and localized provision before drawing covenantal parallels, requiring the reader to recognize the structural symmetry of commitment without projecting later theological frameworks onto the agricultural scene.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
My beloved is mine, and I am his: he feedeth among the lilies.
Cross-references
- Song of Solomon 6:3 I belong to my beloved and he belongs to me; he pastures his flock among the lilies.
- Song of Solomon 7:10 I belong to my beloved, and his desire is for me.
- Psalms 48:14 For this God is our God forever and ever; He will be our guide even till death.
- Psalms 63:1 A Psalm of David, when he was in the Wilderness of Judah. O God, You are my God. Earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You. My body yearns for You in a dry and weary land without water.
- Jeremiah 31:33 “But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD. I will put My law in their minds and inscribe it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people.
- Song of Solomon 1:7 Tell me, O one I love, where do you pasture your sheep? Where do you rest them at midday? Why should I be like a veiled woman beside the flocks of your companions?
- Song of Solomon 2:1 I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valley.
- Song of Solomon 7:13 The mandrakes send forth a fragrance, and at our door is every delicacy, new as well as old, that I have treasured up for you, my beloved.
- 1 Corinthians 3:21 Therefore, stop boasting in men. All things are yours,
- Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.