Bible Strands
Song of Solomon 5:10
My beloved is dazzling and ruddy, outstanding among ten thousand.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The Shulammite woman answers the daughters of Jerusalem’s direct question about her lover’s superiority by describing his physical appearance. She speaks at the moment of explicit inquiry into how he surpasses all others.
The words — צַח (tzach) translates literally as “dazzling,” and דָּגוּל (dagul) means “conspicuous” or “outstanding.” These terms denote visible radiance and prominence that set him apart from the crowd.
The thread — The motif of surpassing beauty appears in Psalms 45:2, which calls the king the most handsome of men, and aligns with the floral self-description in Song of Solomon 2:1. The theme of exceptional worth recurs in royal and wisdom literature.
Why it lands — The verse states the beloved’s visible excellence as an objective fact before any comparison. It requires the reader to acknowledge his surpassing worth without embellishment or defense.
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 white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand.
Cross-references
- Psalms 45:2 You are the most handsome of men; grace has anointed your lips; therefore God has blessed you forever.
- Psalms 45:17 I will commemorate your name through all generations; therefore the nations will praise you forever and ever.
- Song of Solomon 2:1 I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valley.
- Philippians 2:9 Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names,
- Deuteronomy 32:31 For their rock is not like our Rock, even our enemies concede.
- 1 Samuel 16:12 So Jesse sent for his youngest son and brought him in. He was ruddy, with beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the LORD said, “Rise and anoint him, for he is the one.”
- Colossians 1:18 And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and firstborn from among the dead, so that in all things He may have preeminence.
- Hebrews 2:10 In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting for God, for whom and through whom all things exist, to make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering.
- Hebrews 7:26 Such a high priest truly befits us—One who is holy, innocent, undefiled, set apart from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.
- Isaiah 10:18 The splendor of its forests and orchards, both soul and body, it will completely destroy, as a sickness consumes a man.