The Song of Songs. A Revised Translation with Introduction and Commentary. [1862]

The Song of Songs: a revised translation with introduction and commentary – is a work, which was published in 1862 and written by Joseph Francis Thrupp, an English churchman and academic of 19th century, known as a writer on the Psalms, and composer of a setting of the hymn Brightest and Best. The purpose of this volume is to reveal the meaning of one of the least appreciated passages of Scripture. In the interests of truth, it seemed undesirable to leave room for the suspicion that the traditional interpretation of the Song, however edifying it may have been to nearly fifty generations of Christians, would not be confirmed by the results of modern science. Therefore, the author strove to build everywhere on the strongest achievable foundation. That the author wrote to the best of his own judgment, and did not defend the opinions received simply because they were received, will be shown in the opening section of the Introduction. But since in regard to how the Song should be interpreted, the authority of the universal consent of the Christian Church will have the greatest weight, so the author was firmly convinced that the conclusions of sober criticism here would turn out to be consistent with the traditions of Christian teaching; and that the more carefully the Song is considered, the less compatible its language and structure will be with any other theme than that of the mutual love of the Incarnate Son of God and his redeemed Church.