Song of Solomon 5:11-16 Meaning: The One Who Is Altogether Lovely
11His head is like the purest gold. His hair is bushy, black as a raven.
12His eyes are like doves beside the water brooks, washed with milk, mounted like jewels.
13His cheeks are like a bed of spices with towers of perfumes. His lips are like lilies, dropping liquid myrrh.
14His hands are like rings of gold set with beryl. His body is like ivory work overlaid with sapphires.
15His legs are like pillars of marble set on sockets of fine gold. His appearance is like Lebanon, excellent as the cedars.
16His mouth is sweetness; yes, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, daughters of Jerusalem.
11His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven.
12His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set.
13His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh.
14His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires.
15His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars.
16His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
11His head isasthe most fine gold; His locks are bushy, and black as a raven.
12His eyes are like doves beside the water-brooks, Washed with milk, and fitly set.
13His cheeks are as a bed of spices, Asbanks of sweet herbs: His lips are as lilies, dropping liquid myrrh.
14His hands areasrings of gold set with beryl: His body isasivory work overlaid with sapphires.
15His legs areaspillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: His aspect is like Lebanon, excellent as the cedars.
16His mouth is most sweet; Yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
11His head is pure gold--fine gold, His locks flowing, dark as a raven,
12His eyes as doves by streams of water, Washing in milk, sitting in fulness.
13His cheeks as a bed of the spice, towers of perfumes, His lips are lilies, dropping flowing myrrh,
14His hands rings of gold, set with beryl, His heart bright ivory, covered with sapphires,
15His limbs pillars of marble, Founded on sockets of fine gold, His appearance as Lebanon, choice as the cedars.
16His mouth is sweetness--and all of him desirable, This is my beloved, and this my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem!
11His head is [as] the finest gold; His locks are flowing, black as the raven;
12His eyes are like doves by the water-brooks, Washed with milk, fitly set;
13His cheeks are as a bed of spices, raised beds of sweet plants; His lips lilies, dropping liquid myrrh.
14His hands gold rings, set with the chrysolite; His belly is bright ivory, overlaid [with] sapphires;
15His legs, pillars of marble, set upon bases of fine gold: His bearing as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars;
16His mouth is most sweet: Yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, yea, this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
Meaning in one sentence
When the woman describes her beloved with gold, doves, and cedar, is it literal? Discover the meaning behind this poetic passage.
Context
Song of Solomon is a love poem, rich with imagery and emotion. In chapter 5, the woman has been searching for her beloved in a dream, and the daughters of Jerusalem ask what makes him so special. Her answer fills verses 11-16: a detailed description that moves from his head to his mouth, then gathers itself into a final shout. She uses gold, jewels, spices, and towering cedars to capture what she sees in him. The passage ends not with another comparison but with a statement that all of him is desirable. He is her beloved, and her friend.
Key Words
The Hebrew word for gold appears twice in this passage: paz (pure gold) and ketem (the finest gold). Both point to something precious beyond compare. Gold here is not just a colour, it speaks of worth that endures, the kind that cannot be cheapened or tarnished.
When the woman says his eyes are like doves beside streams of water, she uses a word for dove that suggests gentleness and peace. The dove motif appears earlier in the book; here it adds the image of washing in milk and sitting in fullness, purity and contentment combined.
At the end, she says his mouth is sweetness. The Hebrew noun mamtaqqim is plural, sweetnesses, as if one word cannot hold the taste of what he speaks. His palate, the organ of speech, pours out nothing but pleasant things. The woman has exhausted metaphor, and now she simply says: all of him is desirable.
How Christians Read This Verse
Christians have read this passage in different ways. For centuries, many in the Protestant and Catholic traditions understood it as an allegory: the beloved represents Christ, and each body part points to some attribute of his divinity or humanity. The head of gold, for example, was seen as a symbol of his deity or his kingship.
Other readers take the poem at face value as a human love song. For them, the woman is simply describing her beloved's beauty with the extravagant language of ancient Near Eastern love poetry. Both readings find value. Even if the primary meaning is human love, the passage still points to the kind of wholehearted devotion that echoes in our love for God.
A common misunderstanding
A common mistake is to read this passage as a literal photograph of the man's hair colour, skin tone, and build. The woman is not giving a police description. She is using the boldest images she knows, gold, marble, cedar, milk, to say that every part of him is beautiful to her. Miss the poetry, and you miss the passion behind it.
Living This Out
This passage asks you to slow down and name what you treasure. When was the last time you described someone's goodness in detail, not for a greeting card, but because you meant every word? Try it this week. Write three sentences about a person you love, using concrete images. Or, if you struggle with seeing Christ as lovely, linger on one of these images, gold, doves, cedar, and ask why the woman reached for that. Let her hunger teach you to look again.
Main takeaway: He is altogether lovely, every part of him desirable, and the one who loves him calls him beloved and friend.
For Families
For ages 5, 8
The woman in this poem loved someone very much. She said his hair was black like a raven and his eyes were like doves. That is how people talk when they love someone, they use their best words.
For ages 9, 12
When you really care about someone, you describe them with the finest pictures you can imagine. That is what the woman does here. She reaches for gold, doves, cedar trees, and sweet spices to say that everything about her beloved is beautiful. Some Christians have also seen this as a picture of Jesus, how precious he is to us. The passage invites you to think about who you would describe that way, and why.
Questions People Ask
Is this passage meant to be taken literally, or is it symbolic?
Most readers agree the language is poetic, not literal. The woman is using vivid comparisons to express how beautiful her beloved is to her. Symbolic readings that see Christ in these images have also been common in church history, but the primary sense is a love poem.
Why does the woman describe her beloved's hair as black as a raven?
In ancient Near Eastern poetry, raven-black hair was considered a sign of youth, strength, and vitality. It is a compliment, not a neutral observation. The word for 'bushy' or 'curling' suggests thick, healthy hair, a desirable trait.
What does 'his mouth is most sweet' mean?
The Hebrew word for mouth here is 'palate', referring to speech. She means that everything he says is pleasant, kind, and good. This is the only part of the description that moves from appearance to character, his words taste like honey.
Who is the 'beloved' in this passage, a human man or a symbol of Christ?
The Song of Solomon is first a poem about human love, likely King Solomon and a Shulammite woman. However, Jewish and Christian readers have also seen it as an allegory of God's love for his people or Christ's love for the church. Both meanings can hold.
Why does the woman call him both 'my beloved' and 'my friend' at the end?
The Hebrew word for friend, rea, means companion or intimate. By using both terms, she shows that her love is not just romantic passion, it is grounded in genuine friendship and closeness.
For pastors & researchers
Hebrew interlinear, 8 commentaries & word study