Flashes of Fire

Elie Assis is the head of the Department of Bible Studies at Bar Ilan University. Among his scholarly work are his books From Moses to Joshua and from the Miraculous to the Ordinary: A Literary Analysis of the Conquest Narrative in the Book of Joshua, Jerusalem: Magnes Press, 2005 (Hebrew), and Self-Interest or Communal Interest? An Ideology of Leadership in the Gideon, Abimelech and Jephthah Narratives (Judg. 6-12) (Supplements to Vetus Testamentum, 106), Brill Academic Press, Leiden, 2005. His book Flashes of Fire was published by T&T Clark in 2009.

Table of Contents
The Unity of the Book: Song or Songs?
The Poems
The Superscription (1:1)
Unit I: (1:2-8): The Initial Courtship
1. May he kiss me - The Woman's Poem of Yearning (1:2-4)
2. The Keeper of the Vineyards - A Poem by the Woman describing Herself (1:5-6)
3. The Most Beautiful of Women - The Woman's attempt to make a Rendezvous with the Man, and Man's Refusal (1:7-8)
An Overview of the First Unit - 1:2-7
Unit II: 1:9 - 2:17: The Second Courtship
1. Pharaoh's chariots - The Man's Poem of Adoration and the Woman's Response in a Poem of Yearning (1:9-11 and 1:12-14)
2. Our bed is verdant - A Poem of Mutual Adoration by the Man and the Woman (1:15 - 2:3) .
3. I am faint with love - The Woman's Poem of Yearning (2:4-7)
4. Turn, my beloved - The Man's attempt to make a Rendezvous and the Woman's refusal (2:8-17)
Overview of the Unit II - 1:9 - 2:17
Unit III: 3:1 - 5:1 - The Climax
1. The watchmen found me - The Woman's Poem of Yearning in a Dream (3:1- 5)
2. Myrrh and Frankincense - An Introduction to the Poem "Until the day breathes" (3:6)
3. The Solomon's Bed and Palanquin Poem (3:7-11)
4. Until the day breathes - A Poem describing the Woman (4:1-7)
5. The Rendezvous Poem (4:8-5:1)
Overview of Unit III - 3:1 - 5:1
Unit IV: The Ebbing of Love (5:2 - 6:3)
1. I sought him, but did not find him - The Woman's Poem of Yearning in a Dream (5:2-8)
2. My beloved is all radiant - A Poem in which the Woman describes the Man to the Daughters of Jerusalem (5:9-16)
3. Where has your beloved gone? - A Poem in which the Daughters of Jerusalem
tease the Woman about the Man's absence, and the Woman's response (6:1-3)
Overview of Unit IV
Unit V, 6:4 - 8:14 - Resolution
1. Turn away your eyes from me - A Poem in which the Man describes the Woman (6:4-10)
2. The Nut Garden - A description of a past love experience (6:11-12)
3. Return, O Shulammite! - The Man's description of the Woman ending with his Desire for Her (7:1-10 [6:13-7:9)
4. I am my beloved's - The Woman's Poem of Yearning (7:11[10]-8:5)
5. Flashes of Fire - A Poem in Celebration of Love (8:6-7)
6. We have a little sister - The Brothers taunt the Woman and her Response (8:8-10)
7. He gave the vineyard to keepers - A Description of the Woman's Vineyard in contrast to Solomon's Vineyard:
A Poem in Praise of Love (8:11-12)
8. Flee, my beloved - The Man's attempt to make a Rendezvous and the Woman's refusal (8:13-14)
Overview of Unit V
Summary
Bibliography
List of Abbreviations