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The only piece of erotic literature in the Bible, this book was regarded by earlier devotees as an allegory of God's love for his people. Taking the form of a poem, the song tells of two lovers praising each other's bodies. The text is introduced by A.S. Byatt
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Last year, I read most of the Hebrew Bible in Robert Alter's fantastic translation, including Song of Songs. Alter's rendering of this poem is more effective, even if the KJV obviously has beauty to it; Alter simply understands the culture and poetical forms better than the KJV translators and is able to do more with the text.