Lamentations and Song of Songs

From the anguished sorrow songs of ancient Israel to the passionate and lyric poems of lovers, this commentary covers the full emotional register of biblical literature. Wilma Ann Bailey plumbs the interpretive depths of Lamentations, including questions about authorship, images of God, the depiction of a community's response to exile, and its development of an identity in the wake of catastrophe. Christina Bucher then offers multiple perspectives on the Song of Songs and its imagery, characters, and allegorical and literal interpretations by readers and communities across the centuries.

Both scholars help readers understand and apply the wisdom contained in these Hebrew writings of desire and exile, lament and love.