Song of Songs 6:8

Song of Songs 6:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)There are threescore queens, and fourscore concubines, and virgins without number.
• New International Version (NIV)Sixty queens there may be, and eighty concubines, and virgins beyond number;
• English Standard Version (ESV)There are sixty queens and eighty concubines, and virgins without number.
• New King James Version (NKJV)There are sixty queens And eighty concubines, And virgins without number.

Context of Song of Songs 6:8

6Your teeth are very white like a group of clean sheep that is coming from the pool of water. Each tooth is one of a pair. Not one of them is alone. 7The sides of your face are beautiful, like the halves of a pomegranate. I see them through your veil. A king may have 60 queens. He may have 80 slave wives. He may have many other young women too. There may be too many for him to count! 9But there is only one woman that I want. Nobody is like her in any way. She is my perfect one, as lovely as a dove. She is the special daughter of her mother. Her mother loves her best among all her children. The young women saw her and they praised her. The queens and the slave wives also praised her. 10They said, ‘She is like the light that appears at dawn. She is as beautiful as the moon. She is as bright as the sun. She is as wonderful as the stars that shine brightly in their places.’

Song of Songs 6:8 word by word

שִׁשִּׁ֥ים הֵ֙מָּה֙ מְּלָכ֔וֹת וּשְׁמֹנִ֖ים פִּֽילַגְשִׁ֑ים וַעֲלָמ֖וֹת אֵ֥ין מִסְפָּֽר׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• There are threescoreשִׁשִּׁיםshishshîym · sixtyH8346
• queensמַלְכָּהmalkâh · queenH4436
• and fourscoreשְׁמֹנִיםshemônîym shemônîym · eightyH8084
• concubinesפִּלֶ֫גֶשׁpîylegesh pilegesh · concubineH6370
• and virginsעַלְמָה‛almâh · young womanH5959
• without numberמִסְפָּרmispâr · numberH4557

Commentaries on Song of Songs 6:8

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8There are threescore queens - Though there be sixty queens, and eighty concubines, or secondary wives, and virgins innumerable, in my harem, yet thou, my dove, my undefiled, art אצת achath, One, the Only One, she in whom I delight beyond all.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-10Verses 4-10 All the real excellence and holiness on earth centre in the church. Christ goes forth subduing his enemies, while his followers gain victories over the world, the flesh, and the devil. He shows the tenderness of a Redeemer, the delight he takes in his redeemed people, and the workings of his own grace in them. True believers alone can possess the beauty of holiness. And when their real character is known, it will be commended. Both the church…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8-9If the Song were an allegory of the Lord’s love for his people, it would be a weak comparison. Solomon's many marriages poorly represent God's love and faithfulness (see 1 Kings 11:1–13). sixty queens: Solomon married many wives through international treaties (see 1 Kings 11:1–3, 8). Concubines were wives with lower status than a primary wife but higher than a slave. People acquired concubines through war, debt repayment, or purchase. In the anthology…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. threescore--indefinite number, as in So 3:7. Not queens, &c., of Solomon, but witnesses of the espousals, rulers of the earth contrasted with the saints, who, though many, are but "one" bride (Is 52:15; Lu 22:25, 26; Joh 17:21; 1Co 10:17). The one Bride is contrasted with the many wives whom Eastern kings had in violation of the marriage law (1Ki 11:1-3).Read the comment
• Rashi on Tanakh · v. 8There are sixty queens Abraham and his descendants (Song Zuta). The sons of Keturah are sixteen. Ishmael and his sons are thirteen. Isaac and his sons are three. The sons of Jacob are twelve. The sons of Esau are sixteen, thus totaling sixty. And if you say that Timna should be excluded because she was a woman, then count Abraham in the number.Read the comment

In the dictionaries

• Abolish
• Maid; Maiden
• Number
• Queen
• Virgin, Virginity

Commentaries on Song of Songs 6

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary