1. Song of Solomon 1:2 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

Why does the young woman refer to her beloved as “him” and “your” (directly and indirectly)?

Song of Solomon 1:2 (ESV)

2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth! For your love is better than wine;

Throughout this poem, and the entire Song, the woman uses both the second person (“you”) and third person (“he”) to refer to the young man. The other voices in the Song will do the same. This is a poetic device called enallage and does not mean we have to look for a different character speaking or being spoken to.1 Change of person is common in Hebrew poetry as the speaker moves from sometimes speaking to themselves, then to others, then to third parties.2