This description of her hair may sound strange to the modern reader, but the very pastoral and rural scene would have been understood by the young woman, who has grown up in the countryside.1 Goats skipping down Mount Gilead suggest the appearance of hair flowing down over a girl’s shoulder, but the sense of vitality it gives is equally important.2
1 Behold, you are beautiful, my love, behold, you are beautiful! Your eyes are doves behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats leaping down the slopes of Gilead.