Translation
I have compared you, my Love, to a mare
Go to footnote numberamong Pharaoh’s chariots.
Go to footnote numberParaphrase
My Love, you get me where I want to go quickly,
and in style.
Footnotes
1
A horse was the fastest form of transportation for the common people in a time when the only options were to walk, ride a cart or wagon, or ride a donkey or a horse. For the nobility there were also the options of riding a camel, being carried on a sedan chair, or riding in a chariot. Still, a horse was the fastest way to get somewhere.
Implications for marriage: Here we see the wife’s willingness to meet her husband’s sexual needs sometimes without the time required for him to properly meet her needs. Yes, they knew back then that men are microwaves and women are crockpots. She is willing to meet his sexual needs quickly on some occasions simply because she knows his needs in that area are different than hers.
2
A chariot implied power, authority, military bearing and the awe that people sensed at seeing someone go by in a chariot. A chariot of Pharaoh was no ordinary chariot, but a chariot of the highest class.