Pensamiento judío sobre Cantar de los Cantares 4:11

Shemot Rabbah 23, explains the verse in Song of Songs 4,11, "your lips are dripping liquid honey," as referring to Moses reciting the song after Israel had crossed the sea of reeds. Moses had said before the Lord "with the very thing that I have sinned, I came to sing Your praises." This is like a king whose subjects had revolted against him. The king said to his commander-in-chief that he wanted to punish the rebellious people. The commander-in-chief said that he did not think the king would come out victorious in such an engagement. The king kept silent, but went out single handedly and prevailed against the rebellious people. When his commander-in-chief heard about this, he fashioned a crown and brought it to the king. In answer to the king's question what this crown was for, the commander-in-chief said that it was to atone for his sin. Similarly, Moses,who at the beginning of his mission had come to G-d complaining that since his appointment things had gotten worse for the Jewish nation, ("ever since I have come to speak to Pharaoh in Your name, he has dealt worse with the people,"(Exodus 5,23) now came and praised the Lord commencing with the word az i.e. ever since. This demonstrates that righteous people can turn an instrument of iniquity into an instrument of atonement. This too is the meaning of "your lips O bride, drip with liquid honey."

Some problems in the text of our story. 1) Why does the Torah make it appear that Moses arrived at Mount Chorev merely by coincidence? How did this mountain come to be called "the Mountain of G-d?" 2) Why does the verse read "why will the bush not burn," when we had already been told that the bush was already burning? (3,2-3) 3) Why was Moses told to take off both shoes, whereas Joshua at a similar occurrence was told to remove only one shoe? 4) Why all the repetitions in verse 7? 5) Why would Moses describe himself with the words "who am I,” as if insignificant, when in fact he had been a leading figure, not subject to the demeaning experience of bondage, had been educated as a prince, came of superior parentage etc? Why would he take a chance on delaying the redemption of the people by making G-d wait till He would find someone even more suitable? 6) The sign that G-d told Moses as proof that the redemption of the Jewish people would indeed take place and be justified, should have occurred prior to Moses consenting to assume his function as leader! Especially when the sign was to identify the leader, not the One who appointed him! 7) Why did Moses assume and anticipate the reaction of the Jewish people, if he were to appear and claim to be the redeemer? He had said to G-d they would ask him "what is His name"? G-d had not yet even asked him to say one word to the Israelites! Compare verses 7-13. Had Moses waited until he had received G-ds instructions, no question would have been necessary at all! 8) Why does the sequence of the two instructions "when you will say to the children of Israel,” and "go and assemble the people," appear in the reverse order of the events? 9) Why did Moses employ subterfuge, asking for a leave of absence for three days? How could such lack of forthrightness reflect glory on the name of the Lord? Again, the instruction to borrow valuables from the Egyptians at the time the Israelites left Egypt, seems dishonest, since there obviously was no intention to return these valuables? 10) Why did G-d tell Moses in advance that Pharaoh would refuse the request made of him? 11) How could Moses have the effrontery to say to G-d "they will not believe me nor listen to me," when G-d had already said "they will obey you?!" (verse 18) 12) Since Moses had already tacitly agreed to accept the mission by saying "here when I come to the children of Israel etc., how could he say afterwards "I am not a man of words etc.?" 13) How did G-ds reply to Moses "Who gave man a mouth?", help answer Moses’ss question implying that he had obviously not been equipped for such a mission? Why do our sages read into G-ds reply an expression of anger, when in fact the words appear most civil and conciliatory? 14) Why did the angel want to kill Moses? Do we not have a rule that anyone on a mission of a mitzvah will not be harmed either on the way to his destination or on his return? The mitzvah of circumcision did not apply during the journeys of the Israelites for forty years, so why kill Moses for being remiss in the same way? 15) What exactly did Tzipporah mean by her statement? Why is the line "when you go back to Egypt" (4,21) inserted at that point in the story? It seems totally out of place there! 16) Why did Pharaoh say to Moses "I do not know G-d that I should listen to Him and send off the Israelites?" He had already denied G-ds existence! Why did Moses harp on a vision from that very G-d to legitimize his request, when Pharaoh had already denied that such a G-d exists? ‘ 17) What is the meaning of such terms as shotrim, nogssim, shotrey beney yisrael? 18) Why did Moses complain? G"d after all, had told him in advance that Pharaoh would refuse to release the Israelites! 19) Why did G-d say that His name hashem had not yet been made known, when in fact He had identified Himself in this fashion already to Abraham at the first covenant in Genesis 15,1-6? 20) What was the logic in Moses’s argument that if his own people would not respond to him, surely neither would Pharaoh? His own people were under a great strain, forced labour etc.; they had an excuse not to listen to Moses. What excuse did Pharaoh have? 21) Why did the Torah list the ancestry of only the first three tribes in chapter 6,14-27?