18:4 Then Jesus, because he knew everything that was going to happen to him, 3 came and asked them, “Who are you looking for?” 4
3:2 “I will arise 6 and look all around 7 throughout the town,
and throughout the streets 8 and squares;
I will search for my beloved.”
I searched for him but I did not find him. 9
The Maidens to the Beloved:
6:1 Where has your beloved gone,
O most beautiful among women?
Where has your beloved turned?
Tell us, 10 that we may seek him with you. 11
1 tn Grk “What are you seeking?”
2 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.
3 tn Grk “knowing all things that were coming upon him.”
4 tn Grk “Whom do you seek?”
5 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 sn Three 1st person common singular cohortatives appear in verse 2: אָקוּמָה (’aqumah, “I will arise”), אֲסוֹבְבָה (’asovÿvah, “I will go about”), and אֲבַקְשָׁה (’avaqshah, “I will seek”). These cohortatives have been taken in two basic senses: (1) resolve: “I will arise…I will go about…I will seek” (KJV, NIV) or (2) necessity: “I must arise…I must go about…I must seek” (NASB, NJPS). There is no ethical or moral obligation/necessity, but the context emphasizes her intense determination (e.g., 3:4b). Therefore, they should be classified as cohortatives of resolve, expressing the speaker’s determination to pursue a course of action. The three-fold repetition of the cohortative form emphasizes the intensity of her determination.
7 tn The root סָבַב (savav) in the Qal stem means “to go around, to do a circuit” (1 Sam 7:16; 2 Chr 17:9; 23:2; Eccl 12:5; Song 3:3; Isa 23:16; Hab 2:16), while the Polel stem means “to prowl around” (Ps 59:7, 15; Song 3:2) (HALOT 739-740 s.v. סבב). The idea here is that the Beloved is determined to “look all around” until she finds her beloved.
8 sn There is a consonantal wordplay in 3:2 between the roots בּקשׁ and בּשׁק, that is, between אֲבַקְשָׁה (’avaqshah, “I will seek [him]”) and בַּשְּׁוָקִים (bashshÿvaqim, “streets”). The wordplay emphasizes that she searched in every nook and cranny.
9 sn The statement בִּקַּשְׁתִּיו וְלֹא מְצָאתִיו (biqqashtiv vÿlo’ mÿtsa’tiv, “I sought him but I did not find him”) appears twice in 3:1-2. In both cases it concludes a set of cola. The repetition depicts her mounting disappointment in her failure to locate her beloved. It stands in strong contrast with 3:4.
10 tn The phrase “Tell us!” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness.
11 tn Heb “And we may seek him with you.” The vav-conjunctive on וּנְבַקְשֶׁנּוּ (unÿvaqshennu, “and we may seek him with you”) denotes purpose/result.
12 tn Grk “But answering, the angel said.” This is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation.
13 tn Grk “for I know.”
14 sn See the note on crucified in 20:19.
15 sn See the note on Crucify in 15:13.
16 tn The verb here is passive (ἠγέρθη, hgerqh). This “divine passive” (see ExSyn 437-38) points to the fact that Jesus was raised by God.
17 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
18 tn Grk “they”; the referent (the women) has been specified in the translation for clarity (the same has been done in v. 8).
19 tn Or “They were extremely afraid.”
20 sn Bowed their faces to the ground. Such respect for angels is common: Dan 7:28; 10:9, 15.
21 sn By referring to Jesus as the living, the angels make it clear that he is alive. There should be no surprise.