Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Look out, romance novelists, because the Bible is coming for your jobs! That's right: Data Over Dogma is finally covering the Song of Songs, and it's fifty shades of ancient erotic poetry hotness!
But wait- isn't it supposed to be read as an allegory for the love between God and Israel? Or between Jesus and the church? And isn't it called Song of Solomon? Maybe. But maybe not. Maybe it's just supposed to be sexy love poems with no higher purpose than that. You'll have to decide.
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For early access to an ad-free version of every episode of Data Over Dogma, exclusive content, and the opportunity to support our work, please consider becoming a monthly patron at:
patreon.com/DataOverDogma
Follow us on the various social media places:
facebook.com/DataOverDogmaPod
twitter.com/data_over_dogma
Have you ordered Dan McClellan's New York Times bestselling book The Bible Says So yet???
Buy at this link: static.macmillan.com/static/smp/bible-says-so-9781250347466
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Chapters:
0:00 Intro – Data Over Dogma
1:10 Today’s topic: Song of Songs vs. Song of Solomon
2:02 Why the title means “Song of Songs”
3:10 Was it really written by Solomon?
4:25 When the Song of Songs was actually written
4:50 Erotic poetry in the Bible
5:20 Debates about whether the book belonged in scripture
7:30 Rabbi Akiva: “The Holy of Holies”
8:42 Allegorical interpretations (God and Israel)
10:36 How explicit the poetry really is
11:34 “I am black and beautiful” – interpreting Song 1:5
13:20 Class, labor, and darkened skin
15:15 The famous “lover at the door” passage
17:13 Erotic dream imagery
17:32 Egyptian love poetry parallels
19:48 “My dove, my perfect one” – exclusivity language
21:27 What “the only one” really means
22:50 Agricultural metaphors and strange imagery
24:34 “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine”
25:12 Poetry lost in translation
26:41 The brothers and the little sister passage
28:32 Premarital romance in the Song?
29:42 The woman’s voice and sexual agency
30:29 Women and sexuality in biblical literature
31:18 Early Christian discomfort with the book
32:05 Could the Song of Songs have been written by a woman?
34:13 Was the Song of Songs originally sung?
35:23 Outro
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#podcast #oldtestament #bible #biblestudy #biblestories #biblereading #bibleteaching #religion #Jesus #jesuschrist #god #adonai #athiest #athiesm #faith #faithjourney #podcasting #podcastclips #podcastlife #podcasters #podcastshow #skeptic #skepticism #judaism #hebrew #hebrewbible #christianbible #christianity #newtestament #christian #christianity #christianityexplained #holybible #doubt #believe #believer #belief #utah #saltlakecity #lds #mormon #scholar #middleeast #israel #religious #church
Look out, romance novelists, because the Bible is coming for your jobs! That's right: Data Over Dogma is finally covering the Song of Songs, and it's fifty shades of ancient erotic poetry hotness!
But wait- isn't it supposed to be read as an allegory for the love between God and Israel? Or between Jesus and the church? And isn't it called Song of Solomon? Maybe. But maybe not. Maybe it's just supposed to be sexy love poems with no higher purpose than that. You'll have to decide.
----
For early access to an ad-free version of every episode of Data Over Dogma, exclusive content, and the opportunity to support our work, please consider becoming a monthly patron at:
patreon.com/DataOverDogma
Follow us on the various social media places:
facebook.com/DataOverDogmaPod
twitter.com/data_over_dogma
Have you ordered Dan McClellan's New York Times bestselling book The Bible Says So yet???
Buy at this link: static.macmillan.com/static/smp/bible-says-so-9781250347466
_____________________________________________
Chapters:
0:00 Intro – Data Over Dogma
1:10 Today’s topic: Song of Songs vs. Song of Solomon
2:02 Why the title means “Song of Songs”
3:10 Was it really written by Solomon?
4:25 When the Song of Songs was actually written
4:50 Erotic poetry in the Bible
5:20 Debates about whether the book belonged in scripture
7:30 Rabbi Akiva: “The Holy of Holies”
8:42 Allegorical interpretations (God and Israel)
10:36 How explicit the poetry really is
11:34 “I am black and beautiful” – interpreting Song 1:5
13:20 Class, labor, and darkened skin
15:15 The famous “lover at the door” passage
17:13 Erotic dream imagery
17:32 Egyptian love poetry parallels
19:48 “My dove, my perfect one” – exclusivity language
21:27 What “the only one” really means
22:50 Agricultural metaphors and strange imagery
24:34 “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine”
25:12 Poetry lost in translation
26:41 The brothers and the little sister passage
28:32 Premarital romance in the Song?
29:42 The woman’s voice and sexual agency
30:29 Women and sexuality in biblical literature
31:18 Early Christian discomfort with the book
32:05 Could the Song of Songs have been written by a woman?
34:13 Was the Song of Songs originally sung?
35:23 Outro
____________________________________________
#podcast #oldtestament #bible #biblestudy #biblestories #biblereading #bibleteaching #religion #Jesus #jesuschrist #god #adonai #athiest #athiesm #faith #faithjourney #podcasting #podcastclips #podcastlife #podcasters #podcastshow #skeptic #skepticism #judaism #hebrew #hebrewbible #christianbible #christianity #newtestament #christian #christianity #christianityexplained #holybible #doubt #believe #believer #belief #utah #saltlakecity #lds #mormon #scholar #middleeast #israel #religious #church
