Summary
We find Burrowes’ Song of Solomon in the Geneva Commentaries a serious and reverent treatment of a book that many of us feel uncertain about preaching. He works patiently through the Song’s poetry, resisting both embarrassment and sentimental shortcuts.
The commentary aims to help us hear the Song as Scripture, with its own structure, images, and theological weight. Burrowes repeatedly presses us to read carefully, to honour the text’s language, and to keep the covenant setting of love and devotion in view.
Why Should I Own This Commentary?
We should own this commentary when we need help teaching the Song with sobriety. It is not written to entertain, but to steady our handling of difficult lines and recurring images, so that our preaching is neither crude nor evasive.
We also benefit from the way it slows us down. The Song does not yield to hurried application. Burrowes helps us stay with the poetry long enough to understand what is being celebrated, what is being warned against, and what kind of love Scripture dignifies.
For pastors who want to treat the Song as part of the whole counsel of God, this volume offers depth and restraint, and it can pair well with a shorter, more contemporary guide for quicker orientation.
Closing Recommendation
We recommend this as an advanced expositional resource for those preparing to teach Song of Songs in the church. It is especially useful when we want depth and reverence, and when we are willing to do slow, careful work before moving toward application.
As pastoral next steps, we can visit the Bible Book Overview, browse Top Recommendations, and use the Reformed Commentary Index to build a wiser working library.
George S. Burrowes
George S. Burrowes was an American Presbyterian minister of the nineteenth century, writing within a confessional Reformed tradition.
He is best known for clear, careful exposition that aims to serve the church rather than impress the academy. Burrowes wrote with an eye to the ordinary means of grace, the shaping of Christian character, and the steady work of building congregations under the Word. His commentaries reflect a disciplined concern for context and argument, and they keep doctrine close to the text rather than treating theology as a separate layer added afterwards.
He remains valued because he writes with pastoral restraint and theological steadiness. He is not showy, but he is reliable, and his instincts tend to guard us from forced readings or speculative application. For preachers, he can be especially helpful in books that require reverence, patience, and careful handling of imagery, where the temptation is either to avoid the text or to overstate it.
Recommended titles include his Geneva Series volume on Song of Solomon, his writings on the New Testament epistles, and his work connected to the Mercersburg theological tradition.
Theological Perspective: Reformed