Charles Ellicott Commentary Song Of Solomon 1:14

"My beloved is unto me [as] a cluster of henna-flowers In the vineyards of En-gedi." — Song Of Solomon 1:14 (ASV)

Camphire. — Margin: cypress; Hebrew: côpher. There is no doubt of the identity of this plant with the Henna of the Arabs, the Lawsonia aïba or inermis of botanists.

Robinson found it growing in abundance at En-gedi (where it alone is found) and suggested the identification (see his note, Researches, ii, p. 211). Tristram describes it thus:

“It is a small shrub, eight or ten feet high, with dark bark, pale green foliage, and clusters of white and yellow blossoms of a powerful fragrance. Not only is the perfume of the flower highly prized, but a paste is made of the dried and pounded leaves, which is used by the women of all ranks and the men of the wealthier classes to dye the palms of the hands, the soles of the feet, and the nails” (Natural History of the Bible, p. 339).

Compare also Thomson, in The Land and the Book, p. 602, who, however, prefers to identify côpher with some especially favorite kind of grapes, but without giving any sufficient reason.

For En-gedi, see Joshua 15:62. It is the only place in Southern Palestine mentioned in this poem; the other allusions (except Heshbon, Song of Solomon 7:4, which is in Moab) refer to northern localities.