Valentine’s Day is coming; it’s the season of romance.

I know a guy who regularly sends verses from the Song of Songs (also called Song of Solomon) to his wife. This Old Testament love song is quite romantic. For example, it says, “You have captured my heart...my bride. You have captured my heart with one glance of your eyes.” (Song of Songs 4:9, HCSB).

However, because the song is 3,000 years old, written in another language and from another culture, some passages don’t sound romantic at all in the English translation, unless somebody explains their hidden meaning. In fact, here are the top ten verses from the Song of Songs that Solomon could get away with, but you should NOT quote to your sweetheart:

10.  “The hair of your head is like purple cloth.” (7:5)
9. “Your hair is like a flock of goats streaming down Mount Gilead.” (4:1; 6:5)
8.  “Your neck is like a tower of ivory.” (7:4)
7. “Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep coming up from washing.” (4:2)
6. “Your stature is like a palm tree.” (7:7)
5. “The smell of thy garments is like the smell of Lebanon.” (4:11, KJV)
4. “Your neck is like the tower of David.” (4:4)
3.  “Your navel is like a round goblet.” (7:2)
2. “Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon looking toward Damascus.” (7:6)
1. “Your belly is like a heap of wheat.” (7:2)

I’m sure all of these verses sounded romantic to Solomon’s bride at the time he first said them. That’s what made them romantic: they were written just for her, by her husband. The way for a man to be romantic is still the same: tell her how you love her in your own words. Solomon did.

No wonder he was known as the wisest of men.

Copyright 2010 by Bob Rogers. Email: brogers@fbcrincon.com. Read this column each Friday for a mix of religion and humor. For more “Holy Humor,” go to the Web site of First Baptist Church of Rincon at www.fbcrincon.com.