The husband also marvels at the woman whom the Lord has given him in his wisdom. She is beautiful and charming. We have already seen that this beauty does not have to imply that someone has to be attractive according to the fashion of the world at that time. She is and remains beautiful in his eyes—someone to desire because of the love that is between them. When he looks at her in that way, it overwhelms him. So much energy emanates from her, so much love and encouragement toward him.

He compares her to Tirzah and Jerusalem. She is as beautiful as Tirzah, which was traditionally an important city of Canaan. It was one of the royal cities (see Joshua 12:24). Later, Tirzah was the capital of the kingdom of the ten tribes for some time (see 1 Kings 14:17; 1 Kings 15:21, 1 Kings 15:33; 1 Kings 16:8). This verse is not about putting Tirzah and Jerusalem on an equal level. Tirzah was known as a beautiful city. Therefore, the husband is comparing the beauty of this city to the beauty of his wife.

He compares the loveliness of his wife to the beauty of Jerusalem. Jerusalem is the city that God has chosen, the city where he dwells. The attractiveness of Jerusalem lies in the fact that it is the city of God (see e.g., Psalm 48:1–14, Psalm 87:1–7, Psalm 122:1–9). For her husband, the loveliness of the woman, her attractiveness, lies in the fact that she wants to be God’s child, and that she wants to display God’s image on earth as a wife.