The woman describes the love they share. It is as strong as death
itself—the most powerful of enemies in the Bible and a force that cannot be overcome by mere mortals. Death comes to all. Yet love, we are told, is its equal, and the passion that the lovers share is as stubborn and unrelenting as the grave, which seeks to swallow all living things.1 Love is as strong as death in the sense that its power cannot be resisted. It never releases those whom it has once seized.2
6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the LORD.