The Secret of the Rose in Jewish Mysticism: “As a Rose Among the Thorns”

Shlomo Hamelech (King Solomon), in Song of Songs, compares the Congregation of Israel, the bride of the Divine Beloved, to a rose: “As a rose among the thorns.” (Song of Songs 2:2)

This poetic image, while simple on the surface, carries deep layers of spiritual meaning. The Sages and the Kabbalists saw in this metaphor a profound key that connects to many mitzvot and symbols in Judaism — from the fringes of the tzitzit to the cup of Kiddush.

The Rose and the Dew of Torah

The Midrash Rabbah on Song of Songs explains that there is something special about the rose. When the sun beats down upon it, its petals wither and droop, but when the dew descends, it revives and opens again.

The same is true with the people of Israel. When suffering or oppression strikes, they shrink inward; but when they are touched by the “dew of Torah,” they blossom once more.

And just as a rose stands out among thorns — a bright pink spot amid dull weeds, so Israel stands out among the nations. Wherever a Jew is found among the multitudes, he is recognizable.

Just as the rose is destined to be plucked for the tables of kings, spreading fragrance and beauty, so Israel is destined to stand in splendor before God, basking in the radiance of the Divine Presence.

The Zohar’s Mystical Rose

In the Zohar (Parshat Bereshit), the rose becomes a symbol of divine structure and mercy.

The Zohar notes that there are white roses and red roses —
the white representing chesed (mercy) and the red representing gevurah (judgment). Together, they embody the balance of divine attributes that Israel manifests in the world.

The Zohar further reveals that the rose has thirteen petals,
surrounded by five sturdy outer leaves, the sepal leaves that hold it together. These correspond to the Thirteen Attributes of Divine Mercy and the Five Gates of Salvation in heaven.

The Cup of Blessing and the Rose

Because of this, says the Zohar, the cup of Kiddush — the Cup of Salvation (“Kos Yeshuot Esa”) — should be held upon five fingers, corresponding to the five outer leaves of the rose, which in turn symbolize the five gates of blessing through which salvation flows.

The rose itself is shaped like a cup, which is why in Hebrew its outer parts are called “alei gavia” — “cup leaves.” The Zohar in Parshat Vayechi even declares: “The Congregation of Israel is called the Cup of Blessing.”

When we raise the Kiddush cup filled with wine, we bless God for creation and sanctification. Wine — the fruit of the earth that gladdens the heart, represents the creative power God placed in nature, the vitality that allows the world to flourish. Like the rose, the wine embodies both beauty and divine wisdom in the act of growth.

“Shoshan Edut” — The Rose of Testimony

In the Zohar (Parshat Pinchas), the verse “Shoshan Edut” (“The Rose of Testimony,” Psalm 60:1) is explained: The rose is a witness to Creation itself. Between the first and second mention of the word “Elohim” in Bereishit 1, there are thirteen words — corresponding to the rose’s thirteen petals. The verse “Shema Yisrael” contains five words, corresponding to the five strong outer leaves of the rose.

Thus, the rose is not merely a flower; but a living symbol of divine order — a reflection of the harmony between mercy and judgment, heaven and earth.

The Hidden Thirteenth Petal

The Tikkunei Zohar adds another detail: The rose has twelve petals, but one is divided in two, making thirteen in total. This mirrors the twelve tribes of Israel, with the tribe of Yosef divided into Ephraim and Manashe. Once again, the rose becomes a symbol of Israel’s spiritual structure — unity expressed through multiplicity.

The Temple and the Rose

When Shlomo Hamelech built the bronze sea in the Temple — the great basin from which the priests purified themselves, Scripture describes it as: “Like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a rose.” (Kohelet II, 4:5)

It stood upon twelve oxen, representing the twelve tribes, and the entire vessel was shaped like a giant rose, filled with water for sanctification.

The Vilna Gaon, in his work Yahel Ohr, notes that even the knots of the tzitzit made up of thirteen windings and five knots, correspond to the rose’s thirteen petals and five outer leaves. The rose thus continuously reappears in prayer, mitzvot, and in sacred vessels, as a symbol of Israel’s holiness and of Creation’s divine design.

The Gates of the Temple and the Rose

The Temple Mount, says the Mishnah (Middot 1:3), had five gates,
and the Temple complex as a whole had thirteen gates (Shekalim 6:3): “They would bow opposite thirteen gates — four in the north, four in the south, three in the east, and two in the west.”

Once again, five and thirteen — the numbers of the rose, echo through the architecture of holiness.

The Spiritual Meaning

The rose, then, is far more than a poetic image. It is a microcosm of divine harmony — combining beauty and protection, mercy and judgment, simplicity and depth.

It symbolizes the soul of Israel — delicate yet enduring, surrounded by thorns yet ever blooming, rooted in earth but reaching toward Heaven.