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Solomon and His Bride Extol Each Other

[a](A)Where has your beloved gone,
O (B)most beautiful among women?
Where has your beloved turned,
That we may seek him with you?”

[b]My beloved has gone down to his (C)garden,
To the (D)beds of spices,
To (E)shepherd his flock in the gardens
And gather (F)lilies.
(G)I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine,
He who (H)shepherds his flock among the lilies.”

[c](I)You are as beautiful as (J)Tirzah, my darling,
As (K)lovely as (L)Jerusalem,
As (M)majestic as [d]an army with banners.
Turn your eyes away from me,
For they have overwhelmed me;
(N)Your hair is like a flock of goats
That have leapt down from Gilead.
(O)Your teeth are like a flock of ewes
Which have come up from their washing,
All of which bear twins,
And not one among them has [e]lost her young.
(P)Your temples are like a slice of a pomegranate
Behind your veil.
There are sixty (Q)queens and eighty concubines,
And [f](R)maidens without number;
She is the only one—(S)my dove, my perfect one;
She is the only one of her mother;
She is the pure one of her who bore her.
The (T)daughters saw her and called her blessed,
The (U)queens and the concubines also, and they praised her, saying,
10 ‘Who is this that looks down like the dawn,
As beautiful as the full (V)moon,
As pure (W)as the sun,
As (X)majestic as [g]an army with banners?’

11 [h]I went down to the garden of nut trees
To see the blossoms of the valley,
To see whether (Y)the vine had flourished
Or the (Z)pomegranates had bloomed.
12 I did not know it, but my soul set me
Among the chariots of [i]my noble people.”

13 [j][k]Come back, come back, O Shulammite;
Come back, come back, that we may behold you!”
[l]Why should you behold the Shulammite,
As at the (AA)dance of [m](AB)the two companies?

[n]How beautiful are your [o]feet in sandals,
O (AC)noble’s daughter!
The curves of your thighs are like ornaments,
The work of the hands of an artist.
Your navel is like a round basin
Which never lacks mixed wine;
Your belly is like a heap of wheat
Encircled with lilies.
Your (AD)two breasts are like two fawns,
Twins of a gazelle.
Your (AE)neck is like a tower of ivory,
Your eyes like the pools in (AF)Heshbon
By the gate of Bath-rabbim;
Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon,
Which faces toward Damascus.
Your head [p]crowns you like (AG)Carmel,
And the flowing locks of your head are like purple threads;
The king is captivated by your tresses.
How (AH)beautiful and how pleasant you are,
[q]My love, with all your pleasures!
[r]Your stature is like a palm tree,
And your breasts are like its clusters.
I said, ‘I will climb the palm tree;
I will seize its fruit stalks.’
Oh, may your breasts be like clusters of the vine,
And the fragrance of your [s]breath like [t](AI)apples,
And your [u](AJ)mouth like the best wine!”
[v]It (AK)goes down smoothly for my beloved,
Flowing gently through the lips of those who fall asleep.

The Union of Love

10 (AL)I am my beloved’s,
And his (AM)desire is for me.
11 Come, my beloved, let us go out into the [w]fields,
Let us spend the night in the villages.
12 Let us rise early and go to the vineyards;
Let us (AN)see whether the vine has flourished
And its blossoms have opened,
And whether the pomegranates have bloomed.
There I will give you my love.
13 The (AO)mandrakes have given forth fragrance;
And over our doors are all (AP)choice fruits,
Both new and old,
Which I have treasured up for you, my beloved.

The Power and Preciousness of Love

“Oh that you were like a brother to me
Who nursed at my mother’s breasts.
If I found you outside, I would kiss you;
No one would despise me, either.
I would lead you and (AQ)bring you
Into the house of my mother, who used to teach me;
I would give you spiced wine to drink from the sweet wine of my pomegranates.
Let (AR)his left hand be under my head
And his right hand embrace me.”

[x](AS)I call you to solemnly swear, O daughters of Jerusalem,
[y]Why should you arouse or awaken my love
Until [z]she pleases?”

[aa](AT)Who is this coming up from the wilderness
Leaning on her beloved?”
[ab]Beneath the [ac](AU)apple tree I awakened you;
There your mother was in labor with you;
There she was in labor and gave you birth.
Put me like a [ad]seal over your heart,
Like a (AV)seal on your arm.
For love is as strong as death,
[ae](AW)Jealousy is as severe as Sheol;
Its flashes are flashes of fire,
[af]The very flame of [ag]Yah.
Many waters cannot quench love,
Nor will rivers overflow it;
(AX)If a man were to give all the riches of his house for love,
It would be utterly despised.”

[ah]We have a little sister,
And she (AY)has no breasts;
What shall we do for our sister
On the day when she is spoken for?
If she is a wall,
We will build on her a battlement of silver;
But if she is a door,
We will barricade her with (AZ)planks of cedar.”

10 [ai]I was a wall, and (BA)my breasts were like towers;
Then I became in his eyes as one who finds peace.
11 Solomon had a (BB)vineyard at Baal-hamon;
He (BC)gave the vineyard to (BD)caretakers.
Each one was to bring [aj]one (BE)thousand shekels of silver for its (BF)fruit.
12 My very own vineyard is before me;
The thousand shekels are for you, Solomon,
And two hundred are for those who take care of its fruit.”

13 [ak]O you who sit in the gardens,
My (BG)companions are giving heed to your voice—
(BH)Let me hear it!”

14 [al][am]Hurry, my beloved,
And be (BI)like a gazelle or a young [an]stag
On the (BJ)mountains of spices.”

Footnotes

  1. Song of Songs 6:1 CHORUS
  2. Song of Songs 6:2 BRIDE
  3. Song of Songs 6:4 BRIDEGROOM
  4. Song of Songs 6:4 Lit bannered ones
  5. Song of Songs 6:6 Or miscarried
  6. Song of Songs 6:8 Or virgins
  7. Song of Songs 6:10 Lit bannered ones
  8. Song of Songs 6:11 Possibly BRIDE, cf. 6:2; 7:13
  9. Song of Songs 6:12 Or Ammi-nadib
  10. Song of Songs 6:13 CHORUS
  11. Song of Songs 6:13 Ch 7:1 in Heb
  12. Song of Songs 6:13 BRIDEGROOM
  13. Song of Songs 6:13 Heb Mahanaim
  14. Song of Songs 7:1 Ch 7:2 in Heb
  15. Song of Songs 7:1 Lit footsteps
  16. Song of Songs 7:5 Lit is upon
  17. Song of Songs 7:6 Or With love among your delights
  18. Song of Songs 7:7 Lit This stature of yours
  19. Song of Songs 7:8 Lit nose
  20. Song of Songs 7:8 Or apricots
  21. Song of Songs 7:9 Lit palate
  22. Song of Songs 7:9 BRIDE
  23. Song of Songs 7:11 Lit field
  24. Song of Songs 8:4 BRIDEGROOM
  25. Song of Songs 8:4 Or Do not arouse
  26. Song of Songs 8:4 Or it
  27. Song of Songs 8:5 CHORUS
  28. Song of Songs 8:5 BRIDE
  29. Song of Songs 8:5 Or apricot
  30. Song of Songs 8:6 Or signet
  31. Song of Songs 8:6 Or Its ardor is as inflexible
  32. Song of Songs 8:6 Or A vehement flame
  33. Song of Songs 8:6 The shortened form of Yahweh, found in poetry and praise (e.g. Hallelujah), and in names (e.g. Zechariah)
  34. Song of Songs 8:8 CHORUS
  35. Song of Songs 8:10 BRIDE
  36. Song of Songs 8:11 Approx. 25 lb. or 11.3 kg, a shekel was approx. 0.4 oz. or 11 gm
  37. Song of Songs 8:13 BRIDEGROOM
  38. Song of Songs 8:14 BRIDE
  39. Song of Songs 8:14 Lit Flee
  40. Song of Songs 8:14 Lit of the stags