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La novia

Yo soy una flor
de los llanos de Sarón;
soy una rosa de los valles.

El novio

Mi amada es una rosa
entre las espinas.

La novia

Mi amado es un manzano
entre árboles silvestres.
¡Me muero por sentarme a su sombra
y saborear sus deliciosos frutos!

Mi amado me llevó
a la sala de banquetes,
y allí me cubrió de besos.

¡Denme a comer uvas!
¡Denme a comer manzanas!
¡Ayúdenme a recobrar las fuerzas,
que me estoy muriendo de amor!
¡Que ponga él su brazo izquierdo
debajo de mi cabeza!
¡Que me apriete contra su cuerpo
con el brazo derecho!

El novio

Mujeres de Jerusalén,
quiero que me prometan,
por las gacelas y venaditas
que corren por los bosques,
que no molestarán a mi amada
ni la despertarán de su sueño de amor
hasta que ella sola se despierte.

Segundo canto

La novia

¡Oigo la voz de mi amado!
¡Ya lo veo venir!
Viene saltando por las colinas,
viene brincando por las montañas.
Mi amado es como un cabrito.
¡Allí está, tras el muro!
¡Se asoma por las ventanas,
me espía por las rejas!

10 Mi amado me dijo:

«Acompáñame, amada mía;
¡ven conmigo, bella mujer!
11 El invierno ya se ha ido;
las lluvias han terminado.
12 Ya hay flores en los campos;
ha llegado el tiempo de cantar.
¡El arrullo de las tórtolas
se escucha en nuestra tierra!
13 En las higueras hay higos,
y las flores de las viñas
esparcen suave aroma.
Acompáñame, amada mía;
¡ven conmigo, bella mujer!»

El novio

14 Palomita amada,
no te escondas en las rocas.
Muéstrame tu rostro,
déjame oír tu voz.

¡Tu voz es dulce!
¡Tu rostro es bello!

Los novios

15 Las zorras pequeñas
causan daño a nuestras viñas.
¡Ayúdennos a atraparlas,
pues nuestras viñas están en flor!

La novia

16 Mi amado es mío,
y yo soy suya;
mi amado cuida de su rebaño
entre las rosas.

17 Regresa a mí, amado mío,
mientras sopla todavía
la brisa de la tarde,
y las sombras van cayendo.
¡Corre como un venado!
¡Corre como cabrito
por las colinas que nos separan!

I am a wildflower[a] of Sharon,
a lily[b] of the valleys.(A)

Man

Like a lily among thorns,
so is my darling among the young women.

Woman

Like an apricot[c] tree among the trees of the forest,
so is my love among the young men.
I delight to sit in his shade,
and his fruit is sweet to my taste.
He brought me to the banquet hall,[d](B)
and he looked on me with love.[e](C)
Sustain me with raisins;
refresh me with apricots,[f]
for I am lovesick.(D)
May his left hand be under my head,
and his right arm embrace me.(E)
Young women of Jerusalem, I charge you
by the gazelles and the wild does of the field,
do not stir up or awaken love
until the appropriate time.[g](F)

Listen! My love is approaching.
Look! Here he comes,
leaping over the mountains,(G)
bounding over the hills.
My love is like a gazelle
or a young stag.(H)
See, he is standing behind our wall,
gazing through the windows,
peering through the lattice.
10 My love calls to me:

Man

Arise,(I) my darling.
Come away, my beautiful one.
11 For now the winter is past;
the rain has ended and gone away.
12 The blossoms appear in the countryside.
The time of singing[h] has come,
and the turtledove’s cooing is heard in our land.(J)
13 The fig tree ripens its figs;(K)
the blossoming vines give off their fragrance.(L)
Arise, my darling.
Come away, my beautiful one.

14 My dove,(M) in the clefts of the rock,(N)
in the crevices of the cliff,
let me see your face,[i]
let me hear your voice;(O)
for your voice is sweet,
and your face is lovely.(P)

Woman[j]

15 Catch the foxes for us(Q)
the little foxes that ruin the vineyards –
for our vineyards are in bloom.(R)

Woman

16 My love is mine and I am his;(S)
he feeds among the lilies.
17 Until the day breaks[k]
and the shadows flee,
turn around, my love, and be like a gazelle
or a young stag(T) on the divided mountains.[l](U)

Footnotes

  1. 2:1 Traditionally rose
  2. 2:1 Or lotus
  3. 2:3 Or apple
  4. 2:4 Lit the house of wine
  5. 2:4 Or and his banner over me is love
  6. 2:5 Or apples
  7. 2:7 Lit until it pleases
  8. 2:12 Or pruning
  9. 2:14 Or form
  10. 2:15 The speaker could be the woman, the man, or both.
  11. 2:17 Lit breathes
  12. 2:17 Or the Bether mountains, or the mountains of spices; Hb obscure

Chapter 2

W I am a flower of Sharon,[a]
    a lily of the valleys.
M Like a lily among thorns,
    so is my friend among women.
W Like an apple tree among the trees of the woods,
    so is my lover among men.
In his shadow[b] I delight to sit,
    and his fruit is sweet to my taste.
(A)He brought me to the banquet hall[c]
    and his glance at me signaled love.
(B)Strengthen me with raisin cakes,[d]
    refresh me with apples,
    for I am sick with love.
(C)His left hand is under my head
    and his right arm embraces me.
(D)I adjure you, Daughters of Jerusalem,[e]
    by the gazelles and the does of the field,
Do not awaken, or stir up love
    until it is ready.

Her Lover’s Visit Remembered

W The sound of my lover! here he comes[f]
    springing across the mountains,
    leaping across the hills.
My lover is like a gazelle[g]
    or a young stag.
See! He is standing behind our wall,
    gazing through the windows,
    peering through the lattices.
10 My lover speaks and says to me,
    M “Arise, my friend, my beautiful one,
    and come!
11 For see, the winter is past,
    the rains are over and gone.
12 The flowers appear on the earth,
    the time of pruning the vines has come,
    and the song of the turtledove is heard in our land.
13 The fig tree puts forth its figs,
    and the vines, in bloom, give forth fragrance.
Arise, my friend, my beautiful one,
    and come!
14 My dove in the clefts of the rock,[h]
    in the secret recesses of the cliff,
Let me see your face,
    let me hear your voice,
For your voice is sweet,
    and your face is lovely.”
15 W Catch us the foxes,[i] the little foxes
    that damage the vineyards; for our vineyards are in bloom!
16 (E)My lover belongs to me and I to him;
    he feeds among the lilies.
17 (F)Until the day grows cool[j] and the shadows flee,
    roam, my lover,
Like a gazelle or a young stag
    upon the rugged mountains.

Footnotes

  1. 2:1 Flower of Sharon: probably the narcissus, which grows in the fertile Plain of Sharon lying between Mount Carmel and Jaffa on the Mediterranean coast. Lily: the lotus plant.
  2. 2:3 Shadow: suggestive of protection (cf. Jgs 9:15; Ez 17:23; Ps 17:8; 121:5) and, here, of the woman’s joy in the presence of her lover.
  3. 2:4–6 The banquet hall: the sweet things of the table, the embrace of the woman and man, express the richness of their affection and the intimacy of their love.
  4. 2:5 Raisin cakes: perhaps pastries used in the worship of the fertility goddess (cf. Hos 3:1; Jer 7:18; 44:19). Apples: this is the common translation of a fruit that cannot be identified (cf. 2:3; 8:5); it appears frequently in Sumerian love poetry associated with the worship of the goddess Inanna. Sick: love-sickness is a popular motif in ancient love poetry.
  5. 2:7 Cf. 3:5; 5:8; 8:4. By the gazelles and the does: perhaps a mitigated invocation of the divinity based on the assonance in Hebrew of the names of these animals with terms for God.
  6. 2:8–13 In this sudden change of scene, the woman describes a rendezvous and pictures her lover hastening toward her dwelling until his voice is heard calling her to him.
  7. 2:9 Gazelle: a frequent motif in ancient poems from Mesopotamia.
  8. 2:14 The woman is addressed as though she were a dove in a mountain cleft out of sight and reach.
  9. 2:15 A snatch of song in answer to the request of 2:14; cf. 8:13–14. Foxes: they threaten to disturb the security of vineyards. The vineyards are women sought after by young lovers, i.e., foxes.
  10. 2:17 Grows cool: in the evening when the sun is going down. Cf. Gn 3:8. Rugged: Hebrew obscure; some interpret it as a geographical name; others, in the sense of spices (cf. 8:14); still others, of sacrifice (Gn 15:10); the image probably refers here to the woman herself.

She[a]

I am a rose[b](A) of Sharon,(B)
    a lily(C) of the valleys.

He

Like a lily among thorns
    is my darling among the young women.

She

Like an apple[c] tree among the trees of the forest
    is my beloved(D) among the young men.
I delight(E) to sit in his shade,
    and his fruit is sweet to my taste.(F)
Let him lead me to the banquet hall,(G)
    and let his banner(H) over me be love.
Strengthen me with raisins,
    refresh me with apples,(I)
    for I am faint with love.(J)
His left arm is under my head,
    and his right arm embraces me.(K)
Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you(L)
    by the gazelles and by the does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
    until it so desires.(M)

Listen! My beloved!
    Look! Here he comes,
leaping across the mountains,
    bounding over the hills.(N)
My beloved is like a gazelle(O) or a young stag.(P)
    Look! There he stands behind our wall,
gazing through the windows,
    peering through the lattice.
10 My beloved spoke and said to me,
    “Arise, my darling,
    my beautiful one, come with me.
11 See! The winter is past;
    the rains are over and gone.
12 Flowers appear on the earth;
    the season of singing has come,
the cooing of doves
    is heard in our land.
13 The fig tree forms its early fruit;(Q)
    the blossoming(R) vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling;
    my beautiful one, come with me.”

He

14 My dove(S) in the clefts of the rock,
    in the hiding places on the mountainside,
show me your face,
    let me hear your voice;
for your voice is sweet,
    and your face is lovely.(T)
15 Catch for us the foxes,(U)
    the little foxes
that ruin the vineyards,(V)
    our vineyards that are in bloom.(W)

She

16 My beloved is mine and I am his;(X)
    he browses among the lilies.(Y)
17 Until the day breaks
    and the shadows flee,(Z)
turn, my beloved,(AA)
    and be like a gazelle
or like a young stag(AB)
    on the rugged hills.[d](AC)

Footnotes

  1. Song of Songs 2:1 Or He
  2. Song of Songs 2:1 Probably a member of the crocus family
  3. Song of Songs 2:3 Or possibly apricot; here and elsewhere in Song of Songs
  4. Song of Songs 2:17 Or the hills of Bether