Ecclesiastes 12 - Song of Solomon 2
Amplified Bible
Remember God in Your Youth
12 Remember [thoughtfully] also your Creator in the days of your youth [for you are not your own, but His], before the evil days come or the years draw near when you will say [of physical pleasures], “I have no enjoyment and delight in them”;(A) 2 before the sun and the light, and the moon and the stars are darkened [by impaired vision], and the clouds [of depression] return after the rain [of tears]; 3 in the day when the keepers of the house (hands, arms) tremble, and the strong men (feet, knees) bow themselves, and the grinders (molar teeth) cease because they are few, and those (eyes) who look through the windows grow dim; 4 when the doors (lips) are shut in the streets and the sound of the grinding [of the teeth] is low, and one rises at the sound of a bird and the crowing of a rooster, and all the daughters of music (voice, ears) sing softly. 5 Furthermore, they are afraid of a high place and of dangers on the road; the almond tree (hair) blossoms [white], and the grasshopper (a little thing) is a burden, and the [a]caperberry (desire, appetite) fails. For man goes to his eternal home and the mourners go about the streets and market places.(B) 6 Earnestly remember your Creator before the silver cord [of life] is broken, or the golden bowl is crushed, or the pitcher at the fountain is shattered and the wheel at the cistern is crushed; 7 then the dust [out of which God made man’s body] will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it. 8 “Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher. “All [that is done without God’s guidance] is vanity (futility).”(C)
Purpose of the Preacher
9 Furthermore, because the Preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; and he pondered and searched out and arranged many proverbs. 10 The Preacher sought to find delightful words, even to write correctly words of truth.
11 The words of the wise are like [prodding] goads, and these collected sayings are [firmly fixed in the mind] like well-driven nails; [b]they are given by one Shepherd.(D) 12 But beyond this my son, [about going further than the words given by one Shepherd], be warned: the writing of many books is endless [so do not believe everything you read], and excessive study and devotion to books is wearying to the body.
13 When all has been heard, the end of the matter is: fear God [worship Him with awe-filled reverence, knowing that He is almighty God] and keep His commandments, for this applies to every person. 14 For God will bring every act to judgment, every hidden and secret thing, whether it is good or evil.(E)
The Young Shulammite Bride and Jerusalem’s Daughters
1 The [c]Song of Songs [the best of songs], which is Solomon’s.(F)
[d](The Shulammite Bride)
2
“May he kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!” [Solomon arrives, she turns to him, saying,]
“For your love is better than wine.
3
“The aroma of your oils is fragrant and pleasing;
Your name is perfume poured out;
Therefore the maidens love you.
4
“Draw me away with you and let us run together!
Let the king bring me into his chambers.”
[e](The Chorus)
“We will rejoice and be glad in you;
We will remember and extol your love more [sweet and fragrant] than wine.
Rightly do they love you.”
(The Shulammite Bride)
5
“I am deeply tanned but lovely,
O daughters of Jerusalem,
[I am dark] like the tents of [the Bedouins of] Kedar,
Like the [beautiful] curtains of Solomon.
6
“Do not gaze at me because I am deeply tanned,
[I have worked in] the sun; it has left its mark on me.
My mother’s sons were angry with me;
They made me keeper of the vineyards,
But my own vineyard (my complexion) I have not kept.”
7
“Tell me, O you whom my soul loves,
Where do you pasture your flock,
Where do you make it lie down at noon?
For why should I be like one who is veiled
Beside the flocks of your companions?”(G)
Solomon, the Lover, Speaks
(The Bridegroom)
8
“If you do not know [where your lover is],
O you fairest among women,
Run along, follow the tracks of the flock,
And pasture your young goats
By the tents of the shepherds.
9
“To me, my love, you are like
My [favorite] mare among the chariots of Pharaoh.
10
“Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments,
Your neck with strings of jewels.”
(The Chorus)
11
“We will make for you chains and ornaments of gold,
[Studded] with beads of silver.”
(The Shulammite Bride)
12
“While the king was at his table,
My perfume (Solomon) sent forth [his] fragrance [surrounding me].
13
“My beloved is to me like a pouch of myrrh
Which lies all night between my breasts.
14
“My beloved is to me a cluster of henna flowers
In the [fragrant] vineyards of [f]Engedi.”
(The Bridegroom)
15
“Behold, how beautiful you are, my darling,
Behold, how beautiful you are!
Your eyes are dove’s eyes.”
(The Shulammite Bride)
16
“Behold, how fair and handsome you are, my beloved;
And so delightful!
Our arbor is green and luxuriant.
17
“The beams of our houses are cedars,
Our rafters and panels are cypresses.
The Bride’s Admiration
2 “I am the rose [of the plain] of Sharon,
The lily of the valleys [that grows in deep places].”
(The Bridegroom)
2
“Like the lily among the thorns,
So are you, my darling, among the maidens.”
(The Shulammite Bride)
3
“Like an apple tree [rare and welcome] among the trees of the forest,
So is my beloved among the young men!
In his shade I took great delight and sat down,
And his fruit was sweet and delicious to my palate.
4
“He has brought me to his banqueting place,
And his banner over me is love [waving overhead to protect and comfort me].
5
“Sustain me with raisin cakes,
Refresh me with apples,
Because I am sick with love.
6
“Let his left hand be under my head
And his right hand embrace me.”(H)
(The Bridegroom)
7
“I command that you take an oath, O daughters of Jerusalem,
By the gazelles or by the does of the field [which run free],
That you do not rouse nor awaken my love
Until she pleases.”
(The Shulammite Bride)
8
“Listen! My beloved!
Behold, he comes,
Climbing on the mountains,
Leaping and running on the hills!(I)
9
“My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag.
Behold, he is standing behind our wall,
He is looking through the windows,
He is gazing through the lattice.
10
“My beloved speaks and says to me,
‘Arise, my love, my fair one,
And come away.
11
‘For behold, the winter is past,
The rain is over and gone.
12
‘The flowers appear on the earth once again;
The time for singing has come,
And the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.
13
‘The fig tree has budded and ripens her figs,
And the vines are in blossom and give forth their fragrance.
Arise, my love, my fair one,
And come away [to climb the rocky steps of the hillside].’”
(The Bridegroom)
14
“O my dove, [here] in the clefts in the rock,
In the sheltered and secret place of the steep pathway,
Let me see your face,
Let me hear your voice;
For your voice is sweet,
And your face is lovely.”
(The Chorus)
15
“Catch the foxes for us,
The little foxes that spoil and ruin the vineyards [of love],
While our vineyards are in blossom.”
(The Shulammite Bride)
16
“My beloved is mine and I am his;
He pastures his flock among the lilies.(J)
17
“Until the cool of the day when the shadows flee away,
Return quickly, my beloved, and be like a gazelle
Or a young stag on the mountains of Bether [which separate us].”
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 12:5 This is an actual bush that grows in the region of the Mediterranean Sea. It is used in various condiments. In this verse some think it refers to loss of taste in old age, others to sexual desire (taking the fruit as an aphrodisiac), but which is not clear.
- Ecclesiastes 12:11 This verse establishes the divine inspiration of Ecclesiastes.
- Song of Solomon 1:1 Some theologians believe the Song of Solomon to be a collection of songs, but it is more generally understood to be a sort of drama or lyric poem celebrating the wholesomeness of a growing love that leads to maturity in marriage. The ancient rabbis understood it as an allegory of the relationship between God and Israel, and viewed the details as symbolic.
- Song of Solomon 1:2 The parenthetical headings indicate that the speakers are not from the Hebrew text nor the Septuagint, but reflect an ancient tradition which appears in some manuscripts.
- Song of Solomon 1:5 The purpose of the chorus is to echo and expand the sentiments of the bride and her bridegroom. The members of the chorus are not always known, but have been variously identified as “daughters of Jerusalem,” “daughters of Zion,” “ladies in waiting,” “friends” or “relatives” of the bride.
- Song of Solomon 1:14 An oasis on the western side of the Dead Sea.
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
Bible Gateway Recommends
