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Beloved

I am a rose of Sharon,
    a lily of the valleys.

Lover

As a lily among thorns,
    so is my love among the daughters.

Beloved

As the apple tree among the trees of the wood,
    so is my beloved among the sons.
I sat down under his shadow with great delight,
    his fruit was sweet to my taste.
He brought me to the banquet hall.
    His banner over me is love.
Strengthen me with raisins,
    refresh me with apples;
    for I am faint with love.
His left hand is under my head.
    His right hand embraces me.
I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem,
    by the roes, or by the hinds of the field,
    that you not stir up, nor awaken love,
    until it so desires.

The voice of my beloved!
    Behold, he comes,
    leaping on the mountains,
    skipping on the hills.
My beloved is like a roe or a young deer.
    Behold, he stands behind our wall!
He looks in at the windows.
    He glances through the lattice.

10 My beloved spoke, and said to me,
    “Rise up, my love, my beautiful one, and come away.
11 For behold, the winter is past.
    The rain is over and gone.
12 The flowers appear on the earth.
    The time of the singing has come,
    and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.
13 The fig tree ripens her green figs.
    The vines are in blossom.
    They give out their fragrance.
Arise, my love, my beautiful one,
    and come away.”

Lover

14 My dove in the clefts of the rock,
    in the hiding places of the mountainside,
    let me see your face.
    let me hear your voice;
    for your voice is sweet and your face is lovely.
15 Catch for us the foxes,
    the little foxes that plunder the vineyards;
    for our vineyards are in blossom.

Beloved

16 My beloved is mine, and I am his.
    He browses among the lilies.
17 Until the day is cool, and the shadows flee away,
    turn, my beloved,
    and be like a roe or a young deer on the mountains of Bether.

Dialogue between Maiden and Her Beloved

I am a rose[a] of Sharon,
    a lily of the valleys.
Like a lily among the thorns,[b]
    so is my love among the maidens.
As an apple tree among the trees of the forest,
    so is my beloved among the young men.
In his shade I sat down with delight,[c]
    and his fruit was sweet to my palate.

Banquet Hall of Love

He brought me to the house of the wine,
    and his intention was love toward me.
Sustain me with the raisins,
    refresh me with the apples,
for I am lovesick.[d]

Double Refrain: Embrace and Adjuration

His left hand is under my head,
    and his right hand embraces[e] me.
I adjure you, O maidens of Jerusalem,[f]
    by the gazelles or by the does of the field,
do not arouse or awaken love until it pleases![g]

Rendezvous in the Countryside

The voice of my beloved!
    Look! Here he[h] comes leaping upon the mountains,
        bounding over the hills!
My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag.[i]
    Look! He is[j] standing behind our wall,
gazing through[k] the window,
    looking through[l] the lattice.
10 My beloved answered and said to me,
    Arise,[m] my beloved! Come, my beauty![n]
11 For look! The winter is over;
    the rainy season[o] has turned and gone away.[p]
12 The blossoms appear[q] in the land;[r]
    the time of singing[s] has arrived;[t]
the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.
13 The fig tree puts forth her figs,
    and the vines are in blossom; they give fragrance.
Arise,[u] my beloved! Come, my beauty!”[v]
14 My dove, in the clefts of the rock,
    in the secluded place[w][x] in the mountain,[y][z]
Let me see your face,
    let me hear your voice;
for your voice is sweet and your face is lovely.
15 Catch for us the foxes,
    the little foxes destroying vineyards,
for[aa] our vineyards are in blossom!

Poetic Refrain(s)

16 My beloved belongs to me and I belong to him;[ab]
    he pastures his flock among the lilies.
17 Until the day breathes and the shadows flee,
    turn, my beloved!
        Be like[ac] a gazelle[ad] or young stag[ae] on the cleft mountains.[af]

Footnotes

  1. Song of Solomon 2:1 More likely “meadow saffron” or “crocus.” Hebrew scholars and botanists suggest the term refers to Ashodelos (lily family), Narcissus tazetta (narcissus or daffodil), or Colchicum autumnale (meadow saffron or crocus) (e.g., Isa 35:1). The location of this flower in Sharon suggests a common wild flower rather than a rose. The maiden compares herself to a simple, common flower of the field
  2. Song of Solomon 2:2 Or “brambles”
  3. Song of Solomon 2:3 Literally “I sat down and I delighted”
  4. Song of Solomon 2:5 Literally “for I myself am sick with love”
  5. Song of Solomon 2:6 Or “would embrace me”
  6. Song of Solomon 2:7 Literally “O daughters of Jerusalem”
  7. Song of Solomon 2:7 Or “Do not stir up or awaken the love until it is willing,” or “Do not disturb or interrupt our lovemaking until it is satisfied”
  8. Song of Solomon 2:8 Literally “this one”
  9. Song of Solomon 2:9 Literally “the fawn of the stag”
  10. Song of Solomon 2:9 Literally “This is he
  11. Song of Solomon 2:9 Literally “from”
  12. Song of Solomon 2:9 Literally “from”
  13. Song of Solomon 2:10 Literally “Arise, you”
  14. Song of Solomon 2:10 Literally “And come, you”
  15. Song of Solomon 2:11 Literally “the rain”
  16. Song of Solomon 2:11 Literally “is over; it is gone”
  17. Song of Solomon 2:12 Literally “is seen”
  18. Song of Solomon 2:12 Literally “on the earth”
  19. Song of Solomon 2:12 Most likely, a subtle word play occurs here since there are two different words in Hebrew spelled the same way: “pruning” and “singing.” The former plays upon the first line and the latter upon the third line
  20. Song of Solomon 2:12 Literally “the time of the song arrived”
  21. Song of Solomon 2:13 Literally “Arise, to you!”
  22. Song of Solomon 2:13 Literally “My beauty, come, you”
  23. Song of Solomon 2:14 Literally “in the secret place”
  24. Song of Solomon 2:14 Or “in the covering”
  25. Song of Solomon 2:14 Literally “foothold in the rock”
  26. Song of Solomon 2:14 Or “cliff”
  27. Song of Solomon 2:15 Or “while”
  28. Song of Solomon 2:16 Literally “My beloved for me and I for him”
  29. Song of Solomon 2:17 Literally “Be like for you”
  30. Song of Solomon 2:17 Or “a buck gazelle”
  31. Song of Solomon 2:17 Literally “the fawn of the stag”
  32. Song of Solomon 2:17 Or “the mountains of Bether”