Song of Solomon 3
Holman Christian Standard Bible
3 In my bed at night[a]
I sought the one I love;(A)
I sought him, but did not find him.[b](B)
2 I will arise now and go about the city,
through the streets and the plazas.(C)
I will seek the one I love.
I sought him, but did not find him.
3 The guards who go about the city found me.(D)
I asked them, “Have you seen the one I love?”
4 I had just passed them
when I found the one I love.
I held on to him and would not let him go
until I brought him to my mother’s house(E)—
to the chamber of the one who conceived me.
5 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.[c](F)
6 N What is this(G) coming up from the wilderness
like columns of smoke,
scented with myrrh and frankincense(H)
from every fragrant powder of the merchant?
7 It is Solomon’s royal litter[d]
surrounded by 60 warriors
from the mighty of Israel.
8 All of them are skilled with swords
and trained in warfare.
Each has his sword at his side(I)
to guard against the terror of the night.(J)
9 King Solomon made a sedan chair[e] for himself
with wood from Lebanon.
10 He made its posts of silver,
its back[f] of gold,
and its seat of purple.
Its interior is inlaid with love[g]
by the young women of Jerusalem.(K)
11 Come out, young women of Zion,(L)
and gaze at King Solomon,
wearing the crown his mother placed on him
the day of his wedding(M)—
the day of his heart’s rejoicing.
Footnotes
- Song of Solomon 3:1 Or bed night after night
- Song of Solomon 3:1 LXX adds I called him, but he did not answer me
- Song of Solomon 3:5 Lit until it pleases
- Song of Solomon 3:7 A conveyance carried on the shoulders of servants
- Song of Solomon 3:9 In Hb, the term sedan chair is possibly a synonym for “litter”; it is also called a palanquin.
- Song of Solomon 3:10 Or base, or canopy
- Song of Solomon 3:10 Or leather
Song of Solomon 3
Common English Bible
The search
[Woman]
3 Upon my bed, night after night,
I looked for the one whom I love with all my heart.
I looked for him but couldn’t find him.[a]
2 “I will rise now and go all around the city,
through the streets and the squares.
I will look for the one whom I love with all my heart.”
I looked for him but couldn’t find him.
3 The guards found me,
those who make their rounds in the city.
“The one whom I love with all my heart—
have you seen him?”
4 No sooner did I depart from them
than I found the one whom I love with all my heart.
I held on to him and now I won’t let him go,
until I’ve brought him to my mother’s house,
to the chamber of the one who conceived me.
5 I place you under oath, daughters of Jerusalem,
by the gazelles or the wild deer:
don’t rouse, don’t arouse love
until it desires.
Visions of grandeur
6 Who is this, coming up from the wilderness,
like pillars of smoke?
She is perfumed with myrrh and frankincense,
selected from all the spice merchant’s powders.
7 Picture Solomon’s bed—
sixty heroic men round about it,
all from the heroes of Israel,
8 all of them skilled with the sword,
expert in warfare,
each with his sword ready at his thigh
against terrors that come by night.
9 King Solomon made a canopied couch for himself
from the trees of Lebanon.
10 Its pillars he made of silver,
its covering, cloth of gold,
its cushions, royal purple;
its interior inlaid with love.
Daughters of Jerusalem, 11 go forth!
Look, daughters of Zion—
on King Solomon wearing the crown
with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding,
on the day of his heart’s joy.
Footnotes
- Song of Solomon 3:1 LXX adds I called him, but he didn't answer me; cf 5:6.
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible