Song of Solomon 8
World English Bible
8 Oh that you were like my brother,
who nursed from the breasts of my mother!
If I found you outside, I would kiss you;
yes, and no one would despise me.
2 I would lead you, bringing you into the house of my mother,
who would instruct me.
I would have you drink spiced wine,
of the juice of my pomegranate.
3 His left hand would be under my head.
His right hand would embrace me.
4 I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem,
that you not stir up, nor awaken love,
until it so desires.
Friends
5 Who is this who comes up from the wilderness,
leaning on her beloved?
Beloved
Under the apple tree I awakened you.
There your mother conceived you.
There she was in labor and bore you.
6 Set me as a seal on your heart,
as a seal on your arm;
for love is strong as death.
Jealousy is as cruel as Sheol.[a]
Its flashes are flashes of fire,
a very flame of Yahweh.[b]
7 Many waters can’t quench love,
neither can floods drown it.
If a man would give all the wealth of his house for love,
he would be utterly scorned.
Brothers
8 We have a little sister.
She has no breasts.
What shall we do for our sister
in the day when she is to be spoken for?
9 If she is a wall,
we will build on her a turret of silver.
If she is a door,
we will enclose her with boards of cedar.
Beloved
10 I am a wall, and my breasts like towers,
then I was in his eyes like one who found peace.
11 Solomon had a vineyard at Baal Hamon.
He leased out the vineyard to keepers.
Each was to bring a thousand shekels[c] of silver for its fruit.
12 My own vineyard is before me.
The thousand are for you, Solomon,
two hundred for those who tend its fruit.
Lover
13 You who dwell in the gardens, with friends in attendance,
let me hear your voice!
Beloved
14 Come away, my beloved!
Be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices!
Song of Solomon 8
International Standard Version
8 If only you were like a brother to me,
like[a] one who nursed at my mother’s breasts.
If I found you outside I would kiss you,
and no one would view me with contempt.[b]
2 I would lead you,
I would bring you
to the house of my mother
who used to teach me.
I would give you some spiced wine to drink,
from the juice of my pomegranates.[c]
3 Let his left hand be under my head,
and let his right hand embrace me.
4 Swear to me, young women of Jerusalem,
that you won’t awaken or arouse love
before its proper time![d]
The Young Women
5 Who is this coming up from the desert,
leaning on her beloved?
The Loved One
Under the apple tree[e] I awakened you.
There your mother had gone into labor with you;
there she went into labor and gave birth to you.
6 Set me like a seal[f] over your heart,
like a seal on your arm.
For love is as strong as death,
passion[g] as intense as Sheol.[h]
The flames of love[i] are flames of fire,
a blaze that comes from the Lord.[j]
7 Mighty bodies of water cannot extinguish love,
rivers cannot put it out.
If a man were to give all the wealth of his house for love,
he would surely be viewed with contempt.
The Loved One’s Brothers
8 We[k] have a little sister,
and she has not yet reached maturity.[l]
What will we do for our sister
to prepare her for[m] her engagement?[n]
9 If she’s a wall,
on her we will build a battlement of silver.
If she’s a door,
we will enclose her with planks of cedar.
The Loved One
10 I was a wall and my breasts were like towers.
Then I became like one who finds peace[o] in his eyes.
11 Solomon has a vineyard in Baal-hamon.
He entrusted the vineyard to caretakers—
each one is to bring 1,000 pieces of silver
in exchange for its fruit.
12 My vineyard belongs to me and is at my disposal.[p]
The 1,000 are for you, Solomon,
and 200 are for those who take care of its fruit.
The Lover
13 You who sit in the gardens,
companions are listening for your voice,
but let me hear it.
The Loved One
14 Come quickly, my beloved, and be like a gazelle
or a young stag on the mountains of spices.
Footnotes
- Song of Solomon 8:1 The Heb. lacks like
- Song of Solomon 8:1 I.e. think badly of me
- Song of Solomon 8:2 Or some of my sweet pomegranate wine
- Song of Solomon 8:4 Lit. until it pleases
- Song of Solomon 8:5 Or apricot tree
- Song of Solomon 8:6 I.e. a cylinder seal or a signet ring used to indicate ownership or authority
- Song of Solomon 8:6 Or jealousy
- Song of Solomon 8:6 I.e. the realm of the dead
- Song of Solomon 8:6 Lit. its flames
- Song of Solomon 8:6 Or an intense blaze
- Song of Solomon 8:8 I.e. the bride’s brothers
- Song of Solomon 8:8 Lit. has no breasts
- Song of Solomon 8:8 Lit. sister on the day when she’s spoken for
- Song of Solomon 8:8 Or marriage
- Song of Solomon 8:10 Or contentment
- Song of Solomon 8:12 Lit. is before me
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