Font Size
Song of Solomon 1-3
GOD’S WORD Translation
Song of Solomon 1-3
GOD’S WORD Translation
1 The most beautiful song of Solomon.
The Young Woman Arrives in Solomon’s Palace
[ BRIDE ]
2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth.
Your expressions of love are better than wine,
3 better than the fragrance of cologne.
(Cologne should be named after you.)
No wonder the young women love you!
4 Take me with you. Let’s run away.
The king has brought me into his private rooms.
[ THE CHORUS OF YOUNG WOMEN ]
We will celebrate and rejoice with you.
We will praise your expressions of love more than wine.
How right it is that the young women love you!
[ BRIDE ]
5 Young women of Jerusalem, I am dark and lovely
like Kedar’s tents,
like Solomon’s curtains.
6 Stop staring at me because I am so dark.
The sun has tanned me.
My brothers were angry with me.
They made me the caretaker of the vineyards.
I have not even taken care of my own vineyard.
7 Please tell me, you whom I love, where do you graze your flock?
Where does your flock lie down at noon?
⌞Tell me,⌟ or I will be considered a prostitute
⌞wandering⌟ among the flocks of your companions.
[ THE CHORUS OF YOUNG WOMEN ]
8 If you do not know, most beautiful of women,
follow the tracks of the flocks,
and graze your young goats near the shepherds’ tents.
Solomon Searches for the Young Woman’s Love
[ GROOM ]
9 My true love, I compare you to a mare among Pharaoh’s stallions.
10 Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments,
your neck with strings of pearls.
[ THE CHORUS OF YOUNG WOMEN ]
11 We will make gold ornaments with silver beads for you.
[ BRIDE ]
12 While the king is at his table,
my perfume fills the air with its fragrance.
13 My beloved is a pouch of myrrh [a]
that lies at night between my breasts.
14 My beloved is a bouquet of henna flowers
in the vineyards of En Gedi.
[ GROOM ]
15 Look at you! You are beautiful, my true love!
Look at you! You are so beautiful!
Your eyes are like doves!
[ BRIDE ]
16 Look at you! You are handsome, my beloved, so pleasing to me!
The leaf-scattered ground will be our couch.
17 The cedars will be the walls of our house.
The cypress trees will be our rafters.
2 I am a rose of Sharon,
a lily ⌞growing⌟ in the valleys.
[ GROOM ]
2 Like a lily among thorns,
so is my true love among the young women.
[ BRIDE ]
3 Like an apple tree among the trees in the forest,
so is my beloved among the young men.
I want to sit in his shadow.
His fruit tastes sweet to me.
4 He leads me into a banquet room
and looks at me with love.
5 Strengthen me with raisins
and refresh me with apples
because I am weak from love.
6 His left hand is under my head.
His right hand caresses me.
7 Young women of Jerusalem, swear to me
by the gazelles
or by the does in the field
that you will not awaken love
or arouse love before its proper time.
The Young Woman Remembers One Spring Day with Her Beloved
[ BRIDE ]
8 I hear my beloved’s voice.
Look! Here he comes,
sprinting over the mountains,
racing over the hills.
9 My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag.
Look! There he stands behind our wall,
peeking through the window,
looking through the lattice.
10 My beloved said to me,
“Get up, my true love, my beautiful one, and come with me.
11 Look! The winter is past.
The rain is over and gone.
12 Blossoms appear in the land.
The time of the songbird has arrived.
The cooing of the mourning dove is heard in our land.
13 The green figs ripen.
The grapevines bloom and give off a fragrance.
Get up, my true love, my beautiful one, and come with me.
14 My dove, in the hiding places of the rocky crevices,
in the secret places of the cliffs,
let me see your figure and hear your voice.
Your voice is sweet, and your figure is lovely.”
15 Catch the foxes for us,
the little foxes that ruin vineyards.
Our vineyards are blooming.
16 My beloved is mine, and I am his.
He is the one who grazes his flock among the lilies.
17 When the day brings a cooling breeze and the shadows flee,
turn around, my beloved.
Run like a gazelle or a young stag
on the mountains that separate us!
The Young Woman Dreams about Searching for Her Beloved
[ BRIDE ]
3 Night after night on my bed
I looked for the one I love.
I looked for him but did not find him.
2 I will get up now and roam around the city,
in the streets, and in the squares.
I will look for the one I love.
I looked for him but did not find him.
3 The watchmen making their rounds in the city found me.
⌞I asked,⌟ “Have you seen the one I love?”
4 I had just left them when I found the one I love.
I held on to him and would not let him go
until I had brought him into my mother’s house,
into the bedroom of the one who conceived me.
5 Young women of Jerusalem, swear to me
by the gazelles
or by the does in the field,
that you will not awaken love
or arouse love before its proper time.
A Description of the Royal Procession
[ THE CHORUS OF YOUNG WOMEN ]
6 Who is this young woman coming up from the wilderness
like clouds of smoke?
She is perfumed with myrrh and incense
made from the merchants’ scented powders.
7 Look! Solomon’s sedan chair! [b]
Sixty soldiers from the army of Israel surround it.
8 All of them are skilled in using swords,
experienced in combat.
Each one has his sword at his side
and guards against the terrors of the night.
9 King Solomon had a carriage made for himself
from the wood of Lebanon.
10 He had its posts made out of silver,
its top out of gold,
its seat out of purple fabric.
Its inside—with inlaid scenes of love—
was made by the young women of Jerusalem.
11 Young women of Zion, come out and look at King Solomon!
Look at his crown,
the crown his mother placed on him on his wedding day,
his day of joyful delight.
Song of Songs 1-3
New International Version
Song of Songs 1-3
New International Version
1 Solomon’s Song of Songs.(A)
She[a]
2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—
for your love(B) is more delightful than wine.(C)
3 Pleasing is the fragrance of your perfumes;(D)
your name(E) is like perfume poured out.
No wonder the young women(F) love you!
4 Take me away with you—let us hurry!
Let the king bring me into his chambers.(G)
Friends
She
How right they are to adore you!
5 Dark am I, yet lovely,(J)
daughters of Jerusalem,(K)
dark like the tents of Kedar,(L)
like the tent curtains of Solomon.[c]
6 Do not stare at me because I am dark,
because I am darkened by the sun.
My mother’s sons were angry with me
and made me take care of the vineyards;(M)
my own vineyard I had to neglect.
7 Tell me, you whom I love,
where you graze your flock
and where you rest your sheep(N) at midday.
Why should I be like a veiled(O) woman
beside the flocks of your friends?
Friends
8 If you do not know, most beautiful of women,(P)
follow the tracks of the sheep
and graze your young goats
by the tents of the shepherds.
He
9 I liken you, my darling, to a mare
among Pharaoh’s chariot horses.(Q)
10 Your cheeks(R) are beautiful with earrings,
your neck with strings of jewels.(S)
11 We will make you earrings of gold,
studded with silver.
She
12 While the king was at his table,
my perfume spread its fragrance.(T)
13 My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh(U)
resting between my breasts.
14 My beloved(V) is to me a cluster of henna(W) blossoms
from the vineyards of En Gedi.(X)
He
She
16 How handsome you are, my beloved!(AA)
Oh, how charming!
And our bed is verdant.
He
17 The beams of our house are cedars;(AB)
our rafters are firs.
She[d]
He
2 Like a lily among thorns
is my darling among the young women.
She
3 Like an apple[f] tree among the trees of the forest
is my beloved(AF) among the young men.
I delight(AG) to sit in his shade,
and his fruit is sweet to my taste.(AH)
4 Let him lead me to the banquet hall,(AI)
and let his banner(AJ) over me be love.
5 Strengthen me with raisins,
refresh me with apples,(AK)
for I am faint with love.(AL)
6 His left arm is under my head,
and his right arm embraces me.(AM)
7 Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you(AN)
by the gazelles and by the does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
until it so desires.(AO)
8 Listen! My beloved!
Look! Here he comes,
leaping across the mountains,
bounding over the hills.(AP)
9 My beloved is like a gazelle(AQ) or a young stag.(AR)
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;(AS)
the blossoming(AT) vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling;
my beautiful one, come with me.”
He
14 My dove(AU) 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.(AV)
15 Catch for us the foxes,(AW)
the little foxes
that ruin the vineyards,(AX)
our vineyards that are in bloom.(AY)
She
16 My beloved is mine and I am his;(AZ)
he browses among the lilies.(BA)
17 Until the day breaks
and the shadows flee,(BB)
turn, my beloved,(BC)
and be like a gazelle
or like a young stag(BD)
on the rugged hills.[g](BE)
3 All night long on my bed
I looked(BF) for the one my heart loves;
I looked for him but did not find him.
2 I will get up now and go about the city,
through its streets and squares;
I will search for the one my heart loves.
So I looked for him but did not find him.
3 The watchmen found me
as they made their rounds in the city.(BG)
“Have you seen the one my heart loves?”
4 Scarcely had I passed them
when I found the one my heart loves.
I held him and would not let him go
till I had brought him to my mother’s house,(BH)
to the room of the one who conceived me.(BI)
5 Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you(BJ)
by the gazelles and by the does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
until it so desires.(BK)
6 Who is this coming up from the wilderness(BL)
like a column of smoke,
perfumed with myrrh(BM) and incense
made from all the spices(BN) of the merchant?
7 Look! It is Solomon’s carriage,
escorted by sixty warriors,(BO)
the noblest of Israel,
8 all of them wearing the sword,
all experienced in battle,
each with his sword at his side,
prepared for the terrors of the night.(BP)
9 King Solomon made for himself the carriage;
he made it of wood from Lebanon.
10 Its posts he made of silver,
its base of gold.
Its seat was upholstered with purple,
its interior inlaid with love.
Daughters of Jerusalem, 11 come out,
and look, you daughters of Zion.(BQ)
Look[h] on King Solomon wearing a crown,
the crown with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding,
the day his heart rejoiced.(BR)
Footnotes
- Song of Songs 1:2 The main male and female speakers (identified primarily on the basis of the gender of the relevant Hebrew forms) are indicated by the captions He and She respectively. The words of others are marked Friends. In some instances the divisions and their captions are debatable.
- Song of Songs 1:4 The Hebrew is masculine singular.
- Song of Songs 1:5 Or Salma
- Song of Songs 2:1 Or He
- Song of Songs 2:1 Probably a member of the crocus family
- Song of Songs 2:3 Or possibly apricot; here and elsewhere in Song of Songs
- Song of Songs 2:17 Or the hills of Bether
- Song of Songs 3:11 Or interior lovingly inlaid / by the daughters of Jerusalem. / 11 Come out, you daughters of Zion, / and look
Song of Solomon 1-3
King James Version
Song of Solomon 1-3
King James Version
1 The song of songs, which is Solomon's.
2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth: for thy love is better than wine.
3 Because of the savour of thy good ointments thy name is as ointment poured forth, therefore do the virgins love thee.
4 Draw me, we will run after thee: the king hath brought me into his chambers: we will be glad and rejoice in thee, we will remember thy love more than wine: the upright love thee.
5 I am black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon.
6 Look not upon me, because I am black, because the sun hath looked upon me: my mother's children were angry with me; they made me the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept.
7 Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions?
8 If thou know not, O thou fairest among women, go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock, and feed thy kids beside the shepherds' tents.
9 I have compared thee, O my love, to a company of horses in Pharaoh's chariots.
10 Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels, thy neck with chains of gold.
11 We will make thee borders of gold with studs of silver.
12 While the king sitteth at his table, my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof.
13 A bundle of myrrh is my well-beloved unto me; he shall lie all night betwixt my breasts.
14 My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphire in the vineyards of Engedi.
15 Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves' eyes.
16 Behold, thou art fair, my beloved, yea, pleasant: also our bed is green.
17 The beams of our house are cedar, and our rafters of fir.
2 I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys.
2 As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters.
3 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, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.
4 He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.
5 Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples: for I am sick of love.
6 His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me.
7 I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please.
8 The voice of my beloved! behold, he cometh leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills.
9 My beloved is like a roe or a young hart: behold, he standeth behind our wall, he looketh forth at the windows, shewing himself through the lattice.
10 My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away.
11 For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone;
12 The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land;
13 The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away.
14 O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely.
15 Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes.
16 My beloved is mine, and I am his: he feedeth among the lilies.
17 Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young hart upon the mountains of Bether.
3 By night on my bed I sought him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not.
2 I will rise now, and go about the city in the streets, and in the broad ways I will seek him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not.
3 The watchmen that go about the city found me: to whom I said, Saw ye him whom my soul loveth?
4 It was but a little that I passed from them, but I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother's house, and into the chamber of her that conceived me.
5 I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please.
6 Who is this that cometh out of the wilderness like pillars of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all powders of the merchant?
7 Behold his bed, which is Solomon's; threescore valiant men are about it, of the valiant of Israel.
8 They all hold swords, being expert in war: every man hath his sword upon his thigh because of fear in the night.
9 King Solomon made himself a chariot of the wood of Lebanon.
10 He made the pillars thereof of silver, the bottom thereof of gold, the covering of it of purple, the midst thereof being paved with love, for the daughters of Jerusalem.
11 Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion, and behold king Solomon with the crown wherewith his mother crowned him in the day of his espousals, and in the day of the gladness of his heart.
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God’s Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.