⁸ Listen! My beloved!
    Look! Here he comes,
leaping across the mountains,
    bounding over the hills.^(A)
9 My beloved is like a gazelle^(B) or a young stag.^(C)
    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;^(D)
    the blossoming^(E) vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling;
    my beautiful one, come with me.”

3 All night long on my bed
    I looked^(Q) 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.^(R)
    “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,^(S)
    to the room of the one who conceived me.^(T)
5 Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you^(U)
    by the gazelles and by the does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
    until it so desires.^(V)

⁶ Who is this coming up from the wilderness^(W)
    like a column of smoke,
perfumed with myrrh^(X) and incense
    made from all the spices^(Y) of the merchant?
⁷ Look! It is Solomon’s carriage,
    escorted by sixty warriors,^(Z)
    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.^(AA)
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.^(AB)
Look^[b] 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.^(AC)

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;^(C)
    his love endures forever.^(D)

² Who can proclaim the mighty acts^(E) of the Lord
    or fully declare his praise?
³ Blessed are those who act justly,^(F)
    who always do what is right.^(G)

⁴ Remember me,^(H) Lord, when you show favor^(I) to your people,
    come to my aid^(J) when you save them,
⁵ that I may enjoy the prosperity^(K) of your chosen ones,^(L)
    that I may share in the joy^(M) of your nation
    and join your inheritance^(N) in giving praise.

⁶ We have sinned,^(O) even as our ancestors^(P) did;
    we have done wrong and acted wickedly.^(Q)
7 When our ancestors were in Egypt,
    they gave no thought^(R) to your miracles;
they did not remember^(S) your many kindnesses,
    and they rebelled by the sea,^(T) the Red Sea.^[b]
8 Yet he saved them^(U) for his name’s sake,^(V)
    to make his mighty power^(W) known.
⁹ He rebuked^(X) the Red Sea, and it dried up;^(Y)
    he led them through^(Z) the depths as through a desert.
¹⁰ He saved them^(AA) from the hand of the foe;^(AB)
    from the hand of the enemy he redeemed them.^(AC)
11 The waters covered^(AD) their adversaries;
    not one of them survived.
¹² Then they believed his promises
    and sang his praise.^(AE)

¹³ But they soon forgot^(AF) what he had done
    and did not wait for his plan to unfold.^(AG)
14 In the desert^(AH) they gave in to their craving;
    in the wilderness^(AI) they put God to the test.^(AJ)
15 So he gave them^(AK) what they asked for,
    but sent a wasting disease^(AL) among them.

¹⁶ In the camp they grew envious^(AM) of Moses
    and of Aaron, who was consecrated to the Lord.
¹⁷ The earth opened^(AN) up and swallowed Dathan;^(AO)
    it buried the company of Abiram.^(AP)
18 Fire blazed^(AQ) among their followers;
    a flame consumed the wicked.
¹⁹ At Horeb they made a calf^(AR)
    and worshiped an idol cast from metal.
²⁰ They exchanged their glorious God^(AS)
    for an image of a bull, which eats grass.
²¹ They forgot the God^(AT) who saved them,
    who had done great things^(AU) in Egypt,
²² miracles in the land of Ham^(AV)
    and awesome deeds^(AW) by the Red Sea.
²³ So he said he would destroy^(AX) them—
    had not Moses, his chosen one,
stood in the breach^(AY) before him
    to keep his wrath from destroying them.

²⁴ Then they despised^(AZ) the pleasant land;^(BA)
    they did not believe^(BB) his promise.
²⁵ They grumbled^(BC) in their tents
    and did not obey the Lord.
²⁶ So he swore^(BD) to them with uplifted hand
    that he would make them fall in the wilderness,^(BE)
27 make their descendants fall among the nations
    and scatter^(BF) them throughout the lands.

²⁸ They yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor^(BG)
    and ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods;
²⁹ they aroused the Lord’s anger^(BH) by their wicked deeds,^(BI)
    and a plague^(BJ) broke out among them.
³⁰ But Phinehas^(BK) stood up and intervened,
    and the plague was checked.^(BL)
31 This was credited to him^(BM) as righteousness
    for endless generations^(BN) to come.
³² By the waters of Meribah^(BO) they angered the Lord,
    and trouble came to Moses because of them;
³³ for they rebelled^(BP) against the Spirit^(BQ) of God,
    and rash words came from Moses’ lips.^[c](BR)

³⁴ They did not destroy^(BS) the peoples
    as the Lord had commanded^(BT) them,
³⁵ but they mingled^(BU) with the nations
    and adopted their customs.
³⁶ They worshiped their idols,^(BV)
    which became a snare^(BW) to them.
³⁷ They sacrificed their sons^(BX)
    and their daughters to false gods.^(BY)
38 They shed innocent blood,
    the blood of their sons^(BZ) and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan,
    and the land was desecrated by their blood.
³⁹ They defiled themselves^(CA) by what they did;
    by their deeds they prostituted^(CB) themselves.

⁴⁰ Therefore the Lord was angry^(CC) with his people
    and abhorred his inheritance.^(CD)
41 He gave them into the hands^(CE) of the nations,
    and their foes ruled over them.
⁴² Their enemies oppressed^(CF) them
    and subjected them to their power.
⁴³ Many times he delivered them,^(CG)
    but they were bent on rebellion^(CH)
    and they wasted away in their sin.
⁴⁴ Yet he took note of their distress
    when he heard their cry;^(CI)
45 for their sake he remembered his covenant^(CJ)
    and out of his great love^(CK) he relented.^(CL)
46 He caused all who held them captive
    to show them mercy.^(CM)

⁴⁷ Save us,^(CN) Lord our God,
    and gather us^(CO) from the nations,
that we may give thanks^(CP) to your holy name^(CQ)
    and glory in your praise.

⁴⁸ Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
    from everlasting to everlasting.

Let all the people say, “Amen!”^(CR)

Praise the Lord.