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Young Women of Jerusalem

Where has your lover gone,
    O woman of rare beauty?
Which way did he turn
    so we can help you find him?

Young Woman

My lover has gone down to his garden,
    to his spice beds,
to browse in the gardens
    and gather the lilies.
I am my lover’s, and my lover is mine.
    He browses among the lilies.

Young Man

You are beautiful, my darling,
    like the lovely city of Tirzah.
Yes, as beautiful as Jerusalem,
    as majestic as an army with billowing banners.
Turn your eyes away,
    for they overpower me.
Your hair falls in waves,
    like a flock of goats winding down the slopes of Gilead.
Your teeth are as white as sheep
    that are freshly washed.
Your smile is flawless,
    each tooth matched with its twin.[a]
Your cheeks are like rosy pomegranates
    behind your veil.

Even among sixty queens
    and eighty concubines
    and countless young women,
I would still choose my dove, my perfect one—
    the favorite of her mother,
    dearly loved by the one who bore her.
The young women see her and praise her;
    even queens and royal concubines sing her praises:
10 “Who is this, arising like the dawn,
    as fair as the moon,
as bright as the sun,
    as majestic as an army with billowing banners?”

Young Woman

11 I went down to the grove of walnut trees
    and out to the valley to see the new spring growth,
to see whether the grapevines had budded
    or the pomegranates were in bloom.
12 Before I realized it,
    my strong desires had taken me to the chariot of a noble man.[b]

Young Women of Jerusalem

13 [c]Return, return to us, O maid of Shulam.
    Come back, come back, that we may see you again.

Young Man

Why do you stare at this young woman of Shulam,
    as she moves so gracefully between two lines of dancers?[d]

Footnotes

  1. 6:6 Hebrew Not one is missing; each has a twin.
  2. 6:12 Or to the royal chariots of my people, or to the chariots of Amminadab. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  3. 6:13a Verse 6:13 is numbered 7:1 in Hebrew text.
  4. 6:13b Or as you would at the movements of two armies? or as you would at the dance of Mahanaim? The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.

[Daughters of Jerusalem]

Which way did your lover go,
        you who are the most beautiful of women?
Which way did your lover turn,
        that we may look for him along with you?

[Woman]

My lover has gone down to his garden,
        to the fragrant plantings,
        to graze in the gardens,
        to gather the lilies.
I belong to my lover and my lover belongs to me—
        the one grazing among the lilies.

An overwhelming sight

[Man]

You are as beautiful, my dearest, as Tirzah,
        as lovely as Jerusalem,
        formidable as those lofty sights.
Turn your eyes away from me,
        for they overwhelm me!

Your hair is like a flock of goats
        as they stream down from Gilead.
Your teeth are like a flock of ewes
        as they come up from the washing pool—
            all of them perfectly matched,
            not one of them lacks its twin.
Like a slice of pomegranate is the curve of your face
        behind the veil of your hair.
There may be sixty queens
        and eighty secondary wives,
        young women beyond counting,
    but my dove, my perfect one, is one of a kind.
To her mother she’s the only one,
        radiant to the one who bore her.
Young women see her and declare her fortunate;
        queens and secondary wives praise her.

10 Who is this, gazing down like the morning star,
        beautiful as the full moon,
        radiant as the sun,
        formidable as those lofty sights?

Transported

[Man]

11 To the nut grove I went down
        to look upon the fresh growth in the valley,
        to see whether the vine was in flower,
        whether the pomegranates had bloomed.
12 I hardly knew myself;
        she had set me in an official’s chariot![a]

Graceful dancer

[Man]

13 [b] Come back, come back, Shulammite![c]
        Come back, come back, so we may admire you.
How you all admire the Shulammite
        as she whirls between two circles of dancers!

Footnotes

  1. Song of Solomon 6:12 Or I hardly knew what happened; my passion set me in an official's chariot! LXX, Vulg Aminadab's chariots; Heb uncertain
  2. Song of Solomon 6:13 7:1 in Heb
  3. Song of Solomon 6:13 A name or title for the woman

Friends

Where has your beloved(A) gone,
    most beautiful of women?(B)
Which way did your beloved turn,
    that we may look for him with you?

She

My beloved has gone(C) down to his garden,(D)
    to the beds of spices,(E)
to browse in the gardens
    and to gather lilies.
I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine;(F)
    he browses among the lilies.(G)

He

You are as beautiful as Tirzah,(H) my darling,
    as lovely as Jerusalem,(I)
    as majestic as troops with banners.(J)
Turn your eyes from me;
    they overwhelm me.
Your hair is like a flock of goats
    descending from Gilead.(K)
Your teeth are like a flock of sheep
    coming up from the washing.
Each has its twin,
    not one of them is missing.(L)
Your temples behind your veil(M)
    are like the halves of a pomegranate.(N)
Sixty queens(O) there may be,
    and eighty concubines,(P)
    and virgins beyond number;
but my dove,(Q) my perfect one,(R) is unique,
    the only daughter of her mother,
    the favorite of the one who bore her.(S)
The young women saw her and called her blessed;
    the queens and concubines praised her.

Friends

10 Who is this that appears like the dawn,
    fair as the moon, bright as the sun,
    majestic as the stars in procession?

He

11 I went down to the grove of nut trees
    to look at the new growth in the valley,
to see if the vines had budded
    or the pomegranates were in bloom.(T)
12 Before I realized it,
    my desire set me among the royal chariots of my people.[a]

Friends

13 Come back, come back, O Shulammite;
    come back, come back, that we may gaze on you!

He

Why would you gaze on the Shulammite
    as on the dance(U) of Mahanaim?[b]

Footnotes

  1. Song of Songs 6:12 Or among the chariots of Amminadab; or among the chariots of the people of the prince
  2. Song of Songs 6:13 In Hebrew texts this verse (6:13) is numbered 7:1.

I Am My Beloved’s

The Daughters of Jerusalem

Where has your beloved gone,
(A)O fairest among women?
Where has your beloved turned aside,
That we may seek him with you?

The Shulamite

My beloved has gone to his (B)garden,
To the beds of spices,
To feed his flock in the gardens,
And to gather lilies.
(C)I am my beloved’s,
And my beloved is mine.
He feeds his flock among the lilies.

Praise of the Shulamite’s Beauty

The Beloved

O my love, you are as beautiful as Tirzah,
Lovely as Jerusalem,
Awesome as an army with banners!
Turn your eyes away from me,
For they have [a]overcome me.
Your hair is (D)like a flock of goats
Going down from Gilead.
(E)Your teeth are like a flock of sheep
Which have come up from the washing;
Every one bears twins,
And none is [b]barren among them.
(F)Like a piece of pomegranate
Are your temples behind your veil.

There are sixty queens
And eighty concubines,
And (G)virgins without number.
My dove, my (H)perfect one,
Is the only one,
The only one of her mother,
The favorite of the one who bore her.
The daughters saw her
And called her blessed,
The queens and the concubines,
And they praised her.

10 Who is she who looks forth as the morning,
Fair as the moon,
Clear as the sun,
(I)Awesome as an army with banners?

The Shulamite

11 I went down to the garden of nuts
To see the verdure of the valley,
(J)To see whether the vine had budded
And the pomegranates had bloomed.
12 Before I was even aware,
My soul had made me
As the chariots of [c]my noble people.

The Beloved and His Friends

13 Return, return, O Shulamite;
Return, return, that we may look upon you!

The Shulamite

What would you see in the Shulamite—
As it were, the dance of [d]the two camps?

Footnotes

  1. Song of Solomon 6:5 overwhelmed
  2. Song of Solomon 6:6 bereaved
  3. Song of Solomon 6:12 Heb. Ammi Nadib
  4. Song of Solomon 6:13 Heb. Mahanaim