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¶ Where has thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women? where didst thy beloved separate himself? that we may seek him with thee.

My beloved is gone down into his garden, to the beds of spices, to feed in the gardens, and to gather the lilies.

I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine; he feeds among the lilies.

¶ Thou art beautiful, O my love, as Tirzah, as desirable as Jerusalem, imposing as the standard-bearer of the army.

Turn away thine eyes from me, for they have overcome me; thy hair is as a flock of goats that appear from Gilead.

Thy teeth are as a flock of sheep which go up from the washing, of which every one bears twins, and there is not one barren among them.

As slices of pomegranate are thy temples within thy locks.

There are sixty queens, and eighty concubines, and virgins without number.

My dove is but one, my perfect one; she is the only one of her mother, she is the choice one of her that brought her into the light. The virgins saw her and called her blessed; yea, the queens and the concubines and they praised her.

10 Who is she that shows herself forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and imposing as the standard-bearer of the army?

11 ¶ I went down into the garden of nuts to see the fruits of the valley, and to see whether the vines flourished, and the pomegranates budded.

12 Or ever I was aware, my soul made me return like the chariots of Amminadib.

13 Return, return, O Shulamite; return, return, that we may look upon thee. What will ye see in the Shulamite? She shall be as a multitude of tabernacles.

Where has your beloved gone,
    O most beautiful among women?
Where has your beloved turned
    that we may seek him with you?
My beloved has gone down to his garden,
    to the garden bed of the spice,
        to pasture his flock and to gather lilies in the garden.

Mutual Possession Refrain

I belong to my beloved and he belongs to me;[a]
    he pastures his flock among the lilies.

Solomon’s Praise of His Beloved

You are beautiful, my beloved, as Tirzah,
    lovely as Jerusalem,
        overwhelming as an army with banners.[b]
Turn away your eyes from before me,
    for they overwhelm me.
Your hair is like a flock of the goats
    that moves down from Gilead.
Your teeth are like a flock of the ewes
    that have come up from the washing,
all of them bearing twins,
    and there is none bereaved among them.
Your cheeks behind[c] your veil
    are like halves of a pomegranate.

The Maiden’s Beauty Is without Peer

Sixty queens there are, eighty concubines,
    and maidens beyond number.
My dove, she is the one;[d][e]
    my perfect, she is the only one;[f][g]
        she is the favorite of[h][i] her mother who bore her.
Maidens see her and consider her fortunate;[j]
    queens and concubines praise her:
10 “Who is this that looks down like the dawn,
beautiful as the moon,
    bright as the sun,[k][l]
        overwhelming as an army with banners?”[m]

The Journey to the Valley

11 I went down to the orchard of the walnut trees
    to look at the blossoms of the valley,
to see whether the vines have sprouted,
    whether the pomegranates have blossomed.
12 I did not know my heart[n] set me
    in a chariot of my princely people.[o]
13 [p] Turn, turn,[q] O Shulammite![r]
    Turn, turn[s] so that we may look upon you!
Why do you look upon the Shulammite
    as at a dance of the two armies?

Footnotes

  1. Song of Solomon 6:3 Literally “I for my beloved and he for me”
  2. Song of Solomon 6:4 Literally “terrible as the bannered ones”
  3. Song of Solomon 6:7 Literally “from behind”
  4. Song of Solomon 6:9 Literally “she is one”
  5. Song of Solomon 6:9 The term “one” functions here as an adjective of quality: “unique, singular, the only one”
  6. Song of Solomon 6:9 Literally “she is one”
  7. Song of Solomon 6:9 Or “the only daughter of her mother.” Although the latter option is permissible, the term is used elsewhere of the heir as the favored child (e.g., Gen 22:2; Prov 4:3). This nuance is supported by the parallel term “favorite”
  8. Song of Solomon 6:9 Or “she is the pure one.” Since there are two Hebrew terms spelled the same way, some relate this to the adjective that means “pure.” Others relate it to the verb that means “to choose, select.” The parallelism favors the latter
  9. Song of Solomon 6:9 Literally “the favorite for”
  10. Song of Solomon 6:9 Or “call her happy” or “call her blessed” or “bless her”
  11. Song of Solomon 6:10 Literally “pure as the glow”
  12. Song of Solomon 6:10 Or “bright as the heat of the sun.” The Hebrew term “glow” poetically refers to the bright rays of the sun (Psa 19:7; Isa 24:23; 30:26)
  13. Song of Solomon 6:10 Literally “terrible as the bannered ones”
  14. Song of Solomon 6:12 Literally “soul”
  15. Song of Solomon 6:12 Or “Before I was aware, my soul made me like the chariots of Amminadib” (KJV, ASV) or “Before I knew it, my desire set me mid the chariots of Ammi-nadib” (JPS) or “Before I was aware, my soul set me over the chariots of my noble people” (NASB) or “Before I realized it, my desire set me among the royal chariots of my people” (NIV) or “… among the chariots of Amminadab” (NIV margin) or “… among the chariots of the people of the prince” (NIV margin)
  16. Song of Solomon 6:13 Song of Songs 6:13–7:13 in the English Bible is 7:1–14 in the Hebrew Bible
  17. Song of Solomon 6:13 Or “Return, return …!”
  18. Song of Solomon 6:13 Or “O perfect one,” “O peaceful one,” “O bride.” Many interpreters take this moniker as suggesting the maiden was from the village of Shulem (alternately called Shunem)
  19. Song of Solomon 6:13 Or “Return, return …!”

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

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.