Song of Solomon 6-8
Contemporary English Version
Their Friends Speak:
6 Most beautiful of women,
tell us where he has gone.
Let us help you find him.
She Speaks:
2 My darling has gone down
to his garden of spices,
where he will feed his sheep
and gather lilies.
3 I am his, and he is mine,
as he feeds his sheep
among the lilies.
He Speaks:
4 My dearest, the cities of Tirzah
and Jerusalem
are not as lovely as you.
Your charms are more powerful
than all of the stars
in the heavens.[a]
5 Turn away your eyes—
they make me melt.
Your hair tosses about
as gracefully as goats
coming down from Gilead.
6 Your teeth are whiter
than sheep freshly washed;
they match perfectly,
not one is missing.
7 Behind your veil are hidden
beautiful rosy cheeks.[b]
8 What if I could have
sixty queens, eighty wives,
and thousands of others!
9 You would be my only choice,
my flawless dove,
the favorite child
of your mother.
The young women, the queens,
and all the others
tell how excited you are
as they sing your praises:
10 “You are as majestic
as the morning sky—
glorious as the moon—
blinding as the sun!
Your charms are more powerful
than all the stars above.”[c]
She Speaks:
11 I went down to see if blossoms
were on the walnut trees,
grapevines, and fruit trees.
12 But in my imagination
I was suddenly riding
on a glorious chariot.[d]
Their Friends Speak:
13 Dance! Dance!
Beautiful woman from Shulam,
let us see you dance!
She Speaks:
Why do you want to see
this woman from Shulam
dancing with the others?[e]
The Wedding Dance
He Speaks:
7 You are a princess,
and your feet are graceful
in their sandals.
Your thighs are works of art,
each one a jewel;
2 your navel is a wine glass
filled to overflowing.
Your body is full and slender
like a bundle of wheat
bound together by lilies.
3 Your breasts are like twins
of a deer.
4 Your neck is like ivory,
and your eyes sparkle
like the pools of Heshbon
by the gate of Bath-Rabbim.
Your nose is beautiful
like Mount Lebanon
above the city of Damascus.
5 Your head is held high
like Mount Carmel;
your hair is so lovely
it holds a king prisoner.[f]
6 You are very beautiful,
so desirable!
7 You are tall and slender
like a palm tree,
and your breasts are full.
8 I will climb that tree
and cling to its branches.
I will discover that your breasts
are clusters of grapes,
and that your breath
is the aroma of apples.
9 Kissing you is more delicious
than drinking the finest wine.
How wonderful and tasty![g]
She Speaks:
10 My darling, I am yours,
and you desire me.
11 Let's stroll through the fields
and sleep in the villages.
12 At dawn let's slip out and see
if grapevines and fruit trees
are covered with blossoms.
When we are there,
I will give you my love.
13 Perfume from the magic flower[h]
fills the air, my darling.
Right at our doorstep
I have stored up for you
all kinds of tasty fruits.
If Only You and I …
She Speaks:
8 If you were my brother,
I could kiss you
whenever we happen to meet,
and no one would say
I did wrong.
2 I could take you to the home
of my mother,
who taught me all I know.[i]
I would give you delicious wine
and fruit juice as well.
3 Put your left hand under my head
and embrace me
with your right arm.
4 Young women of Jerusalem,
promise me never to awaken love
before it is ready.
Their Friends Speak:
5 Who is this young woman
coming in from the desert
and leaning on the shoulder
of the one she loves?
She Speaks:
I stirred up your passions
under the apple tree
where you were born.
6 Always keep me in your heart
and wear this bracelet
to remember me by.
The passion of love
bursting into flame
is more powerful than death,
stronger than the grave.
7 Love cannot be drowned
by oceans or floods.
It cannot be bought—
any offer would be scorned
no matter how great.
Their Friends Speak:
8 We have a little sister
whose breasts
are not yet formed.
If someone asks to marry her,
what should we do?
9 She isn't a wall
that we can defend
behind a silver shield.
Neither is she a room
that we can protect
behind a wooden door.
She Speaks:
10 I am a wall around a city,
my breasts are towers,
and just looking at me
brings him great pleasure.
11 Solomon has a vineyard
at Baal-Hamon,
which he rents to others
for a thousand pieces
of silver each.
12 My vineyard is mine alone!
Solomon can keep his silver
and the others can keep
their share of the profits.
He Speaks:
13 You are in the garden
with friends all around.
Let me hear your voice!
She Speaks:
14 Hurry to me, my darling!
Run faster than a deer
to mountains of spices.
Footnotes
- 6.4 all … heavens: Or “a mighty army ready for war.”
- 6.7 cheeks: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 7.
- 6.10 all … above: Or “a mighty army ready for war.”
- 6.12 chariot: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 12.
- 6.13 dancing … others: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 7.5 it … prisoner: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 7.9 How … tasty: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 7.13 magic flower: The Hebrew text has “mandrake,” a plant that was thought to give sexual powers.
- 8.2 who … know: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Galatians 4
Contemporary English Version
4 1 Children who are under age are no better off than slaves, even though everything their parents own will someday be theirs. 2 This is because children are placed in the care of guardians and teachers until the time their parents have set. 3 This is how it was with us. We were like children ruled by the powers of this world.
4 But when the time was right, God sent his Son, and a woman gave birth to him. His Son obeyed the Law, 5 (A) so he could set us free from the Law, and we could become God's children. 6 (B) Now that we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts. And his Spirit tells us that God is our Father. 7 You are no longer slaves. You are God's children, and you will be given what he has promised.
Paul's Concern for the Galatians
8 Before you knew God, you were slaves of gods that are not real. 9 But now you know God, or better still, God knows you. How can you turn back and become the slaves of those weak and pitiful powers?[a] 10 You even celebrate certain days, months, seasons, and years. 11 I am afraid I have wasted my time working with you.
12 My friends, I beg you to be like me, just as I once tried to be like you. Did you mistreat me 13 when I first preached to you? No you didn't, even though you knew I had come there because I was sick. 14 My illness must have caused you some trouble, but you didn't hate me or turn me away because of it. You welcomed me as though I were one of God's angels or even Christ Jesus himself. 15 Where is that good feeling now? I am sure if it had been possible, you would have taken out your own eyes and given them to me. 16 Am I now your enemy, just because I told you the truth?
17 Those people may be paying you a lot of attention, but it isn't for your good. They only want to keep you away from me, so you will pay them a lot of attention. 18 It is always good to give your attention to something worthwhile, even when I am not with you. 19 My children, I am in terrible pain until Christ may be seen living in you. 20 I wish I were with you now. Then I would not have to talk this way. You really have me puzzled.
Hagar and Sarah
21 Some of you would like to be under the rule of the Law of Moses. But do you know what the Law says? 22 (C) In the Scriptures we learn that Abraham had two sons. The mother of one of them was a slave, while the mother of the other one had always been free. 23 The son of the slave woman was born in the usual way. But the son of the free woman was born because of God's promise.
24 All of this has another meaning as well. Each of the two women stands for one of the agreements God made with his people. Hagar, the slave woman, stands for the agreement that was made at Mount Sinai. Everyone born into her family is a slave. 25 Hagar also stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia[b] and for the present city of Jerusalem. She[c] and her children are slaves.
26 (D) But our mother is the city of Jerusalem in heaven above, and she isn't a slave. 27 (E) The Scriptures say about her,
“You have never had children,
but now you can be glad.
You have never given birth,
but now you can shout.
Once you had no children,
but now you will have
more children than a woman
who has been married
for a long time.”
28 My friends, you were born because of this promise, just as Isaac was. 29 (F) But the child who was born in the natural way made trouble for the child who was born because of the Spirit. The same thing is happening today. 30 (G) The Scriptures say, “Get rid of the slave woman and her son! He won't be given anything. The son of the free woman will receive everything.” 31 My friends, we are children of the free woman and not of the slave.
Footnotes
- 4.9 powers: Spirits were thought to control human lives and were believed to be connected with the movements of the stars.
- 4.25 Hagar also stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia: Some manuscripts have “Sinai is a mountain in Arabia.” This sentence would then be translated: “Sinai is a mountain in Arabia, and Hagar stands for the present city of Jerusalem.”
- 4.25 She: “Hagar” or “Jerusalem.”
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