Beginning
A Love Song
1 Solomon’s Song of Songs.
The Woman Speaks to the Man She Loves
2 Kiss me with the kisses of your mouth!
Your love is better than wine.
3 The smell of your perfume is pleasant.
Your name is pleasant like expensive perfume!
That’s why the young women love you.
4 Take me with you; let’s run.
The king takes me into his rooms.
Friends Speak to the Man
We will rejoice and be happy with you.
We praise your love more than wine.
The Woman Speaks
With good reason, the young women love you, my lover.
5 I’m dark but lovely,
women of Jerusalem.
I’m dark like the tents of Kedar,
like the curtains of Solomon.
6 Don’t look at how dark I am,
at how dark the sun has made me.
My brothers were angry with me.
They made me tend the vineyards.
So I haven’t tended my own vineyard!
7 Tell me, you whom I love,
where do you feed your sheep?
Where do you make them rest at noon?
Why should I look for you near your friend’s sheep?
Am I like a woman who wears a veil?[a]
The Man Speaks to the Woman
8 You are the most beautiful of women.
Surely you know to follow the sheep.
Feed your young goats
near the shepherds’ tents.
9 My darling, you are like a mare
that pulls the king’s chariots.
10 Your cheeks are beautiful with ornaments.
Your neck is beautiful with jewels.
11 We will make for you gold earrings
with silver hooks.
The Woman Speaks
12 The smell of my perfume spreads out
to the king on his couch.
13 My lover is like a bag of myrrh
that lies all night between my breasts.
14 My lover is like a bunch of flowers
from the vineyards at En Gedi.
The Man Speaks
15 My darling, you are beautiful!
Oh, you are beautiful!
Your eyes are like doves!
The Woman Answers the Man
16 You are so handsome, my lover.
You are so pleasant!
Our bed is the grass.
17 The boards of our house are cedar trees.
And the wood of our ceiling is juniper trees.
The Woman Speaks Again
2 I am a rose in the Plain of Sharon.
I am a lily in the valleys.
The Man Speaks Again
2 Among the young women, my darling
is like a lily among thorns!
The Woman Answers
3 Among young men, my lover
is like an apple tree among the trees in the woods!
I enjoy sitting in his shadow.
His fruit is sweet to my taste.
4 He brought me to the banquet room.
His banner over me is love.
5 Strengthen me with raisins.
Refresh me with apples,
because I am weak with love.
6 My lover’s left hand is under my head.
And his right arm holds me tight!
The Woman Speaks to the Friends
7 Women of Jerusalem, promise me
by the gazelles and the deer.
Promise not to wake love.
Don’t excite my feelings of love
until I’m ready.
The Woman Speaks Again
8 I hear my lover’s voice.
He comes jumping across the mountains.
He comes skipping over the hills!
9 My lover is like a gazelle or a young deer.
Look, he stands behind our wall.
He stares in through the windows,
looking through the blinds.
10 My lover spoke. He said to me,
“Get up, my darling.
Let’s go away, my beautiful one.
11 Look, the winter is past.
The rains are over and gone.
12 Blossoms appear through all the land.
The time has come to sing.
The cooing of doves is heard in our land.
13 There are young figs on the fig trees.
The blossoms on the vines smell sweet.
Get up, my darling.
Let’s go away, my beautiful one.”
The Man Speaks
14 My beloved is like a dove that hides in the cracks of the rock.
She hides in the secret places of the cliff.
Show me your face.
Let me hear your voice.
Your voice is very sweet,
and your face is lovely.
15 Catch the foxes for us—
the little foxes that ruin the vineyards.
Our vineyards are in blossom.
The Woman Speaks
16 My lover is mine, and I am his.
He feeds among the lilies
17 until the day dawns
and the shadows disappear.
Turn, my lover.
Be like a gazelle or a young deer
on the rugged mountains.
The Woman Dreams
3 At night on my bed,
I looked for the one I love.
I looked for him, but I could not find him.
2 I will get up now. I will go around the city,
in the streets and squares.
I will look for the one I love.
I looked for him, but I could not find him.
3 The watchmen found me as they patrolled the city.
I asked, “Have you seen the one I love?”
4 As soon as I had left them
I found the one I love.
I held him. I would not let him go
until I had brought him to my mother’s house.
I brought him into the room where I was born.
The Woman Speaks to the Friends
5 Women of Jerusalem, promise me
by the gazelles and the deer.
Promise not to wake love.
Don’t excite my feelings of love
until I’m ready.
6 Who is this coming out of the desert
like a cloud of smoke?
Who is this that smells like myrrh, incense
and other spices?
7 Look, it’s Solomon’s couch[b]
with 60 soldiers around it.
They are the finest soldiers of Israel.
8 These soldiers all carry swords.
They have been trained in war.
Every man wears his sword at his side.
He is ready for the dangers of the night.
9 King Solomon had a couch made for himself.
It is made of wood from Lebanon.
10 He made its posts of silver
and its braces of gold.
The seat was covered with purple cloth.
The women of Jerusalem wove it with love.
11 Women of Jerusalem, go out and see King Solomon.
He is wearing the crown his mother put on his head.
It was his wedding day,
when his heart was happy!
The Man Speaks to the Woman
4 How beautiful you are, my darling!
Oh, you are beautiful!
Your eyes behind your veil are like doves.
Your hair is like a flock of goats streaming down Mount Gilead.
2 Your teeth are white like newly-sheared sheep
just coming from their bath.
Each one has a twin.
None of them is alone.
3 Your lips are like red silk thread.
Your mouth is lovely.
Your cheeks behind your veil
are like slices of a pomegranate.
4 Your neck looks like David’s tower.
The tower was built with rows of stones.
A thousand shields hang on its walls.
Each shield belongs to a strong soldier.
5 Your breasts are like two fawns.
They are like twins of a gazelle,
eating among the lilies.
6 Until the day dawns
and the shadows disappear,
I will go to that mountain of myrrh.
And I will go to that hill of incense.
7 My darling, everything about you is beautiful.
There is nothing at all wrong with you.
8 Come with me from Lebanon, my bride.
Come with me from Lebanon.
Come from the top of Mount Amana,
from the tops of Mount Senir and Mount Hermon.
Come from the lions’ dens
and from the leopards’ hills.
9 My sister, my bride,
you have thrilled my heart.
You have thrilled my heart
with a glance of your eyes,
with one jewel from your necklace.
10 Your love is so sweet, my sister, my bride!
Your love is better than wine.
Your perfume smells better than any spice.
11 My bride, your lips drip honey.
Honey and milk are under your tongue.
Your clothes smell like the cedars of Lebanon.
12 My sister, my bride, you are like a garden locked up.
You are like a spring with a wall around it, a fountain that is closed.
13 Your limbs are like an orchard
of pomegranates and all the best fruit.
It is filled with flowers and nard.
14 It also has saffron, calamus and cinnamon.
It is filled with trees of incense, myrrh and aloes—
all the best spices.
15 You are like a garden fountain—
a well of fresh water
flowing down from the mountains of Lebanon.
The Woman Speaks
16 Awake, north wind!
Come, you south wind!
Blow on my garden.
Let its sweet smells flow out.
Let my lover enter the garden.
And let him eat its best fruits.
The Man Speaks
5 I have entered my garden, my sister, my bride.
I have gathered my myrrh with my spice.
I have eaten my honeycomb and my honey.
I have drunk my wine and my milk.
The Friends Speak
Eat, friends, and drink.
Yes, drink deeply, lovers.
The Woman Dreams
2 I sleep, but my heart is awake.
I hear my lover knocking.
“Open to me, my sister, my darling,
my dove, my perfect one.
My head is wet with dew.
And my hair is wet with the dampness of the night.”
3 I have taken off my garment.
I don’t want to put it on again!
I have washed my feet.
I don’t want to get them dirty again!
4 My lover put his hand through the door opening.
I felt excited inside.
5 I got up to open the door for my lover.
Myrrh was dripping from my hands.
Myrrh was flowing from my fingers,
onto the handles of the lock.
6 I opened the door for my lover.
But my lover had left. He was gone.
When he had spoken, he had taken my breath away.
I looked for him, but I could not find him.
I called for him, but he did not answer me.
7 The watchmen found me
as they patrolled the city.
They hit me; they hurt me.
The guards on the wall took away my coat.
8 I tell you, women of Jerusalem,
if you find my lover,
tell him I am weak with love.
The Friends Answer the Woman
9 Is your lover better than other lovers,
you, the most beautiful of women?
Is your lover better than other lovers?
Is that why you talk like this?
The Woman Answers the Friends
10 My lover is clean and tanned.
He’s the best of 10,000 men.
11 His head is like the finest gold.
His hair is wavy and black like a raven.
12 His eyes are like doves
by springs of water.
They seem to be bathed in cream.
They are set like jewels.
13 His cheeks are like garden beds of spices.
They smell like mounds of perfume.
His lips are like lilies
flowing with myrrh.
14 His hands are like gold hinges,
filled with jewels.
His body is like smooth ivory
covered with sapphires.
15 His legs are like large marble posts,
standing on bases of fine gold.
He is tall like a cedar of Lebanon—
like the best cedar trees.
16 His mouth is sweet to kiss.
I desire him very much.
Yes, daughters of Jerusalem,
this is my lover.
This is my friend.
The Friends Speak to the Woman
6 Where has your lover gone,
most beautiful of women?
Which way did your lover turn?
We will look for him with you.
The Woman Answers the Friends
2 My lover has gone down to his garden.
He has gone to the garden beds of spices
to feed in the gardens
and to gather lilies.
3 I belong to my lover.
And my lover belongs to me.
He feeds among the lilies.
The Man Speaks to the Woman
4 My darling, you are as beautiful as the city of Tirzah.
You are as lovely as the city of Jerusalem.
You are as wonderful as an army flying flags.
5 Turn your eyes from me.
They excite me too much!
Your hair is like a flock of goats
streaming down Mount Gilead.
6 Your teeth are white like sheep
just coming from their bath.
Each one has a twin.
None of them is alone.
7 Your cheeks behind your veil
are like slices of a pomegranate.
8 There may be 60 queens and 80 slave women
and so many girls you cannot count them.
9 But there is only one like my dove, my perfect one.
She is her mother’s only daughter,
the brightest of the one who gave her birth.
The young women saw her and called her happy.
The queens and the slave women also praised her.
The Young Women Praise the Woman
10 Who is that young woman?
She shines out like the dawn.
She’s as pretty as the moon.
She’s as bright as the sun.
And she’s as wonderful
as an army flying flags.
The Man Speaks
11 I went down into the orchard of nut trees.
I went to see the blossoms of the valley.
I went to look for buds on the vines,
to see if the pomegranate trees had bloomed.
12 My desire for you makes me feel
like a prince in a chariot.
The Friends Call to the Woman
13 Come back, come back, woman of Shulam.
Come back, come back,
so we may look at you!
The Woman Answers the Friends
Why do you want to look at the woman of Shulam
as you would at the dance of two groups?
The Man Speaks to the Woman
7 Your feet are beautiful in sandals,
you daughter of a prince.
Your round thighs are like jewels
shaped by an artist.
2 Your navel is like a round drinking cup
always filled with wine.
Your stomach is like a pile of wheat
with lilies around it like a fence.
3 Your breasts are like two fawns.
They are like twins of a gazelle.
4 Your neck is like an ivory tower.
Your eyes are like the pools in Heshbon
near the gate of Bath Rabbim.
Your nose is like a tower of Lebanon
which looks toward Damascus.
5 Your head is like Mount Carmel.
And your hair is like purple cloth.
The king is captured in its folds.
6 You are beautiful.
You are very pleasant.
My love, you are full of delights!
7 You are tall like a palm tree.
Your breasts are like its bunches of fruit.
8 I said, “I will climb up the palm tree.
I will take hold of its fruit.”
Let your breasts be like bunches of grapes.
Let the smell of your breath be like apples.
9 And let your mouth be like the best wine.
The Woman Speaks to the Man
Let this wine go down sweetly for my lover.
May it flow gently past the lips and teeth.
10 I belong to my lover,
and he desires only me.
11 Come, my lover.
Let’s go out into the country.
Let’s spend the night in the fields.
12 Let’s go early to the vineyards.
Let’s see if the buds are on the vines.
Let’s see if the blossoms have already opened
and if the pomegranates have bloomed.
There I will give you my love.
13 The mandrake flowers give their sweet smell.
And at our gates there are all the best fruits.
I have saved them for you, my lover,
the old delights and the new.
8 I wish you were like my brother
who was fed at my mother’s breasts!
If I found you outside,
I would kiss you.
And no one would look down on me.
2 I would lead you and bring you
to my mother’s house.
She is the one who has taught me.
I would give you a drink of spiced wine
from my pomegranates.
The Woman Speaks to the Friends
3 My lover’s left hand is under my head.
And his right arm holds me tight!
4 Women of Jerusalem, promise me.
Promise not to wake love.
Don’t excite my feelings of love
until I’m ready.
The Friends Speak
5 Who is this coming out of the desert,
leaning on her lover?
The Man Speaks to the Woman
I woke you under the apple tree.
It was there that you were born.
There your mother gave birth to you.
6 Put me like a seal on your heart,
like a seal on your arm.
Love is as strong as death.
Desire is as strong as the grave.
Love bursts into flames.
It burns like a very hot fire.
7 Even much water cannot put out the flame of love.
Floods cannot drown love.
If a man offered everything in his house for love,
people would totally reject it.
The Woman’s Brothers Speak
8 We have a little sister,
and her breasts are not yet grown.
What should we do for our sister
on the day she becomes engaged?
9 If she is a wall,
we will put silver towers on her.
If she is a door,
we will protect her with cedar boards.
The Woman Speaks
10 I am a wall,
and my breasts are like towers.
So I was to him,
as one who brings happiness.
11 Solomon had a vineyard at Baal Hamon.
He rented the vineyards for others to tend.
Everyone who rented had to pay
25 pounds of silver for the fruit.
12 But my own vineyard is mine to give.
Solomon, the 25 pounds of silver are for you.
And 5 pounds are for those who tend the fruit.
The Man Speaks to the Woman
13 You who live in the gardens,
my friends are listening for your voice.
Let me hear it!
The Woman Speaks to the Man
14 Hurry, my lover.
Be like a gazelle
or a young deer
on the mountains where spices grow.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.