Bible in 90 Days
A season for everything
3 There’s a season for everything
and a time for every matter under the heavens:
2 a time for giving birth and a time for dying,
a time for planting and a time for uprooting what was planted,
3 a time for killing and a time for healing,
a time for tearing down and a time for building up,
4 a time for crying and a time for laughing,
a time for mourning and a time for dancing,
5 a time for throwing stones and a time for gathering stones,
a time for embracing and a time for avoiding embraces,
6 a time for searching and a time for losing,
a time for keeping and a time for throwing away,
7 a time for tearing and a time for repairing,
a time for keeping silent and a time for speaking,
8 a time for loving and a time for hating,
a time for war and a time for peace.
Hard work
9 What do workers gain from all their hard work? 10 I have observed the task that God has given human beings. 11 God has made everything fitting in its time, but has also placed eternity in their hearts, without enabling them to discover what God has done from beginning to end.
12 I know that there’s nothing better for them but to enjoy themselves and do what’s good while they live. 13 Moreover, this is the gift of God: that all people should eat, drink, and enjoy the results of their hard work. 14 I know that whatever God does will last forever; it’s impossible to add to it or take away from it. God has done this so that people are reverent before him.[a] 15 Whatever happens has already happened, and whatever will happen has already happened before. And God looks after what is driven away.[b]
Enjoy what you do now
16 I saw something else under the sun: in the place of justice, there was wickedness; and in the place of what was right, there was wickedness again! 17 I thought to myself, God will judge both righteous and wicked people, because there’s a time for every matter and every deed. 18 I also thought, Where human beings are concerned, God tests them to show them that they are but animals 19 because human beings and animals share the same fate. One dies just like the other—both have the same life-breath. Humans are no better off than animals because everything is pointless.
20 All go to the same place:
all are from the dust;
all return to the dust.
21 Who knows if a human being’s life-breath rises upward while an animal’s life-breath descends into the earth? 22 So I perceived that there was nothing better for human beings but to enjoy what they do because that’s what they’re allotted in life. Who, really, is able to see what will happen in the future?
Death is better than oppression
4 When I next observed all the oppressions that take place under the sun, I saw the tears of the oppressed—and they have no one to comfort them. Their oppressors wield power—but they have no one to comfort them. 2 So I declare that the dead, who have already died, are more fortunate than the living, who are still alive. 3 But happier than both are those who have never existed, who haven’t witnessed the terrible things that happen under the sun.
Envy and loneliness
4 I also observed that people work hard and become good at what they do only out of mutual envy. This too is pointless, just wind chasing.
5 Fools fold their hands and eat their own flesh.
6 But better is resting with one handful
than working hard for two fistfuls and chasing after wind.
7 Next, I saw under the sun something else that was pointless: 8 There are people who are utterly alone, with no companions, not even a child or a sibling. Yet they work hard without end, never satisfied with their wealth. So for whom am I working so hard and depriving myself of enjoyment? This too is pointless and a terrible obsession.
9 Two are better than one because they have a good return for their hard work. 10 If either should fall, one can pick up the other. But how miserable are those who fall and don’t have a companion to help them up! 11 Also, if two lie down together, they can stay warm. But how can anyone stay warm alone? 12 Also, one can be overpowered, but two together can put up resistance. A three-ply cord doesn’t easily snap.
13 A poor but wise youth is better than an old and foolish king, who no longer listens to advice. 14 He emerged from prison to become king, even though during his rule a poor child[c] is born. 15 I saw all who live and walk under the sun following the next youth who would rise to take his place. 16 There was no counting the number of people he ruled, but those who came later aren’t happy with him. This too is pointless and a chasing after wind.
Listen and speak carefully
5 Watch[d] your steps when you go to God’s house. It’s more acceptable to listen than to offer the fools’ sacrifice—they have no idea that they’re acting wrongly. 2 Don’t[e] be quick with your mouth or say anything hastily before God, because God is in heaven, but you are on earth. Therefore, let your words be few.
3 Remember:
Dreams come with many cares,
and the voice of fools with many words.
4 When you make a promise to God, fulfill it without delay because God has no pleasure in fools. Fulfill what you promise. 5 Better not to make a promise than to make a promise without fulfilling it. 6 Don’t let your mouth make a sinner of you, and don’t say to the messenger: “It was a mistake!” Otherwise, God may become angry at such talk and destroy what you have accomplished.
7 Remember:
When dreams multiply,
so do pointless thoughts and excessive speech.
Therefore, fear God.
Hoarding wealth
8 If you witness the poor being oppressed or the violation of what is just and right in some territory, don’t be surprised because a high official watches over another, and yet others stand over them. 9 But the land’s yield should be for everyone if the field is cultivated.[f] 10 The money lover isn’t satisfied with money; neither is the lover of wealth satisfied with income. This too is pointless. 11 When good things flow, so do those who consume them. But what do owners benefit from such goods, except to feast their eyes on them? 12 Sweet is the worker’s sleep, whether there’s a lot or little to eat; but the excess of the wealthy won’t let them sleep.
13 I have seen a sickening tragedy under the sun: people hoard their wealth to their own detriment. 14 Then that wealth is lost in a bad business venture so that when they have children, they are left with nothing. 15 Just as they came from their mother’s womb naked, naked they’ll return, ending up just like they started. All their hard work produces nothing—nothing they can take with them. 16 This too is a sickening tragedy: they must pass on just as they arrived. What then do they gain from working so hard for wind? 17 What’s more, they constantly eat in darkness, with much aggravation, grief, and anger.
18 This is the one good thing I’ve seen: it’s appropriate for people to eat, drink, and find enjoyment in all their hard work under the sun during the brief lifetime that God gives them because that’s their lot in life. 19 Also, whenever God gives people wealth and riches and enables them to enjoy it, to accept their place in the world[g] and to find pleasure in their hard work—all this is God’s gift. 20 Indeed, people shouldn’t brood too much over the days of their lives because God gives an answer in their hearts’ joy.
Controlled appetite
6 I saw a tragedy under the sun, and it weighs heavily upon humanity. 2 God may give some people plenty of wealth, riches, and glory so that they lack nothing they desire. But God doesn’t enable them to enjoy it; instead, a stranger enjoys it. This is pointless and a sickening tragedy. 3 Some people may have one hundred children and live a long life. But no matter how long they live, if they aren’t content with life’s good things, I say that even a stillborn child with no grave is better off than they are.[h] 4 Because that child arrives pointlessly, then passes away in darkness. Darkness covers its name. 5 It hasn’t seen the sun or experienced anything. But it has more peace than those 6 who live a thousand years twice over but don’t enjoy life’s good things. Isn’t everyone heading to the same destination? 7 All the hard work of humans is for the mouth, but the appetite is never full. 8 What advantage do the wise have over the foolish? Or what do the poor gain by knowing how to conduct themselves before the living? 9 It’s better to enjoy what’s at hand than to have an insatiable appetite. This too is pointless, just wind chasing.
10 Whatever happens has already been designated, and human beings are fully known. They can’t contend with the one who is stronger than they are. 11 Because the more words increase, the more everything is pointless. What do people gain by it? 12 Because who knows what’s good for human beings during life, during their brief pointless life, which will pass away like a shadow? Who can say what the future holds for people under the sun?
Wisdom is better than wealth
7 A good name is better than fine oil,
and the day of death better than the birthday.
2 It is better to go to a house in mourning
than to a house party,
because that is everyone’s destiny;
and the living should take it to heart.
3 Aggravation is better than merriment
because a sad face may lead to a glad heart.
4 The wise heart is in the house that mourns,
but the foolish heart is in the house that rejoices.
5 It is better to obey the reprimand of the wise
than to listen to the song of fools,
6 because the fool’s merriment
is like nettles crackling under a kettle.
That too is pointless.
7 Oppression turns the wise into fools;
a bribe corrupts the heart.
8 The end of something is better than its beginning.
Patience is better than arrogance.
9 Don’t be too quick to get angry
because anger lives in the fool’s heart.
10 Don’t ask, “How is it that the former days were better than these?”
because it isn’t wise to ask this.
11 Wisdom is as good as[i] an inheritance—
an advantage for those who see the sun.
12 Wisdom’s protection is like the protection of money;
the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the lives of its possessors.
Good times and bad
13 Consider God’s work! Who can straighten what God has made crooked? 14 When times are good, enjoy the good; when times are bad, consider: God has made the former as well as the latter so that people can’t discover anything that will come to be after them.
15 I have seen everything in my pointless lifetime: the righteous person may die in spite of their righteousness; then again, the wicked may live long in spite of their wickedness. 16 Don’t be too righteous or too wise, or you may be dumbfounded.[j] 17 Don’t be too wicked and don’t be a fool, or you may die before your time. 18 It’s good that you take hold of one of these without letting go of the other because the one who fears God will go forth with both.
19 Wisdom makes a wise person stronger than ten rulers who are in a city. 20 Remember: there’s no one on earth so righteous as to do good only and never make a mistake.[k] 21 Don’t worry about all the things people say, so you don’t hear your servant cursing you. 22 After all, you know that you’ve often cursed others yourself!
Life is complicated
23 I tested all of this by wisdom. I thought, I will be wise, but it eluded me.
24 All that happens is elusive and utterly unfathomable. Who can grasp it? 25 I turned my mind to know, to investigate, and to seek wisdom, along with an account of things, to know that wickedness is foolishness and folly is madness.
26 I found one woman more bitter than death: she who is a trap, her heart a snare, her hands shackles. Anyone who pleases God escapes her, but a sinner is trapped by her. 27 See, this is what I found, says the Teacher, examining one matter after another to account for things. 28 But there’s something that I constantly searched for but couldn’t find: I found one man among a thousand, but I couldn’t find a woman among any of these.[l]
29 See, this alone I found: God made human beings straightforward, but they search for many complications.
8 Who is wise? And who knows the meaning of anything?
A person’s wisdom brightens the expression;
it changes the hardness of someone’s face.
Watch out for power
2 Keep[m] the king’s command
as you would keep a solemn pledge.
3 Don’t be dismayed; leave his presence.
Don’t linger in a harmful situation
because he can do whatever he wants!
4 Because the king’s word has authority,
no one can say to him, “What are you doing?”
5 Whoever keeps a command will meet no harm, and the wise heart knows the right time and the right way 6 because there’s a right time and right way for every matter. But human misfortunes are overwhelming 7 because no one knows what will happen, and no one can say when something might happen. 8 No one has control over the life-breath,[n] to retain it, and there’s no control over the day of death. There’s no release from war, and wickedness won’t deliver those who practice it.
9 I observed all of this as I paid attention to all that happens under the sun. Sometimes people exercise power over each other to their detriment. 10 Then I saw the wicked brought to their graves, with people processing from a holy place,[o] while those who had lived honestly were neglected in the city. This too is pointless.
11 The condemnation for wicked acts isn’t carried out quickly; that’s why people dare to do evil. 12 Wrongdoers may commit a hundred crimes but still live long lives. But I also know that it will go well for those who fear God, for those who are reverent before God. 13 But it will not go well for the wicked; they won’t live long at all because they aren’t reverent before God. 14 Here’s another thing that happens on earth that is pointless: the righteous get what the wicked deserve, and the wicked get what the righteous deserve. I say that this too is pointless.
Enjoy life
15 So I commend enjoyment because there’s nothing better for people to do under the sun but to eat, drink, and be glad. This is what will accompany them in their hard work, during the lifetime that God gives under the sun.
16 Then I set my mind to know wisdom and to observe the business that happens on earth, even going without sleep day and night 17 I observed all the work of God—that no one can grasp what happens under the sun. Those who strive to know can’t grasp it. Even the wise who are set on knowing are unable to grasp it.
Everyone faces the same fate
9 So I considered all of this carefully, examining all of it: The righteous and the wise and their deeds are in God’s hand, along with both love and hate. People don’t know anything that’s ahead of them. 2 Everything is the same for everyone. The same fate awaits the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad,[p] the pure and the impure, those who sacrifice and those who don’t sacrifice. The good person is like the wrongdoer; the same holds for those who make solemn pledges and those who are afraid to swear. 3 This is the sad thing about all that happens under the sun: the same fate awaits everyone. Moreover, the human heart is full of evil; people’s minds are full of madness while they are alive, and afterward they die. 4 Whoever is among the living can be certain about this. A living dog is definitely better off than a dead lion, 5 because the living know that they will die. But the dead know nothing at all. There is no more reward for them; even the memory of them is lost. 6 Their love and their hate, as well as their zeal, are already long gone. They will never again have a stake in all that happens under the sun.
7 Go, eat your food joyfully and drink your wine happily because God has already accepted what you do. 8 Let your garments always be white; don’t run short of oil for your head. 9 Enjoy life with your dearly loved spouse all the days of your pointless life that God[q] gives you under the sun—all the days of your pointless life![r]—because that’s your part to play[s] in this life and in your hard work under the sun. 10 Whatever you are capable of doing, do with all your might because there’s no work, thought, knowledge, or wisdom in the grave,[t] which is where you are headed.
Listen to common wisdom, not fools
11 I also observed under the sun that the race doesn’t always go to the swift, nor the battle to the mighty, nor food to the wise, nor wealth to the intelligent, nor favor to the knowledgeable, because accidents can happen to anyone. 12 People most definitely don’t know when their time will come. Like fish tragically caught in a net or like birds trapped in a snare, so are human beings caught in a time of tragedy that suddenly falls to them.
13 I also observed the following example of wisdom under the sun—it impressed me greatly: 14 There was a small town with only a few residents. A mighty king came against it, surrounded it, and waged a terrible war against it. 15 Now there lived in that town a poor but wise man who saved everyone by his wisdom. But no one remembered that poor man. 16 So I thought, Wisdom is better than might, but the wisdom of commoners is despised and their words aren’t heeded.
17 The calm words of the wise are better heeded than the racket caused by a ruler among fools.
18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one incompetent person destroys much good.
10 As dead flies spoil the perfumer’s oil,
so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.
2 The mind of the wise tends toward the right,
but the mind of the fool toward the left.
3 Fools lack all sense even when they walk down the street;
they show everyone that they are fools.
4 If a ruler’s temper rises against you,
don’t leave your post, because calmness alleviates great offenses.
5 There’s an evil that I have seen under the sun: the kind of mistake that comes from people in power. 6 Fools are appointed to high posts, while the rich sit in lowly positions. 7 I have seen slaves on horseback, while princes walk on foot like slaves.
8 Whoever digs a pit may fall into it,
and whoever breaks through a wall
may be bitten by a snake.
9 Whoever quarries stones may be injured by them;
whoever splits logs
may be endangered by them.
10 If an ax is dull
and one doesn’t sharpen it first,
then one must exert more force.
It’s profitable to be skillful and wise.
11 If a snake bites before it’s charmed,
then there’s no profit
for the snake charmer.
12 Words from a wise person’s mouth are beneficial,
but fools are devoured by their own lips.
13 Fools start out talking foolishness
and end up speaking awful nonsense.
14 Fools talk too much!
No one knows what will happen;
no one can say what will happen in the future.
15 The hard work of fools tires them out
because they don’t even know the way to town!
16 Too bad for you, land,
whose king is a boy
and whose princes feast in the morning.
17 Happy is the land
whose king is dignified
and whose princes feast at the right time for energy,
not for drunkenness.
18 Through laziness, the roof sags;
through idle hands, the house leaks.
19 Feasts are made for laughter,
wine cheers the living,
and money answers everything.[u]
20 Don’t curse a king even in private; don’t curse the rich in your bedroom, because a bird could carry your voice; some winged creature could report what you said!
Take risks; life is short
11 Send your bread out on the water because, in the course of time, you may find it again. 2 Give a portion to seven people, even to eight: you don’t know what disaster may come upon the land. 3 If clouds fill up, they will empty out rain on the earth. If a tree falls, whether to the south or to the north, wherever it falls, there it will lie. 4 Those who watch the wind blow will never sow, and those who observe the clouds will never reap. 5 Just as you don’t understand what the life-breath does in the fetus[v] inside a pregnant woman’s womb, so you can’t understand the work of God, who makes everything happen. 6 Scatter your seed in the morning, and in the evening don’t be idle because you don’t know which will succeed, this one or that, or whether both will be equally good.
7 Sweet is the light, and it’s pleasant for the eyes to see the sun. 8 Even those who live many years should take pleasure in them all. But they should be mindful that there will also be many dark days. Everything that happens is pointless.
9 Rejoice, young person, while you are young! Your heart should make you happy in your prime. Follow your heart’s inclinations and whatever your eyes see, but know this: God will call you to account for all of these things. 10 Remove anxiety from your heart, banish pain from your body, because youth and the dawn of life are pointless too.
Troubling days to come
12 Remember your creator in your prime,
before the days of trouble arrive,
and those years, about which you’ll say, “I take no pleasure in these”—
2 before the sun and the light grow dark, the moon and the stars too,
before the clouds return after the rain;
3 on the day when the housekeepers tremble and the strong men stoop;
when the women who grind stop working because they’re so few,
and those who look through the windows grow dim;
4 when the doors to the street are shut,
when the sound of the mill fades,
the sound of the bird rises,
and all the singers come down low;
5 when people are afraid of things above
and of terrors along the way;
when the almond tree blanches, the locust droops,
and the caper-berry comes to nothing;[w]
when the human goes to the eternal abode,
with mourners all around in the street;
6 before the silver cord snaps and the gold bowl shatters;
the jar is broken at the spring and the wheel is crushed at the pit;
7 before dust returns to the earth as it was before
and the life-breath returns to God who gave it.
Motto and conclusion
8 Perfectly pointless, says the Teacher, everything is pointless.
9 Additionally: Because the Teacher was wise, he constantly taught the people knowledge. He listened and investigated. He composed many proverbs. 10 The Teacher searched for pleasing words, and he wrote truthful words honestly.
11 The words of the wise are like iron-tipped prods;
the collected sayings of the masters
are like nails fixed firmly by a shepherd.[x]
12 Be careful, my child, of anything beyond them!
There’s no end to the excessive production of scrolls. Studying too much wearies the body. 13 So this is the end of the matter; all has been heard. Worship God and keep God’s commandments because this is what everyone must do. 14 God will definitely bring every deed to judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or bad.
1 The Song of Songs, which is for Solomon.
Mutual admiration
[Woman][y]
2 If only he would give me some of his kisses . . .
Oh, your loving is sweeter than wine!
3 Your fragrance is sweet;
your very name is perfume.
That’s why the young women love you.
4 Take me along with you; let’s run!
My king has brought me into his chambers, saying,
“Let’s exult and rejoice in you.
Let’s savor your loving more than wine.
No wonder they all love you!”
5 Dark am I, and lovely, daughters of Jerusalem—
like the black tents of the Kedar nomads,
like the curtains of Solomon’s palace.
6 Don’t stare at me because I’m darkened
by the sun’s gaze.
My own brothers were angry with me.
They made me a caretaker of the vineyards—
but I couldn’t care for my own vineyard.
7 Tell me, you whom I love with all my heart—
where do you pasture your flock,
where do you rest them at noon?—
so I don’t wander around with the flocks of your companions.
[Man]
8 If you don’t know your way,
most beautiful of women,
then follow the tracks of the herds
and graze your little goats
by the tents of the shepherds.
9 I picture you, my dearest,
as a mare among Pharaoh’s chariots!
10 Lovely are your cheeks, adorned with ear hoops;
your neck, with beads.
11 Let’s make hoops of gold beaded with silver for you!
[Woman]
12 With my king close by,
my perfume filled the air.
13 A sachet of myrrh is my love to me,
lying all night between my breasts.
14 A cluster of henna flowers is my love to me
in the desert gardens of En-gedi.
[Man]
15 Look at you—so beautiful, my dearest!
Look at you—so beautiful! Your eyes are doves!
[Woman]
16 Look at you—so beautiful, my love!
Yes, delightful! Yes, our bed is lush and green!
17 The ceilings of our chambers are cedars;
our rafters, cypresses.
Love in bloom
[Woman]
2 I’m a rose of the Sharon plain,
a lily of the valleys.
[Man]
2 Like a lily among thornbushes,
so is my dearest among the young women.
[Woman]
3 Like an apple tree among the wild trees,
so is my lover among the young men.
In his shade I take pleasure in sitting,
and his fruit is sweet to my taste.
4 He has brought me to the house of wine;
his banner raised over me is love.
5 Sustain me with raisin cakes,
strengthen me with apples,
for I’m weak with love!
6 His left arm is beneath my head,
his right embraces me.
7 Make a solemn pledge, daughters of Jerusalem,
by the gazelles or the wild deer:
Don’t rouse, don’t arouse love
until it desires.
8 Listen! It’s my lover: here he comes now,
leaping upon the mountains,
bounding over the hills.
9 My lover is like a gazelle
or a young stag.
Here he stands now,
outside our wall,
peering through the windows,
peeking through the lattices.
10 My lover spoke and said to me,
“Rise up, my dearest,
my fairest, and go.
11 Here, the winter is past;
the rains have come and gone.
12 Blossoms have appeared in the land;
the season of singing[z] has arrived,
and the sound of the turtledove is heard in our land.
13 The green fruit is on the fig tree,
and the grapevines in bloom are fragrant.
Rise up,[aa] my dearest,
my fairest, and go.
14 My dove—in the rock crevices,
hidden in the cliff face—
let me catch sight of you;
let me hear your voice!
The sound of your voice is sweet,
and the sight of you is lovely.”
15 Catch foxes for us—
those little foxes
that spoil vineyards,
now that our vineyards are in bloom!
16 I belong to my lover and he belongs to me—
the one grazing among the lilies.
17 Before the day breeze blows
and the shadows flee,
turn about, my love; be like a gazelle
or a young stag
upon the jagged mountains.[ab]
The search
[Woman]
3 Upon my bed, night after night,
I looked for the one whom I love with all my heart.
I looked for him but couldn’t find him.[ac]
2 “I will rise now and go all around the city,
through the streets and the squares.
I will look for the one whom I love with all my heart.”
I looked for him but couldn’t find him.
3 The guards found me,
those who make their rounds in the city.
“The one whom I love with all my heart—
have you seen him?”
4 No sooner did I depart from them
than I found the one whom I love with all my heart.
I held on to him and now I won’t let him go,
until I’ve brought him to my mother’s house,
to the chamber of the one who conceived me.
5 I place you under oath, daughters of Jerusalem,
by the gazelles or the wild deer:
don’t rouse, don’t arouse love
until it desires.
Visions of grandeur
6 Who is this, coming up from the wilderness,
like pillars of smoke?
She is perfumed with myrrh and frankincense,
selected from all the spice merchant’s powders.
7 Picture Solomon’s bed—
sixty heroic men round about it,
all from the heroes of Israel,
8 all of them skilled with the sword,
expert in warfare,
each with his sword ready at his thigh
against terrors that come by night.
9 King Solomon made a canopied couch for himself
from the trees of Lebanon.
10 Its pillars he made of silver,
its covering, cloth of gold,
its cushions, royal purple;
its interior inlaid with love.
Daughters of Jerusalem, 11 go forth!
Look, daughters of Zion—
on King Solomon wearing the crown
with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding,
on the day of his heart’s joy.
In praise of her
[Man]
4 Look at you—so beautiful, my dearest!
Look at you—so beautiful! Your eyes are doves
behind the veil of your hair!
Your hair is like a flock of goats
as they stream down Mount Gilead.
2 Your teeth are like newly shorn ewes
as they come up from the washing pool—
all of them perfectly matched,
not one of them lacks its twin.
3 Like a crimson ribbon are your lips;
when you smile, it is lovely.
Like a slice of pomegranate is the curve of your face
behind the veil of your hair.
4 Like David’s tower is your neck,
splendidly built!
A thousand shields are hung upon it—
all the weapons of the warriors.
5 Your two breasts are like two fawns,
twins of a gazelle doe,
that graze among the lilies.
6 Before the day breeze blows
and the shadows flee,
I will be off to the mountain of myrrh,
to the hill of frankincense.
7 You are utterly beautiful, my dearest;
there’s not a single flaw in you.
Garden of delight
[Man]
8 Come down with me from Lebanon, my bride—
if only you would come down with me from Lebanon.
Descend from the peak of Amana,
from the peaks of Senir and Hermon,
from the lions’ dens,
from the mountain lairs of leopards.
9 You have captured my heart, my sister,[ad] my bride!
You have captured my heart with one glance from your eyes,
with one strand of your necklace.
10 How beautiful is your loving, my sister, my bride!
Your loving is so much better than wine,
and your fragrance better than any perfume!
11 Sweetness drops from your lips, my bride;
honey and milk are under your tongue,
and the fragrance of your garments
is like the fragrance of Lebanon.
12 An enclosed garden is my sister, my bride;
an enclosed pool, a sealed spring.
13 Your limbs are an orchard of pomegranates
with all kinds of luscious fruit,
henna, and spices:
14 nard and saffron,
sweet cane and cinnamon,
with all scented woods,
myrrh, and aloes,
with the very choicest perfumes!
15 You are a garden spring, a well of fresh water,
streams from Lebanon.
16 Stir, north wind, and come, south wind!
Blow upon my garden;
let its perfumes flow!
[Woman]
Let my love come to his garden;
let him eat its luscious fruit!
[Man]
5 I have come to my garden, my sister, my bride!
I have gathered my myrrh and my spices.
I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey;
I have drunk my wine and my milk.
Eat, dear friends!
Drink and get drunk on love!
A missed encounter
[Woman]
2 I was sleeping, but my heart was awake.
A sound! My love is knocking:
[Man]
“Open for me, my sister, my dearest,
my dove, my perfect one!
My head is soaked with dew,
my hair, with the night mists.”
[Woman]
3 “I have taken off my tunic—
why should I put it on again?
I have bathed my feet—
why should I get them dirty?”
4 My love put his hand in through the latch hole,
and my body ached for him.
5 I rose; I went to open for my love,
and my hands dripped myrrh,
my fingers, liquid myrrh,
over the handles of the lock.
6 I went and opened for my love,
but my love had turned, gone away.
I nearly died when he turned away.
I looked for him but couldn’t find him.
I called out to him, but he didn’t answer me.
7 They found me—the guards
who make their rounds in the city.
They struck me, bruised me.
They took my shawl away from me,
those guards of the city walls!
8 I place you under oath, daughters of Jerusalem:
If you find my love, what should you tell him?
That I’m weak with love!
[Daughters of Jerusalem]
9 How is your lover different from any other lover,
you who are the most beautiful of women?
How is your lover different from any other lover,
that you make us swear a solemn pledge?
In praise of him
[Woman]
10 My lover is radiant and ruddy;
he stands out among ten thousand!
11 His head is finest gold;
his wavy hair, black as a raven.
12 His eyes are like doves
by channels of water.
They are bathing in milk,
sitting by brimming pools.
13 His cheeks are like fragrant plantings,
towers of spices.
His lips are lilies
dripping liquid myrrh.
14 His arms are gold cylinders
studded with jewels.
His belly is smooth ivory
encrusted with sapphires.
15 His thighs are pillars of whitest stone
set on pedestals of gold.
His appearance—like Lebanon,
stately, like the cedars.
16 His mouth is everything sweet,
every bit of him desirable.
This is my love, this my dearest,
daughters of Jerusalem!
[Daughters of Jerusalem]
6 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]
2 My lover has gone down to his garden,
to the fragrant plantings,
to graze in the gardens,
to gather the lilies.
3 I belong to my lover and my lover belongs to me—
the one grazing among the lilies.
An overwhelming sight
[Man]
4 You are as beautiful, my dearest, as Tirzah,
as lovely as Jerusalem,
formidable as those lofty sights.
5 Turn your eyes away from me,
for they overwhelm me!
Your hair is like a flock of goats
as they stream down from Gilead.
6 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.
7 Like a slice of pomegranate is the curve of your face
behind the veil of your hair.
8 There may be sixty queens
and eighty secondary wives,
young women beyond counting,
9 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![ae]
Graceful dancer
[Man]
13 [af] Come back, come back, Shulammite![ag]
Come back, come back, so we may admire you.
How you all admire the Shulammite
as she whirls between two circles of dancers!
7 How graceful are your sandaled feet,
willing woman!
The smooth curves of your thighs—like fine jewelry,
the work of an artist’s hands!
2 Your navel, cupped like the full moon—
may it never lack spiced wine!
Your belly is a mound of winnowed wheat
edged with lilies.
3 Your two breasts are like two fawns,
twins of a gazelle doe;
4 your neck, like a tower of ivory;
your eyes, pools in Heshbon,
by the gate of that lordly city.[ah]
Your profile is like the tower of Lebanon,
looking out toward Damascus.
5 Your head crowns you like Mount Carmel,
and your hair, braided in royal purple—
a king is bound by the tresses!
6 You are so beautiful, so lovely—
my love, delightful one![ai]
7 Your stately form resembles a date palm,
and your breasts are like clustered fruit.
8 I say, “I will climb the palm tree;
I will hold its fruit!”
May your breasts be now
like grape clusters,
and the scent of your breath like apples!
9 Your palate is like excellent wine . . .
[Woman]
. . . flowing smoothly for my love,
gliding through the lips and teeth.[aj]
10 I belong to my lover,
and his longing is only for me.
The ripeness of love
[Woman]
11 Come, my love:
Let’s go out to the field
and rest all night among the flowering henna.
12 Let’s set out early for the vineyards.
We will see if the vines have budded
and the blossoms opened,
see if the pomegranates have bloomed.
There I’ll give my loving to you.
13 The mandrakes give off their scent,
and at our doorways is every delicacy—
fresh or ripened—
my love, I have kept them hidden for you.
Wishing
[Woman]
8 If only you were as my brother—
the one who nursed at my mother’s breast.
I would find you in the street and kiss you,
and no one would shame me for it.
2 I would lead you, I would bring you
to my mother’s house;
she would teach me what to do.[ak]
I would give you spiced wine to drink,
some of my fresh pomegranate juice.
3 His left arm is beneath my head,
and his right embraces me!
4 Make a solemn pledge,
daughters of Jerusalem,
never to rouse, never to arouse love
until it desires.
Love, strong and invaluable
[Daughters of Jerusalem]
5 Who is this coming up from the wilderness
leaning against her lover?
[Woman]
Under the apple tree I aroused you—
there, where your mother labored with you,
there where, laboring, she bore you.
6 Set me as a seal over your heart,
as a seal upon your arm,
for love is as strong as death,
passionate love unrelenting as the grave.[al]
Its darts are darts of fire—
divine flame!
7 Rushing waters can’t quench love;
rivers can’t wash it away.
If someone gave
all his estate in exchange for love,
he would be laughed to utter shame.
[The Woman’s Brothers]
8 Our sister is small;
she has no breasts.
What will we do for our sister
on the day that she is spoken for?
9 If she is a city wall,
then we will build a turret of silver on her.[am]
And if she is a door,
then we will barricade her[an] with a panel of cedar.
[Woman]
10 I’m a city wall,
and my breasts are the towers.
So now I’m in his eyes
as one who brings peace.
[Man]
11 Solomon had a vineyard
in Baal-hamon.
He gave charge of the vineyard to keepers;
one would bring in exchange for its fruit
a thousand pieces of silver.
12 My vineyard, my very own, is before me.
You can have the thousand, Solomon[ao]—
with two hundred for those who tend the fruit!
13 You who sit in the gardens,
my companions are listening for your voice.
Let me hear it!
[Woman]
14 “Take flight, my love,
and be like a gazelle
or a young stag
on the mountains of spice!”
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible