The Daily Audio Bible
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1 The Song of (A)Songs, which is Solomon's.
The Bride Confesses Her Love
She[a]
2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!
For your (B)love is better than wine;
3 your (C)anointing oils are fragrant;
your (D)name is oil poured out;
therefore virgins love you.
4 (E)Draw me after you; (F)let us run.
(G)The king has brought me into his chambers.
Others
We will (H)exult and rejoice in you;
we will extol (I)your love more than wine;
rightly do they love you.
She
5 I am very dark, but (J)lovely,
O (K)daughters of Jerusalem,
like (L)the tents of (M)Kedar,
like the curtains of Solomon.
6 Do not gaze at me because I am dark,
because the sun has looked upon me.
My (N)mother's sons were angry with me;
they made me (O)keeper of (P)the vineyards,
but (Q)my own vineyard I have not kept!
7 Tell me, you (R)whom my soul loves,
where you (S)pasture your flock,
where you make it (T)lie down at noon;
for why should I be like one who veils herself
beside the flocks of your (U)companions?
Solomon and His Bride Delight in Each Other
He
8 If you do not know,
O (V)most beautiful among women,
follow in the tracks of the flock,
and pasture your young goats
beside the shepherds' tents.
9 I compare you, (W)my love,
to (X)a mare among Pharaoh's chariots.
10 (Y)Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments,
your neck with strings of jewels.
Others
11 We will make for you[b] ornaments of gold,
studded with silver.
She
12 While (Z)the king was on his couch,
my (AA)nard gave forth its fragrance.
13 My beloved is to me a sachet of (AB)myrrh
that lies between my breasts.
14 My beloved is to me a cluster of (AC)henna blossoms
in the vineyards of (AD)Engedi.
He
15 (AE)Behold, (AF)you are beautiful, (AG)my love;
behold, you are beautiful;
your (AH)eyes are doves.
She
16 Behold, you are beautiful, (AI)my beloved, truly (AJ)delightful.
Our couch is green;
17 the beams of our house are (AK)cedar;
our rafters are (AL)pine.
He
2 As a lily among brambles,
so is (AN)my love among the young women.
She
3 As an apple tree among the trees of the forest,
so is my (AO)beloved among the young men.
With great delight I sat (AP)in his shadow,
and his (AQ)fruit was sweet to my taste.
4 He (AR)brought me to the banqueting house,[d]
and his (AS)banner over me was love.
5 Sustain me with (AT)raisins;
refresh me with apples,
(AU)for I am sick with love.
6 His (AV)left hand is under my head,
and his right hand (AW)embraces me!
7 I (AX)adjure you,[e] O (AY)daughters of Jerusalem,
by (AZ)the gazelles or the does of the field,
that you not stir up or awaken love
until it pleases.
The Bride Adores Her Beloved
8 The voice of my beloved!
Behold, he comes,
leaping (BA)over the mountains,
bounding over the hills.
9 My beloved is like (BB)a gazelle
or a young stag.
Behold, there he stands
behind our wall,
gazing through the windows,
looking through the lattice.
10 My beloved speaks and says to me:
(BC)“Arise, my love, my beautiful one,
and come away,
11 for behold, the winter is past;
(BD)the rain is over and gone.
12 (BE)The flowers appear on the earth,
the time of singing[f] has come,
and the voice of (BF)the turtledove
is heard in our land.
13 (BG)The fig tree ripens its figs,
and (BH)the vines are in blossom;
they give forth fragrance.
(BI)Arise, my love, my beautiful one,
and come away.
14 O my (BJ)dove, in the (BK)clefts of the rock,
in the crannies of the cliff,
let me see your face,
let me (BL)hear your voice,
for your voice is sweet,
and your face is (BM)lovely.
15 Catch (BN)the foxes[g] for us,
the little foxes
that spoil the vineyards,
(BO)for our vineyards are in blossom.”
16 (BP)My beloved is mine, and I am his;
he (BQ)grazes[h] among the lilies.
17 Until (BR)the day breathes
and (BS)the shadows flee,
turn, my beloved, be like (BT)a gazelle
or a young stag on cleft mountains.[i]
The Bride's Dream
3 On my bed (BU)by night
I sought (BV)him whom my soul loves;
(BW)I sought him, but found him not.
2 I will rise now and go about the city,
in (BX)the streets and in the squares;
I will seek (BY)him whom my soul loves.
I sought him, but found him not.
3 (BZ)The watchmen found me
as they went about in the city.
“Have you seen him whom my soul loves?”
4 Scarcely had I passed them
when I found (CA)him whom my soul loves.
I (CB)held him, and would not let him go
until I had (CC)brought him into my mother's house,
and into the chamber of (CD)her who conceived me.
5 (CE)I adjure you, (CF)O daughters of Jerusalem,
(CG)by the gazelles or the does of the field,
that you not stir up or awaken love
until it pleases.
Solomon Arrives for the Wedding
6 (CH)What is that coming up from the wilderness
like (CI)columns of smoke,
perfumed with (CJ)myrrh and frankincense,
with all the fragrant powders of a merchant?
7 Behold, it is the litter[j] of Solomon!
Around it are (CK)sixty (CL)mighty men,
some of the mighty men of Israel,
8 all of them wearing swords
and expert in war,
each with his (CM)sword at his thigh,
against (CN)terror by night.
9 King Solomon made himself a carriage[k]
from the wood of Lebanon.
10 He made its posts of silver,
its back of gold, its seat of purple;
its interior was inlaid with love
by (CO)the daughters of Jerusalem.
11 Go out, O (CP)daughters of Zion,
and look upon King Solomon,
with the crown with which his mother crowned him
on (CQ)the day of his wedding,
on the day of the gladness of his heart.
Solomon Admires His Bride's Beauty
He
4 Behold, (CR)you are beautiful, my love,
behold, you are beautiful!
(CS)Your eyes are doves
(CT)behind your veil.
(CU)Your hair is like a flock of goats
leaping down (CV)the slopes of Gilead.
2 Your (CW)teeth are like a flock of shorn ewes
that have come up from the washing,
all of which bear twins,
and not one among them has lost its young.
3 Your lips are like (CX)a scarlet thread,
and your mouth is (CY)lovely.
Your (CZ)cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate
(DA)behind your veil.
4 Your (DB)neck is like the tower of David,
built in (DC)rows of stone;[l]
on it (DD)hang a thousand shields,
all of (DE)them shields of warriors.
5 Your (DF)two breasts are like two (DG)fawns,
twins of a gazelle,
that (DH)graze among the lilies.
6 (DI)Until the day breathes
and the shadows flee,
I will go away to the mountain of (DJ)myrrh
and the hill of (DK)frankincense.
7 (DL)You are altogether beautiful, my love;
there is no (DM)flaw in you.
8 (DN)Come with me from (DO)Lebanon, my (DP)bride;
come with me from (DQ)Lebanon.
Depart[m] from the peak of Amana,
from the peak of (DR)Senir and (DS)Hermon,
from the dens of lions,
from the mountains of leopards.
9 You have captivated my heart, my (DT)sister, my bride;
you have captivated my heart with one glance of your eyes,
with one (DU)jewel of your necklace.
10 How beautiful is your love, my (DV)sister, my bride!
How much (DW)better is your love than wine,
and (DX)the fragrance of your oils than any spice!
11 Your (DY)lips drip nectar, my bride;
(DZ)honey and milk are under your tongue;
the fragrance of your garments is (EA)like the fragrance of (EB)Lebanon.
12 A garden locked is my (EC)sister, my bride,
a spring locked, (ED)a fountain (EE)sealed.
13 Your shoots are (EF)an orchard of pomegranates
with all (EG)choicest fruits,
(EH)henna with (EI)nard,
14 nard and saffron, (EJ)calamus and (EK)cinnamon,
with all trees of (EL)frankincense,
(EM)myrrh and (EN)aloes,
with all (EO)choice spices—
15 a garden fountain, a well of (EP)living water,
and flowing streams from (EQ)Lebanon.
16 Awake, O north wind,
and come, O south wind!
Blow upon my (ER)garden,
let its spices flow.
Together in the Garden of Love
She
Commendation of Titus
16 But (A)thanks be to God, (B)who put into the heart of Titus the same earnest care I have for you. 17 For (C)he not only accepted our appeal, but being himself very earnest he is going[a] to you of his own accord. 18 With him we are sending[b] (D)the brother who is famous among (E)all the churches for his preaching of the gospel. 19 And not only that, but he has been (F)appointed by the churches to travel with us as we carry out this act of (G)grace that is being ministered by us, (H)for the glory of the Lord himself and to show our good will. 20 We take this course so that no one should blame us about this generous gift that is being administered by us, 21 for (I)we aim at what is honorable (J)not only in the Lord's sight but also in the sight of man. 22 And with them we are sending our brother whom we have often tested and found earnest in many matters, but who is now more earnest than ever because of his great confidence in you. 23 As for Titus, he is (K)my partner and fellow worker for your benefit. And as for our brothers, they are messengers[c] of the churches, the glory of Christ. 24 So give proof before the churches of your love and of (L)our boasting about you to these men.
God Himself Is Judge
A Psalm of (A)Asaph.
50 (B)The Mighty One, God the Lord,
speaks and summons the earth
(C)from the rising of the sun to its setting.
2 Out of Zion, (D)the perfection of beauty,
(E)God shines forth.
3 Our God comes; he (F)does not keep silence;[a]
before him is a devouring (G)fire,
around him a mighty tempest.
4 (H)He calls to the heavens above
and to the earth, that he may judge his people:
5 “Gather to me my faithful ones,
who made (I)a covenant with me by sacrifice!”
6 (J)The heavens declare his righteousness,
for (K)God himself is judge! Selah
7 (L)“Hear, O my people, and I will speak;
O Israel, I will testify against you.
(M)I am God, your God.
8 Not for your sacrifices (N)do I rebuke you;
your burnt offerings are continually before me.
9 I will not accept a bull from your house
or goats from your folds.
10 For every beast of the forest is mine,
the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 (O)I know all the birds of the hills,
and all that moves in the field is mine.
12 “If I were hungry, I would not tell you,
(P)for the world and its fullness are mine.
13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls
or drink the blood of goats?
14 (Q)Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,[b]
and (R)perform your vows to the Most High,
15 and (S)call upon me in the day of trouble;
I will (T)deliver you, and you shall (U)glorify me.”
16 But to the wicked God says:
“What right have you to recite my statutes
or take my covenant on your lips?
17 (V)For you hate discipline,
(W)and you cast my words behind you.
18 If you see a thief, (X)you are pleased with him,
(Y)and you keep company with adulterers.
19 “You give your mouth free rein for evil,
(Z)and your tongue frames deceit.
20 You sit and speak against your brother;
you slander your own mother's son.
21 These things you have done, and I (AA)have been silent;
you thought that I[c] was one like yourself.
But now I (AB)rebuke you and (AC)lay the charge before you.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.