The Daily Audio Bible
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He Speaks
5 My darling my bride, I have entered my garden.
I have gathered my myrrh and spice.
I have eaten my honey and honeycomb.
I have drunk my wine and milk.
The Women Speak to the Lovers
Dearest friends, eat, drink!
Be drunk with love!
She Speaks
2 I am asleep,
but my heart is awake.
I hear my lover knocking, saying,
“Open to me, my darling, my love,
my dove, my perfect one!
My head is soaked with dew.
My hair is wet with the mist of the night.”
3 “I have taken off my robe.[a]
I don’t want to put it on again.
I have washed my feet.
I don’t want to get them dirty again.”
4 But my lover put his hand through the opening,[b]
and I felt sorry for him.[c]
5 I got up to open for my lover,
myrrh dripping from my hands,
myrrh scented lotion dripped from my fingers
onto the handles of the lock.
6 I opened for my lover,
but my lover had turned away and was gone!
I nearly died
when he came and went.[d]
I looked for him,
but I couldn’t find him.
I called for him,
but he didn’t answer me.
7 The guards patrolling the city found me.
They hit me.
They hurt me.
The guards on the wall
took my robe from me.
8 I tell you, women of Jerusalem,
if you find my lover, tell him I am weak with love.[e]
The Women of Jerusalem Answer Her
9 Beautiful woman,
how is your lover different from other lovers?
Is your lover better than other lovers?
Is that why you ask us to make this promise?
She Answers the Women of Jerusalem
10 My lover is tanned and radiant.
He would stand out among 10,000 men.
11 His head is like the purest gold.
His hair is curly and as black as a raven.
12 His eyes are like doves by a stream,
like doves in a pool of milk,
like a jewel in its setting.
13 His cheeks are like a garden of spices,
like flowers used for perfume.
His lips are like lilies,
dripping with liquid myrrh.
14 His arms are like gold rods,
filled with jewels.
His body is like smooth ivory
with sapphires set in it.
15 His legs are like marble pillars
on bases of fine gold.
He stands tall
like the finest cedar tree in Lebanon!
16 Yes, women of Jerusalem, my lover is everything I desire.
His mouth is the sweetest of all.
This is my lover;
this is my darling.
The Women of Jerusalem Speak to Her
6 Beautiful woman,
where has your lover gone?
Which way did your lover go?
Tell us so that we can help you look for him.
She Answers the Women of Jerusalem
2 My lover has gone down to his garden,
where sweet-smelling spices grow.
There, like a sheep, he will eat the grass,
and he will enjoy the lilies.
3 I belong to my lover, and my lover belongs to me.
He is the one feeding among the lilies.
He Speaks to Her
4 My darling, you are as beautiful as Tirzah,[f]
as pleasant as Jerusalem,
as awesome as the stars in the sky.[g]
5 Don’t look at me!
Your eyes excite me too much!
And your hair is long and flowing,
like little goats dancing down the slopes of Mount Gilead.
6 Your teeth are white like ewes[h]
just coming from their bath.
They all give birth to twins.
Not one of them has lost a baby.
7 Your cheeks under your veil
are like slices of pomegranate.
8 There might be 60 queens
and 80 slave women,
and young women too many to count,
9 but there is only one woman for me,
my dove, my perfect one.
She is the favorite of her mother,
her mother’s favorite child.
The young women see her and praise her.
Even the queens and slave women praise her.
The Women Praise Her
10 Who is that young woman?
She shines out like the dawn.
She is as pretty as the moon.
She is as bright as the sun.
She is as awesome
as the stars in the sky.
He Speaks to Her
11 I went down to the grove of walnut trees,
to see the fruit of the valley,
to see if the vines were in bloom,
to see if the pomegranates had budded.
12 I was so excited
when she put me in the royal chariot.[i]
The Women of Jerusalem Call to Her
13 Come back, come back, Shulamith[j]!
Come back, come back, so we may look at you.
Why are you staring at Shulamith,
as she dances the Mahanaim dance[k]?
He Praises Her Beauty
7 Princess,[l] your feet are beautiful in those sandals.
The curves of your thighs are like jewelry made by an artist.
2 Your navel is like a round cup[m];
may it never be without wine.
Your belly is like a pile of wheat
surrounded by lilies.
3 Your breasts are like twin fawns
of a young 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 the tower of Lebanon
that looks toward Damascus.
5 Your head is like Carmel,
and the hair on your head is like silk.
Your long flowing hair
captures even a king.
6 You are so beautiful and so pleasant,
a lovely, delightful young woman!
7 You are tall—
as tall as a palm tree.
And your breasts are like
the clusters of fruit on that tree.
8 I would love to climb that tree
and take hold of its branches.
May your breasts be like clusters of grapes
and your fragrance[n] like apples.
9 May your mouth be like the best wine,
flowing straight to my love,
flowing gently to the sleeper’s lips.
She Speaks to Him
10 I belong to my lover,
and he wants me.
11 Come, my lover,
let’s go out into the field;
let’s spend the night in the villages.
12 Let’s get up early and go to the vineyards.
Let’s see if the vines are in bloom.
Let’s see if the blossoms have opened
and if the pomegranates are in bloom.
There I will give you my love.
13 Smell the mandrakes[o]
and all the pleasant flowers by our door.
I have saved many pleasant things for you, my lover,
pleasant things, new and old.
8 If you were a baby, like my little brother nursing at his mother’s breasts,
and if I found you outside,
I could kiss you,
and no one would say it was wrong.
2 I would lead you into my mother’s house,
to the room of she who taught me.
I would give you spiced wine
squeezed from my pomegranate.
She Speaks to the Women
3 His left arm is under my head,
and his right hand holds me.
4 Women of Jerusalem, promise me,
don’t awaken love,
don’t arouse love, until I am ready.[p]
The Women of Jerusalem Speak
5 Who is this woman
coming from the desert, leaning on her lover?
She Speaks to Him
I woke you under the apple tree,
where your mother gave birth to you,
where you were born.
6 Keep me near you like a seal you wear over your heart,
like a signet ring you wear on your hand.
Love is as strong as death.
Passion is as strong as the grave.[q]
Its sparks become a flame,
and it grows to become a great fire[r]!
7 A flood cannot put out love.
Rivers cannot drown love.
Would people despise a man for giving
everything he owns for love?
Her Brothers Speak
8 We have a little sister,
and her breasts are not yet grown.
What should we do for our sister
when a man comes asking to marry her?
9 If she were a wall,
we would put silver trim[s] around her.
If she were a door,
we would put a cedar board around her.
She Answers Her Brothers
10 I am a wall,
and my breasts are my towers.
And he is satisfied with me![t]
He Speaks
11 Solomon had a vineyard at Baal Hamon.
He put men in charge of the vineyard.
Each man brought in grapes
worth 1000 shekels[u] of silver.
12 Solomon, you can keep your 1000 shekels.
Give 200 shekels to each man for the grapes he brought.
But I will keep my own vineyard.
He Speaks to Her
13 There you are, sitting in the garden.
Friends are listening to your voice.
Let me hear it too!
She Speaks to Him
14 Hurry, my lover!
Be like a gazelle or a young deer on the mountains of spice.
Your Giving Is a Blessing
9 I really don’t need to write to you about this help for God’s people. 2 I know that you want to help. I have been bragging about you to the people in Macedonia. I told them that you people in Achaia have been ready to give since last year. And your desire to give has made most of the people here ready to give also. 3 But I am sending these brothers to you. I don’t want our bragging about you in this to be for nothing. I want you to be ready just as I said you would be. 4 If any of those from Macedonia come with me, and they find that you are not ready, we will be ashamed. We will be ashamed that we were so sure of you. And you will be ashamed too! 5 So I thought that I should ask these brothers to come there before we do. They will help in getting together the generous gift you promised. Then it will be ready when we come, and it will be seen as a blessing you are giving, not as something you were forced to do.
6 Remember this: The one who plants few seeds will have a small harvest. But the one who plants a lot will have a big harvest. 7 Each one of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give. You should not give if it makes you unhappy or if you feel forced to give. God loves those who are happy to give. 8 And God can give you more blessings than you need, and you will always have plenty of everything. You will have enough to give to every good work. 9 As the Scriptures say,
“He gives generously to the poor;
his goodness will continue forever.” (A)
10 God is the one who gives seed to those who plant, and he gives bread for food. And God will give you spiritual seed and make that seed grow. He will produce a great harvest from your goodness. 11 God will make you rich in every way so that you can always give freely. And your giving through us will make people give thanks to God.
12 The service you are offering helps God’s people with their needs, but that is not all it does. It is also bringing more and more thanks to God. 13 This service is a proof of your faith, and people will praise God because of it. They will praise God that you freely share what you have with them and with all people. They will praise him to see you following the Good News about Christ that you openly accepted. They will praise God because you freely share with them and with all people. 14 And when they pray, they will wish they could be with you. They will feel this way because of the great grace that God gave you. 15 Thanks be to God for his gift that is too wonderful to describe.
To the director: A song of David written when Nathan the prophet came to him after David’s sin with Bathsheba.
51 God, be merciful to me
because of your faithful love.
Because of your great compassion,
erase all the wrongs I have done.
2 Scrub away my guilt.
Wash me clean from my sin.
3 I know I have done wrong.
I remember that sin all the time.
4 I did what you said is wrong.
You are the one I have sinned against.
I say this so that people will know
that I am wrong and you are right.
What you decided is fair.
5 I was born to do wrong,
a sinner before I left my mother’s womb.
6 You want me to be completely loyal,
so put true wisdom deep inside of me.
7 Remove my sin and make me pure.[a]
Wash me until I am whiter than snow!
8 Let me hear sounds of joy and happiness again.
Let the bones you crushed be happy again.
9 Don’t look at my sins.
Erase them all.
10 God, create a pure heart in me,
and make my spirit strong again.
11 Don’t push me away
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Your help made me so happy.
Give me that joy again.
Make my spirit strong and ready to obey you.
13 I will teach the guilty how you want them to live,
and the sinners will come back to you.
14 God, spare me from the punishment of death.[b]
My God, you are the one who saves me!
Let me sing about all the good things you do for me!
15 My Lord, I will open my mouth and sing your praises!
16 You don’t really want sacrifices,
or I would give them to you.
17 The sacrifice that God wants is a humble spirit.
God, you will not turn away someone who comes with a humble heart and is willing to obey you.[c]
18 God, please be good to Zion.
Rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then you can enjoy the kind of sacrifices you want.[d]
You will receive whole burnt offerings,
and people will again offer bulls on your altar.
— 2 —
24 Don’t be friends with people who become angry easily. Don’t stay around quick-tempered people. 25 If you do, you may learn to be like them. Then you will have the same problems they do.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International