Old/New Testament
4 Behold, thou art yafeh, my love; behold, thou art yafeh; thine eyes are yonim (doves) behind your veil; thy hair is like an eder (flock) of goats descending from Mount Gil`ad.
2 Thy teeth are like an eder of sheep that are just shorn, coming up from washing; whereof every one is matched, and none is missing among them.
3 Thy lips are like a thread of scarlet, and thy mouth is naveh (lovely); thy temple is like a half-pomegranate within thy veil.
4 Thy tzavar (neck) is like the migdal Dovid girt with battlements, whereon there hang a thousand mogen [Dovid], all the shields of Gibborim.
5 Thy two breasts are like two ofarim (fawns, young deer) that are twins, which graze among the lilies.
6 Until HaYom (the day) break, and the shadows flee away, I will get me to the har hamor (mountain of myrrh), and to the hill of frankincense.
7 Thou art all yafeh, my love; there is no mum (blemish, spot, defect, flaw) in thee.
8 Come with me from the Levanon, my kallah (bride), with me from the Levanon; come down from the heights of Amanah, from the top of Senir and Chermon, from the dens of the arayot (lions), from the hills of the nemerim (leopards).
9 Thou hast ravished my lev, my sister, my kallah; thou hast ravished my lev with one of thy glances, with one link of thy necklace.
10 How fair is thy love, my sister, my kallah! How much better is thy love than yayin! And the scent of thine perfumes than any spice!
11 Thy lips, O my kallah, drip like the honeycomb; devash and cholov are under thy tongue; and the scent of thy garments is like the scent of the Levanon.
12 A gan (garden) locked is my sister, my kallah; a spring enclosed, a ma’ayan (fountain) sealed.
13 Thy plants are a pardeis (park, paradise) of pomegranates, with pleasant p’ri; henna with spikenard,
14 Spikenard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon, with kol atzei levonah (all kinds of incense trees); myrrh and aloes, with all the finest spices:
15 A na’yan (fountain) of gardens, a be’er (well) of mayim chayyim (well of living waters), and streams from the Levanon.
16 Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south wind; blow upon my gan (garden), that the fragrances thereof may flow out. Let dodi (my beloved) come into his gan (garden), and let him taste its choice pri (fruits).
5 I am come into my gan (garden), my sister, my kallah; I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my devash (honey); I have drunk my yayin with my cholov (milk): Eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, dodim.
2 I sleep, but my lev waketh: it is the voice of dodi (my beloved) that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my yonah (dove) tammati (my undefiled, my perfect one); for my head is filled with tal (dew), and my hair with the drops of the lailah.
3 I have put off my kuttonet (kesones, chiton, robe); how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them?
4 Dodi (my beloved) thrust his hand through the latchopening, my heart began pounding for him.
5 I arose to open to dodi (my beloved); and my hands dripped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the man’ul (lock, door bolt).
6 I opened to dodi (my beloved); but dodi had withdrawn and gone; my nefesh departed when he spoke; I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer.
7 The shomrim (watchmen) that went about the city found me, they beat me, they wounded me; the shomrei hachomat (i.e., the shomrim, the guardians [of the city on the wall]) took away my cloak from me.
8 I charge you, O banot Yerushalayim, if ye find dodi (my beloved), what will ye tell him? Tell him shecholat ahavah ani (I am faint with ahavah, lovesick [see 2:5]).
9 How is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among nashim? How is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?
10 Dodi (my beloved) is radiant and ruddy, unrivaled by ten thousand.
11 His head is like the purest gold, his hair is wavy and shachor (black) as the raven.
12 His eyes are like yonim (doves) by the streams of mayim, washed with cholov, jewels fitly set.
13 His cheeks are like beds of spices, like sweet flowers; his lips like shoshanim (lilies), dripping sweet scented myrrh.
14 His hands are like rods of zahav set with chrysolites; his body is like a polished work of ivory decorated with sapphires.
15 His legs are like pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine zahav; his countenance is like the Levanon, bachor (one being choice) like the cedars.
16 His mouth is most sweet; yea, he is machamaddim (altogether desirable [see Shir HaShirim 2:3; Chaggai 2:7 says Moshiach is the Desired of all Nations]). This is dodi (my beloved), and this is my friend, O banot Yerushalayim. [T.N. The next chapter is commented on extensively beginning at page vii. This section is one of the most important Scriptures in the Bible because it buttresses Isa 7:14 and its foundational meaning.]
3 O senseless Galatians, who bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua was publicly shown forth as having been TALUI AL HAETZ (hanging on the tree, DEVARIM 21:23).
2 This one thing only I want to learn from you: did you receive the Ruach HaKodesh by means of chukim of the Torah (laws of Torah) or by means of the hearing of emunah?
3 You lack seichel; having begun in the Ruach HaKodesh, will you now be perfected in the basar?
4 Did you suffer so many things lashav (in vain)?‖if it really was lashav.
5 So then, Hashem who is supplying to you the Ruach HaKodesh and producing nifla’ot (miracles) among you, by what means does He do it, by chukim of the Torah or by the hearing of emunah?
6 Just as Avraham Avinu HE’EMIN BA’HASHEM VAYACHSHEVEHA LO TZDAKAH ("believed Hashem and it [his faith] was accounted to him for righteousness" BERESHIS 15:6),
7 Know then, that the Bnei HaEmunah, these ones are the Bnei Avraham Avinu!
8 And the Kitvei HaKodesh, having foreseen that Hashem would yatzdik (justify) the Goyim by emunah, preached the Besuras HaGeulah beforehand to Avraham Avinu, saying "VENIVRECHU VO KOL GOYEI HA’ARETZ ("All the families, peoples of the earth will be blessed in you" BERESHIS 18:18; 12:3).
9 For this reason, the ones of emunah receive the bracha (blessing) with Avraham Avinu hama’amin (the believer).
10 For as many as are (seeking "YITZDAK IM HASHEM") by chukim of the Torah are under a kelalah (curse); for it has been written, ARUR ASHER LO YAKIM ES DIVREI HATORAH HAZOT LA’ASOT OTAM ("Cursed is everyone who does not uphold, abide by all the words of this Torah to do them, to carry them out" DEVARIM 27:26; cf Ya 2:10).
11 Now it is clear that not one person is YITZDAK IM HASHEM ("justified with G-d") by the Torah, because V’TZADDIK BE’EMUNATO YICHEYEH ("the righteous by his faith will live" CHABAKUK 2:4).
12 But the Torah is not of emunah, but the man YA’ASEH OTAM VACHAI ("who does these things will live" by them VAYIKRA 18:5).
13 Moshiach redeemed us from the kelalah (curse) of the Torah, having become a kelalah (curse) on behalf of us, because it has been written, KILELAT HASHEM is on NIVLATO TALUI AL HAETZ ("Curse of G-d is on the NEVELAH (body, corpse) being hanged on the tree" DEVARIM 21:23),
14 In order that to the Goyim the Bracha of Avraham Avinu might come by Moshiach Yehoshua, that the havtachah (promise) of the Ruach haKodesh we might receive through emunah.
15 Achim B’Moshiach, I speak according to human dimyon (analogy). Even a brit (covenant) having been confirmed by Bnei Adam no one sets aside or adds to it.
16 Now to Avraham Avinu were spoken the havtachot (promises) and to his ZERA ("seed" BERESHIS 22:18). He does not say V’LIZERAEHCHAH ("and to your seeds"), as concerning many, but as concerning one, "and to the ZERA of you", and that ZERA is Moshiach.
17 And this I say: a brit (covenant), which was previously confirmed by Hashem, cannot be annulled so as to abolish the havtachah (promise) by the Mattan Torah‖which was given arba me’ot usheloshim shanah [four hundred and thirty years later SHEMOT 12:40]).
18 For if the nachalah (inheritance) is based on Torah, it is no longer based on havtachah (promise); but Hashem has given the nachalah to Avraham Avinu by havtachah (promise).
19 Why then the Mattan Torah (Giving of the Torah)? The Torah was added because of peysha’im, until the ZERA (Moshiach) should come to whom the havtachah had been made (BERESHIS 22:18). Now the Torah was administered through malachim (DEVARIM 33:2; TEHILLIM 68:18) by the hand of a metavech (VAYIKRA 26:46; BAMIDBAR 36:13).
20 Now the metavech is not for only one, but Elohim hu echad (DEVARIM 6:4).
21 Is the Torah, mimeila (consequently, as a result), against the havtachot (promises) of Hashem? Chas v’Shalom (G-d forbid!)! For if Torah had been given that had the ko’ach (power) to affect hitkhadshut (regeneration), then to be YITZDAK IM HASHEM ("justified with G-d") would indeed have been based on chukim of the Torah.
22 But the Kitvei HaKodesh consigned all things under HaChet (Sin) [Ro 3:9], that the havtachah (promise) might be given by emunah in Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua to the ma’aminim.
23 But before Emunah came, we were being held in custody, being confined and guarded for the about-to-be- revealed Emunah.
24 This is the result: the Torah functioned as our omenet (governess) to lead us to Moshiach, that by emunah we might be YITZDAK IM HASHEM.
25 But Emunah having come, we are no longer under an omenet (governess).
26 For through emunah in Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua, you are all yeladim of Elohim.
27 For as many as have had a tevilah into Moshiach have clothed yourselves with Moshiach.
28 There is not Yehudi nor Yevani (Greek), there is not eved (servant) nor Ben Chorin (freedman), there is not zachar (male) nor nekevah (female), for you are all echad in Moshiach Yehoshua.
29 And, if you belong to Moshiach (YESHAYAH 53:10), then you are of the ZERA of Avraham Avinu, you are yoreshim (heirs) according to the havtachah (promise).
Copyright © 2002, 2003, 2008, 2010, 2011 by Artists for Israel International