Song of Solomon 1


Solomon's Love for a Shulamite Girl
¹ The song of songs, which is Solomon's.
       

S The Banquet


The Shulamite
² Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth--
        For your love is better than wine.
        ³Because of the fragrance of your good ointments,
        Your name is ointment poured forth;
        Therefore the virgins love you.
        ⁴Draw me away!
        We will run after you.
        The king has brought me into his chambers.
        We will be glad and rejoice in you.


        We will remember 1your love more than wine.
        Rightly do they love 1you.


       

The Daughters of Jerusalem


The Shulamite


The Daughters of Jerusalem


The Shulamite
⁵ I am dark, but lovely,
        O daughters of Jerusalem,
        Like the tents of Kedar,
        Like the curtains of Solomon.
        ⁶Do not look upon me, because I am dark,
        Because the sun has tanned me.
        My mother's sons were angry with me;
        They made me the keeper of the vineyards,
        But my own vineyard I have not kept.
       

(To Her Beloved)
⁷ Tell me, O you whom I love,
        Where you feed your flock,
        Where you make it rest at noon.
        For why should I be as one who veils herself
        By the flocks of your companions?
       

The Beloved
⁸ If you do not know, O fairest among women,
        Follow in the footsteps of the flock,
        And feed your little goats
        Beside the shepherds' tents.
        ⁹I have compared you, my love,
        To my filly among Pharaoh's chariots.
        ¹⁰Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments,
        Your neck with chains of gold.
       

The Daughters of Jerusalem
¹¹ We will make you ornaments of gold
        With studs of silver.
       

The Shulamite
¹² While the king is at his table,
        My spikenard sends forth its fragrance.
        ¹³A bundle of myrrh is my beloved to me,
        That lies all night between my breasts.
        ¹⁴My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blooms
        In the vineyards of En Gedi.
       

The Beloved
¹⁵ Behold, you are fair, my love!
        Behold, you are fair!
        You have dove's eyes.
       

The Shulamite
¹⁶ Behold, you are handsome, my beloved!
        Yes, pleasant!
        Also our bed is green.
        ¹⁷The beams of our houses are cedar,
        And our rafters of fir.

Song of Solomon 2


A Country Girl in a Palace
¹ I am the rose of Sharon,
        And the lily of the valleys.
       

The Beloved
² Like a lily among thorns,
        So is my love among the daughters.
       

The Shulamite
³ Like an apple tree among the trees of the woods,
        So is my beloved among the sons.
        I sat down in his shade with great delight,
        And his fruit was sweet to my taste.
       

The Shulamite to the Daughters of Jerusalem
⁴ He brought me to the banqueting house,
        And his banner over me was love.
        ⁵Sustain me with cakes of raisins,
        Refresh me with apples,
        For I am lovesick.


        ⁶His left hand is under my head,
        And his right hand embraces me.
        ⁷I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
        By the gazelles or by the does of the field,
        Do not stir up nor awaken love
        Until it pleases.
       

S The Beloved's Request


The Shulamite
⁸ The voice of my beloved!
        Behold, he comes
        Leaping upon the mountains,
        Skipping upon the hills.
        ⁹My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag.
        Behold, he stands behind our wall;
        He is looking through the windows,
        Gazing through the lattice.


        ¹⁰My beloved spoke, and said to me:
        "Rise up, my love, my fair one,
        And come away.
        ¹¹For lo, the winter is past,
        The rain is over and gone.
        ¹²The flowers appear on the earth;
        The time of singing has come,
        And the voice of the turtledove
        Is heard in our land.
        ¹³The fig tree puts forth her green figs,
        And the vines with the tender grapes
        Give a good smell.
        Rise up, my love, my fair one,
        And come away!


        ¹⁴"O my dove, in the clefts of the rock,
        In the secret places of the cliff,
        Let me see your face,
        Let me hear your voice;
        For your voice is sweet,
        And your face is lovely."
       

Her Brothers
¹⁵ Catch us the foxes,
        The little foxes that spoil the vines,
        For our vines have tender grapes.
       

The Shulamite
¹⁶ My beloved is mine, and I am his.
        He feeds his flock among the lilies.
       

(To Her Beloved)
¹⁷ Until the day breaks
        And the shadows flee away,
        Turn, my beloved,
        And be like a gazelle
        Or a young stag
        Upon the mountains of Bether.

Song of Solomon 3


A Troubled Night


The Shulamite Seeks Her True Love


The Shulamite
¹ By night on my bed I sought the one I love;
        I sought him, but I did not find him.
        ²"I will rise now," I said,
        "And go about the city;
        In the streets and in the squares
        I will seek the one I love."
        I sought him, but I did not find him.
        ³The watchmen who go about the city found me;
        I said,
        "Have you seen the one I love?"


        ⁴Scarcely had I passed by them,
        When I found the one I love.
        I held him and would not let him go,
        Until I had brought him to the house of my mother,
        And into the chamber of her who conceived me.


        ⁵I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
        By the gazelles or by the does of the field,
        Do not stir up nor awaken love
        Until it pleases.
       

S The Coming of Solomon


The Shulamite
⁶ Who is this coming out of the wilderness
        Like pillars of smoke,
        Perfumed with myrrh and frankincense,
        With all the merchant's fragrant powders?
        ⁷Behold, it is Solomon's couch,
        With sixty valiant men around it,
        Of the valiant of Israel.
        ⁸They all hold swords,
        Being expert in war.
        Every man has his sword on his thigh
        Because of fear in the night.


        ⁹Of the wood of Lebanon
        Solomon the King
        Made himself a palanquin:
        ¹⁰He made its pillars of silver,
        Its support of gold,
        Its seat of purple,
        Its interior paved with love
        By the daughters of Jerusalem.
        ¹¹Go forth, O daughters of Zion,
        And see King Solomon with the crown
        With which his mother crowned him
        On the day of his wedding,
        The day of the gladness of his heart.

Song of Solomon 4


S The Bridegroom Praises the Bride


The Beloved
¹ Behold, you are fair, my love!
        Behold, you are fair!
        You have dove's eyes behind your veil.
        Your hair is like a flock of goats,
        Going down from Mount Gilead.
        ²Your teeth are like a flock of shorn sheep
        Which have come up from the washing,
        Every one of which bears twins,
        And none is barren among them.
        ³Your lips are like a strand of scarlet,
        And your mouth is lovely.
        Your temples behind your veil
        Are like a piece of pomegranate.
        ⁴Your neck is like the tower of David,
        Built for an armory,
        On which hang a thousand bucklers,
        All shields of mighty men.
        ⁵Your two breasts are like two fawns,
        Twins of a gazelle,
        Which feed among the lilies.


        ⁶Until the day breaks
        And the shadows flee away,
        I will go my way to the mountain of myrrh
        And to the hill of frankincense.


        ⁷You are all fair, my love,
        And there is no spot in you.
        ⁸Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse,
        With me from Lebanon.
        Look from the top of Amana,
        From the top of Senir and Hermon,
        From the lions' dens,
        From the mountains of the leopards.


        ⁹You have ravished my heart,
        My sister, my spouse;
        You have ravished my heart
        With one look of your eyes,
        With one link of your necklace.
        ¹⁰How fair is your love,
        My sister, my spouse!
        How much better than wine is your love,
        And the scent of your perfumes
        Than all spices!
        ¹¹Your lips, O my spouse,
        Drip as the honeycomb;
        Honey and milk are under your tongue;
        And the fragrance of your garments
        Is like the fragrance of Lebanon.


        ¹²A garden enclosed
        Is my sister, my spouse,
        A spring shut up,
        A fountain sealed.
        ¹³Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates
        With pleasant fruits,
        Fragrant henna with spikenard,
        ¹⁴Spikenard and saffron,
        Calamus and cinnamon,
        With all trees of frankincense,
        Myrrh and aloes,
        With all the chief spices--
        ¹⁵A fountain of gardens,
        A well of living waters,
        And streams from Lebanon.
       

The Shulamite
¹⁶ Awake, O north wind,
        And come, O south!
        Blow upon my garden,
        That its spices may flow out.
        Let my beloved come to his garden
        And eat its pleasant fruits.

Song of Solomon 5


The Bride Praises the Bridegroom


The Beloved
¹ I have come to my garden, my sister, my spouse;
        I have gathered my myrrh with my spice;
        I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey;
        I have drunk my wine with my milk.
        Eat, O friends!
        Drink, yes, drink deeply,
        O beloved ones!
       

(To His Friends)


S The Shulamite's Troubled Evening


The Shulamite
² I sleep, but my heart is awake;
        It is the voice of my beloved!
        He knocks, saying,
        "Open for me, my sister, my love,
        My dove, my perfect one;
        For my head is covered with dew,
        My locks with the drops of the night."


        ³I have taken off my robe;
        How can I put it on again?
        I have washed my feet;
        How can I defile them?
        ⁴My beloved put his hand
        By the latch of the door,
        And my heart yearned for him.
        ⁵I arose to open for my beloved,
        And my hands dripped with myrrh,
        My fingers with liquid myrrh,
        On the handles of the lock.


        ⁶I opened for my beloved,
        But my beloved had turned away and was gone.
        My heart leaped up when he spoke.
        I sought him, but I could not find him;
        I called him, but he gave me no answer.
        ⁷The watchmen who went about the city found me.
        They struck me, they wounded me;
        The keepers of the walls
        Took my veil away from me.
        ⁸I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
        If you find my beloved,
        That you tell him I am lovesick!
       

The Daughters of Jerusalem
⁹ What is your beloved
        More than another beloved,
        O fairest among women?
        What is your beloved
        More than another beloved,
        That you so charge us?
       

The Shulamite
¹⁰ My beloved is white and ruddy,
        Chief among ten thousand.
        ¹¹His head is like the finest gold;
        His locks are wavy,
        And black as a raven.
        ¹²His eyes are like doves
        By the rivers of waters,
        Washed with milk,
        And fitly set.
        ¹³His cheeks are like a bed of spices,
        Banks of scented herbs.
        His lips are lilies,
        Dripping liquid myrrh.


        ¹⁴His hands are rods of gold
        Set with beryl.
        His body is carved ivory
        Inlaid with sapphires.
        ¹⁵His legs are pillars of marble
        Set on bases of fine gold.
        His countenance is like Lebanon,
        Excellent as the cedars.
        ¹⁶His mouth is most sweet,
        Yes, he is altogether lovely.
        This is my beloved,
        And this is my friend,
        O daughters of Jerusalem!

Song of Solomon 6


I Am My Beloved's


The Daughters of Jerusalem
¹ Where has your beloved gone,
        O fairest among women?
        Where has your beloved turned aside,
        That we may seek him with you?
       

The Shulamite
² My beloved has gone to his garden,
        To the beds of spices,
        To feed his flock in the gardens,
        And to gather lilies.
        ³I am my beloved's,
        And my beloved is mine.
        He feeds his flock among the lilies.
       

S Praise of the Shulamite's Beauty


The Beloved
⁴ O my love, you are as beautiful as Tirzah,
        Lovely as Jerusalem,
        Awesome as an army with banners!
        ⁵Turn your eyes away from me,
        For they have overcome me.
        Your hair is like a flock of goats
        Going down from Gilead.
        ⁶Your teeth are like a flock of sheep
        Which have come up from the washing;
        Every one bears twins,
        And none is barren among them.
        ⁷Like a piece of pomegranate
        Are your temples behind your veil.


        ⁸There are sixty queens
        And eighty concubines,
        And virgins without number.
        ⁹My dove, my perfect one,
        Is the only one,
        The only one of her mother,
        The favorite of the one who bore her.
        The daughters saw her
        And called her blessed,
        The queens and the concubines,
        And they praised her.


        ¹⁰Who is she who looks forth as the morning,
        Fair as the moon,
        Clear as the sun,
        Awesome as an army with banners?
       

The Shulamite
¹¹ I went down to the garden of nuts
        To see the verdure of the valley,
        To see whether the vine had budded
        And the pomegranates had bloomed.
        ¹²Before I was even aware,
        My soul had made me
        As the chariots of my noble people.
       

The Beloved and His Friends
¹³ Return, return, O Shulamite;
        Return, return, that we may look upon you!
        What would you see in the Shulamite--
        As it were, the dance of the two camps?

Song of Solomon 7


The Shulamite


Expressions of Praise


The Beauty of the Shulamite Girl


The Beloved
¹ How beautiful are your feet in sandals,
        O prince's daughter!
        The curves of your thighs are like jewels,
        The work of the hands of a skillful workman.
        ²Your navel is a rounded goblet;
        It lacks no blended beverage.
        Your waist is a heap of wheat
        Set about with lilies.
        ³Your two breasts are like two fawns,
        Twins of a gazelle.
        ⁴Your neck is like an ivory tower,
        Your eyes like the pools in Heshbon
        By the gate of Bath Rabbim.
        Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon
        Which looks toward Damascus.
        ⁵Your head crowns you like Mount Carmel,
        And the hair of your head is like purple;
        A king is held captive by your tresses.


        ⁶How fair and how pleasant you are,
        O love, with your delights!
        ⁷This stature of yours is like a palm tree,
        And your breasts like its clusters.
        ⁸I said, "I will go up to the palm tree,
        I will take hold of its branches."
        Let now your breasts be like clusters of the vine,
        The fragrance of your breath like apples,
        ⁹And the roof of your mouth like the best wine.
        The wine goes down smoothly for my beloved,
        Moving gently the lips of sleepers.
       

The Shulamite
¹⁰ I am my beloved's,
        And his desire is toward me.


        ¹¹Come, my beloved,
        Let us go forth to the field;
        Let us lodge in the villages.
        ¹²Let us get up early to the vineyards;
        Let us see if the vine has budded,
        Whether the grape blossoms are open,
        And the pomegranates are in bloom.
        There I will give you my love.
        ¹³The mandrakes give off a fragrance,
        And at our gates are pleasant fruits,
        All manner, new and old,
        Which I have laid up for you, my beloved.

Song of Solomon 8


Lovers Reunited at Their Country Home
¹ Oh, that you were like my brother,
        Who nursed at my mother's breasts!
        If I should find you outside,
        I would kiss you;
        I would not be despised.
        ²I would lead you and bring you
        Into the house of my mother,
        She who used to instruct me.
        I would cause you to drink of spiced wine,
        Of the juice of my pomegranate.
       

(To the Daughters of Jerusalem)
³ His left hand is under my head,
        And his right hand embraces me.
        ⁴I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
        Do not stir up nor awaken love
        Until it pleases.
       

S Love Renewed in Lebanon


A Relative
⁵ Who is this coming up from the wilderness,
        Leaning upon her beloved?


        I awakened you under the apple tree.
        There your mother brought you forth;
        There she who bore you brought you forth.
       

The Shulamite to Her Beloved
⁶ Set me as a seal upon your heart,
        As a seal upon your arm;
        For love is as strong as death,
        Jealousy as cruel as the grave;
        Its flames are flames of fire,
        A most vehement flame.


        ⁷Many waters cannot quench love,
        Nor can the floods drown it.
        If a man would give for love
        All the wealth of his house,
        It would be utterly despised.
       

The Shulamite's Brothers
⁸ We have a little sister,
        And she has no breasts.
        What shall we do for our sister
        In the day when she is spoken for?
        ⁹If she is a wall,
        We will build upon her
        A battlement of silver;
        And if she is a door,
        We will enclose her
        With boards of cedar.
       

The Shulamite
¹⁰ I am a wall,
        And my breasts like towers;
        Then I became in his eyes
        As one who found peace.
        ¹¹Solomon had a vineyard at Baal Hamon;
        He leased the vineyard to keepers;
        Everyone was to bring for its fruit
        A thousand silver coins.
       

(To Solomon)
¹² My own vineyard is before me.
        You, O Solomon, may have a thousand,
        And those who tend its fruit two hundred.
       

he Beloved
¹³ You who dwell in the gardens,
        The companions listen for your voice--
        Let me hear it!
       

The Shulamite
¹⁴ Make haste, my beloved,
        And be like a gazelle
        Or a young stag
        On the mountains of spices.