\NormalFont\ShortTitle{Song of Songs}

{\MT Song of Songs


\par }\ChapOne{1}{\PP \VerseOne{1}The Song of Songs, which is Solomon's.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VS{2}Oh, that he would kiss me with the kisses of his mouth,

\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q for your love is better than wine.


\par }{\Q \VS{3}Your anointing oils have a delightful fragrance;

\par }{\Q your name is like flowing perfume,

\par }{\Q so the young women love you.


\par }{\Q \VS{4}Take me with you, and we will run.

\par }{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q The king has brought me into his rooms.

\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q We are glad; We rejoice about you;

\par }{\Q let us celebrate your love; it is better than wine.

\par }{\Q It is natural for the other women to adore you.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the other women

\par }{\Q \VS{5}I am dark but lovely,

\par }{\Q you daughters of Jerusalem—

\par }{\Q dark like the tents of Kedar,

\par }{\Q lovely like the curtains of Solomon.


\par }{\Q \VS{6}Do not stare at me because I am dark,

\par }{\Q because the sun has scorched me.

\par }{\Q My mother's sons were angry with me;

\par }{\Q they made me keeper of the vineyards,

\par }{\Q but my own vineyard I have not kept.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q \VS{7}Tell me, you whom my soul loves,

\par }{\Q where do you feed your flock?

\par }{\Q Where do you rest your flock at noontime?

\par }{\Q Why should I be like someone who wanders

\par }{\Q beside the flocks of your companions?


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The man speaking to the woman

\par }{\Q \VS{8}If you do not know, most beautiful among women,

\par }{\Q follow the tracks of my flock,

\par }{\Q and pasture your young goats near the shepherds' tents.


\par }{\Q \VS{9}I compare you, my love,

\par }{\Q to a mare among Pharaoh's chariot horses.


\par }{\Q \VS{10}Your cheeks are beautiful with ornaments,

\par }{\Q your neck with strings of jewels.


\par }{\Q \VS{11}We will make for you gold ornaments

\par }{\Q with silver studs.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VS{12}While the king lay on his couch,

\par }{\Q my nard emitted its fragrance.


\par }{\Q \VS{13}My beloved is to me like a bag of myrrh

\par }{\Q that spends the night lying between my breasts.


\par }{\Q \VS{14}My beloved is to me like a cluster of henna flowers

\par }{\Q in the vineyards of En Gedi.


\par }{\SP The man speaking to the woman

\par }{\Q \VS{15}Listen, you are beautiful, my love;

\par }{\Q listen, you are beautiful;

\par }{\Q your eyes are doves.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q \VS{16}Listen, you are handsome, my beloved, how handsome.

\par }{\Q The lush plants are our bed.


\par }{\Q \VS{17}The beams of our house are cedars;

\par }{\Q our rafters are firs.



\par }\Chap{2}{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q \VerseOne{1}I am a meadow flower of Sharon,

\par }{\Q a lily of the valleys.


\par }{\SP The man speaking to the woman

\par }{\Q \VS{2}As a lily among thorns,

\par }{\Q so is my love among the young women.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VS{3}As an apricot tree among the trees of the forest,

\par }{\Q so is my beloved among the young men.

\par }{\Q I sit down under his shadow with great delight,

\par }{\Q and his fruit is sweet to my taste.


\par }{\Q \VS{4}He brought me to the house of wine,

\par }{\Q and his banner over me was love.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q \VS{5}Revive me with raisin cakes and refresh me with apricots,

\par }{\Q for I am weak with love.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VS{6}His left hand is under my head,

\par }{\Q and his right hand embraces me.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman speaking to the other women

\par }{\Q \VS{7}I want you to swear, daughters of Jerusalem,

\par }{\Q by the gazelles and the does of the fields,

\par }{\Q that you will not awaken or arouse love

\par }{\Q until she pleases.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VS{8}There is the sound of my beloved! Listen, here he comes,

\par }{\Q leaping over the mountains,

\par }{\Q jumping over the hills.


\par }{\Q \VS{9}My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag;

\par }{\Q look, he is standing behind our wall,

\par }{\Q gazing through the window,

\par }{\Q peering through the lattice.


\par }{\Q \VS{10}My beloved spoke to me and said,

\par }{\Q “Arise, my love;

\par }{\Q My beautiful one, come away with me.


\par }{\Q \VS{11}Look, the winter is past;

\par }{\Q the rain is over and gone.


\par }{\Q \VS{12}The flowers have appeared in the land;

\par }{\Q the time for pruning and the singing of birds has come,

\par }{\Q and the sound of the doves is heard in our land.


\par }{\Q \VS{13}The fig tree ripens her green figs,

\par }{\Q and the vines are in blossom;

\par }{\Q they give off their fragrance.

\par }{\Q Arise, my love, my beautiful one, and come away.


\par }{\Q \VS{14}My dove, in the clefts of the rock,

\par }{\Q in the secret clefts of the mountain crags,

\par }{\Q let me see your face.

\par }{\Q Let me hear your voice,

\par }{\Q for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely.”


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q \VS{15}Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes

\par }{\Q that spoil vineyards,

\par }{\Q for our vineyard is in blossom.


\par }{\Q \VS{16}My beloved is mine, and I am his;

\par }{\Q he grazes among the lilies with pleasure.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q \VS{17}Go away, my beloved,

\par }{\Q before the soft winds of dawn blow and the shadows flee away.

\par }{\Q Go away; be like a gazelle or a young stag

\par }{\Q on the rugged mountains.



\par }\Chap{3}{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VerseOne{1}At night on my bed

\par }{\Q I was longing for him whom my soul loves;

\par }{\Q I looked for him, but I could not find him.


\par }{\Q \VS{2}I said to myself, “I will get up and go through the city,

\par }{\Q through the streets and squares;

\par }{\Q I will search for him whom my soul loves.”

\par }{\Q I searched for him, but I did not find him.


\par }{\Q \VS{3}The watchmen found me as they were making their rounds in the city.

\par }{\Q I asked them, “Have you seen him whom my soul loves?”


\par }{\Q \VS{4}It was only a little while after I had passed them

\par }{\Q that I found him whom my soul loves.

\par }{\Q I held him and would not let him go

\par }{\Q until I had brought him into my mother's house,

\par }{\Q into the bedroom of the one who had conceived me.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman speaking to the other women

\par }{\Q \VS{5}I want you to swear, daughters of Jerusalem,

\par }{\Q by the gazelles and the does of the fields,

\par }{\Q that you will not awaken or arouse love

\par }{\Q until she pleases.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VS{6}What is that coming up from the wilderness

\par }{\Q like a column of smoke,

\par }{\Q perfumed with myrrh and frankincense,

\par }{\Q with all the powders sold by merchants?


\par }{\Q \VS{7}Look, it is the bed of Solomon;

\par }{\Q sixty warriors surround it,

\par }{\Q sixty soldiers of Israel.


\par }{\Q \VS{8}All of them are skilled with a sword and are experienced in warfare.

\par }{\Q Every man has his sword at his side,

\par }{\Q armed against the terrors of the night.


\par }{\Q \VS{9}King Solomon made himself a sedan chair

\par }{\Q of the wood from Lebanon.


\par }{\Q \VS{10}Its posts were made of silver;

\par }{\Q the back was made of gold, and the seat of purple cloth.

\par }{\Q Its interior was decorated with love

\par }{\Q by the daughters of Jerusalem.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the women of Jerusalem

\par }{\Q \VS{11}Go out, daughters of Zion, and gaze on King Solomon,

\par }{\Q bearing the crown with which his mother crowned him

\par }{\Q on his wedding day,

\par }{\Q on the day of the joy of his heart.



\par }\Chap{4}{\SP The man speaking to the woman

\par }{\Q \VerseOne{1}Oh, you are beautiful, my love; you are beautiful.

\par }{\Q Your eyes are doves behind your veil.

\par }{\Q Your hair is like a flock of goats

\par }{\Q going down from Mount Gilead.


\par }{\Q \VS{2}Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn ewes,

\par }{\Q coming up from the washing place.

\par }{\Q Each one has a twin,

\par }{\Q and none among them is bereaved.


\par }{\Q \VS{3}Your lips are like a thread of scarlet;

\par }{\Q your mouth is lovely.

\par }{\Q Your cheeks are like pomegranate halves

\par }{\Q behind your veil.


\par }{\Q \VS{4}Your neck is like the tower of David built in rows of stone,

\par }{\Q with a thousand shields hanging on it,

\par }{\Q all the shields of soldiers.


\par }{\Q \VS{5}Your two breasts are like two fawns,

\par }{\Q twins of a gazelle,

\par }{\Q grazing among the lilies.


\par }{\Q \VS{6}Until the dawn arrives and the shadows flee away,

\par }{\Q I will go to the mountain of myrrh

\par }{\Q and to the hill of frankincense.


\par }{\Q \VS{7}You are beautiful in every way, my love

\par }{\Q and there is no blemish in you.


\par }{\Q \VS{8}Come with me from Lebanon, my bride.

\par }{\Q Come with me from Lebanon;

\par }{\Q come from the top of Amana,

\par }{\Q from the top of Senir and Hermon,

\par }{\Q from lions' dens,

\par }{\Q from mountain dens of leopards.


\par }{\Q \VS{9}You have stolen my heart, my sister, my bride;

\par }{\Q you have stolen my heart,

\par }{\Q with just one look at me,

\par }{\Q with just one jewel of your necklace.


\par }{\Q \VS{10}How beautiful is your love, my sister, my bride!

\par }{\Q How much better is your love than wine,

\par }{\Q and the fragrance of your perfume than any spice.


\par }{\Q \VS{11}Your lips, my bride, drip honey;

\par }{\Q honey and milk are under your tongue;

\par }{\Q the fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon.


\par }{\Q \VS{12}My sister, my bride is a garden locked up,

\par }{\Q a garden locked up, a spring that is sealed.


\par }{\Q \VS{13}Your branches are a grove of pomegranate trees with choice fruits,

\par }{\Q and of henna and nard plants,


\par }{\Q \VS{14}Nard and saffron,

\par }{\Q calamus and cinnamon with all kinds of spices,

\par }{\Q myrrh and aloes with all the finest spices.


\par }{\Q \VS{15}You are a garden spring,

\par }{\Q a well of fresh water,

\par }{\Q streams flowing down from Lebanon.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q \VS{16}Awake, north wind; come, south wind;

\par }{\Q blow on my garden so that its spices may give off their fragrance.

\par }{\Q May my beloved come into his garden

\par }{\Q and eat some of its choice fruit.



\par }\Chap{5}{\SP The man speaking to the woman

\par }{\Q \VerseOne{1}I have come into my garden, my sister, my bride;

\par }{\Q I have gathered my myrrh with my spice.

\par }{\Q I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey;

\par }{\Q I have drunk my wine with my milk.

\par }{\SP The friends speaking to the man and the woman

\par }{\Q Eat, friends;

\par }{\Q drink and be drunk with love.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VS{2}I was asleep, but my heart was awake.

\par }{\Q There is the sound of my beloved knocking and saying,

\par }{\Q “Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled one,

\par }{\Q for my head is wet with dew,

\par }{\Q my hair with the night's dampness.”


\par }{\Q \VS{3}“I have taken off my robe; must I put it on again?

\par }{\Q I have washed my feet; must I get them dirty?”


\par }{\Q \VS{4}My beloved put in his hand through the opening of the door latch,

\par }{\Q and my heart was stirred up for him.


\par }{\Q \VS{5}I got up to open the door for my beloved;

\par }{\Q my hands were dripping with myrrh,

\par }{\Q my fingers with moist myrrh,

\par }{\Q on the door handle.


\par }{\Q \VS{6}I opened the door for my beloved,

\par }{\Q but my beloved had turned and gone.

\par }{\Q My heart sank when he spoke.
\FTNT{*}{{\FR 5:6 }{\FT{Some versions read
}}{\FQA{sank because he had turned away
 .
}}}

\par }{\Q I looked for him, but I did not find him;

\par }{\Q I called him, but he did not answer me.


\par }{\Q \VS{7}The watchmen found me as they were making their rounds in the city.

\par }{\Q They struck me and wounded me;

\par }{\Q the guards on the walls took away my cloak from me.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the women of the city

\par }{\Q \VS{8}I want you to swear, daughters of Jerusalem,

\par }{\Q that if you find my beloved—

\par }{\Q What will you make known to him?—

\par }{\Q that I am sick from love.


\par }{\SP The women of the city speaking to the woman

\par }{\Q \VS{9}How is your beloved better than another beloved man,

\par }{\Q most beautiful among women?

\par }{\Q Why is your beloved better than another beloved,

\par }{\Q that you ask us to take an oath like this?


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman speaking to the women of the city

\par }{\Q \VS{10}My beloved is radiant and ruddy,

\par }{\Q outstanding among ten thousand.


\par }{\Q \VS{11}His head is the purest gold;

\par }{\Q his hair is curly and as black as a raven.


\par }{\Q \VS{12}His eyes are like doves beside streams of water,

\par }{\Q bathed in milk, mounted like jewels.


\par }{\Q \VS{13}His cheeks are like beds of spices,

\par }{\Q yielding aromatic scents.
\FTNT{†}{{\FR 5:13 }{\FT{Some versions read
}}{\FQA{towers of aromatic scents
 .
}}}

\par }{\Q His lips are lilies, dripping liquid myrrh.


\par }{\Q \VS{14}His arms are rounded gold set with jewels;

\par }{\Q his abdomen is ivory covered with sapphires.


\par }{\Q \VS{15}His legs are pillars of marble, set on bases of pure gold;

\par }{\Q his appearance is like Lebanon, choice as the cedars.


\par }{\Q \VS{16}His mouth is most sweet;

\par }{\Q he is completely lovely.

\par }{\Q This is my beloved, and this is my friend,

\par }{\Q daughters of Jerusalem.



\par }\Chap{6}{\SP The women of Jerusalem speaking to the young woman

\par }{\Q \VerseOne{1}Where has your beloved gone,

\par }{\Q most beautiful among women?

\par }{\Q In what direction has your beloved gone,

\par }{\Q so that we may seek him with you?


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VS{2}My beloved has gone down to his garden,

\par }{\Q to the beds of spices,

\par }{\Q to graze in the garden and to gather lilies.


\par }{\Q \VS{3}I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine;

\par }{\Q he grazes among the lilies with pleasure.


\par }{\SP The man speaking to the woman

\par }{\Q \VS{4}You are as beautiful as Tirzah, my love,

\par }{\Q as lovely as Jerusalem,

\par }{\Q as awe-inspiring as an army with its banners.


\par }{\Q \VS{5}Turn your eyes away from me,

\par }{\Q for they overwhelm me.

\par }{\Q Your hair is like a flock of goats

\par }{\Q going down from the slopes of Gilead.


\par }{\Q \VS{6}Your teeth are like a flock of ewes

\par }{\Q coming up from the washing place.

\par }{\Q Each one has a twin,

\par }{\Q and none among them is bereaved.


\par }{\Q \VS{7}Your cheeks are like pomegranate halves

\par }{\Q behind your veil.


\par }{\SP The man speaking to himself

\par }{\Q \VS{8}There are sixty queens, eighty concubines,

\par }{\Q and young women without number.


\par }{\Q \VS{9}My dove, my undefiled, is the only one;

\par }{\Q she is the only daughter of her mother;

\par }{\Q she is the favorite one of the woman who bore her.

\par }{\Q The young women saw her and called her blessed;

\par }{\Q the queens and the concubines saw her also, and they praised her:


\par }{\SP What the queens and the concubines said

\par }{\Q \VS{10}“Who is this who appears like the dawn,

\par }{\Q as beautiful as the moon,

\par }{\Q as bright as the sun,

\par }{\Q as awe-inspiring as an army with its banners?”


\par }{\SP The man speaking to himself

\par }{\Q \VS{11}I went down into the grove of nut trees

\par }{\Q to see the young growth in the valley,

\par }{\Q to see whether the vines had budded,

\par }{\Q and whether the pomegranates were in bloom.


\par }{\Q \VS{12}I was so happy that I felt

\par }{\Q I was riding in the chariot of a prince.


\par }{\SP The friends speaking to the woman

\par }{\Q \VS{13}Turn back, turn back, you perfect woman;
\FTNT{*}{{\FR 6:13 }{\FT{Some versions read,
}}{\FQA{you woman from Shulam
 .
}}}

\par }{\Q turn back, turn back so that we may gaze on you.

\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the friends

\par }{\Q Why do you gaze on the perfect woman,
\FTNT{†}{{\FR 6:13 }{\FT{Some versions read,
}}{\FQA{on the woman from Shulam
 .
}}}

\par }{\Q as if on the dance between two armies?
\FTNT{‡}{{\FR 6:13 }{\FT{Some versions read,
}}{\FQA{on the dance of Mahanaim
 .
}}}



\par }\Chap{7}{\SP The man speaking to the woman

\par }{\Q \VerseOne{1}How beautiful your feet appear in your sandals, prince's daughter!

\par }{\Q The curves of your thighs are like jewels,

\par }{\Q the work of the hands of a master craftsman.


\par }{\Q \VS{2}Your navel is like a round bowl;

\par }{\Q may it never lack mixed wine.

\par }{\Q Your belly is like a mound of wheat

\par }{\Q encircled with lilies.


\par }{\Q \VS{3}Your two breasts are like two fawns,

\par }{\Q twins of a gazelle.


\par }{\Q \VS{4}Your neck is like a tower of ivory;

\par }{\Q your eyes are the pools in Heshbon

\par }{\Q by the gate of Bath Rabbim.

\par }{\Q Your nose is like the tower in Lebanon

\par }{\Q that looks toward Damascus.


\par }{\Q \VS{5}Your head is on you like Carmel;

\par }{\Q the hair on your head is dark purple.

\par }{\Q The king is held captive by its tresses.


\par }{\Q \VS{6}How beautiful and how lovely you are,

\par }{\Q my love, with delights!
\FTNT{*}{{\FR 7:6 }{\FT{Some versions read
}}{\FQA{are, loved one, with
 .
}}}


\par }{\Q \VS{7}Your height is like that of a date palm tree,

\par }{\Q and your breasts like clusters of fruit.


\par }{\Q \VS{8}I said, “I want to climb that palm tree;

\par }{\Q I will take hold of its branches.”

\par }{\Q May your breasts be like clusters of grapes,

\par }{\Q and may the fragrance of your nose be like apricots.


\par }{\Q \VS{9}May your palate be like the best wine,

\par }{\Q flowing smoothly for my beloved,

\par }{\Q gliding over the lips of those who sleep.
\FTNT{†}{{\FR 7:9 }{\FT{Some versions read
}}{\FQA{over my lips and teeth
 .
}}}


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q \VS{10}I am my beloved's,

\par }{\Q and he desires me.


\par }{\Q \VS{11}Come, my beloved, let us go out into the countryside;

\par }{\Q let us spend the night in the villages.
\FTNT{‡}{{\FR 7:11 }{\FT{Some versions read
}}{\FQA{night among the henna plants
 .
}}}


\par }{\Q \VS{12}Let us rise early to go to the vineyards;

\par }{\Q let us see whether the vines have budded,

\par }{\Q whether their blossoms have opened,

\par }{\Q and whether the pomegranates are in flower.

\par }{\Q There I will give you my love.


\par }{\Q \VS{13}The mandrakes give off their fragrance;

\par }{\Q at the door where we are staying are all sorts of choice fruits, new and old,

\par }{\Q that I have stored up for you, my beloved.



\par }\Chap{8}{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q \VerseOne{1}I wish that you were like my brother,

\par }{\Q who nursed at my mother's breasts.

\par }{\Q Then whenever I met you outside, I could kiss you,

\par }{\Q and no one would despise me.


\par }{\Q \VS{2}I would lead you and bring you into my mother's house—

\par }{\Q she who taught me.

\par }{\Q I would give you spiced wine to drink

\par }{\Q and some of the juice of my pomegranates.


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VS{3}His left hand is under my head

\par }{\Q and his right hand embraces me.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman speaking to the other women

\par }{\Q \VS{4}I want you to swear, daughters of Jerusalem,

\par }{\Q that you will not interrupt our lovemaking

\par }{\Q until it is over.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The women of Jerusalem speaking

\par }{\Q \VS{5}Who is this who is coming up from the wilderness,

\par }{\Q leaning on her beloved?

\par }{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q I awakened you under the apricot tree;

\par }{\Q there your mother conceived you;

\par }{\Q there she gave birth to you, she delivered you.


\par }{\Q \VS{6}Set me as a seal over your heart,

\par }{\Q like a seal on your arm,

\par }{\Q for love is as strong as death.

\par }{\Q Passionate devotion is as unrelenting as Sheol;

\par }{\Q its flames burst out; it is a blazing flame,

\par }{\Q a flame hotter than any other fire.


\par }{\Q \VS{7}Surging waters cannot quench love,

\par }{\Q nor can floods sweep it away.

\par }{\Q If a man gave all the possessions in his house for love,

\par }{\Q the offer would utterly be despised.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman's brothers speaking among themselves

\par }{\Q \VS{8}We have a little sister,

\par }{\Q and her breasts have not yet grown.

\par }{\Q What can we do for our sister

\par }{\Q on the day when she will be promised in marriage?


\par }{\Q \VS{9}If she is a wall,

\par }{\Q we will build on her a tower of silver.

\par }{\Q If she is a door,

\par }{\Q we will adorn her with boards of cedar.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VS{10}I was a wall, but my breasts are now like fortress towers;
\FTNT{*}{{\FR 8:10 }{\FT{Some versions read
}}{\FQA{I am a wall, and my breasts are like fortress towers
 .
}}}

\par }{\Q so I am in his eyes as one who brings peace.
\FTNT{†}{{\FR 8:10 }{\FT{Some versions read
}}{\FQA{so I have found favor in his eyes
 .
}}}


\par }{\SP The woman speaking to herself

\par }{\Q \VS{11}Solomon had a vineyard at Baal Hamon.

\par }{\Q He gave the vineyard to those who would maintain it.

\par }{\Q Each one was to bring a thousand shekels of silver for its fruit.


\par }{\Q \VS{12}My vineyard, my very own, is before me;

\par }{\Q the thousand shekels are for you, Solomon,

\par }{\Q and the two hundred shekels are for those who maintain its fruit.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The man speaking to the woman

\par }{\Q \VS{13}You who live in the gardens,

\par }{\Q my companions are listening for your voice;

\par }{\Q let me hear it.


\par }{\PP \par }
{\SP The woman speaking to the man

\par }{\Q \VS{14}Hurry, my beloved,

\par }{\Q and be like a gazelle or a young stag

\par }{\Q on the mountains of spices.


\par }