1
1Solomon’s Song of Songs.
She#The main male and female speakers (identified primarily on the basis of the gender of the relevant Hebrew forms) are indicated by the captions He and She respectively. The words of others are marked Friends. In some instances the divisions and their captions are debatable.
2Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—
for your love is more delightful than wine.
3Pleasing is the fragrance of your perfumes;
your name is like perfume poured out.
No wonder the young women love you!
4Take me away with you—let us hurry!
Let the king bring me into his chambers.
Friends
We rejoice and delight in you#1:4 The Hebrew is masculine singular.;
we will praise your love more than wine.
She
How right they are to adore you!
5Dark am I, yet lovely,
daughters of Jerusalem,
dark like the tents of Kedar,
like the tent curtains of Solomon.#1:5 Or Salma
6Do not stare at me because I am dark,
because I am darkened by the sun.
My mother’s sons were angry with me
and made me take care of the vineyards;
my own vineyard I had to neglect.
7Tell me, you whom I love,
where you graze your flock
and where you rest your sheep at midday.
Why should I be like a veiled woman
beside the flocks of your friends?
Friends
8If you do not know, most beautiful of women,
follow the tracks of the sheep
and graze your young goats
by the tents of the shepherds.
He
9I liken you, my darling, to a mare
among Pharaoh’s chariot horses.
10Your cheeks are beautiful with earrings,
your neck with strings of jewels.
11We will make you earrings of gold,
studded with silver.
She
12While the king was at his table,
my perfume spread its fragrance.
13My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh
resting between my breasts.
14My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms
from the vineyards of En Gedi.
He
15How beautiful you are, my darling!
Oh, how beautiful!
Your eyes are doves.
She
16How handsome you are, my beloved!
Oh, how charming!
And our bed is verdant.
He
17The beams of our house are cedars;
our rafters are firs.