1  On my bed ^rby night

I sought ^shim whom my soul loves;

^tI sought him, but found him not.

2  I will rise now and go about the city,

in ^uthe streets and in the squares;

I will seek ^shim whom my soul loves.

I sought him, but found him not.

3  ^vThe watchmen found me

as they went about in the city.

“Have you seen him whom my soul loves?”

4  Scarcely had I passed them

when I found ^shim whom my soul loves.

I ^wheld him, and would not let him go

until I had ^xbrought him into my mother’s house,

and into the chamber of ^yher who conceived me.

5  ^zI adjure you, ^aO daughters of Jerusalem,

^bby the gazelles or the does of the field,

that you not stir up or awaken love

until it pleases.

6  ^cWhat is that coming up from the wilderness

like ^dcolumns of smoke,

perfumed with ^emyrrh and frankincense,

with all the fragrant powders of a merchant?

7  Behold, it is the litter¹ of Solomon!

Around it are ^fsixty ^gmighty men,

some of the mighty men of Israel,

8  all of them wearing swords

and expert in war,

each with his ^hsword at his thigh,

against ⁱterror by night.

9  King Solomon made himself a carriage²

from the wood of Lebanon.

10  He made its posts of silver,

its back of gold, its seat of purple;

its interior was inlaid with love

by ^jthe daughters of Jerusalem.

11  Go out, O ^kdaughters of Zion,

and look upon King Solomon,

with the crown with which his mother crowned him

on ^lthe day of his wedding,

on the day of the gladness of his heart.

1  Behold, ^myou are beautiful, my love,

behold, you are beautiful!

ⁿYour eyes are doves

^obehind your veil.

^pYour hair is like a flock of goats

leaping down ^qthe slopes of Gilead.

2  Your ^rteeth are like a flock of shorn ewes

that have come up from the washing,

all of which bear twins,

and not one among them has lost its young.

3  Your lips are like ^sa scarlet thread,

and your mouth is ^tlovely.

Your ^ucheeks are like halves of a pomegranate

^obehind your veil.

4  Your ^vneck is like the tower of David,

built in ^wrows of stone;³

on it ^xhang a thousand shields,

all of ^ythem shields of warriors.

5  Your ^ztwo breasts are like two ^afawns,

twins of a gazelle,

that ^bgraze among the lilies.

6  ^cUntil the day breathes

and the shadows flee,

I will go away to the mountain of ^dmyrrh

and the hill of ^dfrankincense.

7  ^eYou are altogether beautiful, my love;

there is no ^fflaw in you.

8  ^gCome with me from ^hLebanon, my ⁱbride;

come with me from ^hLebanon.

Depart⁴ from the peak of Amana,

from the peak of ^jSenir and ^kHermon,

from the dens of lions,

from the mountains of leopards.

9  You have captivated my heart, my ^lsister, my bride;

you have captivated my heart with one glance of your eyes,

with one ^mjewel of your necklace.

10  How beautiful is your love, my ^lsister, my bride!

How much ⁿbetter is your love than wine,

and ^othe fragrance of your oils than any spice!

11  Your ^plips drip nectar, my bride;

^qhoney and milk are under your tongue;

the fragrance of your garments is ^rlike the fragrance of ^hLebanon.

12  A garden locked is my ^lsister, my bride,

a spring locked, ^sa fountain ^tsealed.

13  Your shoots are ^uan orchard of pomegranates

with all ^vchoicest fruits,

^whenna with ^xnard,

14  nard and saffron, ^ycalamus and ^ycinnamon,

with all trees of ^zfrankincense,

^amyrrh and ^baloes,

with all ^ychoice spices—

15  a garden fountain, a well of ^cliving water,

and flowing streams from ^hLebanon.

16  Awake, O north wind,

and come, O south wind!

Blow upon my ^dgarden,

let its spices flow.

^eLet my beloved come to his ^fgarden,

and eat its ^vchoicest fruits.

1  I ^gcame to my garden, my ^hsister, my bride,

I gathered my ⁱmyrrh with my spice,

I ate my ^jhoneycomb with my honey,

I ^kdrank my wine with my milk.

Eat, ^lfriends, drink,

and be drunk with love!

2  I slept, but my heart was awake.

A sound! My beloved is ^mknocking.

“Open to me, my ⁿsister, my ^olove,

my ^pdove, my ^qperfect one,

for my head is wet with dew,

my ^rlocks with the drops of the night.”

3  ^sI had put off my garment;

how could I put it on?

I had ^tbathed my feet;

how could I soil them?

4  My beloved put his hand to the latch,

and my heart was thrilled within me.

5  I arose to open to my beloved,

and my hands dripped with myrrh,

my fingers with ^uliquid myrrh,

on the handles of the bolt.

6  I opened to my beloved,

but my beloved had turned and gone.

My soul failed me when he ^vspoke.

^wI sought him, but found him not;

^xI called him, but he gave no answer.

7  ^yThe watchmen found me

as they went about in the city;

they beat me, they bruised me,

they took away my veil,

those watchmen of the walls.

8  I ^zadjure you, O ^adaughters of Jerusalem,

if you find my beloved,

that you tell him

^bI am sick with love.

9  What is your beloved more than another beloved,

O ^cmost beautiful among women?

What is your beloved more than another beloved,

that you thus ^zadjure us?

10  My beloved is radiant and ^druddy,

^edistinguished among ten thousand.

11  His head is the finest gold;

^fhis locks are wavy,

black as a raven.

12  His ^geyes are like doves

beside streams of water,

bathed in milk,

sitting beside a full pool.⁵

13  His ⁱcheeks are like ^jbeds of spices,

mounds of sweet-smelling herbs.

His lips are ^klilies,

dripping ^uliquid myrrh.

14  His arms are rods of gold,

set with ^ljewels.

His body is polished ivory,⁶

bedecked with ^msapphires.⁷

15  His legs are alabaster columns,

set on bases of gold.

His appearance is like ^oLebanon,

choice as the cedars.

16  His ^pmouth⁸ is most sweet,

and he is altogether desirable.

This is my beloved and this is my friend,

O ^adaughters of Jerusalem.

1  Where has your beloved gone,

O ^cmost beautiful among women?

Where has your beloved turned,

that we may seek him with you?

2  My beloved has gone down to his ^qgarden

to ^rthe beds of spices,

to ^sgraze⁹ in the gardens

and to gather ^tlilies.

3  ^uI am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine;

he grazes among the lilies.

4  You are beautiful as ^vTirzah, ^wmy love,

^xlovely as ^yJerusalem,

^zawesome as an army with banners.

5  Turn away your eyes from me,

for they overwhelm me—

^aYour hair is like a flock of goats

leaping down the slopes of Gilead.

6  ^bYour teeth are like a flock of ewes

that have come up from the washing;

all of them bear twins;

not one among them has lost its young.

7  ^cYour cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate

behind your veil.

8  There are ^dsixty ^equeens and eighty ^econcubines,

and ^fvirgins without number.

9  My ^gdove, my ^hperfect one, is the only one,

the only one of her mother,

pure to ⁱher who bore her.

^jThe young women saw her and called her blessed;

^ethe queens and ^econcubines also, and they praised her.

10  ^k“Who is this who looks down like the dawn,

beautiful as the moon, bright as the sun,

^lawesome as an army with banners?”

11  I went down to the nut orchard

to look at ^mthe blossoms of the valley,

ⁿto see whether the vines had budded,

whether the pomegranates were in bloom.

12  ^oBefore I was aware, my desire set me

among ^pthe chariots of my kinsman, a prince.¹⁰

13  ¹¹ Return, return, O ^qShulammite,

return, return, that we may look upon you.

Why should you look upon ^qthe Shulammite,

as upon ^ra dance before ^stwo armies?¹²

1 How beautiful are your feet in sandals,

O ^tnoble daughter!

Your rounded thighs are like ^ujewels,

the work of ^va master hand.

2  Your navel is a rounded bowl

that never lacks mixed wine.

Your belly is a heap of wheat,

encircled with ^wlilies.

3  ^xYour two breasts are like two fawns,

twins of a gazelle.

4  Your ^yneck is like an ivory tower.

Your ^zeyes are pools in ^aHeshbon,

by the gate of Bath-rabbim.

Your nose is like a tower of ^bLebanon,

which looks toward ^cDamascus.

5  Your head crowns you like ^eCarmel,

and your ^fflowing locks are like purple;

a king is held captive in the tresses.

6  ^gHow beautiful and ^hpleasant you are,

O loved one, with all your delights!¹³

7  Your stature is like a palm tree,

and your breasts are like its clusters.

8  I say I will climb the palm tree

and lay hold of its fruit.

Oh may your breasts be like ⁱclusters of the vine,

and the scent of your breath like apples,

9  and your ^jmouth¹⁴ like the best wine.

It goes down smoothly for my beloved,

gliding over lips and teeth.¹⁵

10  ^kI am my beloved’s,

^land his desire is for me.

11  ^mCome, my beloved,

let us go out into the fields

and lodge in the villages;¹⁶

12  let us go out early to the vineyards

ⁿand see whether the vines have budded,

whether ^othe grape blossoms have opened

and the pomegranates are in bloom.

There I will give you my love.

13  ^pThe mandrakes give forth fragrance,

and beside our doors are all choice fruits,

^qnew as well as old,

which I have laid up for you, O my beloved.

1  Oh that you were like a brother to me

who nursed at my mother’s breasts!

If I found you outside, I would kiss you,

and none would despise me.

2  I would lead you and ^rbring you

into the house of my mother—

she who used to teach me.

I would give you ^sspiced wine to drink,

the juice of my pomegranate.

3  ^tHis left hand is under my head,

and his right hand embraces me!

4  I ^uadjure you, O ^vdaughters of Jerusalem,

^wthat you not stir up or awaken love

until it pleases.

5  ^xWho is that coming up from the wilderness,

leaning on her beloved?

Under the apple tree I awakened you.

There your mother was in labor with you;

there she who bore you was in labor.

6  Set me as a seal upon your heart,

as ^ya seal upon your arm,

for ^zlove is strong as death,

^ajealousy¹⁷ is fierce as the grave.¹⁸

Its flashes are flashes of fire,

the very ^bflame of the Lord.

7  Many waters cannot quench love,

neither can floods drown it.

If a man offered for love

all the wealth of his ^chouse,

he¹⁹ would be utterly despised.

8  We have a little sister,

and she ^dhas no breasts.

What shall we do for our sister

on the day when she is spoken for?

9  If she is a wall,

we will build on her a battlement of silver,

but if she is a door,

we will enclose her with ^eboards of cedar.

10  ^fI was a wall,

and my ^gbreasts were like towers;

then I was in his eyes

as one who finds²⁰ peace.

11  Solomon had ^ha vineyard at Baal-hamon;

he ⁱlet out the vineyard to ^jkeepers;

each one was to bring for its fruit ^ka thousand pieces of silver.

12  My vineyard, my very own, is before me;

you, O Solomon, may have the thousand,

and ^lthe keepers of the fruit two hundred.

13  ^mO you who dwell in the gardens,

with ⁿcompanions listening for your voice;

^olet me hear it.

14  ^pMake haste, my beloved,

and be ^qlike a gazelle

or a young stag

on ^rthe mountains of spices.