Song of Songs
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Source: Sefaria (sefaria.org). Song of Songs, Writings, source: Sefaria (merged), sefaria.org. License: Public Domain or CC-BY (per Sefaria source data).
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Song of Songs / שיר השירים

1:1	The Song of Songs, byaby Or “concerning.” Solomon.
1:2	Oh, give me of the kisses of your mouth,bOh, give me of the kisses of your mouth Heb. “Let him give me of the kisses of his mouth!” For your love is more delightful than wine.
1:3	Your ointments yield a sweet fragrance,Your name is like finestcfinest Meaning of Heb. uncertain. oil—Therefore do maidens love you.
1:4	Draw me after you, let us run!The king has brought me to his chambers.dThe king has brought me to his chambers Emendation yields “Bring me, O king, to your chambers.” Let us delight and rejoice in your love,Savoring it more than wine—Like new wineenew wine Understanding mesharim as related to tirosh; cf. Aramaic merath. they love you!
1:5	I am dark—and beautiful—O daughters of Jerusalem:Like the tents of Kedar,Like the pavilions of Solomon.
1:6	Don’t stare at me because I’m so dark,Because the sun has gazed upon me.My mother’s sons quarreled with me,They made me guard the vineyards;My own vineyard I did not guard.
1:7	Tell me, you whom I love so well;Where do you pasture your sheep?Where do you rest them at noon?Let me not be as one who straysfas one who strays Meaning of Heb. uncertain. Beside the flocks of your fellows.
1:8	If you do not know, O fairest of women,Go follow the tracks of the sheep,And graze your kidsggraze your kids As a pretext for coming. By the tents of the shepherds.
1:9	I have likened you, my darling,To a mare in Pharaoh’s chariots:
1:10	Your cheeks are comely with plaited wreaths,Your neck with strings of jewels.
1:11	We will add wreaths of goldTo your spangles of silver.
1:12	While the king was on his couch,My nard gave forth its fragrance.
1:13	My beloved to me is a bag of myrrhLodged between my breasts.
1:14	My beloved to me is a spray of henna bloomsFrom the vineyards of En-gedi.
1:15	Ah, you are fair, my darling,Ah, you are fair,With your dove-like eyes!
1:16	And you, my beloved, are handsome,Beautiful indeed!Our couch is in a bower;
1:17	Cedars are the beams of our house,Cypresses the rafters.
2:1	I am a rosearose Lit. “crocus.” of Sharon,A lily of the valleys.
2:2	Like a lily among thorns,So is my darling among the maidens.
2:3	Like an apple tree among trees of the forest,So is my beloved among the youths.I delight to sit in his shade,And his fruit is sweet to my mouth.
2:4	He brought me to the banquet roomAnd his banner of love was over me.bAnd his banner of love was over me Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
2:5	“Sustain me with raisin cakes,Refresh me with apples,For I am faint with love.”
2:6	His left hand was under my head,His right arm embraced me.
2:7	I adjure you, O maidens of Jerusalem,By gazelles or by hinds of the field:Do not wake or rouseLove until it please!
2:8	Hark! My beloved!There he comes,Leaping over mountains,Bounding over hills.
2:9	My beloved is like a gazelleOr like a young stag.There he stands behind our wall,Gazing through the window,Peering through the lattice.
2:10	My beloved spoke thus to me,“Arise, my darling;My fair one, come away!
2:11	For now the winter is past,The rains are over and gone.
2:12	The blossoms have appeared in the land,The time of pruningcpruning Or “singing.” has come;The song of the turtledoveIs heard in our land.
2:13	The green figs form on the fig tree,The vines in blossom give off fragrance.Arise, my darling;My fair one, come away!
2:14	“O my dove, in the cranny of the rocks,Hidden by the cliff,Let me see your face,Let me hear your voice;For your voice is sweetAnd your face is comely.”
2:15	Catch us the foxes,The little foxesThat ruin the vineyards—For our vineyard is in blossom.
2:16	My beloved is mineAnd I am hisWho browses among the lilies.
2:17	When the day blows gentlydblows gently Emendation yields “declines”; cf. Jer. 6.4. And the shadows flee,eflee Septuagint reads “lengthen”; cf. Jer. 6.4. Set out, my beloved,Swift as a gazelleOr a young stag,For the hills of spices!fspices Heb. bather, of uncertain meaning; 8.14 reads besamim “spices.”
3:1	Upon my couch at nightaat night Apparently in a dream. I sought the one I love—I sought, but found him not.
3:2	“I must rise and roam the town,Through the streets and through the squares;I must seek the one I love.”I sought but found him not.
3:3	The watchmen came upon meWhile patrolling the town—“Have you seen the one I love?”
3:4	Scarcely had I passed themWhen I found the one I love.I held him fast, I would not let him goTill I brought him to my mother’s house,To the chamber of her who conceived me
3:5	I adjure you, O maidens of Jerusalem,By gazelles or by hinds of the field:Do not wake or rouseLove until it please!
3:6	Who is she that comes up from the desertLike columns of smoke,In clouds of myrrh and frankincense,Of all the powders of the merchant?
3:7	There is Solomon’s couch,Encircled by sixty warriorsOf the warriors of Israel,
3:8	All of them trainedbtrained Cf. Akkadian aḫāzu “to learn.” in warfare,Skilled in battle,Each with sword on thighBecause of terror by night.
3:9	King Solomon made him a palanquinOf wood from Lebanon.
3:10	He made its posts of silver,Its backcback Meaning of Heb. uncertain. of gold,Its seat of purple wool.Within, it was decked with loveBy the maidens of Jerusalem.dlove / By the maidens of Jerusalem Emendation yields “ebony, / O maidens of Jerusalem!”
3:11	O maidens of Zion, go forthAnd gaze upon King SolomonWearing the crown that his motherGave him on his wedding day,On his day of bliss.
4:1	Ah, you are fair, my darling,Ah, you are fair.Your eyes are like dovesBehind your veil.Your hair is like a flock of goatsStreaming down Mount Gilead.
4:2	Your teeth are like a flock of ewesaewes Cf. 6.6; exact nuance of qeṣuboth uncertain, perhaps “shorn ones.” Climbing up from the washing pool;All of them bear twins,And not one loses her young.
4:3	Your lips are like a crimson thread,Your mouth is lovely.Your brow behind your veil[Gleams] like a pomegranate split open.
4:4	Your neck is like the Tower of David,Built to hold weapons,bto hold weapons Apparently a poetic figure for jewelry; meaning of Heb. uncertain. Hung with a thousand shields—All the quivers of warriors.
4:5	Your breasts are like two fawns,Twins of a gazelle,Browsing among the lilies.
4:6	cSee notes at 2.17. When the day blows gentlyAnd the shadows flee,I will betake me to the mount of myrrh,To the hill of frankincense.
4:7	Every part of you is fair, my darling,There is no blemish in you.
4:8	From Lebanon come with me;From Lebanon, my bride, with me!Trip down from Amana’s peak,From the peak of SenirdSenir Cf. Deut. 3.9. and Hermon,From the dens of lions,From the hillsehills Emendation yields “lairs”; cf. Nah. 2.13. of leopards.
4:9	You have captured my heart,My own,fown Lit. “sister”; and so frequently below. my bride,You have captured my heartWith one [glance] of your eyes,With one coil of your necklace.
4:10	How sweet is your love,My own, my bride!How much more delightful your love than wine,Your ointments more fragrantThan any spice!
4:11	Sweetness dropsFrom your lips, O bride;Honey and milkAre under your tongue;And the scent of your robesIs like the scent of Lebanon.
4:12	A garden lockedIs my own, my bride,A fountain locked,A sealed-up spring.
4:13	Your limbs are an orchard of pomegranatesAnd of all luscious fruits,Of henna and of nard—
4:14	Nard and saffron,Fragrant reed and cinnamon,With all aromatic woods,Myrrh and aloes—All the choice perfumes.
4:15	[You are] a garden spring,A well of fresh water,g[You are] a garden spring, / A well of fresh water Emendation yields “The spring in my garden / Is a well of fresh water.” A rill of Lebanon.
4:16	Awake, O north wind,Come, O south wind!Blow upon my garden,That its perfume may spread.Let my beloved come to his gardenAnd enjoy its luscious fruits!
5:1	I have come to my garden,My own, my bride;I have plucked my myrrh and spice,Eaten my honey and honeycomb,Drunk my wine and my milk.Eat, lovers, and drink:Drink deep of love!
5:2	aIn these verses, the woman apparently relates a dream. I was asleep,But my heart was wakeful.Hark, my beloved knocks!“Let me in, my own,My darling, my faultless dove!For my head is drenched with dew,My locks with the damp of night.”
5:3	I had taken off my robe—Was I to don it again?I had bathed my feet—Was I to soil them again?
5:4	My beloved took his hand off the latch,btook his hand off the latch Meaning of Heb. uncertain. And my heart was stirred for him.cfor him Many manuscripts and editions read “within me” (ʻalai).
5:5	I rose to let in my beloved;My hands dripped myrrh—My fingers, flowing myrrh—Upon the handles of the bolt.
5:6	I opened the door for my beloved,But my beloved had turned and gone.I was faint because of what he said.dbecause of what he said Change of vocalization yields “because of him.” I sought, but found him not;I called, but he did not answer.
5:7	The watchmen came upon meWhile patrolling the town—They struck me, they bruised me.The guards of the wallsStripped me of my mantle.
5:8	I adjure you, O maidens of Jerusalem!If you meet my beloved, tell him this:That I am faint with love.
5:9	How is your beloved better than another,eHow is your beloved better than another Or “What sort of beloved is your beloved…?” O fairest of women?How is your beloved better than anotherfHow is your beloved better than another See preceding note. That you adjure us so?
5:10	My beloved is clear-skinned and ruddy,Preeminent among ten thousand.
5:11	His head is finest gold,His locks are curledAnd black as a raven.
5:12	His eyes are like dovesBy watercourses,Bathed in milk,Set by a brimming pool.gSet by a brimming pool Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
5:13	His cheeks are like beds of spices,Banks ofhBanks of Septuagint vocalizes as participle, “producing.” perfumeHis lips are like lilies;They drip flowing myrrh.
5:14	His hands are rods of gold,Studded with beryl;His belly a tablet of ivory,Adorned with sapphires.
5:15	His legs are like marble pillarsSet in sockets of fine gold.He is majestic as Lebanon,Stately as the cedars.
5:16	His mouth is deliciousAnd all of him is delightful.Such is my beloved,Such is my darling,O maidens of Jerusalem!
6:1	“Whither has your beloved gone,O fairest of women?Whither has your beloved turned?Let us seek him with you.”
6:2	My beloved has gone down to his garden,To the beds of spices,To browse in the gardensAnd to pick lilies.
6:3	I am my beloved’sAnd my beloved is mine;He browses among the lilies.
6:4	You are beautiful, my darling, as Tirzah,Comely as Jerusalem,Awesome as bannered hosts.aAwesome as bannered hosts Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
6:5	Turn your eyes away from me,For they overwhelm me!Your hair is like a flock of goatsStreaming down from Gilead.
6:6	Your teeth are like a flock of ewesClimbing up from the washing pool;All of them bear twins,And not one loses her young.
6:7	Your brow behind your veil[Gleams] like a pomegranate split open.
6:8	There are sixty queens,And eighty concubines,And maidens without number.
6:9	Only one is my dove,My perfect one,The only one of her mother,The delight of her who bore her.Young women see and acclaim her;Queens and concubines, and praise her.
6:10	Who is she that shines through like the dawn,Beautiful as the moon,Radiant as the sunAwesome as bannered hosts?bAwesome as bannered hosts Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
6:11	I went down to the nut groveTo see the budding of the vale;To see if the vines had blossomed,If the pomegranates were in bloom.
6:12	cMeaning of verse uncertain. Before I knew it,My desire set meMid the chariots of Ammi-nadib.
7:1	Turn back, turn back,O maid of Shulem!Turn back, turn back,That we may gaze upon you.“Why will you gaze at the ShulammiteInaIn With many manuscripts and editions; Tiberian Masoretic mss. read “Like.” Meaning of entire line uncertain. the Mahanaim dance?”
7:2	How lovely are your feet in sandals,O daughter of nobles!Your rounded thighs are like jewels,The work of a master’s hand.
7:3	Your navel is like a round goblet—Let mixed wine not be lacking!—Your belly like a heap of wheatHedged about with lilies.
7:4	Your breasts are like two fawns,Twins of a gazelle.
7:5	Your neck is like a tower of ivory,Your eyes like pools in HeshbonBy the gate of Bath-rabbim,Your nose like the Lebanon towerThat faces toward Damascus.
7:6	The head upon you is like crimson wool,bcrimson wool So Ibn Janah and Ibn Ezra, taking karmel as a by-form of karmil: cf. 2 Chron. 2.6, 13; 3.14. The locks of your head are like purple—A king is held captive in the tresses.cA king is held captive in the tresses Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
7:7	How fair you are, how beautiful!O Love, with all its rapture!
7:8	Your stately form is like the palm,Your breasts are like clusters.
7:9	I say: Let me climb the palm,Let me take hold of its branches;Let your breasts be like clusters of grapes,Your breath like the fragrance of apples,
7:10	And your mouth like choicest wine.“Let it flow to my beloved as new winednew wine See note at 1.4 end. Gliding over the lips of sleepers.”eGliding over the lips of sleepers Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
7:11	I am my beloved’s,And his desire is for me.
7:12	Come, my beloved,Let us go into the open;Let us lodge among the henna shrubs.famong the henna shrubs Or “in the villages.”
7:13	Let us go early to the vineyards;Let us see if the vine has flowered,If its blossoms have opened,If the pomegranates are in bloom.There I will give my love to you.
7:14	The mandrakes yield their fragrance,At our doors are all choice fruits;Both freshly picked and long-storedHave I kept, my beloved, for you.
8:1	If only it could be as with a brother,As if you had nursed at my mother’s breast:Then I could kiss youWhen I met you in the street,And no one would despise me.
8:2	I would lead you, I would bring youTo the house of my mother,Of her who taughtataught Emendation yields “bore”; cf. 6.9; 8.5. me—I would let you drink of the spiced wine,Of my pomegranate juice.
8:3	His left hand was under my head,His right hand caressed me.
8:4	I adjure you, O maidens of Jerusalem:Do not wake or rouseLove until it please!
8:5	Who is she that comes up from the desert,Leaning upon her beloved?Under the apple tree I roused you;It was there your mother conceived you,There she who bore you conceived you.
8:6	Let me be a seal upon your heart,Like the seal upon your hand.bhand Lit. “arm.” For love is fierce as death,Passion is mighty as Sheol;Its darts are darts of fire,A blazing flame.
8:7	Vast floods cannot quench love,Nor rivers drown it.If someone offered all his household’s wealth for love,He would be laughed to scorn.
8:8	“We have a little sister,Whose breasts are not yet formed.What shall we do for our sisterWhen she is spoken for?
8:9	If she be a wall,We will build upon it a silver battlement;If she be a door,We will panel it in cedar.”
8:10	I am a wall,My breasts are like towers.So I became in his eyesAs one who finds favor.
8:11	Solomon had a vineyardIn Baal-hamon.He had to post guards in the vineyard:AnyonecHe had to post guards in the vineyard: Anyone Or “He consigned the vineyard to tenants: / Each.” would give for its fruitA thousand pieces of silver.
8:12	I have my very own vineyard:You may have the thousand, O Solomon,And the guards of the fruit two hundred!
8:13	dMeaning of verse uncertain. O you who linger in the garden,egarden Heb. plural. A loverflover Heb. plural. is listening;Let me hear your voice.
8:14	“Hurry, my beloved,Swift as a gazelle or a young stag,To the hills of spices!”
-- Song of Songs — (Sefaria merged English versions) (Public Domain or CC-BY (per Sefaria source data))