Song of Solomon 1

1Solomon’s Song of Songs.^a

She^a

²Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—

for your love^b is more delightful than wine.^c

³Pleasing is the fragrance of your perfumes;^d

your name^e is like perfume poured out.

No wonder the young women^f love you!

⁴Take me away with you—let us hurry!

Let the king bring me into his chambers.^g

Friends

We rejoice and delight^h in you^b;

we will praise your loveⁱ more than wine.

She

How right they are to adore you!

⁵Dark am I, yet lovely,^j

daughters of Jerusalem,^k

dark like the tents of Kedar,^l

like the tent curtains of Solomon.^c

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;^m

my own vineyard I had to neglect.

⁷Tell me, you whom I love,

where you graze your flock

and where you rest your sheepⁿ at midday.

Why should I be like a veiled^o woman

beside the flocks of your friends?

Friends

⁸If you do not know, most beautiful of women,^p

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.^q

¹⁰Your cheeks^r are beautiful with earrings,

your neck with strings of jewels.^s

¹¹We will make you earrings of gold,

studded with silver.

She

¹²While the king was at his table,

my perfume spread its fragrance.^t

¹³My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh^u

resting between my breasts.

¹⁴My beloved^v is to me a cluster of henna^w blossoms

from the vineyards of En Gedi.^x

He

¹⁵How beautiful^y you are, my darling!

Oh, how beautiful!

Your eyes are doves.^z

She

¹⁶How handsome you are, my beloved!^a

Oh, how charming!

And our bed is verdant.

He

¹⁷The beams of our house are cedars;^b

our rafters are firs.