Song of Solomon 5–6

Chapter 5

Young Man

¹I have entered my garden, my treasure, my bride!

I gather myrrh with my spices

and eat honeycomb with my honey.

I drink wine with my milk.

Young Women of Jerusalem

Oh, lover and beloved, eat and drink!

Yes, drink deeply of your love!

Young Woman

²I slept, but my heart was awake,

when I heard my lover knocking and calling:

“Open to me, my treasure, my darling,

my dove, my perfect one.

My head is drenched with dew,

my hair with the dampness of the night.”

³But I responded,

“I have taken off my robe.

Should I get dressed again?

I have washed my feet.

Should I get them soiled?”

⁴My lover tried to unlatch the door,

and my heart thrilled within me.

⁵I jumped up to open the door for my love,

and my hands dripped with perfume.

My fingers dripped with lovely myrrh

as I pulled back the bolt.

⁶I opened to my lover,

but he was gone!

My heart sank.

I searched for him

but could not find him anywhere.

I called to him,

but there was no reply.

⁷The night watchmen found me

as they made their rounds.

They beat and bruised me

and stripped off my veil,

those watchmen on the walls.

⁸Make this promise, O women of Jerusalem—

If you find my lover,

tell him I am weak with love.

Young Women of Jerusalem

⁹Why is your lover better than all others,

O woman of rare beauty?

What makes your lover so special

that we must promise this?

Young Woman

¹⁰My lover is dark and dazzling,

better than ten thousand others!

¹¹His head is finest gold,

his wavy hair is black as a raven.

¹²His eyes sparkle like doves

beside springs of water;

they are set like jewels

washed in milk.

¹³His cheeks are like gardens of spices

giving off fragrance.

His lips are like lilies,

perfumed with myrrh.

¹⁴His arms are like rounded bars of gold,

set with beryl.

His body is like bright ivory,

glowing with lapis lazuli.

¹⁵His legs are like marble pillars

set in sockets of finest gold.

His posture is stately,

like the noble cedars of Lebanon.

¹⁶His mouth is sweetness itself;

he is desirable in every way.

Such, O women of Jerusalem,

is my lover, my friend.

Chapter 6

Young Women of Jerusalem

¹Where has your lover gone,

O woman of rare beauty?

Which way did he turn

so we can help you find him?

Young Woman

²My lover has gone down to his garden,

to his spice beds,

to browse in the gardens

and gather the lilies.

³I am my lover’s, and my lover is mine.

He browses among the lilies.

Young Man

⁴You are beautiful, my darling,

like the lovely city of Tirzah.

Yes, as beautiful as Jerusalem,

as majestic as an army with billowing banners.

⁵Turn your eyes away,

for they overpower me.

Your hair falls in waves,

like a flock of goats winding down the slopes of Gilead.

⁶Your teeth are as white as sheep

that are freshly washed.

Your smile is flawless,

each tooth matched with its twin.

⁷Your cheeks are like rosy pomegranates

behind your veil.

⁸Even among sixty queens

and eighty concubines

and countless young women,

⁹I would still choose my dove, my perfect one—

the favorite of her mother,

dearly loved by the one who bore her.

The young women see her and praise her;

even queens and royal concubines sing her praises:

¹⁰“Who is this, arising like the dawn,

as fair as the moon,

as bright as the sun,

as majestic as an army with billowing banners?”

Young Woman

¹¹I went down to the grove of walnut trees

and out to the valley to see the new spring growth,

to see whether the grapevines had budded

or the pomegranates were in bloom.

¹²Before I realized it,

my strong desires had taken me to the chariot of a noble man.

Young Women of Jerusalem

¹³ Return, return to us, O maid of Shulam.

Come back, come back, that we may see you again.

Young Man

Why do you stare at this young woman of Shulam,

as she moves so gracefully between two lines of dancers?