Bible (Berean Standard)/Song of Solomon

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The Bride Confesses Her Love

(Ephesians 5:22–33; 1 Peter 3:1–7)

This is Solomon’s Song of Songs.

The Bride


 * Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!
 * For your love is more delightful than wine.
 * The fragrance of your perfume is pleasing;
 * your name is like perfume poured out.
 * No wonder the maidens adore you.


 * Take me away with you—let us hurry!
 * May the king bring me to his chambers.

The Friends


 * We will rejoice and delight in you;
 * we will praise your love more than wine.

The Bride


 * It is only right that they adore you.


 * I am dark, yet lovely, O daughters of Jerusalem,
 * like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon.
 * Do not stare because I am dark,
 * for the sun has gazed upon me.
 * My mother’s sons were angry with me;
 * they made me a keeper of the vineyards,
 * but my own vineyard I have neglected.


 * Tell me, O one I love,
 * where do you pasture your sheep?
 * Where do you rest them at midday?
 * Why should I be like a veiled woman
 * beside the flocks of your companions?

The Friends


 * If you do not know, O fairest of women,
 * follow the tracks of the flock,
 * and graze your young goats
 * near the tents of the shepherds.

The Bridegroom


 * I compare you, my darling,
 * to a mare among Pharaoh’s chariots.
 * Your cheeks are beautiful with ornaments,
 * your neck with strings of jewels.

The Friends


 * We will make you ornaments of gold,
 * studded with beads of silver.

The Bride


 * While the king was at his table,
 * my perfume spread its fragrance.
 * My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh
 * resting between my breasts.
 * My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms
 * in the vineyards of En-gedi.

The Bridegroom


 * How beautiful you are, my darling!
 * Oh, how very beautiful!
 * Your eyes are like doves.

The Bride


 * How handsome you are, my beloved!
 * Oh, how delightful!
 * The soft grass is our bed.

The Bridegroom


 * The beams of our house are cedars;
 * our rafters are fragrant firs.

The Bride’s Admiration

The Bride


 * I am a rose of Sharon,
 * a lily of the valley.

The Bridegroom


 * Like a lily among the thorns
 * is my darling among the maidens.

The Bride


 * Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest
 * is my beloved among the young men.
 * I delight to sit in his shade,
 * and his fruit is sweet to my taste.
 * He has brought me to the house of wine,
 * and his banner over me is love.


 * Sustain me with raisins;
 * refresh me with apples,
 * for I am faint with love.


 * His left hand is under my head,
 * and his right arm embraces me.
 * O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you
 * by the gazelles and does of the field:
 * Do not arouse or awaken love
 * until the time is right.


 * Listen! My beloved approaches.
 * Look! Here he comes,
 * leaping across the mountains,
 * bounding over the hills.
 * My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag.
 * Look, he stands behind our wall,
 * gazing through the windows,
 * peering through the lattice.


 * My beloved calls to me,
 * “Arise, my darling.
 * Come away with me, my beautiful one.
 * For now the winter is past;
 * the rain is over and gone.
 * The flowers have appeared in the countryside;
 * the season of singing has come,
 * and the cooing of turtledoves
 * is heard in our land.
 * The fig tree ripens its figs;
 * the blossoming vines spread their fragrance.
 * Arise, come away, my darling;
 * come away with me, my beautiful one.”

The Bridegroom


 * O my dove in the clefts of the rock,
 * in the crevices of the cliff,
 * let me see your face,
 * let me hear your voice;
 * for your voice is sweet,
 * and your countenance is lovely.

The Friends


 * Catch for us the foxes—
 * the little foxes that ruin the vineyards—
 * for our vineyards are in bloom.

The Bride


 * My beloved is mine and I am his;
 * he pastures his flock among the lilies.
 * Before the day breaks and shadows flee,
 * turn, my beloved,
 * and be like a gazelle
 * or a young stag on the mountains of Bether.

The Bride’s Dream


 * On my bed at night
 * I sought the one I love;
 * I sought him,
 * but did not find him.
 * I will arise now and go about the city,
 * through the streets and squares.
 * I will seek the one I love.
 * So I sought him but did not find him.


 * I encountered the watchmen on their rounds of the city:
 * “Have you seen the one I love?”
 * I had just passed them when I found the one I love.
 * I held him and would not let go
 * until I had brought him to my mother’s house,
 * to the chamber of the one who conceived me.


 * O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you
 * by the gazelles and does of the field:
 * Do not arouse or awaken love
 * until the time is right.

Solomon Arrives on His Wedding Day


 * Who is this coming up from the wilderness
 * like a column of smoke,
 * scented with myrrh and frankincense
 * from all the spices of the merchant?
 * Behold, it is Solomon’s carriage,
 * escorted by sixty of the mightiest men of Israel.
 * All are skilled with the sword,
 * experienced in warfare.
 * Each has his sword at his side
 * prepared for the terror of the night.


 * King Solomon has made his carriage
 * out of the timber of Lebanon.
 * He has made its posts of silver,
 * its base of gold, its seat of purple fabric.
 * Its interior is inlaid with love
 * by the daughters of Jerusalem.


 * Come out, O daughters of Zion,
 * and gaze at King Solomon,
 * wearing the crown his mother bestowed
 * on the day of his wedding—
 * the day of his heart’s rejoicing.

Solomon Admires His Bride

The Bridegroom


 * How beautiful you are, my darling—
 * how very beautiful!
 * Your eyes are like doves
 * behind your veil.
 * Your hair is like a flock of goats
 * streaming down Mount Gilead.
 * Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep
 * coming up from the washing;
 * each has its twin,
 * and not one of them is lost.
 * Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon,
 * and your mouth is lovely.
 * Your brow behind your veil
 * is like a slice of pomegranate.
 * Your neck is like the tower of David,
 * built with rows of stones;
 * on it hang a thousand shields,
 * all of them shields of warriors.
 * Your breasts are like two fawns,
 * twins of a gazelle grazing among the lilies.


 * Before the day breaks and the shadows flee,
 * I will make my way
 * to the mountain of myrrh
 * and to the hill of frankincense.
 * You are altogether beautiful, my darling;
 * in you there is no flaw.


 * Come with me from Lebanon, my bride,
 * come with me from Lebanon!
 * Descend from the peak of Amana,
 * from the summits of Senir and Hermon,
 * from the dens of the lions,
 * from the mountains of the leopards.
 * You have captured my heart,
 * my sister, my bride;
 * you have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes,
 * with one jewel of your neck.
 * How delightful is your love,
 * my sister, my bride!
 * Your love is much better than wine,
 * and the fragrance of your perfume than all spices.
 * Your lips, my bride,
 * drip sweetness like the honeycomb;
 * honey and milk are under your tongue,
 * and the fragrance of your garments
 * is like the aroma of Lebanon.


 * My sister, my bride, you are a garden locked up,
 * a spring enclosed, a fountain sealed.
 * Your branches are an orchard of pomegranates
 * with the choicest of fruits, with henna and nard,
 * with nard and saffron, with calamus and cinnamon,
 * with every kind of frankincense tree,
 * with myrrh and aloes,
 * with all the finest spices.
 * You are a garden spring,
 * a well of fresh water
 * flowing down from Lebanon.

The Bride


 * Awake, O north wind,
 * and come, O south wind.
 * Breathe on my garden
 * and spread the fragrance of its spices.
 * Let my beloved come into his garden
 * and taste its choicest fruits.

The Bride and Her Beloved

The Bridegroom


 * I have come to my garden, my sister, my bride;
 * I have gathered my myrrh with my spice.
 * I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey;
 * I have drunk my wine with my milk.

The Friends


 * Eat, O friends, and drink;
 * drink freely, O beloved.

The Bride


 * I sleep, but my heart is awake.
 * A sound! My beloved is knocking:
 * “Open to me, my sister, my darling,
 * my dove, my flawless one.
 * My head is drenched with dew,
 * my hair with the dampness of the night.”


 * I have taken off my robe—
 * must I put it back on?
 * I have washed my feet—
 * must I soil them again?
 * My beloved put his hand to the latch;
 * my heart pounded for him.
 * I rose up to open for my beloved.
 * My hands dripped with myrrh,
 * my fingers with flowing myrrh
 * on the handles of the bolt.
 * I opened for my beloved,
 * but he had turned and gone.
 * My heart sank at his departure.
 * I sought him, but did not find him.
 * I called, but he did not answer.


 * I encountered the watchmen on their rounds of the city.
 * They beat me and bruised me;
 * they took away my cloak,
 * those guardians of the walls.
 * O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you,
 * if you find my beloved,
 * tell him I am sick with love.

The Friends


 * How is your beloved better than others,
 * O most beautiful among women?
 * How is your beloved better than another,
 * that you charge us so?

The Bride


 * My beloved is dazzling and ruddy,
 * outstanding among ten thousand.
 * His head is purest gold;
 * his hair is wavy and black as a raven.
 * His eyes are like doves
 * beside the streams of water,
 * bathed in milk
 * and mounted like jewels.
 * His cheeks are like beds of spice,
 * towers of perfume.
 * His lips are like lilies,
 * dripping with flowing myrrh.
 * His arms are rods of gold
 * set with beryl.
 * His body is an ivory panel
 * bedecked with sapphires.
 * His legs are pillars of marble
 * set on bases of pure gold.
 * His appearance is like Lebanon,
 * as majestic as the cedars.
 * His mouth is most sweet;
 * he is altogether lovely.
 * This is my beloved, and this is my friend,
 * O daughters of Jerusalem.

Together in the Garden

The Friends


 * Where has your beloved gone,
 * O most beautiful among women?
 * Which way has he turned?
 * We will seek him with you.

The Bride


 * My beloved has gone down to his garden,
 * to the beds of spices,
 * to pasture his flock in the gardens
 * and to gather lilies.
 * I belong to my beloved and he belongs to me;
 * he pastures his flock among the lilies.

The Bridegroom


 * You are as beautiful, my darling, as Tirzah,
 * as lovely as Jerusalem,
 * as majestic as troops with banners.
 * Turn your eyes away from me,
 * for they have overcome me.
 * Your hair is like a flock of goats
 * streaming down from Gilead.
 * Your teeth are like a flock of sheep
 * coming up from the washing;
 * each has its twin,
 * and not one of them is lost.
 * Your brow behind your veil
 * is like a slice of pomegranate.


 * There are sixty queens and eighty concubines,
 * and maidens without number,
 * but my dove, my perfect one, is unique,
 * the favorite of the mother who bore her.
 * The maidens see her and call her blessed;
 * the queens and concubines sing her praises.

The Friends


 * Who is this who shines like the dawn,
 * as fair as the moon,
 * as bright as the sun,
 * as majestic as the stars in procession?

The Bridegroom


 * I went down to the walnut grove
 * to see the blossoms of the valley,
 * to see if the vines were budding
 * or the pomegranates were in bloom.
 * Before I realized it, my desire had set me
 * among the royal chariots of my people.

The Friends


 * Come back, come back, O Shulammite!
 * Come back, come back, that we may gaze upon you.

The Bridegroom


 * Why do you look at the Shulammite,
 * as on the dance of Mahanaim ?

Admiration by the Bridegroom


 * How beautiful are your sandaled feet,
 * O daughter of the prince!
 * The curves of your thighs are like jewels,
 * the handiwork of a master.
 * Your navel is a rounded goblet;
 * it never lacks blended wine.
 * Your waist is a mound of wheat
 * encircled by the lilies.
 * Your breasts are like two fawns,
 * twins of a gazelle.
 * Your neck is like a tower
 * made of ivory;
 * your eyes are like the pools of Heshbon
 * by the gate of Bath-rabbim;
 * your nose is like the tower of Lebanon,
 * facing toward Damascus.
 * Your head crowns you like Mount Carmel,
 * the hair of your head like purple threads;
 * the king is captured in your tresses.


 * How fair and pleasant you are,
 * O love, with your delights!
 * Your stature is like a palm tree;
 * your breasts are clusters of fruit.
 * I said, “I will climb the palm tree;
 * I will take hold of its fruit.”
 * May your breasts be like clusters of the vine,
 * the fragrance of your breath like apples,
 * and your mouth like the finest wine.

The Bride


 * May it flow smoothly to my beloved,
 * gliding gently over lips and teeth.


 * I belong to my beloved,
 * and his desire is for me.
 * Come, my beloved,
 * let us go to the countryside;
 * let us spend the night among the wildflowers.


 * Let us go early to the vineyards
 * to see if the vine has budded,
 * if the blossom has opened,
 * if the pomegranates are in bloom—
 * there I will give you my love.


 * The mandrakes send forth a fragrance,
 * and at our door is every delicacy,
 * new as well as old,
 * that I have treasured up for you, my beloved.

Longing for Her Beloved


 * O that you were to me like a brother
 * who nursed at my mother’s breasts!
 * If I found you outdoors, I would kiss you,
 * and no one would despise me.
 * I would lead you and bring you
 * to the house of my mother who taught me.
 * I would give you spiced wine to drink,
 * the nectar of my pomegranates.


 * His left hand is under my head,
 * and his right arm embraces me.
 * O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you:
 * Do not arouse or awaken love
 * until the time is right.

The Friends


 * Who is this coming up from the wilderness,
 * leaning on her beloved?

The Bride


 * I roused you under the apple tree;
 * there your mother conceived you;
 * there she travailed and brought you forth.


 * Set me as a seal over your heart,
 * as a seal upon your arm.
 * For love is as strong as death,
 * its jealousy as unrelenting as Sheol.
 * Its sparks are fiery flames,
 * the fiercest blaze of all.
 * Mighty waters cannot quench love;
 * rivers cannot sweep it away.
 * If a man were to give all the wealth of his house for love,
 * his offer would be utterly scorned.

The Friends


 * We have a little sister,
 * and her breasts are not yet grown.
 * What shall we do for our sister
 * on the day she is spoken for?
 * If she is a wall,
 * we will build a tower of silver upon her.
 * If she is a door,
 * we will enclose her with panels of cedar.

The Bride


 * I am a wall,
 * and my breasts are like towers.
 * So I have become in his eyes
 * like one who brings peace.
 * Solomon had a vineyard in Baal-hamon.
 * He leased it to the tenants.
 * For its fruit, each was to bring
 * a thousand shekels of silver.
 * But my own vineyard is mine to give;
 * the thousand shekels are for you, O Solomon,
 * and two hundred are for those who tend its fruit.

The Bridegroom


 * You who dwell in the gardens,
 * my companions are listening for your voice.
 * Let me hear it!

The Bride


 * Come away, my beloved,
 * and be like a gazelle
 * or a young stag
 * on the mountains of spices.