Through the Bible – Day 267

₁This is Solomon's

most beautiful song.

₂Kiss me tenderly!

Your love is better than wine,

₃and you smell so sweet.

All the young women adore you;

the very mention of your name

is like spreading perfume.

_4-5Hurry, my king! Let's hurry.

Take me to your home.

We are happy for you!

And we praise your love

even more than wine.

Young women of Jerusalem,

it is only right

that you should adore him.

My skin is dark and beautiful,

like a tent in the desert

or like Solomon's curtains.

₆Don't stare at me

just because the sun

has darkened my skin.

My brothers were angry with me;

they made me work in the vineyard,

and so I neglected

my complexion.

Don't let the other shepherds

think badly of me.

₇I'm not one of those women

who shamelessly follow

after shepherds.

My darling, I love you!

Where do you feed your sheep

and let them rest at midday?

₈My dearest, if you don't know,

just follow the path

of the sheep.

Then feed your young goats

near the shepherds' tents.

₉You move as gracefully

as the pony that leads

the chariot of the king.

₁₀Earrings add to your beauty,

and you wear a necklace

of precious stones.

₁₁Let's make you some jewellery

of gold, woven with silver.

₁₂My king, while you

were on your couch,

my love was a magic charm.

₁₃My darling, you are perfume

between my breasts;

₁₄you are flower blossoms

from the gardens of En-Gedi.

₁₅My darling, you are lovely,

so very lovely—

your eyes are those of a dove.

₁₆My love, you are handsome,

truly handsome—

the fresh green grass

will be our wedding bed

₁₇in the shade of cedar

and cypress trees.

₁I am merely a rose

from the land of Sharon,

a lily from the valley.

₂My darling, when compared

with other young women,

you are a lily among thorns.

₃And you, my love,

are an apple tree

among trees of the forest.

Your shade brought me pleasure;

your fruit was sweet.

₄You led me to your banquet room

and showered me with love.

₅Refresh and strengthen me

with raisins and apples.

I am hungry for love!

₆Put your left hand under my head

and embrace me

with your right arm.

₇Young women of Jerusalem,

promise me by the power

of deer and gazelles

never to awaken love

before it is ready.

₈I hear the voice

of the one I love,

as he comes leaping

over mountains and hills

₉like a deer or a gazelle.

Now he stands outside our wall,

looking through the window

₁₀and speaking to me.

My darling, I love you!

Let's go away together.

₁₁Winter is past,

the rain has stopped;

₁₂flowers cover the earth,

it's time to sing.

The cooing of doves

is heard in our land.

₁₃Fig trees are bearing fruit,

while blossoms on grapevines

fill the air with perfume.

My darling, I love you!

Let's go away together.

₁₄You are my dove

hiding among the rocks

on the side of a cliff.

Let me see how lovely you are!

Let me hear the sound

of your melodious voice.

₁₅Our vineyards are in blossom;

we must catch the little foxes

that destroy the vineyards.

₁₆My darling, I am yours,

and you are mine,

as you feed your sheep

among the lilies.

₁₇Pretend to be a young deer

dancing on mountain slopes

until daylight comes

and shadows fade away.

₁While in bed at night,

I reached for the one I love

with heart and soul.

I looked for him,

but he wasn't there.

₂So I searched through the town

for the one I love.

I looked in every street,

but he wasn't there.

₃I even asked the guards

patrolling the town,

“Have you seen the one

I love so much?”

₄Straight after that, I found him.

I held him and would not let go

until I had taken him

to the home of my mother.

₅Young women of Jerusalem,

promise me by the power

of deer and gazelles,

never to awaken love

before it is ready.

₆What do we see approaching

from the desert

like a cloud of smoke?

With it comes the sweet smell

of spices, including myrrh

and frankincense.

₇It is King Solomon

carried on a throne,

surrounded by sixty

of Israel's best soldiers.

₈Each of them wears a sword.

They are experts at fighting,

even in the dark.

₉The throne is made of trees

from Lebanon.

₁₀Its posts are silver,

the back is gold,

and the seat is covered

with purple cloth.

You women of Jerusalem

have taken great care

to furnish the inside.

₁₁Now come and see the crown

given to Solomon by his mother

on his happy wedding day.

₁My darling, you are lovely,

so very lovely—

as you look through your veil,

your eyes are those of a dove.

Your hair tosses about

as gracefully as goats

coming down from Gilead.

₂Your teeth are whiter

than sheep freshly washed;

they match perfectly,

not one is missing.

₃Your lips are crimson cords,

your mouth is shapely;

behind your veil are hidden

beautiful rosy cheeks.

₄Your neck is more graceful

than the tower of David,

decorated with thousands

of warriors' shields.

₅Your breasts are perfect;

they are twin deer

feeding among lilies.

₆I will hasten to those hills

sprinkled with sweet perfume

and stay there till sunrise.

₇My darling, you are lovely

in every way.

₈My bride, together

we will leave Lebanon!

We will say goodbye

to the peaks of Mount Amana,

Senir, and Hermon,

where lions and leopards

live in the caves.

₉My bride, my very own,

you have stolen my heart!

With one glance from your eyes

and the glow of your necklace,

you have stolen my heart.

₁₀Your love is sweeter than wine;

the smell of your perfume

is more fragrant than spices.

₁₁Your lips are a honeycomb;

milk and honey

flow from your tongue.

Your dress has the aroma

of cedar trees from Lebanon.

₁₂My bride, my very own,

you are a garden, a fountain

closed off to all others.

₁₃Your arms are vines,

covered with delicious fruits

and all sorts of spices—

henna, nard, ₁₄saffron,

calamus, cinnamon,

frankincense, myrrh, and aloes— all the finest spices.

₁₅You are a spring in the garden,

a fountain of pure water,

and a refreshing stream

from Mount Lebanon.

₁₆Let the north wind blow,

the south wind too!

Let them spread the aroma

of my garden,

so the one I love

may enter and taste

its delicious fruits.