3 In my bed at nightE

I sought the one I love;u

I sought him, but did not find him.F,v

2 I will arise now and go about the city,

through the streets and the plazas.w

I will seek the one I love.

I sought him, but did not find him.

3 The guards who go about the city found me.x

I asked them, “Have you seen the one I love?”

4 I had just passed them

when I found the one I love.

I held on to him and would not let him go

until I brought him to my mother’s housey—

to the chamber of the one who conceived me.

5 Young women of Jerusalem, I charge you

by the gazelles and the wild does of the field,

do not stir up or awaken love

until the appropriate time.G,z

Narrator

6 Who is thisaa coming up from the wilderness

like columns of smoke,

scented with myrrh and frankincenseab

from every fragrant powder of the merchant?

7 Look! Solomon’s bed

surrounded by sixty warriors

from the mighty men of Israel.

8 All of them are skilled with swords

and trained in warfare.

Each has his sword at his sideac

to guard against the terror of the night.ad

9 King Solomon made a carriage for himself

with wood from Lebanon.

10 He made its posts of silver,

its backH of gold,

and its seat of purple.

Its interior is inlaid with loveA

by the young women of Jerusalem.a

11 Go out, young women of Zion,b

and gaze at King Solomon,

wearing the crown his mother placed on him

on the day of his weddingc—

the day of his heart’s rejoicing.

Man

4 How beautiful you are, my darling.

How very beautiful!

Behind your veil,

your eyes are doves.d

Your hair is like a flock of goats

streaming down Mount Gilead.e

2 Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep

coming up from washing,

each one bearing twins,

and none has lost its young.B,f

3 Your lips are like a scarlet cord,g

and your mouthC is lovely.

Behind your veil,

your browD is like a slice of pomegranate.h

4 Your neck is like the tower of David,i

constructed in layers.

A thousand shields are hung on it—

all of them shields of warriors.

5 Your breasts are like two fawns,

twins of a gazelle,j that feed among the lilies.

6 Until the day breaksE

and the shadows flee,k

I will make my way to the mountain of myrrh

and the hill of frankincense.l

7 You are absolutely beautiful,m my darling;

there is no imperfection in you.

8 Come with me from Lebanon,* n my bride;o

come with me from Lebanon!

Descend from the peak of Amana,

from the summit of Senir and Hermon,p

from the dens of the lions,

from the mountains of the leopards.

9 You have captured my heart,q my sister,r my bride.

You have captured my heart with one glance of your eyes,

with one jewel of your necklace.

10 How delightful your caresses are, my sister, my bride.

Your caresses are much better than wine,s

and the fragrance of your perfume than any balsam.

11 Your lips drip sweetness like the honeycomb, my bride.t

Honey and milku are under your tongue.

The fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon.

12 My sister, my bride, you are a locked garden—

a locked gardenA and a sealed spring.v

13 Your branches are a paradiseB of pomegranates

with choicest fruits;w

henna with nard,

14 nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon,x

with all the trees of frankincense,y

myrrh and aloes,z

with all the best spices.

15 You are a garden spring,

a well of flowing wateraa

streaming from Lebanon.

Woman

16 Awaken,ab north wind;

come, south wind.

Blow on my garden,

and spread the fragrance of its spices.

Let my love come to his garden

and eat its choicest fruits.ac

Man

5 I have come to my garden—my sister, my bride.

I gatherC my myrrh with my spices.

I eat my honeycomb with my honey.

I drink my wine with my milk.

Narrator

Eat, friends!

Drink, be intoxicated with caresses!D,ad

Woman

2 I was sleeping, but my heart was awake.

A sound! My love was knocking!a

Man

Open to me, my sister, my darling,

my dove, my perfect one.

For my head is drenched with dew,

my hair with droplets of the night.

Woman

3 I have taken off my clothing.b

How can I put it back on?

I have washed my feet.

How can I get them dirty?

4 My love thrust his hand through the opening,

and my feelings were stirred for him.

5 I rose to open for my love.

My hands dripped with myrrh,c

my fingers with flowing myrrh

on the handles of the bolt.

6 I opened to my love,

but my love had turned and gone away.

My heart sankE because he had left.F

I sought him, but did not find him.d

I called him, but he did not answer.

7 The guards who go about the city found me.e

They beat and wounded me;

they took my cloakG from me—

the guardians of the walls.f

8 Young women of Jerusalem, I charge you,g

if you find my love,

tell him that I am lovesick.h

Young Women

9 What makes the one you love better than another,

most beautiful of women?i

What makes him better than another,

that you would give us this charge?

Woman

10 My love is fit and strong,A,j

notable among ten thousand.k

11 His head is purest gold.

His hair is wavyB,l

and black as a raven.

12 His eyes are like dovesm

beside flowing streams,

washed in milk

and set like jewels.C

13 His cheeksn are like beds of spice,

mounds ofD perfume.

His lips are lilies,

dripping with flowing myrrh.o

14 His armsE are rods of gold

set* with beryl.p

His bodyG is an ivory panel

covered with lapis lazuli.q

15 His legs are alabaster pillars

set on pedestals of pure gold.

His presence is like Lebanon,r

as majestic as the cedars.s

16 His mouth is sweetness.

He is absolutely desirable.t

This is my love, and this is my friend,

young women of Jerusalem.