Song of Solomon 1

¹This is Solomon’s Song of Songs.^a

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

For your love is more delightful than wine.

³The fragrance of your perfume is pleasing;

your name is like perfume poured out.

No wonder the maidens adore you.

⁴Take me away with you—let us hurry!

May the king bring me to his chambers.

We will rejoice and delight in you;

we will praise your love more than wine.

It is only right that they adore you.

⁵I am dark, yet lovely, O daughters of Jerusalem,

like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon.

⁶Do 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.

⁷Tell 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?

⁸If 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.

⁹I compare you, my darling,

to a mare among Pharaoh’s chariots.

¹⁰Your cheeks are beautiful with ornaments,

your neck with strings of jewels.

¹¹We will make you ornaments of gold,

studded with beads of silver.

¹²While the king was at his table,

my perfume spread its fragrance.

¹³My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh

resting between my breasts.

¹⁴My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms

in the vineyards of En-gedi.

¹⁵How beautiful you are, my darling!

Oh, how very beautiful!

Your eyes are like doves.

¹⁶How handsome you are, my beloved!

Oh, how delightful!

The soft grass is our bed.

¹⁷The beams of our house are cedars;

our rafters are fragrant firs.