Song of Solomon 5

Modern

Literal

The Bride and Her Beloved

The Bridegroom

The Friends

¹I 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.

Eat, O friends, and drink;

drink freely, O beloved.

¹I have come to my garden, my sister, my bride; I have plucked my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk. Eat, friends, drink, and drink freely, O beloved ones!

The Bride

²I 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.”

²I was asleep, and my heart was aroused. A sound! My beloved is knocking: “Open to me, my sister, my darling, my dove, my flawless one. For my head is full of dew, my locks of the drops of the night.”

³I have taken off my robe—

must I put it back on?

I have washed my feet—

must I soil them again?

³I have taken off my garment—how do I put it on? I have washed my feet—how do I soil them?

⁴My beloved put his hand to the latch;

my heart pounded for him.

⁴My beloved stretched out his hand to the latch, and my bowels murmered for him.

⁵I rose up to open for my beloved.

My hands dripped with myrrh,

my fingers with flowing myrrh

on the handles of the bolt.

⁵I arose to open up for my beloved, and my hands dripped with myrrh, and my fingers covered over with myrrh on the palms of the bolt.

⁶I 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.

⁶I opened for my beloved, and my beloved had turned away and had gone! My heart went forth at his speaking. I sought him, and could not find him; I called to him, and he did not answer me.

⁷I 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.

⁷The guards found me in their going round about the city. They struck me, they bruised me, the guards of the walls; they lifted my wrap from me.

⁸O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you,

if you find my beloved,

tell him I am sick with love.

⁸I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if you find my beloved, what you should declare to him: I am sick with love.

The Friends

⁹How is your beloved better than others,

O most beautiful among women?

How is your beloved better than another,

that you charge us so?

⁹How is your beloved above any beloved, O beautiful one among the women? How is your beloved above any beloved, that thus you adjure us?

The Bride

¹⁰My beloved is dazzling and ruddy,

outstanding among ten thousand.

¹⁰My beloved is dazzling and ruddy, distinguished above a myriad.

¹¹His head is purest gold;

his hair is wavy and black as a raven.

¹¹His head is gold, pure gold; his locks are wavy, black like the raven.

¹²His eyes are like doves

beside the streams of water,

bathed in milk

and mounted like jewels.

¹²His eyes are like doves beside channels of waters, washed with milk, sitting beside a full pool.

¹³His cheeks are like beds of spice,

towers of perfume.

His lips are like lilies,

dripping with flowing myrrh.

¹³His cheeks are like a bed of spice, towers of perfume. His lips lilies, dripping with flowing myrrh.

¹⁴His arms are rods of gold

set with beryl.

His body is polished ivory

bedecked with sapphires.

¹⁴His hands are rods of gold, set with beryl; his belly is a plate of ivory, covered with sapphires;

¹⁵His legs are pillars of marble

set on bases of pure gold.

His appearance is like Lebanon,

as majestic as the cedars.

¹⁵his legs are pillars of marble, set on bases of pure gold; his appearance is like the Lebanon, being excellent like the cedars.

¹⁶His mouth^a is most sweet;

he is altogether lovely.

This is my beloved, and this is my friend,

O daughters of Jerusalem.

¹⁶His mouth is sweetness, and all of him is desireable. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem!