Song of Solomon 3-4

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3 By night on my bed I sought the one I love;

I sought him, but I did not find him.

2 “I will rise now,” I said,

“And go about the city;

In the streets and in the squares

I will seek the one I love.”

I sought him, but I did not find him.

3 The watchmen who go about the city found me;

I said,

“Have you seen the one I love?”

4 Scarcely had I passed by them,

When I found the one I love.

I held him and would not let him go,

Until I had brought him to the house of my mother,

And into the chamber of her who conceived me.

5 I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem,

By the gazelles or by the does of the field,

Do not stir up nor awaken love

Until it pleases.

The Coming of Solomon

The Shulamite

6 Who is this coming out of the wilderness

Like pillars of smoke,

Perfumed with myrrh and frankincense,

With all the merchant’s fragrant powders?

7 Behold, it is Solomon’s couch,

With sixty valiant men around it,

Of the valiant of Israel.

8 They all hold swords,

Being expert in war.

Every man has his sword on his thigh

Because of fear in the night.

9 Of the wood of Lebanon

Solomon the King

Made himself a palanquin:

10 He made its pillars of silver,

Its support of gold,

Its seat of purple,

Its interior paved with love

By the daughters of Jerusalem.

11 Go forth, O daughters of Zion,

And see King Solomon with the crown

With which his mother crowned him

On the day of his wedding,

The day of the gladness of his heart.

The Beloved

4 Behold, you are fair, my love!

Behold, you are fair!

You have dove’s eyes behind your veil.

Your hair is like a flock of goats,

Going down from Mount Gilead.

2 Your teeth are like a flock of shorn sheep

Which have come up from the washing,

Every one of which bears twins,

And none is barren among them.

3 Your lips are like a strand of scarlet,

And your mouth is lovely.

Your temples behind your veil

Are like a piece of pomegranate.

4 Your neck is like the tower of David,

Built for an armory,

On which hang a thousand bucklers,

All shields of mighty men.

5 Your two breasts are like two fawns,

Twins of a gazelle,

Which feed among the lilies.

6 Until the day breaks

And the shadows flee away,

I will go my way to the mountain of myrrh

And to the hill of frankincense.

7 You are all fair, my love,

And there is no spot in you.

8 Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse,

With me from Lebanon.

Look from the top of Amana,

From the top of Senir and Hermon,

From the lions’ dens,

From the mountains of the leopards.

9 You have ravished my heart,

My sister, my spouse;

You have ravished my heart

With one look of your eyes,

With one link of your necklace.

10 How fair is your love,

My sister, my spouse!

How much better than wine is your love,

And the scent of your perfumes

Than all spices!

11 Your lips, O my spouse,

Drip as the honeycomb;

Honey and milk are under your tongue;

And the fragrance of your garments

Is like the fragrance of Lebanon.

12 A garden enclosed

Is my sister, my spouse,

A spring shut up,

A fountain sealed.

13 Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates

With pleasant fruits,

Fragrant henna with spikenard,

14 Spikenard and saffron,

Calamus and cinnamon,

With all trees of frankincense,

Myrrh and aloes,

With all the chief spices—

15 A fountain of gardens,

A well of living waters,

And streams from Lebanon.

The Shulamite

16 Awake, O north wind,

And come, O south!

Blow upon my garden,

That its spices may flow out.

Let my beloved come to his garden

And eat its pleasant fruits.

 The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), So 3:1–4:16.