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Whither is thy beloved gone,
O thou fairest among women?
Whither hath thy beloved turned him,
That we may seek him with thee?

My beloved is gone down to his garden,
To the beds of [a]spices,
To feed in the gardens, and to gather lilies.
I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine:
He feedeth his flock among the lilies.

Thou art fair, O my love, as Tirzah,
Comely as Jerusalem,
Terrible as [b]an army with banners.
Turn away thine eyes from me,
For they [c]have overcome me.
Thy hair is as a flock of goats,
That lie along the side of Gilead.
Thy teeth are like a flock of ewes,
Which are come up from the washing;
Whereof every one hath twins,
And none is bereaved among them.
Thy temples are like a piece of a pomegranate
Behind thy veil.
There are threescore queens, and fourscore concubines,
And [d]virgins without number.
My dove, my [e]undefiled, is but one;
She is the only one of her mother;
She is the [f]choice one of her that bare her.
The daughters saw her, and called her blessed;
Yea, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her.

10 Who is she that looketh forth as the morning,
Fair as the moon,
[g]Clear as the sun,
Terrible as an army with banners?

11 I went down into the garden of nuts,
To see the green plants of the valley,
To see whether the vine budded,
And the pomegranates were in flower.
12 Before I was aware, my [h]soul [i]set me
Among the chariots of my [j]princely people.

13 Return, return, O Shulammite;
Return, return, that we may look upon thee.
Why will ye look upon the Shulammite,
As upon the dance [k]of Mahanaim?

Footnotes

  1. Song of Solomon 6:2 Or, balsam
  2. Song of Solomon 6:4 Hebrew bannered hosts.
  3. Song of Solomon 6:5 Or, make me afraid
  4. Song of Solomon 6:8 Or, maidens
  5. Song of Solomon 6:9 Hebrew perfect.
  6. Song of Solomon 6:9 Or, pure
  7. Song of Solomon 6:10 Or, Pure
  8. Song of Solomon 6:12 Or, desire
  9. Song of Solomon 6:12 Or, made me like the chariots of Amminadib
  10. Song of Solomon 6:12 Or, willing
  11. Song of Solomon 6:13 Or, of two companies

Friends

Where has your beloved(A) gone,
    most beautiful of women?(B)
Which way did your beloved turn,
    that we may look for him with you?

She

My beloved has gone(C) down to his garden,(D)
    to the beds of spices,(E)
to browse in the gardens
    and to gather lilies.
I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine;(F)
    he browses among the lilies.(G)

He

You are as beautiful as Tirzah,(H) my darling,
    as lovely as Jerusalem,(I)
    as majestic as troops with banners.(J)
Turn your eyes from me;
    they overwhelm me.
Your hair is like a flock of goats
    descending from Gilead.(K)
Your teeth are like a flock of sheep
    coming up from the washing.
Each has its twin,
    not one of them is missing.(L)
Your temples behind your veil(M)
    are like the halves of a pomegranate.(N)
Sixty queens(O) there may be,
    and eighty concubines,(P)
    and virgins beyond number;
but my dove,(Q) my perfect one,(R) is unique,
    the only daughter of her mother,
    the favorite of the one who bore her.(S)
The young women saw her and called her blessed;
    the queens and concubines praised her.

Friends

10 Who is this that appears like the dawn,
    fair as the moon, bright as the sun,
    majestic as the stars in procession?

He

11 I went down to the grove of nut trees
    to look at the new growth in the valley,
to see if the vines had budded
    or the pomegranates were in bloom.(T)
12 Before I realized it,
    my desire set me among the royal chariots of my people.[a]

Friends

13 Come back, come back, O Shulammite;
    come back, come back, that we may gaze on you!

He

Why would you gaze on the Shulammite
    as on the dance(U) of Mahanaim?[b]

Footnotes

  1. Song of Songs 6:12 Or among the chariots of Amminadab; or among the chariots of the people of the prince
  2. Song of Songs 6:13 In Hebrew texts this verse (6:13) is numbered 7:1.