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Solomon’s Praise of His Dancing Maiden

How beautiful are your feet in sandals,
    O royal princess![a]
The curves of your thighs[b] are like jewels,[c]
    the work of the hands of a craftsman.
Your navel is a round wine-mixing bowl[d]
    that does not lack mixed[e] wine!
Your belly is a heap of wheat
    encircled with lilies.
Your two breasts are like two fawns,
    twins of a gazelle.
Your neck is like a tower of ivory;
    your eyes are pools in Heshbon at the gate of Beth Rabbim.
Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon
    looking out over Damascus.[f]
Your head crowns you like Carmel;[g][h]
    the flowing locks of your head are like purple tapestry;[i]
        a king is held captive in the tresses!
How beautiful you are and how pleasant,
    O loved one in the delights!
Your stature[j] is like the palm tree,
    and your breasts are like clusters.
I say, “I will climb up the palm tree;
    I will lay hold of its fruit clusters.”
Let your breasts be pleasing like clusters of the vine
    and the scent of your breath like the apples.
Your palate is like the best wine that goes down for my beloved,
    smoothly gliding over my lips and teeth.[k]

Mutual Possession Refrain

10 I belong to my beloved,[l]
    and he desires me![m]

Rendezvous in the Countryside

11 Come, my beloved, let us go out to the countryside;[n]
    let us spend the night[o] in the villages.
12 Let us rise early to go[p] to the vineyards;
    let us see whether the vine has budded,[q]
whether the grape blossom has opened,
    and whether the pomegranates are in bloom;[r]
there I will give my love to you.
13 The mandrakes give off their fragrance,
    and over our doorway is every kind of delicious fruit;[s]
both fresh and dried fruit I have stored up[t] for you, O my beloved.

Footnotes

  1. Song of Solomon 7:1 Or “O daughter of leader”
  2. Song of Solomon 7:1 Literally “thigh”
  3. Song of Solomon 7:1 Literally “ornaments”
  4. Song of Solomon 7:2 Literally “a bowl of the roundness”
  5. Song of Solomon 7:2 Or “blended”
  6. Song of Solomon 7:4 Literally “looking out over the face of Damascus”
  7. Song of Solomon 7:5 Literally “Your head is on you like the Carmel”
  8. Song of Solomon 7:5 Because of its height and fertility, Mount Carmel is often associated with royalty
  9. Song of Solomon 7:5 Literally “the purple”
  10. Song of Solomon 7:7 Literally “this your height”
  11. Song of Solomon 7:9 Or “over lips of sleepers.” One Hebrew textual tradition preserves the reading “lips of those who sleep” (MT). Another Hebrew tradition reads “my lips and my teeth,” as reflected by the ancient versions (LXX, Latin Vulgate, Aramaic Targum, Syriac Peshitta). The latter is adopted here since it makes the most sense poetically
  12. Song of Solomon 7:10 Literally “I am for my beloved”
  13. Song of Solomon 7:10 Literally “and his desire is for me.” Or “and his desire belongs to me”
  14. Song of Solomon 7:11 Literally “go forth into the field”
  15. Song of Solomon 7:11 Or “lodge”
  16. Song of Solomon 7:12 Or “let us go”
  17. Song of Solomon 7:12 Or “sprouted”
  18. Song of Solomon 7:12 Literally “have bloomed”
  19. Song of Solomon 7:13 Or “over our doorways all choice things
  20. Song of Solomon 7:13 Literally “new also old I have laid up”

[a]How beautiful your sandaled feet,
    O prince’s(A) daughter!
Your graceful legs are like jewels,
    the work of an artist’s hands.
Your navel is a rounded goblet
    that never lacks blended wine.
Your waist is a mound of wheat
    encircled by lilies.
Your breasts(B) are like two fawns,
    like twin fawns of a gazelle.
Your neck is like an ivory tower.(C)
Your eyes are the pools of Heshbon(D)
    by the gate of Bath Rabbim.
Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon(E)
    looking toward Damascus.
Your head crowns you like Mount Carmel.(F)
    Your hair is like royal tapestry;
    the king is held captive by its tresses.
How beautiful(G) you are and how pleasing,
    my love, with your delights!(H)
Your stature is like that of the palm,
    and your breasts(I) like clusters of fruit.
I said, “I will climb the palm tree;
    I will take hold of its fruit.”
May your breasts be like clusters of grapes on the vine,
    the fragrance of your breath like apples,(J)
    and your mouth like the best wine.

She

May the wine go straight to my beloved,(K)
    flowing gently over lips and teeth.[b]
10 I belong to my beloved,
    and his desire(L) is for me.(M)
11 Come, my beloved, let us go to the countryside,
    let us spend the night in the villages.[c]
12 Let us go early to the vineyards(N)
    to see if the vines have budded,(O)
if their blossoms(P) have opened,
    and if the pomegranates(Q) are in bloom(R)
    there I will give you my love.
13 The mandrakes(S) send out their fragrance,
    and at our door is every delicacy,
both new and old,
    that I have stored up for you, my beloved.(T)

Footnotes

  1. Song of Songs 7:1 In Hebrew texts 7:1-13 is numbered 7:2-14.
  2. Song of Songs 7:9 Septuagint, Aquila, Vulgate and Syriac; Hebrew lips of sleepers
  3. Song of Songs 7:11 Or the henna bushes

How beautiful are thy feet with shoes, O prince's daughter! the joints of thy thighs are like jewels, the work of the hands of a cunning workman.

Thy navel is like a round goblet, which wanteth not liquor: thy belly is like an heap of wheat set about with lilies.

Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins.

Thy neck is as a tower of ivory; thine eyes like the fishpools in Heshbon, by the gate of Bathrabbim: thy nose is as the tower of Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus.

Thine head upon thee is like Carmel, and the hair of thine head like purple; the king is held in the galleries.

How fair and how pleasant art thou, O love, for delights!

This thy stature is like to a palm tree, and thy breasts to clusters of grapes.

I said, I will go up to the palm tree, I will take hold of the boughs thereof: now also thy breasts shall be as clusters of the vine, and the smell of thy nose like apples;

And the roof of thy mouth like the best wine for my beloved, that goeth down sweetly, causing the lips of those that are asleep to speak.

10 I am my beloved's, and his desire is toward me.

11 Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the field; let us lodge in the villages.

12 Let us get up early to the vineyards; let us see if the vine flourish, whether the tender grape appear, and the pomegranates bud forth: there will I give thee my loves.

13 The mandrakes give a smell, and at our gates are all manner of pleasant fruits, new and old, which I have laid up for thee, O my beloved.