Maiden’s Fanciful Wish
1 How I wish that you were my little brother,
who nursed upon my mother’s breasts!
If I met you outside,I would kiss you,
and no one would despise me!
2 I would surely bring youto the house of my mother,
who would surely teach me;
I would give you spiced wine to drink,
the sweet wineof my pomegranates.
Double Refrain: Embrace and Adjuration
3 His left hand is under my head,
and his right hand embracesme.
4 I adjure you, O maidens of Jerusalem,
do notarouse or awaken love until it pleases!
Up from the Wilderness and under the Apple Tree
5 Who is this coming up from the wilderness,
leaning upon her beloved?
Under the apple tree I awakened you;
there your mother conceived you;
there she who was in labor gave birth to you.
The Nature of Genuine Romantic Love
6 Set me as a seal upon your heart,
as a seal upon your arm;
for love is strong as death;
passion is fierce as Sheol;
its flashes are flashes of fire;
it is a blazing flame.
7 Many waters cannot quench love;
rivers cannot sweep it away.
If a man were to give all the wealth of his house for love,
he would be utterly scorned.
Maiden’s Virtuous Chastity and Voluptuous Beauty
8 We have a little sister,
and she does not yet have any breasts.
What should we do for our sister
on the day when she is betrothed?
9 If she is a wall,
we will adorn her with a turret of silver;
but if she is a door,
we will barricade her with boards of cedar.
10 I was a wall, and my breasts were like the towers,
so my betrothed viewed me with great delight.
Solomon’s Vineyard and the Maiden’s Gift
11 Solomon had a vineyardat Baal-hamon;
he entrusted his vineyard to the keepers;
people paid a thousand silver pieces for its fruit.
12 My own “vineyard” belongs to me;
the “thousand” are for you, O Solomon,
and “two hundred” for those who tend its fruit.
Closing Words of Mutual Love
13 O you who dwell in the garden,
my companions are listening to your voice.
Let me hear it!
14 Flee, my beloved!
Be like a gazelleor a young stag
upon the perfumed mountains!