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Friends of the Woman

Where has your beloved gone,
    O fairest among women?
Where has your beloved turned aside,
    that we may seek him with you?

The Woman

My beloved has gone down to his garden,
    to the beds of spices,
to feed his flock in the gardens,
    and to gather lilies.
I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine;
    he feeds his flock among the lilies.

The Man

You are beautiful as Tirzah, my love,
    comely as Jerusalem,
    awesome as an army with banners!
Turn your eyes away from me,
    for they overwhelm me!
Your hair is like a flock of goats
    streaming down from Gilead.
your teeth are like a flock of ewes
    that have come up from the washing;
all of them bear twins; not one among them has lost its young;
your cheeks are like halves
    of a pomegranate behind your veil.
There are sixty queens
    and eighty concubines,
    and virgins without number.
My dove, my perfect one, is the only one,
    the only one of her mother,
    choice to her who bore her.
The maidens saw her and called her blessed;
    the queens and concubines also, and they praised her.

10 Who is this who looks forth like the dawn,
    fair as the moon, radiant as the sun,
    awesome as an army with banners?

11 I went down to the nut orchard
    to look at the blossoms of the valley,
to see whether the vines had budded,
    whether the pomegranates were in bloom.
12 Before I was aware, my soul set me in a chariot beside my prince.

Friends of the Woman

13 Return, return, O Shulammite![a]
    Return, return, that we may look upon you.

The Man

Why should you look upon the Shulammite,
    as upon a dance before two armies?[b]

Footnotes

  1. Song of Songs 6:13 7:1 in the Heb. text.
  2. Song of Songs 6:13 Or dance of Mahanaim.

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.