Song 1 | LSB | STEP | The Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s.

Song of Solomon 1

The Shulammite Bride’s Desire

1 The ^{▼▼Or Best of the Songs}Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s.

2 “ ^▼▼BRIDEMay he kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!
For your love is better than wine.
3 “Your oils have a pleasing fragrance,
Your name is like ^{▼▼Lit oil which is emptied (from one vessel to another)}purified oil;
Therefore the ^{▼▼Or virgins}maidens love you.
4 “Draw me after you and let us run together!
The king has brought me into his chambers.”
“ ^▼▼CHORUSWe will rejoice in you and be glad;
We will ^{▼▼Lit make remembrance of}extol your love more than wine.
Rightly do they love you.”
5 “ ^▼▼BRIDEI am black but lovely,
O daughters of Jerusalem,
Like the tents of Kedar,
Like the curtains of Solomon.
6 “Do not look at me because I am ^{▼▼Or black}swarthy,
For the sun has burned me.
My mother’s sons were angry with me;
They made me caretaker of the vineyards,
But I have not taken care of my own vineyard.
7 “Tell me, O you whom my soul loves,
Where do you shepherd your flock,
Where do you make it lie down at noon?
For why should I be like one who ^{▼▼Some versions wanders}veils herself
Beside the flocks of your companions?”

Solomon and His Bride Extol Each Other

8 “ ^{▼▼BRIDEGROOM}If you yourself do not know,
Most beautiful among women,
Go forth on the trail of the flock
And pasture your young goats
By the dwellings of the shepherds.
9 “To a mare of mine among the chariots of Pharaoh
I compare you, O my darling.
10 “Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments,
Your neck with strings of ^{▼▼Or shells}beads.”
11 “ ^▼▼CHORUSWe will make for you ornaments of gold
With beads of silver.”
12 “ ^▼▼BRIDEWhile the king was at his ^{▼▼Or couch}banqueting table,
My ^{▼▼Lit nard}perfume gave forth its fragrance.
13 “My beloved is to me a pouch of myrrh
Which lies all night between my breasts.
14 “My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms
In the vineyards of Engedi.”
15 “ ^{▼▼BRIDEGROOM}Behold, you are beautiful, my darling,
Behold, you are beautiful!
Your eyes are like doves.”
16 “ ^▼▼BRIDEBehold, you are handsome, my beloved,
Indeed, so pleasant!
Indeed, our couch is luxuriant!
17 “The beams of our houses are cedars,
Our rafters, ^{▼▼Or junipers}cypresses.