2 The Girl: “I am the rose of Sharon, the lily of the valley.”
King Solomon: 2 “Yes, a lily among thorns, so is my beloved as compared with any other girls.”
The Girl: 3 “My lover is an apple tree, the finest in the orchard as compared with any of the other youths. I am seated in his much-desired shade and his fruit is lovely to eat. 4 He brings me to the banquet hall, and everyone can see how much he loves me. 5 Oh, feed me with your love—your ‘raisins’ and your ‘apples’—for I am utterly lovesick. 6 His left hand is under my head and with his right hand he embraces me. 7 O girls of Jerusalem, I adjure you by the gazelles and deer in the park, that you do not awaken my lover.[a] Let him sleep!”
The Girl: 8 “Ah, I hear him—my beloved! Here he comes, leaping upon the mountains and bounding over the hills. 9 My beloved is like a gazelle or young deer. Look, there he is behind the wall, now looking in at the windows.
10 “My beloved said to me, ‘Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. 11 For the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. 12 The flowers are springing up and the time of the singing of birds has come. Yes, spring is here.[b] 13 The leaves are coming out,[c] and the grapevines are in blossom. How delicious they smell! Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away.’
14 “My dove is hiding behind some rocks, behind an outcrop of the cliff. Call to me and let me hear your lovely voice and see your handsome face.
15 “The little foxes are ruining the vineyards. Catch them, for the grapes are all in blossom.
16 “My beloved is mine and I am his. He is feeding among the lilies! 17 Before the dawn comes and the shadows flee away, come to me, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices.”
Footnotes
- Song of Solomon 2:7 do not awaken my lover, literally, “stir not up nor awaken love until it pleases.”
- Song of Solomon 2:12 spring is here, literally, “the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.”
- Song of Solomon 2:13 The leaves are coming out, literally, “The fig tree puts forth its figs.”