Song of Solomon 6
Easy-to-Read Version
The Women of Jerusalem Speak to Her
6 Beautiful woman,
where has your lover gone?
Which way did your lover go?
Tell us so that we can help you look for him.
She Answers the Women of Jerusalem
2 My lover has gone down to his garden,
where sweet-smelling spices grow.
There, like a sheep, he will eat the grass,
and he will enjoy the lilies.
3 I belong to my lover, and my lover belongs to me.
He is the one feeding among the lilies.
He Speaks to Her
4 My darling, you are as beautiful as Tirzah,[a]
as pleasant as Jerusalem,
as awesome as the stars in the sky.[b]
5 Don’t look at me!
Your eyes excite me too much!
And your hair is long and flowing,
like little goats dancing down the slopes of Mount Gilead.
6 Your teeth are white like ewes[c]
just coming from their bath.
They all give birth to twins.
Not one of them has lost a baby.
7 Your cheeks under your veil
are like slices of pomegranate.
8 There might be 60 queens
and 80 slave women,
and young women too many to count,
9 but there is only one woman for me,
my dove, my perfect one.
She is the favorite of her mother,
her mother’s favorite child.
The young women see her and praise her.
Even the queens and slave women praise her.
The Women Praise Her
10 Who is that young woman?
She shines out like the dawn.
She is as pretty as the moon.
She is as bright as the sun.
She is as awesome
as the stars in the sky.
He Speaks to Her
11 I went down to the grove of walnut trees,
to see the fruit of the valley,
to see if the vines were in bloom,
to see if the pomegranates had budded.
12 I was so excited
when she put me in the royal chariot.[d]
The Women of Jerusalem Call to Her
13 Come back, come back, Shulamith[e]!
Come back, come back, so we may look at you.
Why are you staring at Shulamith,
as she dances the Mahanaim dance[f]?
Footnotes
- Song of Solomon 6:4 Tirzah One of the capital cities of northern Israel.
- Song of Solomon 6:4 the stars in the sky Or “an army ready for war.” The meaning of the Hebrew word here and in verse 10 is uncertain.
- Song of Solomon 6:6 ewes Female goats.
- Song of Solomon 6:12 the royal chariot Or “the chariots of my noble people.” See “chariot” in the Word List.
- Song of Solomon 6:13 Shulamith Or “Shulamite.” The word might be the feminine form of the name “Solomon.” This could mean she was or would become the bride of Solomon. This name might also mean “perfect,” “at peace,” or “woman from Shunem.”
- Song of Solomon 6:13 Mahanaim dance Or “the victory dance” or “the dance of the two camps.”
Song of Songs 6
New International Version
Friends
6 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
2 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.
3 I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine;(F)
he browses among the lilies.(G)
He
4 You are as beautiful as Tirzah,(H) my darling,
as lovely as Jerusalem,(I)
as majestic as troops with banners.(J)
5 Turn your eyes from me;
they overwhelm me.
Your hair is like a flock of goats
descending from Gilead.(K)
6 Your teeth are like a flock of sheep
coming up from the washing.
Each has its twin,
not one of them is missing.(L)
7 Your temples behind your veil(M)
are like the halves of a pomegranate.(N)
8 Sixty queens(O) there may be,
and eighty concubines,(P)
and virgins beyond number;
9 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
Footnotes
- Song of Songs 6:12 Or among the chariots of Amminadab; or among the chariots of the people of the prince
- Song of Songs 6:13 In Hebrew texts this verse (6:13) is numbered 7:1.
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