Song of Solomon

Whither is thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women? whither is thy beloved turned aside? that we may seek him with thee.

1Where has the one you love gone, most beautiful of women? Which way did he turn? Tell us, and we will look for him with you.

2My beloved is gone down into his garden, to the beds of spices, to feed in the gardens, and to gather lilies.

2My love has gone down to his garden, to the beds of sweet-smelling spices. He is there feeding his flock and gathering lilies.

3I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine: he feedeth among the lilies.

3I belong to my love, and my love belongs to me. He feeds his flock among the lilies.

4Thou art beautiful, O my love, as Tirzah, comely as Jerusalem, terrible as an army with banners.

4You are as beautiful as the city of Tirzah, my darling. You are as lovely as Jerusalem, and as awesome as an army marching under its flags.

NoteIn 1611 English, "terrible" meant awe-inspiring, the way a grand sight stops you in your tracks. It does not mean frightening or bad here, and the same is true in verse 10.

5Turn away thine eyes from me, for they have overcome me: thy hair is as a flock of goats that appear from Gilead.

5Turn your eyes away from me, for they have won me over. Your hair flows down like a flock of goats coming off the hills of Gilead.

6Thy teeth are as a flock of sheep which go up from the washing, whereof every one beareth twins, and there is not one barren among them.

6Your teeth are white like a flock of sheep just come up from being washed. Each one has its match, and not one is missing.

7As a piece of a pomegranate are thy temples within thy locks.

7Behind your veil, the side of your face glows like the red inside of a pomegranate.

8There are threescore queens, and fourscore concubines, and virgins without number.

8There are sixty queens and eighty women of lower rank in the king's household, and young women too many to count.

9My dove, my undefiled is but one; she is the only one of her mother, she is the choice one of her that bare her. The daughters saw her, and blessed her; yea, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her.

9But my dove, my perfect one, is one of a kind. She is her mother's only one, the favorite of the woman who gave her birth. The young women saw her and called her blessed. The queens and the other wives praised her too.

10Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?

10Who is this looking out like the morning light? She is fair as the moon, bright as the sun, and as awesome as an army marching under its flags.

11I went down into the garden of nuts to see the fruits of the valley, and to see whether the vine flourished, and the pomegranates budded.

11I went down to the grove of nut trees to see the young plants in the valley. I wanted to see if the vines had budded and the pomegranate trees were in bloom.

12Or ever I was aware, my soul made me like the chariots of Amminadib.

12Before I knew what was happening, my own longing set me among the royal chariots.

NoteThe Hebrew of this verse is unclear. The KJV reads "Amminadib" as a person's name; other translations read the same letters as "my noble people" or "royal chariots."

13Return, return, O Shulamite; return, return, that we may look upon thee. What will ye see in the Shulamite? As it were the company of two armies.

13Come back, come back, Shulamite! Come back, so that we may look at you. Why do you want to gaze at the Shulamite, as if watching a dance between two camps?

Note"Shulamite" is the name or title used for the young woman. The KJV's "company of two armies" translates a Hebrew phrase that is also read as "the dance of Mahanaim," a dance performed by two facing groups.