< Song of Solomon 8 >
1 Who shall give thee to me for my brother, sucking the breasts of my mother, that I may find thee without, and kiss thee, and now no man may despise me?
How I wish you were like a brother to me, one who nursed at my mother's breasts! Then if I met you on the street I could kiss you and no one would tell me off.
2 I will take hold of thee, and bring thee Into my mother’s house: there thou shalt teach me, and I will give thee a cup of spiced wine and new wine of my pomegranates.
Then I could take you home to my mother's house, where she used to teach me. I would give you spiced wine to drink from the juice of my pomegranate.
3 His left hand under my head, and his right hand shall embrace me.
He supports my head with his left hand, and holds me close with his right.
4 I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, that you stir not up, nor awake my love till she please.
Women of Jerusalem, swear to me that you won't disturb our love until the right time.
5 Who is this that cometh up from the desert, flowing with delights, leaning upon her beloved? Under the apple tree I raised thee up: there thy mother was corrupted, there she was defloured that bore thee.
Who is this coming in from the wilderness holding her love close to her? Woman: I woke you up under the apple tree where your mother conceived you, and where she gave birth to you.
6 Put me as a seal upon thy heart, as a seal upon thy arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy as hard as hell, the lamps thereof are fire and flames. (Sheol )
Stamp my name as a seal on your heart, like a seal on your arm, for love is strong as death, passion as unyielding as the grave—its arrows flash like fire, a blazing flame of the Lord. (Sheol )
7 Many waters cannot quench charity, neither can the floods drown it: if a man should give all the substance of his house for love, he shall despise it as nothing.
Floods of water cannot extinguish love; rivers cannot submerge it. If a man offered everything he owned in order to buy love he would be completely rejected.
8 Our sister is little, and hath no breasts. What shall we do to our sister in the day when she is to be spoken to?
We have a younger sister whose breasts are still small. What shall we do for our sister when someone asks to marry her?
9 If she be a wall: let us build upon it bulwarks of silver: if she be a door, let us join it together with boards or cedar.
If she is a wall, we will build a silver tower on it. But if she is a door, we will bar the way with cedar planks.
10 I am a wall: and my breasts are as a tower since I am become in his presence as one finding peace.
I am a wall, and my breasts are like towers. So when he looks at me he's happy!
11 The peaceable had a vineyard, in that which hath people: he let out the same to keepers, every man bringeth for the fruit thereof a thousand pieces of silver.
Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon which he leased to tenant farmers. Each of them paid him one thousand silver coins for the fruit it produced.
12 My vineyard is before me. A thousand are for thee, the peaceable, and two hundred for them that keep the fruit thereof.
But I own my vineyard, it is mine alone. One thousand silver coins are for you, Solomon, and two hundred for those who look after it.
13 Thou that dwellest in the gardens, the friends hearken: make me hear thy voice.
My darling, sitting there in the gardens with companions listening to you—please talk to me!
14 Flee away, O my beloved, and be like to the roe, and to the young hart upon the mountains of aromatical spices.
Come quickly, my love! Be like a gazelle or a young deer on the mountains of spices.