Song of Solomon 4
1 Behold, thou art beautiful, my beloved, behold, thou art beautiful: thy dovelike eyes [look forth] from behind thy vail; thy hair is like a flock of goats, that come quietly down from Mount Gil'ad.
My darling, you are beautiful, you are very beautiful! Underneath your veil, your eyes are [as gentle as] [MET] doves. Your [long black] hair [moves from side to side] like [SIM] a flock of [black] goats moving down the slopes of Gilead Mountain.
2 Thy teeth are like a flock of well-selected sheep, which are come up from the washing, all of which bear twins, and there is not one among them that is deprived of her young.
Your teeth are [very white] like [SIM] a flock of sheep [whose wool] has [just] been (shorn/cut off) and that have come up from being washed [in a stream]. You have all of your teeth; none of them is missing.
3 Like a thread of scarlet are thy lips, and thy mouth is comely: like the half of a pomegranate is the upper part of thy cheek behind thy vail.
Your lips are like [SIM] a scarlet ribbon, and your mouth is lovely. Beneath your veil, your [round, rosy/red] cheeks are like [SIM] the halves of a pomegranate.
4 Thy neck is like the tower of David built on terraces, a thousand shields hang-thereon, all the quivers of the mighty men.
Your [long] neck is [beautiful] like [SIM] the tower of [King] David that was built using layers/rows of stone. [The ornaments on your necklaces are like] 1,000 [HYP] shields that are hanging [on the walls of a tower]; each one belongs to a warrior.
5 Thy two breasts are like two fawns, the twins of the roe, that feed among the lilies.
Your breasts are [as beautiful] [SIM] as two (fawns/young gazelles) that eat [grass] among lilies.
6 Until the day became cool, and the shadows flee away, will I get me to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense.
Until dawn [tomorrow morning] and the nighttime shadows/darkness disappear, I will [lie close to your breasts] that are [like] [MET] hills that are covered with incense [DOU].
7 Thou art altogether beautiful, my beloved, and there is no blemish on thee.—
My darling, you are completely beautiful; your body is perfectly [formed]!
8 Come with me from Lebanon, O bride, with me from Lebanon: look about from the top of Amanah, from the top of Senir and Chermon, from the lions' dens, from the leopards' mountains.
My bride, [it is as though you are in] [MET] Lebanon [far away, where I cannot reach you]; come back to me. [It is as though you are inaccessible] [MET] on the top of Hermon Mountain or the nearby peaks. Come from where the lions have their dens and where the leopards live on the mountains.
9 Thou hast ravished my heart, O my sister, [my] bride; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thy eyes, with one chain of thy neck.
My bride [DOU], you who are dearer to me than my sister, you have captured my affection [IDM] by only once quickly looking at me, and by one [strand of] jewels in your necklace.
10 How beautiful are thy caresses, O my sister, [my] bride! how much more pleasant are thy caresses than wine! and the smell of thy fragrant oils more than all spices.
My bride, your love for me is delightful! It more delightful than wine! And the fragrance of your perfume is more pleasing than any spice!
11 Of sweet honey drop thy lips, O bride: honey and milk are under thy tongue; and the scent of thy garments is like the scent of Lebanon.
Being kissed by you is [as enjoyable as eating] [MTY] honey; your kisses are as sweet as milk [mixed with] honey. The aroma of your clothes is like [SIM] the aroma of [cedar trees in] Lebanon.
12 A locked-up garden is my sister, [my] bride; a locked-up spring, a sealed fountain.
My bride, [you who are dearer to me than] [MET] my sister, you are [like] [MET] a garden that is locked [in order that other men cannot enter it]; [you are like] [MET] a spring or a fountain that is covered [in order that others may not drink from it].
13 Thy sprouts are an orchard of pomegranates, with precious fruits, copher and spikenard;
You are [like] [MET] an orchard of pomegranate trees full of delicious fruit, and plenty of [plants that produce] henna and nard [spices],
14 Spikenard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon, with all the trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief of spices;
and saffron and calamus and cinnamon and many other kinds of incense, and myrrh and aloes and many [other] fine spices.
15 A garden-spring, a well of living waters, and flowing down from Lebanon.—
[You are like] [MET] a fountain in a garden, [like] [MET] a spring of clear water that flows [down] from [the mountains of] Lebanon.
16 Awake, O north wind; and come thou, O south; blow over my garden, that its spices may flow out. Let my friend come into his garden, and eat its precious fruits.—
[I want] the north wind and the south wind to come, and blow on my garden, [in order that] the fragrance [of the spices will] spread through the air. [Similarly], I want the one who loves me to come and enjoy [cuddling up to me] [like] [MET, EUP] someone comes into a garden and enjoys eating the fruit [that grows there].
