Song of Solomon 6

1 [[Lad.]] Whither is thy beloved gone, thou fairest among women? Whither hath thy beloved betaken himself? That we may seek him with thee.

Where has your beloved gone, O most beautiful among women? Which way has he turned? We will seek him with you.

2 [[M.]] My beloved is gone down to his garden, To the beds of balsam, To feed in the gardens, And to gather lilies.

My beloved has gone down to his garden, to the beds of spices, to pasture his flock in the gardens and to gather lilies.

3 I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine; He feedeth among the lilies.

I belong to my beloved and he belongs to me; he pastures his flock among the lilies.

4 Beautiful art thou, my love, as Tirzah, Lovely as Jerusalem; But terrible as an army with banners.

You are as beautiful, my darling, as Tirzah, as lovely as Jerusalem, as majestic as troops with banners.

5 Turn away thine eyes from me! They overpower me! Thy locks are like a flock of goats, Which lie down upon Gilead.

Turn your eyes away from me, for they have overcome me. Your hair is like a flock of goats streaming down from Gilead.

6 Thy teeth are like a flock of sheep, Which come up from the washing-place, Of which every one hath twins, And none is barren among them.

Your teeth are like a flock of sheep coming up from the washing; each has its twin, and not one of them is lost.

7 As a divided pomegranate Are thy cheeks behind thy veil.

Your brow behind your veil is like a slice of pomegranate.

8 Threescore are the queens, and fourscore the concubines, And the maidens without number.

There are sixty queens and eighty concubines, and maidens without number,

9 But my dove, my undefiled, is the one; She is the incomparable one of her mother, The darling of her that bore her. The daughters saw her, and blessed her; The queens and concubines, and they praised her.

but my dove, my perfect one, is unique, the favorite of the mother who bore her. The maidens see her and call her blessed; the queens and concubines sing her praises.

10 [[Lov.]] Who is this that looketh forth like the morning, Fair as the moon, bright as the sun, And terrible as an army with banners?

Who is this who shines like the dawn, as fair as the moon, as bright as the sun, as majestic as the stars in procession?

11 [[M.]] I went down into the garden of nuts, To see the green plants of the valley, To see whether the vine blossomed, And the pomegranates budded.

I went down to the walnut grove to see the blossoms of the valley, to see if the vines were budding or the pomegranates were in bloom.

12 Or ever I was aware, My soul had made me like the chariots of the prince's train.

Before I realized it, my desire had set me among the royal chariots of my people.

13 [[Lad.]] Return, return, O Shulamite! Return, return, that we may look upon thee! [[M.]] Why should ye look upon the Shulamite, As upon a dance of the hosts?

Come back, come back, O Shulammite! Come back, come back, that we may gaze upon you. Why do you look at the Shulammite, as on the dance of Mahanaim?