Song of Solomon 8

1 who? to give: put you like/as brother: male-sibling to/for me to suckle breast mother my to find you in/on/with outside (to kiss you *L(abh)*) also not to despise to/for me

I wish that you were my brother who (nursed at/drank milk from) my mother’s breasts [when you were a baby], [because, if you were my brother], if I saw you when you were outside [the house], I could kiss you, and no one would say that my doing that was wrong.

2 to lead you to come (in): bring you to(wards) house: home mother my to learn: teach me to water: drink you from wine [the] spice from sweet pomegranate my

[No one would object if] I led you to my mother’s house, to where my mother, who taught me [many things], lives. I would like to take you to my mother’s house because I would [like to make love to you] [EUP], [and that would be as delightful as] [MET] juice [squeezed] from pomegranates.

3 left his underneath: under head my and right his to embrace me

You would put your left arm under my head and with your right arm hold me close.

4 to swear [obj] you daughter Jerusalem what? to rouse and what? to rouse [obj] [the] love till which/that to delight in

[I would say to] you women of Jerusalem, “Solemnly promise me that you will not disturb us while we are making love until we are ready to quit.”

5 who? this to ascend: rise from [the] wilderness to lean upon beloved her underneath: under [the] apple to rouse you there [to] be in labour you mother your there [to] be in labour to beget you

Who is that [woman] who is coming up from the desert, (leaning on/clinging close to) the man who loves her? I woke you up [when you were] under the apple tree at the place where your mother conceived you, which is the same place where she gave birth to you.

6 to set: make me like/as signet upon heart your like/as signet upon arm your for strong like/as death love severe like/as hell: Sheol jealousy flash her flash fire flame LORD (Sheol h7585)

Keep me [close to you], like [SIM] a seal on your heart, [or] like [SIM] a bracelet on your arm. Our love [for each other] is as powerful as death, it is as enduring as the grave. [It is as though] our love [for each other] bursts into flames and burns like a hot fire. (Sheol h7585)

7 water many not be able to/for to quench [obj] [the] love and river not to overflow her if to give: give man: anyone [obj] all substance house: home his in/on/with love to despise to despise to/for him

Nothing can extinguish our love [for each other], not [even] a flood. If a man tried to cause a woman to love him by saying he would give her everything that is in his house, she would refuse.

8 sister to/for us small and breast nothing to/for her what? to make: do to/for sister our in/on/with day which/that to speak: speak in/on/with her

We have a younger sister, and her breasts are still small. So this is [RHQ] what we should do for her on the day that we promise [some young man] that he can marry her:

9 if wall he/she/it to build upon her encampment silver: money and if door he/she/it to confine upon her tablet cedar

If [her chest is flat like] [MET] a wall, we will [decorate it by] putting silver [jewels that are like] [MET] towers on it. Or, if she is [flat like] [MET] a door, we will decorate her with bits/pieces of cedar wood.

10 I wall and breast my like/as tower then to be in/on/with eye his like/as to find peace

My [chest was previously flat like] [MET] a wall, [but now] my breasts are [big] like [SIM] towers. So the one who loves me is delighted with me.

11 vineyard to be to/for Solomon in/on/with Baal-hamon Baal-hamon to give: give [obj] [the] vineyard to/for to keep man: anyone to come (in): bring in/on/with fruit his thousand silver: money

[King] Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-Hamon, and he rented it to people for them to take care of it. He required each one to pay him 1,000 pieces of silver [each year] for the grapes [that they harvested].

12 vineyard my which/that to/for me to/for face: before my [the] thousand to/for you Solomon and hundred to/for to keep [obj] fruit his

[But my body is like] [MET] my own vineyard, and Solomon, I am giving it to you. [You do not need to pay me] 1,000 pieces of silver [to enjoy my body], but I will give 200 pieces of silver to those who take care of me [MET].

13 ([the] to dwell *L(abh)*) in/on/with garden companion to listen to/for voice your to hear: hear me

You are staying in the gardens and my friends are listening to your voice; [so] allow me to hear it, [too.]

14 to flee beloved my and to resemble to/for you to/for gazelle or to/for fawn [the] deer upon mountain: mount spice

You who love me, come [to me] quickly; [run to me] [MET, EUP] as fast as [SIM] a gazelle or young deer runs across [MET] hills of spices.