Song of Solomon 2:12
What does Song of Solomon 2:12 mean?
A plain-English look at Song of Solomon 2:12 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What Song of Solomon 2:12 means
The land responds to the end of winter: flowers emerge, singing fills the air, and the turtle-dove’s voice is heard. Creation itself seems to celebrate. Love is set within God’s good world, where beauty and song accompany new life. The verse highlights a harmony between the lovers’ story and the season’s music. The sounds are not merely background; they signal that this is the time for love to grow openly. The environment is hospitable and encouraging. What was dormant now awakens. The imagery assures the maiden that her movement toward him aligns with the joyful rhythms of the land they share.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000The flowers appear on the earth; The time of the singing of birds is come, And the voice of the turtle-dove is heard in our land;
KJV
King James Version · 1611The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land;
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901The flowers appear on the earth; The time of the singing of birds is come, And the voice of the turtle-dove is heard in our land;
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949The flowers are come on the earth; the time of cutting the vines is come, and the voice of the dove is sounding in our land;
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862The flowers have appeared in the earth, The time of the singing hath come, And the voice of the turtle was heard in our land,
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752The flowers have appeared in our land, the time of pruning is come: the voice of the turtle is heard in our land:
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890The flowers appear on the earth; The time of singing is come, And the voice of the turtle-dove is heard in our land;
Context
Continuing the reasons begun in verse 11, verse 12 adds sensory richness—sight and sound—strengthening the case for coming away. The crescendo prepares the final agricultural details in verse 13, which culminate with the renewed call to arise. These verses collectively frame the beloved’s invitation not as pressure, but as discernment of timing. They connect the couple’s story with the wider creation, anchoring romance in the observable signs of a God-ordered season of fruitfulness.
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Psalms 40:1
I waited patiently for Jehovah; And he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.
- Jeremiah 8:7
Yea, the stork in the heavens knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle-dove and the swallow and the crane observe the time of their coming; but my people know not the law of Jehovah.
- Song of Solomon 6:11
I went down into the garden of nuts, To see the green plants of the valley, To see whether the vine budded, Andthe pomegranates were in flower.
- Romans 15:9
and that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written, Therefore will I give praise unto thee among the Gentiles, And sing unto thy name.
- Isaiah 42:10
Sing unto Jehovah a new song, and his praise from the end of the earth; ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein, the isles, and the inhabitants thereof.
- Isaiah 55:12
For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing; and all the trees of the fields shall clap their hands.
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