Song of Solomon 6

1Whither is thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women? Whither hath thy beloved turned him, That we may seek him with thee?

1Where has your lover gone, most beautiful of women? Which way did your lover turn, so that we may help you look for him?

2My beloved is gone down to his garden, To the beds of spices, To feed in the gardens, and to gather lilies.

2My lover has gone down to his garden, to the beds of spices, to graze in the gardens and to gather lilies.

3I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine: He feedeth his flock among the lilies.

3I belong to my lover and my lover belongs to me; he grazes his flock among the lilies.

4Thou art fair, O my love, as Tirzah, Comely as Jerusalem, Terrible as an army with banners.

4You are as beautiful as Tirzah, my darling, as lovely as Jerusalem, and as majestic as an army with banners.

5Turn away thine eyes from me, For they have overcome me. Thy hair is as a flock of goats, That lie along the side of Gilead.

5Turn your eyes away from me, for they overwhelm me. Your hair is like a flock of goats streaming down the slopes of Gilead.

6Thy teeth are like a flock of ewes, Which are come up from the washing; Whereof every one hath twins, And none is bereaved among them.

6Your teeth are like a flock of sheep coming up from being washed; each one has a twin, and not one of them is missing.

7Thy temples are like a piece of a pomegranate Behind thy veil.

7Your temples behind your veil are like the halves of a pomegranate.

8There are threescore queens, and fourscore concubines, And virgins without number.

8There may be sixty queens and eighty concubines, and young women beyond counting;

9My dove, my undefiled, is but one; She is the only one of her mother; She is the choice one of her that bare her. The daughters saw her, and called her blessed; Yea, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her.

9but my dove, my perfect one, is unique. She is the favorite of her mother, the special one of the woman who gave birth to her. Other women saw her and called her blessed; the queens and concubines also praised her.

10Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, Fair as the moon, Clear as the sun, Terrible as an army with banners?

10Who is this who shines like the dawn, as beautiful as the moon, as bright as the sun, and as majestic as an army with banners?

11I 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.

11I went down to the grove of nut trees to look at the new growth in the valley, to see if the vines had budded or if the pomegranates were in bloom.

12Before I was aware, my soul set me Amongthe chariots of my princely people.

12Before I realized it, my heart set me among the chariots of my noble people.

13Return, return, O Shulammite; Return, return, that we may look upon thee. Why will ye look upon the Shulammite, As upon the dance of Mahanaim?

13Come back, come back, O Shulammite; come back, come back, so we may look at you! Why do you want to gaze at the Shulammite as you would at the dance of Mahanaim?