Song of Solomon 6, side by side

¹Where has your beloved gone, O most beautiful among women? Which way has he turned? We will seek him with you.

¹Whither is thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women? whither is thy beloved turned aside? that we may seek him with thee.

²My beloved has gone down to his garden, to the beds of spices, to pasture his flock in the gardens and to gather lilies.

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

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

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

⁴You are as beautiful, my darling, as Tirzah, as lovely as Jerusalem, as majestic as troops with banners.

⁴Thou art beautiful, O my love, as Tirzah, comely as Jerusalem, terrible as an army with banners.

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

⁵Turn away thine eyes from me, for they have overcome me: thy hair is as a flock of goats that appear from Gilead.

⁶Your teeth are like a flock of sheep coming up from the washing; each has its twin, and not one of them is lost.

⁶Thy teeth are as a flock of sheep which go up from the washing, whereof every one beareth twins, and there is not one barren among them.

⁷Your brow behind your veil is like a slice of pomegranate.

⁷As a piece of a pomegranate are thy temples within thy locks.

⁸There are sixty queens and eighty concubines, and maidens without number,

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

⁹but 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.

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 blessed her; yea, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her.

¹⁰Who is this who shines like the dawn, as fair as the moon, as bright as the sun, as majestic as the stars in procession?

¹⁰Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?

¹¹I 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.

¹¹I went down into the garden of nuts to see the fruits of the valley, and to see whether the vine flourished, and the pomegranates budded.

¹²Before I realized it, my desire had set me among the royal chariots of my people.

¹²Or ever I was aware, my soul made me like the chariots of Amminadib.

¹³Come 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?

¹³Return, return, O Shulamite; return, return, that we may look upon thee. What will ye see in the Shulamite? As it were the company of two armies.