| King James Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1Whither is thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women? whither is thy beloved turned aside? that we may seek him with thee. | 1Where has your lover gone, O woman of rare beauty? Which way did he turn so we can help you find him? Young Woman |
| 2My beloved is gone down into 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 his spice beds, to browse in the gardens and gather the lilies. |
| 3I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine: he feedeth among the lilies. | 3I am my lover’s, and my lover is mine. He browses among the lilies. Young Man |
| 4Thou art beautiful, O my love, as Tirzah, comely as Jerusalem, terrible as an army with banners. | 4You are beautiful, my darling, like the lovely city of Tirzah. Yes, as beautiful as Jerusalem, as majestic as an army with billowing banners. |
| 5Turn away thine eyes from me, for they have overcome me: thy hair is as a flock of goats that appear from Gilead. | 5Turn your eyes away, for they overpower me. Your hair falls in waves, like a flock of goats winding down the slopes of Gilead. |
| 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. | 6Your teeth are as white as sheep that are freshly washed. Your smile is flawless, each tooth matched with its twin. |
| 7As a piece of a pomegranate are thy temples within thy locks. | 7Your cheeks are like rosy pomegranates behind your veil. |
| 8There are threescore queens, and fourscore concubines, and virgins without number. | 8Even among sixty queens and eighty concubines and countless young women, |
| 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. | 9I would still choose my dove, my perfect one— the favorite of her mother, dearly loved by the one who bore her. The young women see her and praise her; even queens and royal concubines sing her praises: |
| 10Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners? | 10“Who is this, arising like the dawn, as fair as the moon, as bright as the sun, as majestic as an army with billowing banners?” Young Woman |
| 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. | 11I went down to the grove of walnut trees and out to the valley to see the new spring growth, to see whether the grapevines had budded or the pomegranates were in bloom. |
| 12Or ever I was aware, my soul made me like the chariots of Amminadib. | 12Before I realized it, my strong desires had taken me to the chariot of a noble man. Young Women of Jerusalem |
| 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. | 13 Return, return to us, O maid of Shulam. Come back, come back, that we may see you again. Young Man Why do you stare at this young woman of Shulam, as she moves so gracefully between two lines of dancers? |
| King James Bible, text courtesy of BibleProtector.com. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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