The Torment of Separation
1“[a]I have come into my garden, my sister, my bride;
I have gathered my myrrh along with my balsam.
I have eaten my honeycomb [b]and my honey;
I have drunk my wine [c]and my milk.
Eat, friends;
Drink and [d]imbibe deeply, O lovers.”
2“[e]I was asleep but my heart was awake.
A voice! My beloved was knocking:
‘Open to me, my sister, my darling,
My dove, my perfect one!
For my head is [f]drenched with dew,
My locks with the [g]damp of the night.’
3“I have taken off my dress,
How can I put it on again?
I have washed my feet,
How can I dirty them again?
4“My beloved extended his hand through the opening,
And my [h]feelings were aroused for him.
5“I arose to open to my beloved;
And my hands dripped with myrrh,
And my fingers with [i]liquid myrrh,
On the handles of the bolt.
6“I opened to my beloved,
But my beloved had turned away and had gone!
My [j]heart went out to him as he spoke.
I searched for him but I did not find him;
I called him but he did not answer me.
7“The watchmen who make the rounds in the city found me,
They struck me and wounded me;
The guardsmen of the walls took away my shawl from me.
8“I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
If you find my beloved,
As to what you will tell him:
For I am lovesick.”
9“[k][l]What kind of beloved is your beloved,
O most beautiful among women?
[m]What kind of beloved is your beloved,
That thus you adjure us?”
Admiration by the Bride
10“[n]My beloved is dazzling and ruddy,
[o]Outstanding among ten thousand.
11“His head is like gold, pure gold;
His locks are like clusters of dates
And black as a raven.
12“His eyes are like doves
Beside streams of water,
Bathed in milk,
And [p]reposed in their setting.
13“His cheeks are like a bed of balsam,
Banks of sweet-scented herbs;
His lips are lilies
Dripping with liquid myrrh.
14“His hands are rods of gold
Set with beryl;
His abdomen is carved ivory
Inlaid with [q]sapphires.
15“His legs are pillars of alabaster
Set on pedestals of pure gold;
His appearance is like Lebanon
Choice as the cedars.
16“His [r]mouth is full of sweetness.
And he is wholly desirable.
This is my beloved and this is my friend,
O daughters of Jerusalem.”