Song Of Solomon 1
MSG — The Message Bible (MSG)
NLT — New Living Translation Bible (NLT)
Verse 1
The Song—best of all songs—Solomon’s song!
The Woman
This is Solomon’s song of songs, more wonderful than any other.
Young Woman[a]
Verse 2
Kiss me—full on the mouth!
Yes! For your love is better than wine,
headier than your aromatic oils.
The syllables of your name murmur like a meadow brook.
No wonder everyone loves to say your name!
Yes! For your love is better than wine,
headier than your aromatic oils.
The syllables of your name murmur like a meadow brook.
No wonder everyone loves to say your name!
Kiss me and kiss me again,
for your love is sweeter than wine.
for your love is sweeter than wine.
Verse 3
— not in MSG
How pleasing is your fragrance;
your name is like the spreading fragrance of scented oils.
No wonder all the young women love you!
your name is like the spreading fragrance of scented oils.
No wonder all the young women love you!
Verse 4
Take me away with you! Let’s run off together!
An elopement with my King-Lover!
We’ll celebrate, we’ll sing,
we’ll make great music.
Yes! For your love is better than vintage wine.
Everyone loves you—of course! And why not?
An elopement with my King-Lover!
We’ll celebrate, we’ll sing,
we’ll make great music.
Yes! For your love is better than vintage wine.
Everyone loves you—of course! And why not?
Take me with you; come, let’s run!
The king has brought me into his bedroom.
The king has brought me into his bedroom.
Young Women of Jerusalem
How happy we are for you, O king.
We praise your love even more than wine.
Young Woman
How right they are to adore you.
Verse 5
I am weathered but still elegant,
oh, dear sisters in Jerusalem,
Weather-darkened like Kedar desert tents,
time-softened like Solomon’s Temple hangings.
Don’t look down on me because I’m dark,
darkened by the sun’s harsh rays.
My brothers ridiculed me and sent me to work in the fields.
They made me care for the face of the earth,
but I had no time to care for my own face.
oh, dear sisters in Jerusalem,
Weather-darkened like Kedar desert tents,
time-softened like Solomon’s Temple hangings.
Don’t look down on me because I’m dark,
darkened by the sun’s harsh rays.
My brothers ridiculed me and sent me to work in the fields.
They made me care for the face of the earth,
but I had no time to care for my own face.
I am dark but beautiful,
O women of Jerusalem—
dark as the tents of Kedar,
dark as the curtains of Solomon’s tents.
O women of Jerusalem—
dark as the tents of Kedar,
dark as the curtains of Solomon’s tents.
Verse 6
— not in MSG
Don’t stare at me because I am dark—
the sun has darkened my skin.
My brothers were angry with me;
they forced me to care for their vineyards,
so I couldn’t care for myself—my own vineyard.
the sun has darkened my skin.
My brothers were angry with me;
they forced me to care for their vineyards,
so I couldn’t care for myself—my own vineyard.
Verse 7
Tell me where you’re working
—I love you so much—
Tell me where you’re tending your flocks,
where you let them rest at noontime.
Why should I be the one left out,
outside the orbit of your tender care?
—I love you so much—
Tell me where you’re tending your flocks,
where you let them rest at noontime.
Why should I be the one left out,
outside the orbit of your tender care?
The Man
Tell me, my love, where are you leading your flock today?
Where will you rest your sheep at noon?
For why should I wander like a prostitute[b]
among your friends and their flocks?
Where will you rest your sheep at noon?
For why should I wander like a prostitute[b]
among your friends and their flocks?
Young Man
Verse 8
If you can’t find me, loveliest of all women,
it’s all right. Stay with your flocks.
Lead your lambs to good pasture.
Stay with your shepherd neighbors.
it’s all right. Stay with your flocks.
Lead your lambs to good pasture.
Stay with your shepherd neighbors.
If you don’t know, O most beautiful woman,
follow the trail of my flock,
and graze your young goats by the shepherds’ tents.
follow the trail of my flock,
and graze your young goats by the shepherds’ tents.
Verse 9
You remind me of Pharaoh’s
well-groomed and satiny mares.
Pendant earrings line the elegance of your cheeks;
strands of jewels illumine the curve of your throat.
I’m making jewelry for you, gold and silver jewelry
that will mark and accent your beauty.
well-groomed and satiny mares.
Pendant earrings line the elegance of your cheeks;
strands of jewels illumine the curve of your throat.
I’m making jewelry for you, gold and silver jewelry
that will mark and accent your beauty.
The Woman
You are as exciting, my darling,
as a mare among Pharaoh’s stallions.
as a mare among Pharaoh’s stallions.
Verse 10
— not in MSG
How lovely are your cheeks;
your earrings set them afire!
How lovely is your neck,
enhanced by a string of jewels.
your earrings set them afire!
How lovely is your neck,
enhanced by a string of jewels.
Verse 11
— not in MSG
We will make for you earrings of gold
and beads of silver.
and beads of silver.
Young Woman
Verse 12
When my King-Lover lay down beside me,
my fragrance filled the room.
His head resting between my breasts—
the head of my lover was a sachet of sweet myrrh.
My beloved is a bouquet of wildflowers
picked just for me from the fields of Engedi.
my fragrance filled the room.
His head resting between my breasts—
the head of my lover was a sachet of sweet myrrh.
My beloved is a bouquet of wildflowers
picked just for me from the fields of Engedi.
The Man
The king is lying on his couch,
enchanted by the fragrance of my perfume.
enchanted by the fragrance of my perfume.
Verse 13
— not in MSG
My lover is like a sachet of myrrh
lying between my breasts.
lying between my breasts.
Verse 14
— not in MSG
He is like a bouquet of sweet henna blossoms
from the vineyards of En-gedi.
from the vineyards of En-gedi.
Young Man
Verse 15
Oh, my dear friend! You’re so beautiful!
And your eyes so beautiful—like doves!
And your eyes so beautiful—like doves!
The Woman
How beautiful you are, my darling,
how beautiful!
Your eyes are like doves.
how beautiful!
Your eyes are like doves.
Young Woman
Verse 16
And you, my dear lover—you’re so handsome!
And the bed we share is like a forest glen.
We enjoy a canopy of cedars
enclosed by cypresses, fragrant and green.
And the bed we share is like a forest glen.
We enjoy a canopy of cedars
enclosed by cypresses, fragrant and green.
You are so handsome, my love,
pleasing beyond words!
The soft grass is our bed;
pleasing beyond words!
The soft grass is our bed;
Verse 17
— not in MSG
fragrant cedar branches are the beams of our house,
and pleasant smelling firs are the rafters.
and pleasant smelling firs are the rafters.