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Wednesday, July 23rd, 2025
the Week of Proper 11 / Ordinary 16
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Read the Bible

Myles Coverdale Bible

Song of Solomon 3:3

The watchmen that go aboute ye cite, founde me. Sawe ye not him, whom my soule loueth?

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Seekers;   Watchman;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Cities;   Watchmen;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Watchmen;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Watches of the Night;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Song of Solomon;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - City;   Song of Songs;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - City;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Street;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Song of Songs;   Watchman;   Wisdom of Solomon, the;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Police Laws;   Simeon (Ben Gamaliel Ii.);   Tagin;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The guards who go about the city found me.I asked them, “Have you seen the one I love?”
Hebrew Names Version
The watchmen who go about the city found me; "Have you seen him whom my soul loves?"
King James Version
The watchmen that go about the city found me: to whom I said, Saw ye him whom my soul loveth?
English Standard Version
The watchmen found me as they went about in the city. "Have you seen him whom my soul loves?"
New American Standard Bible
"The watchmen who make the rounds in the city found me, And I said, 'Have you seen him whom my soul loves?'
New Century Version
The watchmen found me as they patrolled the city, so I asked, "Have you seen the one I love?"
Amplified Bible
"The watchmen who go around the city found me, And I said, 'Have you seen him whom my soul loves?'
World English Bible
The watchmen who go about the city found me; "Have you seen him whom my soul loves?"
Geneva Bible (1587)
The watchmen that went about the citie, found mee: to whome I said, Haue you seene him, whome my soule loueth?
Legacy Standard Bible
The watchmen who go about the city found me,And I said, ‘Have you seen him whom my soul loves?'
Berean Standard Bible
I encountered the watchmen on their rounds of the city: "Have you seen the one I love?"
Contemporary English Version
I even asked the guards patrolling the town, "Have you seen the one I love so much?"
Complete Jewish Bible
The guards roaming the city found me. "Have you seen the man I love?"
Darby Translation
The watchmen that go about the city found me:—Have ye seen him whom my soul loveth?
Easy-to-Read Version
The guards patrolling the city found me. I asked them, "Have you seen the man I love?"
George Lamsa Translation
The watchmen that go about the city found me; I asked them, Have you seen him whom my soul loves?
Good News Translation
The sentries patrolling the city saw me. I asked them, "Have you found my lover?"
Lexham English Bible
The sentinels who go about in the city found me. "Have you seen the one whom my heart loves?"
Literal Translation
The one watching going about in the city found me. I said , Have you seen Him whom my soul loves?
American Standard Version
The watchmen that go about the city found me; To whom I said, Saw ye him whom my soul loveth?
Bible in Basic English
The watchmen who go about the town came by me; to them I said, Have you seen him who is my heart's desire?
JPS Old Testament (1917)
The watchmen that go about the city found me: 'Saw ye him whom my soul loveth?'
King James Version (1611)
The watchmen that goe about the citie, found me: to whom I said, Saw ye him whom my soule loueth?
Bishop's Bible (1568)
The watchmen also that go about the citie, founde me [to whom I sayde] Sawe ye not hym whom my soule loueth?
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
The watchmen who go their rounds in the city found me. I said, Have ye seen him whom my soul loves?
English Revised Version
The watchmen that go about the city found me: [to whom I said], Saw ye him whom my soul loveth?
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Wakeris, that kepen the citee, founden me. Whether ye sien hym, whom my soule loueth?
Update Bible Version
The watchmen that go about the city found me; [To whom I said], Did you see him whom my soul loves?
Webster's Bible Translation
The watchmen that go about the city found me: [to whom I said], Saw ye him whom my soul loveth?
New English Translation
The night watchmen found me—the ones who guard the city walls. "Have you seen my beloved?"
New King James Version
The watchmen who go about the city found me; I said, "Have you seen the one I love?"
New Living Translation
The watchmen stopped me as they made their rounds, and I asked, "Have you seen the one I love?"
New Life Bible
The men who watch over the city found me, and I said, ‘Have you seen him whom my soul loves?'
New Revised Standard
The sentinels found me, as they went about in the city. "Have you seen him whom my soul loves?"
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
The watchmen that go round in the city, found me, The beloved of my soul, have ye seen?
Douay-Rheims Bible
The watchmen who keep the city, found me: Have you seen him, whom my soul loveth?
Revised Standard Version
The watchmen found me, as they went about in the city. "Have you seen him whom my soul loves?"
Young's Literal Translation
The watchmen have found me, (Who are going round about the city), `Him whom my soul have loved saw ye?'
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"The watchmen who make the rounds in the city found me, And I said, 'Have you seen him whom my soul loves?'

Contextual Overview

1 By night in my bedd, I sought him, whom my soule loueth: yee diligently sought I him, but I founde him not. 2 I wil get vp (thought I) and go aboute the cite: vpon the market and in all ye stretes will I seke him whom my soule loueth, but whan I sought him, I founde him not. 3 The watchmen that go aboute ye cite, founde me. Sawe ye not him, whom my soule loueth? 4 So whan I was a litle past them, I foude him whom my soule loueth. I haue gotten holde vpon him, and wyl not let him go, vntill I brynge him into my mothers house, and in to hir chambre that bare me. 5 I charge you (o ye doughters of Ierusale) by the Roes and hyndes of the felde, that ye wake not vp my loue ner touch her, till she be content herself.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

watchmen: Song of Solomon 5:7, Isaiah 21:6-8, Isaiah 21:11, Isaiah 21:12, Isaiah 56:10, Isaiah 62:6, Ezekiel 3:17, Ezekiel 33:2-9, Hebrews 13:17

Saw: John 20:15

Reciprocal: Psalms 127:1 - the watchman Isaiah 52:8 - Thy Ezekiel 33:7 - I have Hosea 9:8 - watchman Matthew 28:9 - and held John 20:14 - and saw

Cross-References

Genesis 3:12
Then sayde Adam: The woman which thou gauest me (to beare me company) gaue me of the tre, and I ate.
Genesis 3:13
And the LORDE God sayde vnto the woman: wherfore hast thou done this? The woman sayde: the serpent disceaued me so, that I ate.
Genesis 3:16
And vnto the woman he sayde: I will increase thy sorow, whan thou art with childe: with payne shalt thou beare thy childre, and thy lust shal pertayne vnto yi hußbande, and he shal rule the.
Genesis 3:17
And vnto Adam he sayde: For so moch as thou hast herkened vnto the voyce of thy wyfe, and hast eaten of the tre, wherof I commaunded the, sayenge: thou shalt not eate of it. Cursed be ye earth for thy sake. With sorowe shalt thou eate therof, all the dayes of thy life.
Genesis 20:6
And God sayde vnto him in a dreame: I knowe that thou dyddest it wt a pure hert, and therfore I kepte the, that thou shuldest not synne agaynst me, nether haue I suffred the to touch her.
1 Chronicles 16:22
Touch not myne anoynted, & do my prophetes no harme.
Job 1:11
But laye thyne honde vpo him a litle, touch once all that he hath, and (I holde) he shall curse the to thy face.
Job 2:5
But laye thine honde vpon him, touch him once vpon the bone and flesh, and (I holde) he shall curse the to thy face.
Job 19:21
Haue pite vpon me, haue pite vpon me (o ye my frendes) for the hande of the LORDE hath touched me.
1 Corinthians 7:1
As concernynge the thinges wherof ye wrote vnto me, I answere: It is good for a man not to touche a woman.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

The watchmen that go about the city found me,.... By whom are meant the ministers of the Gospel; who are called watchmen, as the prophets were under the Old Testament, Isaiah 52:8; in allusion to watchmen in cities; and are so called in regard to themselves, it being their duty to watch over themselves; and to their doctrine, and all opportunities to preach it, and the success of it: their business with respect to others is to give the time of night; to point out the state and condition of the church; to give notice of danger to sinners in the broad road to destruction; and to saints, through the prevalence of error, heresy, and immorality; all which require sobriety, vigilance, prudence, courage, and faithfulness; and show the necessity and utility of the Gospel ministry, and the awfulness of it; and the care Christ takes of his churches, in providing such officers in them. These are said to "go about the city", denoting their industry and diligence; and being in the way of their duty, they "found" the church, fell upon her case in their ministry, and hit it exactly; which shows the efficacy of the word under a divine direction; which finds out sinners, and their sins; saints, and their particular cases, unknown to ministers; and the church, having met with something suitable to her case under their ministry,

[to whom I said], took an opportunity privately to discourse with them, and put this question to them,

Saw ye him whom my soul loveth? meaning Christ; who was still the object of her love, and uppermost in her thoughts; whom she thus describes, without mentioning his name, as if he was the only "Him" in the world worthy of any regard; which shows how much he was in her mind, how much the desires and affections of her soul were towards him, and that these ministers needed no other description of him. No answer is returned to her question that is recorded; not because they were not able to give one, nor because they did not; and if they did not, it might be owing to her haste, not waiting for one; and if they did, she not being able to apply it to her case, no notice is taken of it: however, though she did not find immediate relief by them, yet she met with something from them that was of use to her afterwards, as appears by what follows.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The city - One near the bride’s native home, possibly Shunem.


 
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