Study Desk

"^[a]I have ^(a)come into my garden, ^(b)my sister, my bride; I have gathered my ^(c)myrrh along with my balsam. I have eaten my honeycomb ^[b]and my ^(d)honey; I have ^(e)drunk my wine ^[c]and my milk. Eat, ^(f)friends; Drink and ^[d]imbibe deeply, O lovers."

"^[e]I was asleep but my heart was awake. A voice! My beloved was knocking: ‘Open to me, ^(g)my sister, my darling, ^(h)My dove, my perfect one! For my head is ^[f]drenched with dew, My ⁽ⁱ⁾locks with the ^[g]damp of the night.'

"I have ^(j)taken off my dress, How can I put it on again? I have ^(k)washed my feet, How can I dirty them again?

"My beloved extended his hand through the opening, And my ^[h](l)feelings were aroused for him.

"I arose to open to my beloved; And my hands ^(m)dripped with myrrh, And my fingers with ^[i]liquid myrrh, On the handles of the bolt.

"I opened to my beloved, But my beloved had ⁽ⁿ⁾turned away and had gone! My ^[j]heart went out to him as he ^(o)spoke. I ^(p)searched for him but I did not find him; I ^(q)called him but he did not answer me.

"The ^(r)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.

"I ^(s)adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, If you find my beloved, As to what you will tell him: For ^(t)I am lovesick."

"^[k][l]What kind of beloved is your beloved, O ^(u)most beautiful among women? ^[m]What kind of beloved is your beloved, That thus you adjure us?"

"^[n]My beloved is dazzling and ^(v)ruddy, ^[o](w)Outstanding among ten thousand.

"His head is like gold, pure gold; His ^(x)locks are like clusters of dates And black as a raven.

"His ^(y)eyes are like doves Beside streams of water, Bathed in milk, And ^[p]reposed in their ^(z)setting.

"His cheeks are like a ^(aa)bed of balsam, Banks of sweet-scented herbs; His lips are ^(ab)lilies ^(ac)Dripping with liquid myrrh.

"His hands are rods of gold Set with ^(ad)beryl; His abdomen is carved ivory Inlaid with ^[q](ae)sapphires.

"His legs are pillars of alabaster Set on pedestals of pure gold; His appearance is like ^(af)Lebanon Choice as the ^(ag)cedars.

"His ^[r](ah)mouth is full of sweetness. And he is wholly ^(ai)desirable. This is my beloved and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem."

"^[a](a)Where has your beloved gone, O ^(b)most beautiful among women? Where has your beloved turned, That we may seek him with you?"

"^[b]My beloved has gone down to his ^(c)garden, To the ^(d)beds of balsam, To ^(e)pasture his flock in the gardens And gather ^(f)lilies.

"^(g)I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine, He who ^(h)pastures his flock among the lilies."

"^[c](i)You are as beautiful as ^(j)Tirzah, my darling, As ^(k)lovely as ^(l)Jerusalem, As ^(m)awesome as ^[d]an army with banners.

"Turn your eyes away from me, For they have confused me; ⁽ⁿ⁾Your hair is like a flock of goats That have descended from Gilead.

"^(o)Your teeth are like a flock of ewes Which have come up from their washing, All of which bear twins, And not one among them has ^[e]lost her young.

"^(p)Your temples are like a slice of a pomegranate Behind your veil.

"There are sixty ^(q)queens and eighty concubines, And ^[f](r)maidens without number;

But ^(s)my dove, my perfect one, is ^[g]unique: She is her mother's ^[h]only daughter; She is the pure child of the one who bore her. The ^[i](t)maidens saw her and called her blessed, The ^(u)queens and the concubines also, and they praised her, saying,

‘Who is this that ^[j]grows like the dawn, As beautiful as the full ^(v)moon, As pure ^(w)as the sun, As ^(x)awesome as ^[k]an army with banners?'

"I went down to the orchard of nut trees To see the blossoms of the valley, To see whether ^(y)the vine had budded Or the ^(z)pomegranates had bloomed.

"Before I was aware, my soul set me Over the chariots of ^[l]my noble people."

"^[m][n]Come back, come back, O Shulammite; Come back, come back, that we may gaze at you!" "^[o]Why should you gaze at the Shulammite, As at the ^(aa)dance of ^[p](ab)the two companies?