8 I wish you were like my brother
who fed at my mother’s breasts.
If I found you outside,
I would kiss you,
and no one would look down on me.
2 I would lead you and bring you
to my mother’s house;
she is the one who taught me.
I would give you a drink of spiced wine
from my pomegranates.
The Woman Speaks to the Friends
3 My lover’s left hand is under my head,
and his right arm holds me tight.
4 Women of Jerusalem,
promise not to awaken
or excite my feelings of love
until it is ready.
The Friends Speak
5 Who is this coming out of the desert,
leaning on her lover?
The Man Speaks to the Woman
I woke you under the apple tree
where you were born;
there your mother gave birth to you.
6 Put me like a seal on your heart,
like a seal on your arm.
Love is as strong as death;
jealousy is as strong as the grave.
Love bursts into flames
and burns like a hot fire.
7 Even much water cannot put out the flame of love;
floods cannot drown love.
If a man offered everything in his house for love,
people would totally reject it.
The Woman’s Brothers Speak
8 We have a little sister,
and her breasts are not yet grown.
What should we do for our sister
on the day she becomes engaged?
9 If she is a wall,
we will put silver towers on her.
If she is a door,
we will protect her with cedar boards.
The Woman Speaks
10 I am a wall,
and my breasts are like towers.
So I was to him,
as one who brings happiness.
11 Solomon had a vineyard at Baal Hamon.
He rented the vineyards for others to tend,
and everyone who rented had to pay
twenty-five pounds of silver for the fruit.
12 But my own vineyard is mine to give.
Solomon, the twenty-five pounds of silver are for you,
and five pounds are for those who tend the fruit.
The Man Speaks to the Woman
13 You who live in the gardens,
my friends are listening for your voice;
let me hear it.
The Woman Speaks to the Man
14 Hurry, my lover,
be like a gazelle
or a young deer
on the mountains where spices grow.
