THE BOOK OF SHIR HA-SHIRIM (THE SONG OF SONGS) IN POETIC PARAPHRASE

THE SONG OF SONGS

High Modern Academic English Redaction:

FOREWORD

Translator: James Witkoff

DRAMATIS PERSONAESHE — Shulammit (Sulamith), the shepherdess, representing the Sacred Community of Israel.

HE — the young shepherd and beloved, identified with King Shelomo (Solomon); as it is decreed in the Talmud (Shevu'ot, 35b), the name "Shlomo" mentioned in "The Song of Songs" is one of the holy names of the Almighty, signifying the "King of Peace and Creator of Harmony"

HER COMPANIONS — the daughters of Jerusalem, the daughters of Zion.

HER BRETHREN — the brothers.

HIS COMPANIONS — the friends.

CHAPTER I

Mutual Declarations of Deep Love

(1) This very world acquired its true meaning and worth when it embraced Shir ha-Shirim — The Song of Songs of Shelomo; SHE — TO HIM:

(2) "O, let him kiss and caress me, my beloved! I rejoice, for thy sweet love and caresses are better than any wine to see!

(3) Thy very name is an ointment poured forth; the fragrance of thy oils is a blissful ecstasy and languor unto all virgins;

(4) Draw me after thee! Let us run, and right swiftly rejoice in our passion and love within the royal chambers completely."

(5) O beloved of my soul, behold how beautiful and comely I am, though my skin is darkened and slightly tan;

(6) The daughters of Yerushalayim are scorched by the sun, resembling the tents of Kedar and the holy curtains of the Mishkan.

(7) I was made to keep the vineyards of my angry brothers, but mine own vineyard I have not kept in my way;

(8) My King, tell me where thou shalt feed thy flock, where thou makest it to rest at noon? For I wish to be swiftly by thy camp, lest I go astray.

HE — TO HER:

(9) "O, my beloved, go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock and thou shalt find; feed thy kids beside the shepherds' tents today.

(10) Thou art the ultimate, the very best, like a steed in Pharaoh's chariots, my companion and choice of mind.

(11) Borders of gold with studs of silver will I make for thee, beloved, a fair gift from the groom's own hand to stay;

(12) In these adornments thy cheeks shall be comely, and thy neck even more beautiful with chains of gold aligned."

(13) While the King sitteth at his table, he inhaleth the sweet fragrance of my spikenard; cedars and cypresses surround us all around;

(14) A bundle of myrrh is my well-beloved unto me, he shall lie all night betwixt my breasts, like a cluster of henna in the vineyards of Ein Gedi on holy ground.

SHE — TO HIM:

(15) "Behold, thou art fair and pleasant, my beloved! With thee, I ascend and rise into the highest heavens and celestial heights.

"HE — TO HER:

(16) "Behold, thou art fair, my love; thou hast doves' eyes! And the fresh verdure of Canaan is our green bed, the ultimate and finest of all world's delights."

CHAPTER II

Under the Banner of Divine Love

SHE — TO HER COMPANIONS:

(1) "I am the rose of Sharon, a flower with pristine petals that mirror the brilliant rays of the Star of David;"

HE — TO HIS COMPANIONS:

(2) "As the lily among the sharp thorn-bushes, so is my beloved companion among the diverse daughters of the world;"

SHE — TO HER COMPANIONS:

(3) "As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved; in his shadow I sat with great delight, and ate his sweet fruit completely satisfied;

"(4) "He brought me into the grand banqueting house, and his sovereign banner over me was love, shining bright as the sun's radiant ray unfurled."

(5) Refresh and stay me with dainties, comfort me under the apple tree: for I am faint and exhausted with love;

(6) His left hand is strictly under my head, and his right hand tenderly and caressingly embraceable.

(7) I hear the voice of my beloved! Behold, like a swift gazelle he cometh leaping upon the mountains, overcoming hills, gorges, ditches, and hollows above;

(8) I adjure you, O ye daughters of Yerushalayim, wake not up nor stir up love, until it please and wish itself, unswayable.

A MONOLOGUE ADDRESSED UNTO HER OWN SELF:

(9) Behold, my beloved standeth behind our wall, he looketh forth at the windows, peering through the lattice and cleft;(10) My beloved spake and said unto me: "Rise up, my fair companion, my beautiful one, and com e away with me left.

(11) For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone, the spring hath come, and the turtledoves and nightingales sing their song;

(12) The flowers appear on the earth, and the time of immense joy and singing is come over our sovereign land where we belong."

(13) The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell all around;

(14) Arise, my love, my fair and beautiful one, come away and follow me with courage unbound!

(15) O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, whom the secret covers of the stairs and cliffs hide;

(16) Let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy sweet voice right swiftly, for sweet is thy voice and thy face is comely, to abide."

(17) Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil and ruin our vineyards: for our vines have tender grapes in bloom;

(18) My beloved companion is mine, and I am strictly his: he feedeth his flock among the lilies without sorrow or gloom.

(19) Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and behold the ultimate beauty of the night sky;

(20) And run, be thou like a swift gazelle or a young hart, overcoming all barriers in the clefts of the mountains on high."

CHAPTER III

The Anxious Dream of the Beloved

SHE — TO HER COMPANIONS:

(1) "Upon my bed I am alone at night. Along the streets, the broad ways, and markets I sought my beloved, but I found him not;

(2) I rose in the night, and went forth to seek him anew. Meeting the watchmen that go about the city, I asked: 'Have ye seen my beloved?' with anxious thought;

(3) It was but a little that I passed from them, when I found my beloved; I caught hold of him, and embraced him fast in my sight;

(4) And I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother's house — him, who is beyond all compare and completely unbought."

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