Beautiful Dreams
She Speaks:
1 While in bed at night,
I reached for the one I love
with heart and soul.
I looked for him,
but he wasn’t there.
2 So I searched through the town
for the one I love.
I looked on every street,
but he wasn’t there.
3 I even asked the guards
patrolling the town,
"Have you seen the one
I love so much?"
4 Right after that, I found him.
I held him and would not let go
until I had taken him
to the home of my mother.
5 Young women of Jerusalem,
promise me by the power
of deer and gazelles,3.5 deer and gazelles: See the note at 2.7.
never to awaken love
before it is ready.
The Groom and the Wedding Party
Their Friends Speak:
6 What do we see approaching
from the desert
like a cloud of smoke?
With it comes the sweet smell
of spices, including myrrh
and frankincense.
7 It is King Solomon
carried on a throne,
surrounded by sixty
of Israel’s best soldiers.
8 Each of them wears a sword.
They are experts at fighting,
even in the dark.
9 The throne is made of trees
from Lebanon.
10 Its posts are silver,
the back is gold,
and the seat is covered
with purple cloth.
You women of Jerusalem
have taken great care
to furnish the inside.3.10 inside: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
11 Now come and see the crown
given to Solomon by his mother
on his happy wedding day.