CORNELL 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
Cornell University Library 
 arY361 
 
 The song of songs (revised edition 
 
 3 1924 032 171 427 
 olin.anx 
 
\^y 
 
 Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of this book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924032171427 
 
ff|>or'0cf(in9f. _ 72 
 
 »o. Ull^ N ftiin WMt dufftr mem ntftuttt, m m »(u» m<\ tea tn %ei 
 
 V aIiji- IfC, bWilllMf 
 
 ''T;;^^^-^ JL-^^tU-^ ilo: .Tcarsr:- 
 
 -- ^^» , jZjrif.''' "'■*•■ -"~ 
 
 iru^^^."^- ' -^3r^-"r.:.,>:i%^:^:v^ 
 
 MdiV V line 
 SiluiW t(t fpfftfc, Miiif Tl^lll;'n^ i<ro . 
 Sew IVC)(«. 
 
 
 i< If;-;' 
 
 i\lH'r 
 
 
 » " • o 
 
 \v//y 
 
 
 
 On fmirt S^^^ln^f(*, Mnn frtnc I'i.-I-t ift lifMittu-r U\m 3. J*ii(? niiin rtinc mt 
 
 ^^(jOfCHlli tic^ic 
 
 .^^tv^-- ; 
 
 
 '4r« 
 
 
 T " * ' ^rz-T , 
 
 . - 1 
 
THE SONG OF SONGS. 
 
The Revised Version of the "Song of Songs" is Jiere followed, through 
 the courtesy of the Authorities of the Oxford and Cambridge University Press, 
 the copyright of which is their property. 
 
 Two hundred and fifty copies are printed, of ivhich this is 
 No. . / L 
 
^ 
 
THE 
 
 SONG OF SONGS 
 
 (REVISED version) 
 
 Mitb ^wenti^^siy jEtcbings \)^ je&mon& Ib^bouin anb 
 
 lemlle Boilvin 
 
 FROM DESIGNS BY 
 
 BIDA 
 
 pbilabelpbia 
 
 J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY 
 
 1887 
 
 I . ,■ , i 
 
i o 
 
Biei of (B^c^ing^. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Frontispiece 
 
 "My beloved is mine, and I am his'' . 
 
 "Let him kiss me with the kisses of "his mouth" .... 7 
 
 "The king hath brought me into his chambers" . . .7 
 
 "I am black, but comely" -9 
 
 " My mother's sons were incensed against me " . . . -9 
 " Go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock " . .11 
 
 "1 have compared thee, my love, to a steed" . .12 
 
 "I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem" . . . . 15 
 
 "He brought me to the banqueting house" . . . .15 
 
 "He looketh in at the windows" . . . . . .16 
 
 "I will seek him whom my soul loveth" . . . .' -19 
 
 "^I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him 
 
 into my mother's house" 20 
 
 " Go forth, ye daughters of Zion, and behold King Solomon with 
 
 the crown wherewith his mother hath crowned him . .22 
 " Let my beloved come into his garden and eat his precious fruits " 27 
 " I am come into my garden, my sister, my bride " . . -27 
 
 "He feedeth his flock among the lilies" . . . . -32 
 
 "Thou art beautiful, my love" . . . . . . -33 
 
 " I went down into the garden of nuts to see whether the vine budded " 36 
 "Let us get up early to the vineyards" ...... 40 
 
LIST OF ETCHINGS. 
 
 "I would cause thee to drink of spiced wine, of the juice of my 
 
 41 
 
 pomegranate ..•••■•■' 
 
 "Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness leaning upon her 
 
 beloved?" ^3 
 
 "Set me as a seal upon thine heart" 44 
 
 "We have a little sister" 45 
 
 "What shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be 
 
 spoken for?" . . • • • ■ • ■ ' -43 
 "Thou that dwellest in the gardens" 
 
 47 
 
 (from designs by gustave geeux.) 
 
 Sacred Lotus and Water Crowfoot . 
 
 Cedar of Lebanon and Wild Anemone 
 
 Ivy-leaved Toad Flax 
 
 Apricot and Hawthorn 
 
 Water TrefoU .... 
 
 Wild Fennell Flower 
 
 Phoenician Juniper and Wild Pear 
 
 Centaury and Sea Holly . 
 
 Two-spined Thistle . 
 
 Bamboo and Wild Iris 
 
 Veronica, with Leaves of Ivy and Squills 
 
 Palm and Amaryllis .... 
 
 8 
 II 
 12 
 18 
 20 
 22 
 32 
 35 
 39 
 42 
 
 44 
 48 
 
"^ffW^ 
 
 fF ' 
 
 ■WdiiWMI' It'll'"'" 
 
I. 
 
 HE Song of songs, which is Solomon's. 
 
 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his 
 
 mouth : 
 For thy love is better than wine. 
 Thine ointments have a goodly fragrance ; 
 Thy name is as ointment poured forth ; 
 Therefore do the virgins love thee. 
 Draw me ; we will run after thee : 
 The king hath brought me into his 
 chambers : 
 
't^t ^onj of ^onge* 
 
 We will be glad and rejoice in thee. 
 
 We will make mention of thy love more 
 
 than of wine : 
 Rightly do they love thee. 
 
u 
 
 /J 
 

 'tiv 
 
 
11. 
 
 AM black, but comely, 
 ye daughters of Jerusalem, 
 As the tents of Kedar, 
 t As the curtains of Solomon. 
 
 Look not upon me, because I am swarthy, 
 
 Because the sun hath scorched me. 
 
 My mother's sons were incensed against 
 
 me. 
 They made me keeper of the vineyards ; 
 But mine own vineyard have I not kept. 
 
 I 
 
III. 
 
 ELL me, thou whom my soul loveth, 
 Where thou feedest thy flock, where 
 thou makest it to rest at noon : 
 For why should I be as one that is 
 
 veiled 
 Beside the flocks of thy companions? 
 
 If thou know not, thou fairest among 
 women, 
 
^§e ^onj of ^on30+ 
 
 Go thy way forth by the footsteps of the 
 
 flock, 
 And feed thy kids beside the shepherds' 
 
 tents. 
 
IV. 
 
 HAVE compared thee, my love, 
 To a steed in Pharaoh's chariots. 
 
 Thy cheeks are comely with plaits of hair. 
 
 Thy neck with strings of jewels. 
 
 We will make thee plaits of gold 
 
 With studs of silver. 
 
 12 
 
V. 
 
 HILE the king sat at his table, 
 My spikenard sent forth its fragrance. 
 My beloved is unto me as a bundle of 
 
 myrrh, 
 That lieth betwixt my breasts. 
 My beloved is unto me as a cluster of 
 
 henna-flowers 
 In the vineyards of En-gedi. 
 
 13 
 
Z^t ^ong of ^on50+ 
 
 Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou 
 
 art fair; 
 Thine eyes are as doves. 
 
 Behold, thou art fair, my beloved, yea, 
 
 pleasant : 
 Also our couch is green. 
 The beams of our house are cedars. 
 And our rafters are firs. 
 I am a rose of Sharon, 
 A lily of the valleys. 
 
 As a lily among thorns, 
 
 So is my love among the daughters. 
 
 As the apple tree among the trees of the 
 wood, 
 
 H 
 
fe^^^iar^ 
 
€^t ^onj of ^on30+ 
 
 So is my beloved among the sons. 
 
 I sat down under his shadow with great 
 
 delight, 
 And his fruit was sweet to my taste. 
 He brought me to the banqueting house, 
 And his banner over me was love. 
 Stay ye me with raisins, comfort me with 
 
 apples : 
 For I am sick of love. 
 His left hand is under my head, 
 And his right hand doth embrace me. 
 
 I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem, 
 By the roes, and by the hinds of the field. 
 That ye stir not up, nor awaken love. 
 Until it please. 
 
VI. 
 
 HE voice of my beloved ! behold, he 
 
 comet h, 
 Leaping upon the mountains, skipping 
 
 upon the hills. 
 My beloved is like a roe or a young 
 
 hart : 
 Behold, he standeth behind our wall, 
 He looketh in at the windows, 
 He sheweth himself through the lattice. 
 My beloved spake, and said unto me. 
 
 l6 
 
€h ^ong of ^onje. 
 
 Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. 
 
 For, lo, the winter is past, 
 
 The rain is over and gone; 
 
 The flowers appear on the earth; 
 
 The time of the singing of birds is come. 
 
 And the voice of the turtle is heard in our 
 
 land ; 
 The fig tree ripeneth her green figs, 
 And the vines are in blossom, 
 They give forth their fragrance. 
 Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away. 
 O my dove, that art in the clefts of the 
 
 rock, in the covert of the steep place, 
 Let me see thy countenance, let me hear 
 
 thy voice ; 
 For sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance 
 
 is comely. 
 
 17 
 
Zi^t ^ong of ^on$e^ 
 
 Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that 
 
 spoil the vineyards; 
 For our vineyards are in blossom. 
 My beloved is mine, and I am his : 
 He feedeth his flock among the lilies. 
 Until the day be cool, and the shadows flee 
 
 away. 
 Turn, my beloved; and be thou like a roe 
 
 or a young hart 
 Upon the mountains of Bether. 
 
 i8 
 

VIL 
 
 Y night on my bed I sought him 
 whom my soul loveth : 
 f I sought him, but I found him not. 
 I I said, I will rise now, and go about the city. 
 In the streets and in the broad ways, 
 I will seek him whom my soul loveth : 
 I sought him, but I found him not. 
 The watchmen that go about the city 
 
 found me : 
 To whom I said, Saw ye him whom my 
 soul loveth? 
 
 A 
 
 19 
 
e ^ong of ^onc^B. 
 
 It was but a little that I passed from tL 
 When I found him whom my soul loveth : 
 I held him, and would not let him go, 
 Until I had brought him into my mother's 
 
 house, 
 And into the chamber of her that conceived 
 
 me. 
 
 I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem, 
 By the roes, and by the hinds of the field, 
 That ye stir not up, nor awaken love, 
 Until it please. 
 
r 
 
 
 
 
VIII. 
 
 HO is this that cometh up out of the 
 wilderness like pillars of smoke, 
 Perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, 
 With all powders of the merchant? 
 Behold, it is the litter of Solomon ; 
 Threescore mighty men are about it, 
 Of the mighty men of Israel. 
 They all handle the sword, and are expert 
 
 in war : 
 Every man hath his sword upon his thigh, 
 Because of fear in the night. 
 
Z^t ^ong of ^onge. 
 
 King Solomon made himself a palanquin 
 
 Of the wood of Lebanon. 
 
 He made the pillars thereof of silver, 
 
 The bottom thereof of gold, the seat of it 
 
 of purple, 
 The midst thereof being paved with love, 
 From the daughters of Jerusalem. 
 Go forth, ye daughters of Zion, and 
 
 behold king Solomon, 
 With the crown wherewith his mother hath 
 
 crowned him in the day of his 
 
 espousals, 
 And in the day of the gladness of his heart. 
 
,-fy^ 
 
 
IX. 
 
 EHOLD, thou art fair, my love; be- 
 hold, thou art fair; 
 
 Thine eyes are as doves behind thy veil: 
 
 Thy hair is as a flock of goats, 
 
 That lie along the side of Mount Gilead. 
 
 Thy teeth are like a flock of ewes that 
 are newly shorn, 
 
 Which are come up from the washing ; 
 
 Whereof every one hath twins, 
 
 And none is bereaved among them. 
 
 Thy lips are like a thread of scarlet, 
 
 23 
 
Z^t ^on^ of ^onger^ 
 
 And thy mouth is comely : 
 
 Thy temples are like a piece of a pome- 
 granate 
 
 Behind thy veil. 
 
 Thy neck is like the tower of David builded 
 for an armoury, 
 
 Whereon there hang a thousand bucklers, 
 
 All the shields of the mighty men. 
 
 Thy two breasts are like two fawns that 
 are twins of a roe, 
 
 Which feed among the lilies. 
 
 Until the day be cool, and the shadows flee 
 away, 
 
 I will get me to the mountain of myrrh. 
 And to the hill of frankincense. 
 Thou art all fair, my love; 
 And there is no spot in thee. 
 
 24 
 
^?e ^ong of ^onj^^ 
 
 Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, 
 
 With me from Lebanon : 
 
 Look from the top of Amana, 
 
 From the top of Senir and Hermon, 
 
 From the lions' dens, 
 
 From the mountains of the leopards. 
 
 Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my 
 bride ; 
 
 Thou hast ravished my heart with one of 
 thine eyes, 
 
 With one chain of thy neck. 
 
 How fair is thy love, my sister, my bride ! 
 
 How much better is thy love than wine ! 
 
 And the smell of thine ointments than all 
 manner of spices ! 
 
 Thy lips, O my bride, drop as the honey- 
 comb : 
 
 25 
 
Z^t ^onj of ^ongfif* 
 
 Honey and milk are under thy tongue; 
 And the smell of thy garments is like the 
 
 smell of Lebanon. 
 A garden shut up is my sister, my bride; 
 A spring shut up, a fountain sealed. 
 Thy shoots are an orchard of pomegranates, 
 
 with precious fruits ; 
 Henna with spikenard plants, 
 Spikenard and saffron, 
 Calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of 
 
 frankincense ; 
 Myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices. 
 Thou art a fountain of gardens, 
 A well of living waters. 
 And flowing streams from Lebanon. 
 
 -<»=«^^S^g;)c^«=»- 
 
 26 
 
Z^t ^on^ of ^on304 
 
 Awake, O north wind; and come, thou 
 
 south ; 
 Blow upon my garden, that the spices 
 
 thereof may flow out. 
 Let my beloved come into his garden, 
 And eat his precious fruits. 
 
 I am come into my garden, my sister, my 
 
 bride : 
 I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; 
 I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey ; 
 I have drunk my wine with my milk. 
 Eat, friends; 
 Drink, yea, drink abundantly, beloved. 
 
 27 
 
A 
 
 X. 
 
 WAS asleep, but my heart waked : 
 It is the voice of my beloved that 
 
 knocketh, saying, 
 Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, 
 
 my undefiled : 
 For my head is filled with dew, 
 My locks with the drops of the night. 
 I have put off my coat ; how shall I put 
 
 it on? 
 I have washed my feet; how shall I 
 
 defile them ? 
 
 28 
 
F^w,':Tr^^'^s.'^^'i-^"'-sf7^ 
 
t^t ^onj of ^onj0+ 
 
 My beloved put in his hand by the hole of 
 
 the door, 
 And my heart was moved for him. 
 I rose up to open to my beloved; 
 And my hands dropped with myrrh, 
 And my fingers with liquid myrrh, 
 Upon the handles of the bolt. 
 I opened to my beloved ; 
 But my beloved had withdrawn himself, and 
 
 was gone. 
 My soul had failed me when he spake : 
 I sought him, but I could not find him ; 
 I called him, but he gave me no answer. 
 The watchmen that go about the city found me, 
 They smote me, they wounded me; 
 The keepers of the walls took away my 
 
 mantle from me. 
 
 29 
 
t'^t ^ong of ^oYiC^B, 
 
 I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if 
 
 ye find my beloved, 
 That ye tell him, that I am sick of love. 
 
 What is thy beloved more than another 
 
 beloved, 
 O thou fairest among women? 
 What is thy beloved more than another 
 
 beloved, 
 That thou dost so adjure us? 
 
 My beloved is white and ruddy, 
 
 The chiefest among ten thousand. 
 
 His head is as the most fine gold. 
 
 His locks are bushy, and black as a raven. 
 
 30 
 
C5^ ^onj of ^on204 
 
 His eyes are like doves beside the water 
 brooks ; 
 
 Washed with milk, and fitly set. 
 
 His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as banks 
 of sweet herbs : 
 
 His lips are as lilies, dropping liquid myrrh. 
 
 His hands are as rings of gold set with beryl : 
 
 His body is as ivory work overlaid with 
 sapphires. 
 
 His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon 
 sockets of fine gold : 
 
 His aspect is like Lebanon, excellent as the 
 cedars. 
 
 His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is alto- 
 gether lovely. 
 
 This is my beloved, and this is my friend, 
 
 daughters of Jerusalem. 
 
 31 
 
Zi^t ^ong of ^onga, 
 
 Whither is thy beloved gone, 
 
 thou fairest among women? 
 Whither hath thy beloved turned him, 
 That we may seek him with thee? 
 
 My beloved is gone down to his garden, to 
 
 the beds of spices. 
 To feed in the gardens, and to gather lilies. 
 
 1 am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine : 
 He feedeth his flock among the lilies. 
 
 32 
 
XI. 
 
 HOU art beautiful, my love, as 
 Tirzah, 
 Comely as Jerusalem, 
 Terrible as an army \vitli banners. 
 Turn away thine, eyes from me. 
 For theyhaye overcome me. 
 Thy hair is as a flock of goats. 
 That lie along the side of Gilead. 
 Thy teeth are like a flock of ewes, ^ 
 Which are come up from the washing; 
 Whereof every one hath twins. 
 
 ^^ 
 
t'^t ^onj of ^on50+ 
 
 And none is bereaved among them. 
 
 Thy temples are like a piece of a pome- 
 granate 
 
 Behind thy veil. 
 
 There are threescore queens, and fourscore 
 concubines, 
 
 And virgins without number. 
 
 My dove, my undefiled, is but one ; 
 
 She is the only one of her mother; 
 
 She is the choice one of her that bare her. 
 
 The daughters saw her, and called her blessed ; 
 
 Yea, the queens and the concubines, and 
 they praised her. 
 
 Who is she that looketh forth as the 
 morning, 
 
 34 
 
t'^t ^ong of ^onje. 
 
 Fair as the moon, 
 
 Clear as the sun, 
 
 Terrible as an army with banners? 
 
 35 
 
XII. 
 
 1^ WENT down into the garden of nuts, 
 To see the green plants of the valley, 
 To see whether the vine budded. 
 And the pomegranates were in flower. 
 1 Or ever I was aware, my soul set me 
 
 t 
 
 Among the chariots of my princely people. 
 
 Keturn, return, Shulammite ; 
 
 Return, return, that we may look upon 
 
 thee. 
 
 36 
 
$5e ^ong of ^onj^f* 
 
 Why will ye look upon the Shulammite, 
 As upon the dance of Mahanaim? 
 
 How beautiful are thy feet in sandals, 
 prince's daughter! \ 
 
 The joints of thy thighs are like jewels, 
 
 The work of the hands of a cunning work- 
 man. 
 
 Thy navel is like a round goblet, 
 
 Wherein no mingled wine is wanting : 
 
 Thy belly is like an heap of wheat 
 
 Set about with lilies. 
 
 Thy two breasts are like two fawns 
 
 That are twins of a roe. 
 
 Thy neck is like the tower of ivory ; 
 
 37 
 
Z^t ^ong of ^oYi$B, 
 
 Thine eyes as the pools in Heshbon, by the 
 
 gate of Bath-rabbim ; 
 Thy nose is like the tower of Lebanon 
 Which looketh towards Damascus; 
 Thine head upon thee is like Carmel, 
 And the hair of thine head like purple ; 
 The king is held captive in the tresses 
 
 thereof 
 How fair and how pleasant art thou, 
 
 love, for delights ! 
 
 This thy stature is like to a palm tree, 
 
 And thy breasts to clusters of grapes. 
 
 1 said, I will climb up into the palm tree, 
 
 I will take hold of the branches thereof: 
 Let thy breasts be as clusters of the vine. 
 And the smell of thy breath like apples ; 
 And thy mouth like the best wine, 
 
 38 
 
^?e ^onj of ^onjer* 
 
 That goeth down smoothly for my beloved, 
 
 Gliding through the lips of those that are 
 asleep. 
 
 39 
 
XIII. 
 
 AM my beloved's, 
 And his desire is toward me. 
 Come, my beloved, let us go forth into 
 the field ; 
 I Let us lodge in the villages. 
 
 Let us get up early to the vineyards ; 
 Let us see whether the vine hath budded, 
 
 and its blossom be open, 
 And the pomegranates be in flower : 
 There will I give thee my love. 
 The mandrakes give forth fragrance, 
 
 40 
 
't^t ^ott5 of ^onge. 
 
 And at our doors are all manner of precious 
 
 fruits, new and old, 
 Which I have laid up for thee, O my 
 
 beloved. 
 Oh that thou wert as my brother, 
 That sucked the breasts of my mother ! 
 When I should find thee without, I would 
 
 kiss thee ; 
 Yea, and none would despise me. 
 I would lead thee, and bring thee into my 
 
 mother's house, 
 Who would instruct me ; 
 I would bause thee to drink of spiced 
 
 wine. 
 Of the juice of my pomegranate. 
 His left hand should be under my head. 
 And his right hand should embrace me. 
 
 41 
 
t^^t ^onj of ^onga* 
 
 I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem, 
 That ye stir not up, nor awaken love, 
 
 Until it please. 
 
 42 
 
1 
 
 XIV. 
 
 HO is this that cometh up from the 
 wilderness, 
 Leaning upon her beloved? 
 
 I 
 
 >. 
 
 Under the apple tree I awakened thee: 
 There thy mother was in travail with 
 
 thee, 
 There was she in travail that brought 
 
 thee forth. 
 
 _c^;j^jS|^g;!t^ee=>- 
 
 43 
 
^§e ^ong of ^onje* 
 
 Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal 
 
 upon thine arm ; 
 For love is strong as death ; 
 Jealousy is cruel as the grave : 
 The flashes thereof are flashes of fire, 
 A very flame of the Lord. 
 Many waters cannot quench love, 
 Neither can the, floods drown it : 
 If a man would give all the substance of 
 
 his house for love, 
 He would utterly be contemned. 
 
 44 
 
asi.-n-'i^amieaci. . 
 
. ■.■.'.^^■^:ms--,''m:i^ssmi.im;ssim 
 
f 
 
 ;; 
 
 .. 
 
 XV. 
 
 E have a little sister, 
 And she hath no breasts : 
 What shall we do for our sister 
 In the day when she shall be spoken 
 
 for? 
 If she be a waU, 
 We will build upon her a turret of 
 
 silver : 
 And if she be a door, 
 We will inclose her with boards of 
 
 cedar. 
 
 45 
 
Z^t ^ong of ^ong04 
 
 I am a wall, and my breasts like the towers 
 
 thereof : 
 Then was I in his eyes as one that found 
 
 peace. 
 Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon ; 
 He let out the vineyard unto keepers ; 
 Every one for the fruit thereof was to bring 
 
 a thousand pieces of silver. 
 My vineyard, which is mine, is before me : 
 Thou, Solomon, shalt have the thousand, 
 And those that keep the fruit thereof two 
 
 hundred. 
 
 46 
 
t 
 
 A 
 
 XV I. 
 
 HOU that dwellest in the gardens, 
 The companions hearken for thy voice : 
 Cause me to hear it. 
 
 Make haste, my beloved, 
 
 And be thou like to a roe or to a young 
 
 hart 
 Upon the mountains of spices. 
 
 -c=^iP:iS^af^i&=^ 
 
 47 
 
r fi^r^'t^^ T-i- 'Ht