<p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Maidens to The Beloved:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">Why is your beloved better than others,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">O most beautiful of women?p> <p class="poetry">Why is your beloved better than others,p> <p class="poetry">that you would command us in this manner?p>

<t /><p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved about Her Lover:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">I am my lover&#8217;s<n id="1" /> and my lover is mine;<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">he grazes among the lilies.p>

<t /><p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Maidens to the Beloved:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">Where has your beloved gone,p> <p class="poetry">O most beautiful among women?p> <p class="poetry">Where has your beloved turned?p> <p class="poetry">Tell us,<n id="1" /> that we may seek him with you.<n id="2" />p>

<t /><p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved about Her Lover:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">My lover is mine and I am his;p> <p class="poetry">he grazes among the lilies.<n id="1" />p>

<p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved to the Maidens:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">My beloved<n id="1" /> is dazzling<n id="2" /> and ruddy;<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">he stands out<n id="4" /> in comparison to<n id="5" /> all other men.<n id="6" />p>

<t /><p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved about Her Lover:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">I am my beloved&#8217;s,p> <p class="poetry">and he desires me!<n id="1" />p>

<p class="poetry">How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride!p> <p class="poetry">How much better is your love than wine;p> <p class="poetry">the fragrance of your perfume is better than any spice!p>

<p class="poetry">I opened for my beloved,p> <p class="poetry">but my lover had already turned<n id="1" /> and gone away.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">I fell into despair<n id="3" /> when he departed.<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">I looked for him but did not find him;p> <p class="poetry">I called him but he did not answer me.p>

<t /><p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved to Her Lover:i>b><n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">Oh, how I wish you<n id="2" /> would kiss me passionately!<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">For your lovemaking<n id="4" /> is more delightful<n id="5" /> than wine.<n id="6" />p>

<p class="poetry">My beloved is like a fragrant pouch of myrrh<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">spending the night<n id="2" /> between my breasts.p>

<p class="poetry">My beloved is like a cluster of henna blossoms<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">in the vineyards of En-Gedi.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved to Her Lover:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">Oh, how handsome you are, my lover!<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">Oh,<n id="2" /> how delightful<n id="3" /> you are!p> <p class="poetry">The lush foliage<n id="4" /> is our canopied bed;<n id="5" />p>

<p class="poetry">My lover thrust his hand<n id="1" /> through<n id="2" /> the hole,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">and my feelings<n id="4" /> were stirred<n id="5" /> for him.p>

<t /><p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved to Her Lover:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">Come, my beloved, let us go to the countryside;p> <p class="poetry">let us spend the night in the villages.p>

<t /><p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved about Her Lover:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">Listen!<n id="1" /> My lover is approaching!<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">Look!<n id="3" /> Here he comes,p> <p class="poetry">leaping over the mountains,p> <p class="poetry">bounding over the hills!p>

<t /><p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Lover to His Beloved:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">My lover spoke to me, saying:p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;Arise, my darling;p> <p class="poetry">My beautiful one, come away with me!p>

<p class="poetry">His mouth is very sweet;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">he is totally desirable.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">This is my beloved!p> <p class="poetry">This is my companion, O maidens of Jerusalem!p>

<p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved to the Maidens:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">My beloved has gone down to his garden,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">to the flowerbeds of balsam spices,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">to graze<n id="3" /> in the gardens,p> <p class="poetry">and to gather lilies.<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">May your mouth<n id="1" /> be like the best wine,p> <p class="poetry">flowing smoothly for my beloved,p> <p class="poetry">gliding gently over our lips as we sleep together.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved to Her Lover:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">Make haste, my beloved!p> <p class="poetry">Be like a gazelle or a young stagp> <p class="bodytext">on the mountains of spices.p>