The Beloved to Her Lover: Until the dawn arrives ¹  and the shadows flee, turn, ²  my beloved – be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountain gorges. ³ 

All of them are skilled with a sword, ¹  well-trained in the art of warfare. ²  Each has his sword at his side, to guard against the terrors of the night.

I arose to open for my beloved; my hands dripped with myrrh – my fingers flowed with myrrh on the handles of the lock.

His mouth is very sweet; ¹  he is totally desirable. ²  This is my beloved! This is my companion, O maidens of Jerusalem!

The Beloved to the Maidens: My beloved has gone down to his garden, ¹  to the flowerbeds of balsam spices, ²  to graze ³  in the gardens, and to gather lilies. ⁴ 

May your mouth ¹  be like the best wine, flowing smoothly for my beloved, gliding gently over our lips as we sleep together. ² 

The mandrakes ¹  send out their fragrance; over our door is every delicacy, ²  both new and old, which I have stored up for you, my lover.

The Beloved about Her Lover: Like ¹  an apple tree ²  among the trees of the forest, so is my beloved among the young men. I delight ³  to sit ⁴  in his shade, ⁵  and his fruit ⁶  is sweet ⁷  to my taste. ⁸ 

The Lover to His Beloved: Oh, ²  you are beautiful, my darling! ³  Oh, you are beautiful! Your eyes behind your veil are like doves. ⁴  Your hair is like a flock of female goats descending ⁵  from Mount Gilead.

The Beloved to Her Lover: Awake, O north wind; come, O south wind! Blow on my garden so that its fragrant spices may send out their sweet smell. ¹  May my beloved come into his garden and eat its delightful fruit!

The Lover to His Beloved: ¹  I went down to the orchard of walnut trees, ²  to look for the blossoms of the valley, ³  to see if the vines had budded or if the pomegranates were in bloom.

The Maidens about His Beloved: Who is this coming up from the desert, leaning on her beloved? The Beloved to Her Lover: Under the apple tree I aroused you; ¹  there your mother conceived you, there she who bore you was in labor of childbirth. ²