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.

Sustain ¹  me with raisin cakes, ²  refresh me with apples, ³  for I am faint with love. ⁴  The Double Refrain: Embracing and Adjuration

The Lover to His Beloved: You are a locked garden, ¹  my sister, my bride; you are an enclosed spring, a sealed-up fountain.

The Lover to His Beloved: My darling, you are as beautiful as Tirzah, ¹  as lovely as Jerusalem, ²  as awe-inspiring ³  as bannered armies!

Draw me ¹  after you; let us hurry! ²  May the king ³  bring ⁴  me into his ⁵  bedroom chambers! ⁶  The Maidens ⁷  to the Lover: We will ⁸  rejoice and delight in you; ⁹  we will praise your love more than wine. The Beloved to Her Lover: How rightly the young women adore you!

The Lover to His Beloved: Like ¹  a lily among the thorns, ²  so is my darling among the maidens.

The Lover to His Beloved: I have entered my garden, O my sister, my bride; I have gathered my myrrh with my balsam spice. I have eaten my honeycomb and my honey; I have drunk my wine and my milk! The Poet to the Couple: ¹  Eat, friends, and drink! ²  Drink freely, O lovers!

My lover is like a gazelle or a young stag. ¹  Look! There he stands behind our wall, gazing through the window, peering through the lattice.

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 Beloved to Her Lover: Oh, how I wish you were ¹  my little brother, ²  nursing at my mother’s breasts; if I saw ³  you outside, I could kiss you – surely ⁴  no one would despise me! ⁵ 

The Beloved about Her Lover: While the king was at his banqueting table, ¹  my nard ²  gave forth its fragrance. ³ 

The Lover to His Beloved: Oh, ¹  how beautiful you are, my beloved! ²  Oh, how beautiful you are! Your eyes ³  are like doves! ⁴ 

The Beloved about Her Lover: All night long ¹  on my bed ²  I longed for ³  my lover. ⁴  I longed for ⁵  him but he never appeared. ⁶ 

His head is like the most pure gold. ¹  His hair is curly ²  – black like a raven.

The Beloved about Her Lover: His left hand caresses my head, and his right hand stimulates me. ¹ 

The Beloved: I was a wall, and my breasts were like fortress towers. ¹  Then I found favor ²  in his eyes. ³ 

“I will arise ¹  and look all around ²  throughout the town, and throughout the streets ³  and squares; I will search for my beloved.” I searched for him but I did not find him. ⁴