a lilyc of the valleys.d

M 2Like a lily among thorns,

  so is my darling among the young women.

W 3Like an apricote tree among the trees of the forest,

  so is my love among the young men.

  I delight to sit in his shade,

  and his fruit is sweet to my taste.

  4He brought me to the banquet hall,f, g

  and he looked on me with love.h, i

  5Sustain me with raisins;

  refresh me with apricots,j

  for I am lovesick.k

  6His left hand is under my head,

  and his right arm embraces me.l, m

  7Young women of Jerusalem, I charge you

  by the gazelles and the wild does of the field:

  do not stir up or awaken love

  until the appropriate time.n, o

  8Listen! My love is approaching.

  Look! Here he comes,

  leaping over the mountains,p

  bounding over the hills.

  9My love is like a gazelle

  or a young stag.q

  Look, he is standing behind our wall,

  gazing through the windows,

  peering through the lattice.

  10My love calls to me:

M Arise,r my darling.

  Come away, my beautiful one.

  11For now the winter is past;

  the rain has ended and gone away.

  12The blossoms appear in the countryside.

  The time of singings has come,

  and the turtledove’s cooing is heard in our land.t

  13The fig tree ripens its figs;u

  the blossoming vines give off their fragrance.v

  Arise, my darling.

  Come away, my beautiful one.

  14My dove,w in the clefts of the rock,x

  in the crevices of the cliff,

  let me see your face,y

  let me hear your voice;z

  for your voice is sweet,

  and your face is lovely.aa

(W) 15Catch the foxes for usab —

  the little foxes that ruin the vineyards —

  for our vineyards are in bloom.ac

W 16My love is mine and I am his;ad

  he feeds among the lilies.

  17Before the day breaksae

  and the shadows flee,

  turn to me, my love, and be like a gazelle

  or a young stagaf on the divided mountains.ag, ah