Old/New Testament

1 Here beginneth the Song of Songs^[a].

² Kiss he me with the kiss of his mouth. For thy loves be better than wine (For thy love is better than wine)^[b],

³ and give odour with best ointments. Thy name is (like) oil shed out; therefore young damsels loved thee. (and thy aroma is equal to the best perfumes. Thy name is like oil poured out; and so the young women, or the maidens, loved thee.)

⁴ Draw thou me after thee; we shall run. The king led me into his cellars; we mindful of thy loves above wine, shall make full out joy, and we shall be glad in thee; rightful men love thee. (Draw thou me after thee; and we shall run away/and we shall run together. The king led me into his chamber; and we thinking more about thy love than about wine, shall rejoice, and we shall be glad for thee; yea, all the upright people love thee.)

⁵ Ye daughters of Jerusalem, I am black, but fair, as the tabernacles of Kedar, as the skins of Solomon. (Ye daughters of Jerusalem, I am black, and beautiful, like the tents of Kedar, and like Solomon’s curtains.)

⁶ Do not ye behold me, that I am black, for the sun hath discoloured me; the sons of my mother fought against me, they set me a keeper in vineries; I kept not my vinery. (Do not ye look down upon me, because I am black, for the sun hath coloured me, that is, it hath tanned me; the sons of my mother fought against me, and they made me the guardian of the vineyards; and so I could not look after my own vineyard.)

⁷ Thou spouse, whom my soul loveth, show to me, where thou pasturest, (yea,) where thou restest in midday; lest I begin to wander, after the flocks of thy fellows.

⁸ A! thou fairest among women, if thou knowest not thyself, go thou out, and go forth after the steps of thy flocks; and feed thy kids, beside the tabernacles of shepherds. (O! thou most beautiful among women, if thou thyself knowest not, go thou out, and go forth after the steps of thy flocks; and feed thy goat kids, beside the shepherds’ tents.)

⁹ My love, I likened thee to mine host of knights in the chariots of Pharaoh. (My love, I would liken thee to Pharaoh’s army of chariot drivers.)

¹⁰ Thy cheeks be fair, as of a turtle; thy neck is as brooches. (Thy cheeks be beautiful, like a turtledove; thy neck is adorned with jewels.)

¹¹ We shall make to thee golden ornaments, parted and made diverse with silver. (We shall make golden ornaments for thee, set with silver beads.)

¹² When the king was in his resting place, my nard gave his odour. (While the king lieth on his couch, my spikenard gave forth its aroma.)

¹³ My darling is a bundle of myrrh to me; he shall dwell betwixt my teats. (My darling is like a bundle of myrrh for me; and he shall rest between my breasts.)

¹⁴ My darling is to me (as) a cluster of cypress tree(s), among the vineries of Engedi. (My darling is like a cluster of cypress trees for me, among the vineyards of Engedi.)

¹⁵ Lo! my love, thou art fair; lo! thou art fair, thine eyes be the eyes of culvers. (Lo! my love, thou art beautiful; lo! thou art beautiful, thine eyes be like doves.)

¹⁶ Lo! my darling, thou art fair and shapely; our bed is fair as flowers. (Lo! my darling, thou art beautiful and shapely; the grass and the flowers shall be our bed.)

¹⁷ The beams of our houses be of cedar; our couplings be of cypress. (The beams of our house shall be the cedars; our couplings shall be the cypress trees.)

2 I am a flower of the field, and a lily of great valleys. (I am a flower of Sharon, and a lily of the great valley.)

² As a lily among thorns, so is my friendess among daughters. (Like a lily among the thorns, is my friendess among the daughters.)

³ As an apple tree among the trees of woods, so (is) my darling among (the) sons. I sat under the shadow of him, whom I desired; and his fruit was sweet to my throat. (Like an apple tree among the trees of the woods, is my darling among the sons of men. I sat under his shadow, yea, he whom I desired; and his fruit was sweet to my taste.)

⁴ The king led me into the wine cellar; he ordained charity in me (he ordained his love upon me).

⁵ Beset ye me with flowers, compass ye me with apples; for I am sick for love. (Put ye flowers about me, yea, surround ye me with apple blossoms; for I am weak, or I faint, because of love.)

⁶ His left hand is under mine head; and his right hand shall embrace me.

⁷ Ye daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you greatly, by caprets, and harts of fields, that ye raise not, neither make to awake the dearworthy spousess, till she will. (Ye daughters of Jerusalem, I strongly command you, by the gazelles, and the harts of the fields, that ye raise not up, nor awaken the dearworthy spousess, until she desireth it.)

⁸ The voice of my darling; lo! this darling cometh leaping in mountains, and skipping over little hills. (The voice of my darling; lo! my darling cometh leaping over the mountains, and skipping over the little hills.)

⁹ My darling is like a capret, and a calf of harts; lo! he standeth behind our wall, and beholdeth by the windows, and looketh through the lattice. (My darling is like a gazelle, or like a hart calf; lo! he standeth behind our wall, and seeth in through the windows, and looketh through the lattice.)

¹⁰ Lo! my darling speaketh to me, My love, my culver, my fair spousess, rise thou, haste thou, and come thou; (Lo! my darling speaketh to me, and saith, My love, my dove, my beautiful spousess, rise thou up, hasten thou, and come thou away;)

¹¹ for winter is passed now, rain is gone, and is departed away. (for the winter is now passed, finally the rains have gone away, yea, they have departed at last.)

¹² Flowers have appeared in our land, and the time of cutting is come; the voice of a turtle is heard in our land (the song of a turtledove is heard in our land),

¹³ the fig tree hath brought forth his buds; the vineries flowering have given their odour. My love, my fair spousess, rise thou, haste thou, and come thou. (the fig tree hath brought forth its buds; the flowering vines have given forth their aroma. My love, my beautiful spousess, rise thou up, hasten thou, and come thou away.)

¹⁴ My culver is in the holes of [the] stone, in the chink of a wall without mortar. Show thy face to me, thy voice sound in mine ears; for thy voice is sweet, and thy face is fair. (My dove is in the holes of the stone, in the chink of a wall made without mortar. Show thy face to me, let thy voice sound in my ears; for thy voice is sweet, and thy face is so beautiful.)

¹⁵ Catch ye little foxes to us, that destroy the vineries; for our vinery hath flowered. (Catch ye for us the little foxes, that destroy the vineyards; for our vines have flowered.)

¹⁶ My darling is to me, and I am to him, which is fed among lilies; (My darling is for me, and I am for him, who is fed among the lilies;)

¹⁷ till the day spring, and shadows be bowed down. My darling, turn thou again; be thou like a capret, and a calf of harts, on the hills of Bether. (until the day spring forth, and the shadows be bowed down. My darling, return thou; be thou like a gazelle, or a hart calf, on the hills of Bether/upon the rugged hills.)

3 In my little bed, I sought him by nights, whom my soul loveth; I sought him, and I found not. (In my little bed, night after night, I sought him, whom my soul loveth; I sought him, but I could not find him.)

² I shall rise, and I shall compass the city, by little streets and large streets; I shall seek him, whom my soul loveth; I sought him, and I found not. (So I said, I shall arise, and I shall go about the city, by the little streets and the large streets; I shall seek him, whom my soul loveth; so I sought him, but I could not find him.)

³ (The) Watchmen, that keep the city, found me. (I asked,) Whether ye saw him, whom my soul loveth? (But the watchmen, who guard the city, found me. And I asked them, Have ye seen him, whom my soul loveth?)

⁴ A little when I had passed them, I found him, whom my soul loveth (Then only a little while after that I had left them, I found him, whom my soul loveth); I held him, and I shall not leave him, till I bring him into the house of my mother, and into the (bed-)closet of my mother.

⁵ Ye daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you greatly, by the caprets, and harts of fields, that ye raise not, neither make to awake the dearworthy spousess, till she will. (Ye daughters of Jerusalem, I strongly command you, by the gazelles, and the harts of the fields, that ye raise not up, nor awaken the dearworthy spousess, until she desireth it.)

⁶ Who is this woman, that goeth up by the desert, as a rod of smoke of sweet smelling spices, of myrrh, and of incense, and of all powder of an ointment maker? (Who is this woman, who goeth up by the desert, like a column of smoke of sweet smelling spices, yea, of myrrh, and of incense, and of all the powders of a perfume maker?)

⁷ Lo! sixty strong men of the strongest men of Israel compass the bed of Solomon; (Lo! sixty strong men of the strongest of Israel surround, or protect, Solomon in his bed;)

⁸ and all they hold swords, and be most witting to battles; the sword of each man is on his hip, for the dread of nights. (and they all hold swords, and be most knowing about battle, or about fighting; the sword of each man is on his hip, ready for any attack in the night.)

⁹ King Solomon made to him a seat, of the wood of Lebanon; (King Solomon made for himself a throne out of the wood of Lebanon;)

¹⁰ he made the pillars thereof of silver; he made a golden resting place, a going up of purple; and he arrayed the middle things with charity, for the daughters of Jerusalem. (he covered its pillars, or its posts, with silver; and its golden seat had a purple cushion, lovingly woven by the daughters of Jerusalem.)

¹¹ Ye daughters of Zion, go out, and see king Solomon in the diadem, with which his mother crowned him, in the day of his espousing, and in the day of the gladness of his heart. (Ye daughters of Zion, go out, and see King Solomon in his crown, with which his mother crowned him, on the day of his espousing, that is, on his wedding day, yea, on the day when his heart was happy, and full of joy.)

2 And since fourteen years after [Afterward after fourteen years], again I went up to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took with me Titus.

² [Forsooth] I went up by revelation, and spake with them the evangel [and said together with them the gospel], which I preach among the heathen; and by themselves to these that seemed to be somewhat, lest I run, or had run in vain [forsooth asides hand, or by themselves, to them that were seen to be somewhat, lest peradventure I should run in vain, or had run in vain.]

³ And neither Titus, that had been with me, while he was heathen, was compelled to be circumcised; [But neither Titus, that was with me, when he was heathen, was compelled to be circumcised;]

⁴ but for false brethren that were brought in, which had entered to espy our freedom, which we have in Jesus Christ, to bring us into servage.^[a]

⁵ But we gave no place to subjection^[b], that the truth of the gospel should dwell with you.

⁶ But of these that seemed to be somewhat; which they were sometime, it pertaineth not to me [what manner they were sometime, it pertaineth nothing to me], for God taketh not the person of man; for they that seemed to be somewhat, gave me nothing [nothing to me gave].

⁷ But on the contrary, when they had seen, that the evangel of [the] prepuce was given to me, as the evangel of circumcision was given to Peter [that the gospel of prepuce, or of heathen men, was taken to me, as and of circumcision to Peter];

⁸ for he that wrought to Peter in apostlehood of circumcision, wrought also to me among the heathen;

⁹ and when they had known the grace of God, that was given to me, James, and Peter, and John, which were seen to be the pillars, they gave the right hand of fellowship to me and to Barnabas, that we among the heathen, and they into the circumcision;^[c]

¹⁰ only that we had mind of poor men [only that we should be mindful of poor men], the which thing I was full busy to do.

¹¹ But when Peter was come to Antioch, I against-stood him in the face [I stood against him into the face], for he was worthy to be reproved.

¹² For before that there came some men from James [Forsooth before that some came from James], he ate with heathen men; but when they were come, he withdrew, and separated him(self ) [and parted him], dreading them that were of circumcision.

¹³ And the other Jews assented to his feigning [And other Jews consented to his feigning], so that Barnabas was drawn of them into that feigning.

¹⁴ But when I saw, that they walked not rightly to the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter before all men, If thou, that art a Jew, livest heathen-like, and not Jew-like, how constrainest thou heathen men to become Jews?

¹⁵ We Jews of kind, and not sinful men of the heathen, [We be Jews of kind, and not sinners of heathen men,]

¹⁶ know that a man [soothly knowing for a man] is not justified of the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ; and we believe in Jesus Christ, that we be justified of the faith of Christ [that we be justified by the faith of Christ], and not of the works of the law. Wherefore of the works of the law each flesh shall not be justified.

¹⁷ And if we seek to be justified in Christ, we ourselves be found sinful men, whether Christ be minister of sin? God forbid. [That if we seeking to be justified in Christ, and we ourselves be found sinners, whether Christ is minister of sin? Far be it.]

¹⁸ And if I build again things that I have destroyed [Soothly if I build again those things that I destroyed], I make myself a trespasser.

¹⁹ For by the law I am dead to the law, [For by the law I am dead to the law, that I live to God;]

²⁰ and I am fixed to the cross, that I live to God with Christ. And now live not I, but Christ liveth in me. But that I live now in flesh, I live in the faith of God's Son, that loved me, and gave himself for me. [with Christ I am fixed to the cross. Forsooth I live now, not I, but Christ liveth in me. Forsooth that I live now in flesh, I live in the faith of God's Son, which loved me, and betook himself for me.]

²¹ I cast not away the grace of God; for if rightwiseness be through law [for if rightwiseness is by the law], then Christ died without cause.