喬碩諾爸碎碎念

Bible reading note

Song of Songs 1

「This is Solomon’s song of songs, more wonderful than any other. Kiss me and kiss me again, for your love is sweeter than wine. Take me with you; come, let’s run! The king has brought me into his bedroom. How happy we are for you, O king. We praise your love even more than wine. How right they are to adore you. Don’t stare at me because I am dark— the sun has darkened my skin. My brothers were angry with me; they forced me to care for their vineyards, so I couldn’t care for myself—my own vineyard. You are as exciting, my darling, as a mare among Pharaoh’s stallions. The king is lying on his couch, enchanted by the fragrance of my perfume. How beautiful you are, my darling, how beautiful! Your eyes are like doves. fragrant cedar branches are the beams of our house, and pleasant smelling firs are the rafters.」

Song of Songs 2

「I am the spring crocus blooming on the Sharon Plain, the lily of the valley. Like the finest apple tree in the orchard is my lover among other young men. I sit in his delightful shade and taste his delicious fruit. Ah, I hear my lover coming! He is leaping over the mountains, bounding over the hills. Look, the winter is past, and the rains are over and gone. The fig trees are forming young fruit, and the fragrant grapevines are blossoming. Rise up, my darling! Come away with me, my fair one!” My dove is hiding behind the rocks, behind an outcrop on the cliff. Let me see your face; let me hear your voice. For your voice is pleasant, and your face is lovely. Before the dawn breezes blow and the night shadows flee, return to me, my love, like a gazelle or a young stag on the rugged mountains.」

Song of Songs 3

「One night as I lay in bed, I yearned for my lover. I yearned for him, but he did not come. So I said to myself, “I will get up and roam the city, searching in all its streets and squares. I will search for the one I love.” So I searched everywhere but did not find him. Promise me, O women of Jerusalem, by the gazelles and wild deer, not to awaken love until the time is right. Look, it is Solomon’s carriage, surrounded by sixty heroic men, the best of Israel’s soldiers. Its posts are silver, its canopy gold; its cushions are purple. It was decorated with love by the young women of Jerusalem. Come out to see King Solomon, young women of Jerusalem. He wears the crown his mother gave him on his wedding day, his most joyous day.」

Song of Songs 4

「You are beautiful, my darling, beautiful beyond words. Your eyes are like doves behind your veil. Your hair falls in waves, like a flock of goats winding down the slopes of Gilead. Your neck is as beautiful as the tower of David, jeweled with the shields of a thousand heroes. Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, come with me from Lebanon. Come down from Mount Amana, from the peaks of Senir and Hermon, where the lions have their dens and leopards live among the hills. Your lips are as sweet as nectar, my bride. Honey and milk are under your tongue. Your clothes are scented like the cedars of Lebanon. Awake, north wind! Rise up, south wind! Blow on my garden and spread its fragrance all around. Come into your garden, my love; taste its finest fruits.」

Song of Songs 5

「I have entered my garden, my treasure, my bride! I gather myrrh with my spices and eat honeycomb with my honey. I drink wine with my milk. Oh, lover and beloved, eat and drink! Yes, drink deeply of your love! My lover tried to unlatch the door, and my heart thrilled within me. I jumped up to open the door for my love, and my hands dripped with perfume. My fingers dripped with lovely myrrh as I pulled back the bolt. The night watchmen found me as they made their rounds. They beat and bruised me and stripped off my veil, those watchmen on the walls. My lover is dark and dazzling, better than ten thousand others! His head is finest gold, his wavy hair is black as a raven. His legs are like marble pillars set in sockets of finest gold. His posture is stately,

Song of Songs 6

「Where has your lover gone, O woman of rare beauty? Which way did he turn so we can help you find him? Turn your eyes away, for they overpower me. Your hair falls in waves, like a flock of goats winding down the slopes of Gilead. I would still choose my dove, my perfect one— the favorite of her mother, dearly loved by the one who bore her. The young women see her and praise her; even queens and royal concubines sing her praises: “Who is this, arising like the dawn, as fair as the moon, as bright as the sun, as majestic as an army with billowing banners?” Before I realized it, my strong desires had taken me to the chariot of a noble man. Return, return to us, O maid of Shulam. Come back, come back, that we may see you again. Why do you stare at this young woman of Shulam, as she moves so gracefully between two lines of dancers?」

Song of Songs 7

「How beautiful are your sandaled feet, O queenly maiden. Your rounded thighs are like jewels, the work of a skilled craftsman. Your neck is as beautiful as an ivory tower. Your eyes are like the sparkling pools in Heshbon by the gate of Bath-rabbim. Your nose is as fine as the tower of Lebanon overlooking Damascus. I said, “I will climb the palm tree and take hold of its fruit.” May your breasts be like grape clusters, and the fragrance of your breath like apples. Come, my love, let us go out to the fields and spend the night among the wildflowers. There the mandrakes give off their fragrance, and the finest fruits are at our door, new delights as well as old, which I have saved for you, my lover.」

Song of Songs 8

「Oh, I wish you were my brother, who nursed at my mother’s breasts. Then I could kiss you no matter who was watching, and no one would criticize me. Promise me, O women of Jerusalem, not to awaken love until the time is right. Who is this sweeping in from the desert, leaning on her lover? I aroused you under the apple tree, where your mother gave you birth, where in great pain she delivered you. Many waters cannot quench love, nor can rivers drown it. If a man tried to buy love with all his wealth, his offer would be utterly scorned. If she is a virgin, like a wall, we will protect her with a silver tower. But if she is promiscuous, like a swinging door, we will block her door with a cedar bar. Solomon has a vineyard at Baal-hamon, which he leases out to tenant farmers. Each of them pays a thousand pieces of silver for harvesting its fruit. O my darling, lingering in the gardens, your companions are fortunate to hear your voice. Let me hear it, too!」