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Song of Songs 1-4:16 (Contemporary English Version)
Song of Solomon 1
Love Is Better than Wine
1This is Solomon's
most beautiful song.
She Speaks:
2Kiss me tenderly!
Your love is better than wine,
3and you smell so sweet.
All the young women adore you;
the very mention of your name
is like spreading perfume.
4Hurry, my king! Let's hurry.
5Take me to your home.
We are happy for you!
And we praise your love
even more than wine.
Young women of Jerusalem,
it is only right
that you should adore him.
My skin is dark and beautiful,
like a tent in the desert
or like Solomon's curtains.
The Young Women Speak:
She Speaks:
6Don't stare at me
just because the sun
has darkened my skin.
My brothers were angry with me;
they made me work in the vineyard,
and so I neglected
my complexion.
Don't let the other shepherds
think badly of me. [a]
7I'm not one of those women
who shamelessly follow
after shepherds. [b]
My darling, I love you!
Where do you feed your sheep
and let them rest at noon?
He Speaks:
8My dearest, if you don't know,
just follow the path
of the sheep.
Then feed your young goats
near the shepherds' tents.
9You move as gracefully
as the pony
that leads
the chariot of the king.
10Earrings add to your beauty,
and you wear a necklace
of precious stones.
11Let's make you some jewelry
of gold,
woven with silver.
She Speaks:
12My king, while you
were on your couch,
my love was a magic charm. [c]
13My darling, you are perfume
between my breasts;
14you are flower blossoms
from the gardens of En-Gedi. [d]
He Speaks:
15My darling, you are lovely,
so very lovely--
your eyes are those of a dove.
She Speaks:
16My love, you are handsome,
truly handsome--
the fresh green grass
will be our wedding bed
17in the shade of cedar
and cypress trees.
Song of Solomon 2
Love Makes Everything Beautiful
She Speaks:
1I am merely a rose [e] from the land of Sharon,
a lily from the valley.
He Speaks:
2My darling, when compared
with other young women,
you are a lily among thorns.
She Speaks:
3And you, my love,
are an apple tree
among trees of the forest.
Your shade brought me pleasure;
your fruit was sweet.
4You led me to your banquet room
and showered me with love.
5Refresh and strengthen me
with raisins and apples.
I am hungry for love!
6Put your left hand under my head
and embrace me
with your right arm.
7Young women of Jerusalem,
promise me by the power
of deer and gazelles [f]
never to awaken love
before it is ready.
Winter Is Past
She Speaks:
8I hear the voice
of the one I love,
as he comes leaping
over mountains and hills
9like a deer or a gazelle.
Now he stands outside our wall,
looking through the window
10and speaking to me.
My darling, I love you!
Let's go away together.
He Speaks:
11Winter is past,
the rain has stopped;
12flowers cover the earth,
it's time to sing. [g]
The cooing of doves
is heard in our land.
13Fig trees are bearing fruit,
while blossoms on grapevines
fill the air with perfume.
My darling, I love you!
Let's go away together.
14You are my dove
hiding among the rocks
on the side of a cliff.
Let me see how lovely you are!
Let me hear the sound
of your melodious voice.
15Our vineyards are in blossom;
we must catch the little foxes
that destroy the vineyards. [h]
She Speaks:
16My darling, I am yours,
and you are mine,
as you feed your sheep
among the lilies.
17Pretend to be a young deer
dancing on mountain slopes [i]
until daylight comes
and shadows fade away.
Song of Solomon 3
Beautiful Dreams
She Speaks:
1While in bed at night,
I reached for the one I love
with heart and soul.
I looked for him,
but he wasn't there.
2So I searched through the town
for the one I love.
I looked on every street,
but he wasn't there.
3I even asked the guards
patrolling the town,
"Have you seen the one
I love so much?"
4Right after that, I found him.
I held him and would not let go
until I had taken him
to the home of my mother.
5Young women of Jerusalem,
promise me by the power
of deer and gazelles, [j]
never to awaken love
before it is ready.
The Groom and the Wedding Party
Their Friends Speak:
6What do we see approaching
from the desert
like a cloud of smoke?
With it comes the sweet smell
of spices,
including myrrh
and frankincense.
7It is King Solomon
carried on a throne,
surrounded by sixty
of Israel's best soldiers.
8Each of them wears a sword.
They are experts at fighting,
even in the dark.
9The throne is made of trees
from Lebanon.
10Its posts are silver,
the back is gold,
and the seat is covered
with purple cloth.
You women of Jerusalem
have taken great care
to furnish the inside. [k]
11Now come and see the crown
given to Solomon
by his mother
on his happy wedding day.
Song of Solomon 4
What a Beautiful Bride
He Speaks:
1My darling, you are lovely,
so very lovely--
as you look through your veil,
your eyes are those of a dove.
Your hair tosses about
as gracefully as goats
coming down from Gilead.
2Your teeth are whiter
than sheep freshly washed;
they match perfectly,
not one is missing.
3Your lips are crimson cords,
your mouth is shapely;
behind your veil are hidden
beautiful rosy cheeks. [l]
4Your neck is more graceful
than the tower of David,
decorated with thousands
of warriors' shields.
5Your breasts are perfect;
they are twin deer
feeding among lilies.
6I will hasten to those hills
sprinkled with sweet perfume
and stay there till sunrise.
7My darling, you are lovely
in every way.
8My bride, together
we will leave Lebanon!
We will say good-by
to the peaks
of Mount Amana,
Senir, and Hermon,
where lions and leopards
live in the caves.
9My bride, my very own,
you have stolen my heart!
With one glance from your eyes
and the glow of your necklace,
you have stolen my heart.
10Your love is sweeter than wine;
the smell of your perfume
is more fragrant than spices.
11Your lips are a honeycomb;
milk and honey
flow from your tongue.
Your dress has the aroma
of cedar trees from Lebanon.
12My bride, my very own,
you are a garden,
a fountain
closed off to all others.
13Your arms [m] are vines,
covered with delicious fruits
and all sorts of spices--
henna, nard, 14saffron,
calamus, cinnamon,
frankincense, myrrh, and aloes
--all the finest spices.
15You are a spring in the garden,
a fountain of pure water,
and a refreshing stream
from Mount Lebanon.
She Speaks:
16Let the north wind blow,
the south wind too!
Let them spread the aroma
of my garden,
so the one I love
may enter
and taste
its delicious fruits.
Footnotes:
Song of Solomon 1:6 Don't. . . me: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Song of Solomon 1:7 I'm. . . shepherds: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Song of Solomon 1:12 magic charm: The Hebrew text has "spikenard" (or "nard"), a sweet-smelling ointment made from a plant that comes from India. The ointment was sometimes used as a love charm.
Song of Solomon 1:14 En-Gedi: An oasis west of the Dead Sea.
Song of Solomon 2:1 rose: The traditional translation. The exact variety of the flower is not known, though it may have been a crocus.
Song of Solomon 2:7 deer and gazelles: Deer and gazelles were sacred animals in some religions of Old Testament times, and they were thought to have special powers.
Song of Solomon 2:12 sing: Or "trim the vines."
Song of Solomon 2:15 vineyards: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 15.
Song of Solomon 2:17 mountain slopes: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Song of Solomon 3:5 deer and gazelles: See the note at 2.7.
Song of Solomon 3:10 inside: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Song of Solomon 4:3 beautiful rosy cheeks: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Song of Solomon 4:13 Your arms: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
2 Corinthians 8:16-24 (Contemporary English Version)
Titus and His Friends
16I am grateful that God made Titus care as much about you as we do. 17When we begged Titus to visit you, he said he would. He wanted to because he cared so much for you. 18With Titus we are also sending one of the Lord's followers who is well known in every church for spreading the good news. 19The churches chose this follower to travel with us while we carry this gift that will bring praise to the Lord and show how much we hope to help. 20We don't want anyone to find fault with the way we handle your generous gift. 21But we want to do what pleases the Lord and what people think is right.
22We are also sending someone else with Titus and the other follower. We approve of this man. In fact, he has already shown us many times that he wants to help. And now he wants to help even more than ever, because he trusts you so much. 23Titus is my partner, who works with me to serve you. The other two followers are sent by the churches, and they bring honor to Christ. 24Treat them in such a way that the churches will see your love and will know why we bragged about you.
Psalm 50:1-23 (Contemporary English Version)
Psalm 50
(A psalm by Asaph.)
What Pleases God
1From east to west,
the powerful LORD God
has been calling together
everyone on earth.
2God shines brightly from Zion,
the most beautiful city.
3Our God approaches,
but not silently;
a flaming fire comes first,
and a storm surrounds him.
4God comes to judge his people.
He shouts to the heavens
and to the earth,
5"Call my followers together!
They offered me a sacrifice,
and we made an agreement."
6The heavens announce,
"God is the judge,
and he is always honest."
7My people, I am God!
Israel, I am your God.
Listen to my charges
against you.
8Although you offer sacrifices
and always bring gifts,
9I won't accept your offerings
of bulls and goats.
10Every animal in the forest
belongs to me,
and so do the cattle
on a thousand hills.
11I know all the birds
in the mountains,
and every wild creature
is in my care.
12If I were hungry,
I wouldn't tell you,
because I own the world
and everything in it.
13I don't eat the meat of bulls
or drink the blood of goats.
14I am God Most High!
The only sacrifice I want
is for you to be thankful
and to keep your word.
15Pray to me in time of trouble.
I will rescue you,
and you will honor me.
16But to the wicked I say:
"You don't have the right
to mention my laws
or claim
to keep our agreement!
17You refused correction
and rejected my commands.
18You made friends
with every crook you met,
and you liked people who break
their wedding vows.
19You talked only about violence
and told nothing but lies;
20you sat around gossiping,
ruining the reputation
of your own relatives."
21When you did all of this,
I didn't say a word,
and you thought,
"God is just like us!"
But now I will accuse you.
22You have ignored me!
So pay close attention
or I will tear you apart,
and no one can help you.
23The sacrifice that honors me
is a thankful heart.
Obey me, [a] and I, your God,
will show my power to save.
Footnotes:
Psalm 50:23 Obey me: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Proverbs 22:22-23 (Contemporary English Version)
-1-
22 Don't take advantage
of the poor
or cheat them in court.
23The LORD is their defender,
and what you do to them,
he will do to you.
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