Douay-Rheims Catholic Bible RHE
New Revised Standard NRS
1 Who shall give thee to me for my brother, sucking the breasts of my mother, that I may find thee without, and kiss thee, and now no man may despise me?
1
O that you were like a brother to me, who nursed at my mother's breast! If I met you outside, I would kiss you, and no one would despise me.
2 I will take hold of thee, and bring thee into my mother’s house: there thou shalt teach me, and I will give thee a cup of spiced wine and new wine of my pomegranates.
2
I would lead you and bring you into the house of my mother, and into the chamber of the one who bore me. I would give you spiced wine to drink, the juice of my pomegranates.
3 His left hand under my head, and his right hand shall embrace me.
3
O that his left hand were under my head, and that his right hand embraced me!
4 I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, that you stir not up, nor awake my love till she please.
4
I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, do not stir up or awaken love until it is ready!
5 Who is this that cometh up from the desert, flowing with delights, leaning upon her beloved? Under the apple tree I raised thee up: there thy mother was corrupted, there she was defloured that bore thee.
5
Who is that coming up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved? Under the apple tree I awakened you. There your mother was in labor with you; there she who bore you was in labor.
6 Put me as a seal upon thy heart, as a seal upon thy arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy as hard as hell, the lamps thereof are fire and flames.
6
Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm; for love is strong as death, passion fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, a raging flame.
7 Many waters cannot quench charity, neither can the floods drown it: if a man should give all the substance of his house for love, he shall despise it as nothing.
7
Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it. If one offered for love all the wealth of one's house, it would be utterly scorned.
8 Our sister is little, and hath no breasts. What shall we do to our sister in the day when she is to be spoken to?
8
We have a little sister, and she has no breasts. What shall we do for our sister, on the day when she is spoken for?
9 If she be a wall: let us build upon it bulwarks of silver: if she be a door, let us join it together with boards of cedar.
9
If she is a wall, we will build upon her a battlement of silver; but if she is a door, we will enclose her with boards of cedar.
10 I am a wall: and my breasts are as a tower since I am become in his presence as one finding peace.
10
I was a wall, and my breasts were like towers; then I was in his eyes as one who brings peace.
11 The peaceable had a vineyard, in that which hath people: he let out the same to keepers, every man bringeth for the fruit thereof a thousand pieces of silver.
11
Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon; he entrusted the vineyard to keepers; each one was to bring for its fruit a thousand pieces of silver.
12 My vineyard is before me. A thousand are for thee, the peaceable, and two hundred for them that keep the fruit thereof.
12
My vineyard, my very own, is for myself; you, O Solomon, may have the thousand, and the keepers of the fruit two hundred!
13 Thou that dwellest in the gardens, the friends hearken: make me hear thy voice.
13
O you who dwell in the gardens, my companions are listening for your voice; let me hear it.
14 Flee away, O my beloved, and be like to the roe, and to the young hart upon the mountains of aromatical spices.
14
Make haste, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag upon the mountains of spices!
The Douay-Rheims Bible is in the public domain.
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.