1 Bride to Groom: Who will give you to me as my brother, feeding from the breasts of my mother, so that I may discover you outside, and may kiss you, and so that now no one may despise me? 2 I will take hold of you and lead you into my mother’s house. There you will teach me, and I will give you a cup of spiced wine, and of new wine from my pomegranates. 3 His left hand is under my head, and his right hand shall embrace me. 4 Groom to Chorus: I bind you by oath, O daughters of Jerusalem, not to disturb or awaken the beloved, until she wills. 5 Chorus to Groom: Who is she, who ascends from the desert, flowing with delights, leaning upon her beloved? 6 Groom to Bride: Under the apple tree, I awakened you. There your mother was corrupted. There she who bore you was violated. 7 Set me like a seal upon your heart, like a seal upon your arm. For love is strong, like death, and envy is enduring, like hell: their lamps are made of fire and flames. 8 A multitude of waters cannot extinguish love, nor can a river overwhelm it. If a man were to give all the substance of his house in exchange for love, he would despise it as nothing. 9 Chorus: Our sister is little and has no breasts. What shall we do for our sister on the day when she is called upon? 10 If she is a wall, let us build a rampart of silver upon it. If she is a door, let us join it together with boards of cedar. 11 Bride to Chorus: I am a wall, and my breasts are like towers, since, in his presence, I have become like one who has discovered peace. 12 The peaceful one had a vineyard, in that which held the peoples. He handed it on to the caretakers; a man brought, in exchange for its fruit, a thousand pieces of silver. 13 Groom: My vineyard is before me. The thousand is for your peacefulness, and two hundred is for those who care for its fruit. 14 Bride to Groom: Your friends are attentive to those who have been dwelling in the gardens. Cause me to heed your voice. Flee away, my beloved, and become like the doe and the young stag upon the mountains of aromatic plants.
Song of Songs · Catholic Public Domain Version
Song of Songs 8 Catholic Public Domain Version
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
Notes on this text (3)
- Esther and Daniel are the Vulgate books (Esther 1–16 with the Greek additions as chapters 10:4–16; Daniel 1–14 with the Song of the Three, Susanna and Bel). Baruch 6 is the Letter of Jeremiah.
- The translator's footnotes, cross-references, chapter summaries and book introductions in the CrossWire module are not shown.
- No imprimatur; single translator.
Cross references (14)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Psalm 45:10–11; Zechariah 9:9; Galatians 4:26; Luke 2:38; Haggai 2:7
- 2 Song of Songs 3:4; Song of Songs 4:10–5:1; Song of Songs 7:12; Galatians 4:26; John 5:46–47
- 3 Song of Songs 2:6; 2 Corinthians 12:9; Deuteronomy 33:27; Isaiah 62:4–5
- 4 Song of Songs 2:7; Song of Songs 3:5
- 5 Song of Songs 3:6; Isaiah 40:3; Psalm 63:8; Song of Songs 2:3; Song of Songs 3:4
- 6 Revelation 12:11; Isaiah 49:16; Philippians 1:20–23; Song of Songs 5:8; Proverbs 6:34
- 7 Proverbs 6:35; Proverbs 6:31; Isaiah 43:2; Romans 13:8–10; Matthew 7:24–25
- 8 1 Peter 2:12; Ezekiel 16:55–56; Acts 22:21; Psalm 2:8; Romans 3:1–2
- 9 Zechariah 6:12–15; Ephesians 2:20–22; 1 Corinthians 3:10–12; 1 Kings 6:15; Revelation 21:12–19
- 10 Isaiah 60:10; Ezekiel 16:7; Luke 1:30; Song of Songs 7:7–8; Ephesians 1:6
- 11 Ecclesiastes 2:4; Isaiah 7:23; Matthew 21:33–43; Mark 12:1; Genesis 20:16
- 12 Song of Songs 1:6; Acts 20:28; 1 Thessalonians 2:19; Proverbs 4:23; 1 Corinthians 6:20
- 13 Song of Songs 4:16; Song of Songs 1:7; Song of Songs 6:2; Judges 14:11; John 14:21–23
- 14 Song of Songs 2:17; Revelation 22:20; Revelation 22:17; Song of Songs 2:9; Philippians 1:23
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
Of this it is said, "Love is strong as death." For as when death cometh, it cannot be resisted; by whatever arts, whatever medicines, you meet it; the violence of death can none avoid who is born mortal; so against the violence of love can the world do nothing.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 8 (1888)
… ye know how great a thing jealousy is: and therefore He said, to whom these things are clearly known, "For full of jealousy is the rage of a husband;" "he will not spare in the day of vengeance:" and "jealousy is cruel as the grave." And we too know of many that have chosen to give up their lives rather …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 10 (1888)
Many waters quench not love, neither do rivers drown it; He was dead whom they sought, yet was not the hope of the Resurrection quenched.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 7 (1894)
Hear the Song of songs: "Love is strong as death." A great saying that, brethren, "Love is strong as death." The strength of charity could not be expressed in grander terms than these, "Love is strong as death." For who resisteth death, my brethren?
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 8 (1888)