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? 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. 3 His left hand under my head, and his right hand shall embrace me. 4 I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, that you stir not up, nor awake my love till she please. 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. 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. 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. 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? 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 or cedar. 10 I am a wall: and my breasts are as a tower since I am become in his presence as one finding 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. 12 My vineyard is before me. A thousand are for thee, the peaceable, and two hundred for them that keep the fruit thereof. 13 Thou that dwellest in the gardens, the friends hearken: make me hear thy voice. 14 Flee away, O my beloved, and be like to the roe, and to the young hart upon the mountains of aromatical spices.
Song of Songs · Douay-Rheims (Challoner), American Edition 1899
Song of Songs 8 Douay-Rheims (Challoner), American Edition 1899
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
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)