1Oh that you were like a brother to me
who nursed at my mother’s breasts!
If I found you outside, I would kiss you,
and none would despise me.
2I would lead you and bring you
into the house of my mother—
she who used to teach me.
I would give you spiced wine to drink,
the juice of my pomegranate.
3His left hand is under my head,
and his right hand embraces me!
4I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
that you not stir up or awaken love
until it pleases.

5Who is that coming up from the wilderness,
leaning on 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.

6Set me as a seal upon your heart,
as a seal upon your arm,
for love is strong as death,
jealousy^a is fierce as the grave.^b
Its flashes are flashes of fire,
the very flame of the Lord.
7Many waters cannot quench love,
neither can floods drown it.
If a man offered for love
all the wealth of his house,
he^c would be utterly despised.

Final Advice