שׁוּבִי שׁוּבִי הַשּׁוּלַמִּית שׁוּבִי שׁוּבִי וְנֶחֱזֶה־בָּךְ מַה תֶּחֱזוּ בַּשּׁוּלַמִּית כִּמְחֹלַת הַמַּחֲנָיִם

This part of the song evokes the dancing young women, calling to the most beautiful among them: Return, return, turn around, or rejoin our dancing, the Shulamite. This is probably not a person’s name, but an appellation for a perfect [mushlemet], beautiful girl, the bride of the beloved. Return, return, and we will gaze upon you. And a response: Why will you gaze at the Shulamite like a dance of two companies of dancers? Why do you look at the Shulamite in this circle of dancers? Although the Shulamite appears together with all the other girls, she stands out. Allegorically understood, the Shulamite could be a metaphor for Israel among the nations or for the soul that shines out from the body.

מַה־יָּפוּ פְעָמַיִךְ בַּנְּעָלִים בַּת־נָדִיב חַמּוּקֵי יְרֵכַיִךְ כְּמוֹ חֲלָאִים מַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵי אָמָּן

The Shulamite’s beauty is now described in detail, from her toes to her head: How fair are your steps, or your feet, in sandals, daughter of a nobleman. Your rounded thighs are like ornaments, the handiwork of a master craftsman, perfect as a work of art.

שָׁרְרֵךְ אַגַּן הַסַּהַר אַל־יֶחְסַר הַמָּזֶג בִּטְנֵךְ עֲרֵמַת חִטִּים סוּגָה בַּשּׁוֹשַׁנִּים

Your navel is a moon-shaped goblet, or bowl. May it not lack mixed wine. Your belly is round, smooth, and symmetrical, like a pile of wheat in a granary, hedged with lilies. This last expression is an image of carefully guarded beauty.

שְׁנֵי שָׁדַיִךְ כִּשְׁנֵי עֳפָרִים תָּאֳמֵי צְבִיָּה

Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle. This simile relies on both the fawns’ physical shape and their aesthetic beauty.

צַוָּארֵךְ כְּמִגְדַּל הַשֵּׁן עֵינַיִךְ בְּרֵכוֹת בְּחֶשְׁבּוֹן עַל־שַׁעַר בַּת־רַבִּים אַפֵּךְ כְּמִגְדַּל הַלְּבָנוֹן צוֹפֶה פְּנֵי דַמָּשֶׂק

Your neck is upright, white, and beautiful, like an ivory tower; your eyes are like the pools in Heshbon, by the gate of Bat Rabim. Heshbon was an ancient city located on the eastern side of the Jordan River that served as a political and commercial center even before Israel entered the land of Canaan. It is possible that Heshbon boasted two large pools near its city gates, perhaps in a public square where many people [rabim] would gather. The imagery evokes large, deep, and tranquil eyes. Your nose, or your forehead, is like the tower of Lebanon overlooking Damascus in the distance.

רֹאשֵׁךְ עָלַיִךְ כַּכַּרְמֶל וְדַלַּת רֹאשֵׁךְ כּאַרְגָּמָן מֶלֶךְ אָסוּר בָּרְהָטִים

Your head is elegantly set upon you like the Carmel. This could also be a reference to the woman’s curly hair, since Mount Carmel has lush vegetation. And the locks of your head are carefully arranged like soft strands of purple wool, displayed in magnificent arrangements due to the wool’s rarity and price. A king, the beloved, is bound in the tresses.

מַה־יָּפִית וּמַה־נָּעַמְתְּ אַהֲבָה בַּתַּעֲנוּגִים

The previous description of the bride, which was the most intimate so far, is now followed by expressions of the mutual adoration between the lovers: How fair you are and how pleasant you are, love in its delights. Love waxes and wanes, and includes, alongside dreams and aspirations, also heartache. However, love in its delights is consummated love, in which joy is fully realized.

זֹאת קוֹמָתֵךְ דָּמְתָה לְתָמָר וְשָׁדַיִךְ לְאַשְׁכֹּלוֹת

The beloved’s poem of intimacy: This, your stature, is likened to a tall, beautiful date palm, and your breasts are likened to round clusters of dates that hang at its sides.

אָמַרְתִּי אֶעֱלֶה בְתָמָר אֹחֲזָה בְּסַנְסִנָּיו וְיִהְיוּ־נָא שָׁדַיִךְ כְּאֶשְׁכְּלוֹת הַגֶּפֶן וְרֵיחַ אַפֵּךְ כַּתַּפּוּחִים

The image of the date palm continues: I said to myself: I will ascend the date palm, I will grasp its branches; and please may your breasts be like clusters of the vine, and the fragrance of your nose pleasant like apples.

וְחִכֵּךְ כְּיֵין הַטּוֹב הוֹלֵךְ לְדוֹדִי לְמֵישָׁרִים דּוֹבֵב שִׂפְתֵי יְשֵׁנִים

Your palate, the taste of your kisses, is like fine wine that goes pleasantly with my lovemaking [dodi], or that goes pleasantly into my mouth. Another possible interpretation is that the word dodi here means “my beloved,” a reference to the male lover. If so, this phrase is recited by the bride. However, since the first phrase, “Your palate is like fine wine,” is addressed to the female lover, then this latter phrase must be an interjection as the young woman completes her beloved’s sentence. The man continues: Your palate is like fine wine, moving the lips of the sleeping so that they speak.

אֲנִי לְדוֹדִי וְעָלַי תְּשׁוּקָתוֹ

The woman responds: I am my beloved’s, or I yearn for my beloved, and his desire is toward me.

לְכָה דוֹדִי נֵצֵא הַשָּׂדֶה נָלִינָה בַּכְּפָרִים

Come, my beloved, let us go out alone to the field; let us stay the night in the villages. These are not necessarily actual plans. They may simply be fantasies that convey the depth of her emotion and passion.

נַשְׁכִּימָה לַכְּרָמִים נִרְאֶה אִם פָּרְחָה הַגֶּפֶן פִּתַּח הַסְּמָדַר הֵנֵצוּ הָרִמּוֹנִים שָׁם אֶתֵּן אֶת־דֹּדַי לָךְ

Let us arise early to the vineyards; let us see whether the vine has blossomed, the grape bud has sprouted. Let us see whether the pomegranates have bloomed. This scene takes place during the spring, when the flowers of the pomegranate tree appear, undoubtedly a beautiful sight. There, in the tranquil and beautiful vineyard, I will give my love to you. These descriptions of springtime can also be understood as an allusion to the exodus from Egypt, as Passover is always in the spring. There is a special obligation to remember the exodus, which was itself the springtime blossoming of Israel into a nation, during the month in which all of nature blossoms and the promise of the future beckons.

הַדּוּדָאִים נָתְנוּ־רֵיחַ וְעַל־פְּתָחֵינוּ כָּל־מְגָדִים חֲדָשִׁים גַּם־יְשָׁנִים דּוֹדִי צָפַנְתִּי לָךְ

After a while, the mandrakes have emitted fragrance. Mandrakes do not emit their pleasant fragrance in the spring. Rather, they ripen approximately one and a half months later, at the time of the wheat harvest. Therefore, a considerable time must have passed since the invitation of the previous verse. And at our entrance are the scents of all types of delicacies, both new, which have sprouted recently, and old. All of this sweetness, new and old, I have hidden them away for you, my beloved. At this point, the courtship that has been developing throughout the entire story reaches its conclusion. The love between the beloved and his bride is depicted here at its apex, when the beloved describes his love as utterly beautiful and graceful, and she responds by noting that all of nature is ripe for the consummation of their love, and that she waits only for him.