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¹ O that thou wert as my brother that sucked the brests of my mother, when I should find thee without, I would kisse thee, yet I should not be despised. ² I would leade thee, and bring thee into my mothers house, who would instruct me: I would cause thee to drinke of spiced wine, of the iuice of my pomegranate. ³ His left hand should be vnder my head, and his right hand should embrace me. ⁴ I charge you, O daughters of Ierusalem, that ye stirre not vp, nor awake my loue vntill he please.

⁵ (Who is this that commeth vp from the wildernesse, leaning vpon her beloued?) I raised thee vp vnder the apple tree: there thy mother brought thee forth, there she brought thee forth, that bare thee. ⁶ Set mee as a seale vpon thine heart, as a seale vpon thine arme: for loue is strong as death, iealousie is cruel as the graue: the coales thereof are coales of fire, which hath a most vehement flame. ⁷ Many waters cannot quench loue, neither can the floods drowne it: if a man would giue all the substance of his house for loue, it would vtterly be contemned.

⁸ We haue a litle sister, and shee hath no breasts: what shall we doe for our sister, in the day when she shall bee spoken for? ⁹ If she be a wall, we will build vpon her a palace of siluer: and if she bee a dore, we will inclose her with boards of Cedar. ¹⁰ I am a wall, and my breasts like towers: then was I in his eyes as one that found fauour. ¹¹ Solomon had a vineyard at Baalhamon, hee let out the vineyard vnto keepers: euery one for the fruit thereof was to bring a thousand pieces of siluer. ¹² My vineyard which is mine, is before me: thou (O Solomon) must haue a thousand, and those that keepe the fruit thereof, two hundred.

¹³ Thou that dwellest in the gardens, the companions hearken to thy voice: cause me to heare it. ¹⁴ Make haste, my beloued, and be thou like to a Roe, or to a yong Hart vpon the mountaines of spices.