Song of Solomon 1
1 The song of Songs, which is Solomon's.
2 Let him give me the kisses of his mouth: for his love is better than wine.
Kisse he me with the cos of his mouth. For thi tetis ben betere than wyn,
3 Sweet is the smell of your perfumes; your name is as perfume running out; so the young girls give you their love.
and yyuen odour with beste oynementis. Thi name is oile sched out; therfor yonge damesels loueden thee.
4 Take me to you, and we will go after you: the king has taken me into his house. We will be glad and full of joy in you, we will give more thought to your love than to wine: rightly are they your lovers.
Drawe thou me after thee; we schulen renne in to the odour of thin oynementis. The kyng ledde me in to hise celeris; we myndeful of thi teetis aboue wyn, schulen make ful out ioye, and schulen be glad in thee; riytful men louen thee.
5 I am dark, but fair of form, O daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon.
Ye douytris of Jerusalem, Y am blak, but fair, as the tabernaclis of Cedar, as the skynnes of Salomon.
6 Let not your eyes be turned on me, because I am dark, because I was looked on by the sun; my mother's children were angry with me; they made me the keeper of the vine-gardens; but my vine-garden I have not kept.
Nyle ye biholde me, that Y am blak, for the sunne hath discolourid me; the sones of my modir fouyten ayens me, thei settiden me a kepere in vyners; Y kepte not my vyner.
7 Say, O love of my soul, where you give food to your flock, and where you make them take their rest in the heat of the day; why have I to be as one wandering by the flocks of your friends?
Thou spouse, whom my soule loueth, schewe to me, where thou lesewist, where thou restist in myddai; lest Y bigynne to wandre, aftir the flockis of thi felowis.
8 If you have not knowledge, O most beautiful among women, go on your way in the footsteps of the flock, and give your young goats food by the tents of the keepers.
A! thou fairest among wymmen, if thou knowist not thi silf, go thou out, and go forth aftir the steppis of thi flockis; and feede thi kidis, bisidis the tabernaclis of scheepherdis.
9 I have made a comparison of you, O my love, to a horse in Pharaoh's carriages.
Mi frendesse, Y licnede thee to myn oost of knyytis in the charis of Farao.
10 Your face is a delight with rings of hair, your neck with chains of jewels.
Thi chekis ben feire, as of a turtle; thi necke is as brochis.
11 We will make you chains of gold with ornaments of silver.
We schulen make to thee goldun ournementis, departid and maad dyuerse with silver.
12 While the king is seated at his table, my spices send out their perfume.
Whanne the kyng was in his restyng place, my narde yaf his odour.
13 As a bag of myrrh is my well-loved one to me, when he is at rest all night between my breasts.
My derlyng is a bundel of myrre to me; he schal dwelle bitwixe my tetis.
14 My love is to me as a branch of the cypress-tree in the vine-gardens of En-gedi.
My derlyng is to me a cluster of cipre tre, among the vyneres of Engaddi.
15 See, you are fair, my love, you are fair; you have the eyes of a dove.
Lo! my frendesse, thou art fair; lo! thou art fair, thin iyen ben the iyen of culueris.
16 See, you are fair, my loved one, and a pleasure; our bed is green.
Lo, my derling, thou art fair, and schapli; oure bed is fair as flouris.
17 Cedar-trees are the pillars of our house; and our boards are made of fir-trees.
The trees of oure housis ben of cedre; oure couplis ben of cipresse.
