Ecclesiastes 12

1 Remember also thy Creator in the days of thy youth, before the evil days come, and the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;2 before the sun, and the light, and the moon, and the stars, are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain;3 in the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows shall be darkened,4 and the doors shall be shut in the street; when the sound of the grinding is low, and one shall rise up at the voice of a bird, and all the daughters of music shall be brought low;5 yea, they shall be afraid of that which is high, and terrors shall be in the way; and the almond-tree shall blossom, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail; because man goeth to his everlasting home, and the mourners go about the streets:6 before the silver cord is loosed, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern,7 and the dust returneth to the earth as it was, and the spirit returneth unto God who gave it.8 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher; all is vanity.9 And further, because the Preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he pondered, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs.10 The Preacher sought to find out acceptable words, and that which was written uprightly, even words of truth.11 The words of the wise are as goads; and as nails well fastened are the words of the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd.12 And furthermore, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.13 This is the end of the matter; all hath been heard: fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man.14 For God will bring every work into judgment, with every hidden thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

Song of Solomon 1

1 The Song of songs, which is Solomon’s.

2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth; For thy love is better than wine.

3 Thine oils have a goodly fragrance; Thy name is as oil poured forth; Therefore do the virgins love thee.

4 Draw me; we will run after thee: The king hath brought me into his chambers; We will be glad and rejoice in thee; We will make mention of thy love more than of wine: Rightly do they love thee.

5 I am black, but comely, Oh ye daughters of Jerusalem, As the tents of Kedar, As the curtains of Solomon.

6 Look not upon me, because I am swarthy, Because the sun hath scorched me. My mother’s sons were incensed against me; They made me keeper of the vineyards; But mine own vineyard have I not kept.

7 Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, Where thou feedest thy flock, Where thou makest it to rest at noon: For why should I be as one that is veiled Beside the flocks of thy companions?

8 If thou know not, O thou fairest among women, Go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock, And feed thy kids beside the shepherds’ tents.

9 I have compared thee, O my love, To a steed in Pharaoh’s chariots.

10 Thy cheeks are comely with plaits of hair, Thy neck with strings of jewels.

11 We will make thee plaits of gold With studs of silver.

12 While the king sat at his table, My spikenard sent forth its fragrance.

13 My beloved is unto me as a bundle of myrrh, That lieth betwixt my breasts.

14 My beloved is unto me as a cluster of henna-flowers In the vineyards of En-gedi.

15 Behold, thou art fair, my love; Behold thou art fair; Thine eyes are as doves.

16 Behold, thou art fair, my beloved, yea, pleasant: Also our couch is green.

17 The beams of our house are cedars, And our rafters are firs.

Song of Solomon 2

1 I am a rose of Sharon, A lily of the valleys.

2 As a lily among thorns, So is my love among the daughters.

3 As the apple-tree among the trees of the wood, So is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, And his fruit was sweet to my taste.

4 He brought me to the banqueting-house, And his banner over me was love.

5 Stay ye me with raisins, refresh me with apples; For I am sick from love.

6 His left hand is under my head, And his right hand doth embrace me.

7 I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, By the roes, or by the hinds of the field, That ye stir not up, nor awake my love, Until he please.

8 The voice of my beloved! behold, he cometh, Leaping upon the mountains, Skipping upon the hills.

9 My beloved is like a roe or a young hart: Behold, he standeth behind our wall; He looketh in at the windows; He glanceth through the lattice.

10 My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away.

11 For, lo, the winter is past; The rain is over and gone;

12 The flowers appear on the earth; The time of the singing of birds is come, And the voice of the turtle-dove is heard in our land;

13 The fig-tree ripeneth her green figs, And the vines are in blossom; They give forth their fragrance. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away.

14 O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, In the covert of the steep place, Let me see thy countenance, Let me hear thy voice; For sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely.

15 Take us the foxes, the little foxes, That spoil the vineyards; For our vineyards are in blossom.

16 My beloved is mine, and I am his: He feedeth his flock among the lilies.

17 Until the day be cool, and the shadows flee away, Turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young hart Upon the mountains of Bether.