SNG 2:16 Interlinear View

SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 2:8–3:5: The man called the woman, but later she could not find him

The author began this scene at a different place and time from the ending of the preceding section (1:1–2:7). At the end of that section, the woman and man were together, but at the beginning of this section (2:8) the woman was in her room at home, and the man was coming to her over the hills.

There are two poems in Section 2:8–3:5. In the first poem (2:8–17) the man came and stood outside the woman’s room. She quoted what he said as he invited her to come out with him and enjoy a beautiful spring day. The second poem (3:1–5) describes a time when the woman searched for her beloved at night. This second poem has much in common with Section 5:2–6:3. See the discussion of similarities at the beginning of that section.

Both parts of this section (2:8–17 and 3:1–5) may describe what the woman imagined or what she dreamed. The descriptions may not refer to actual events in the poem.

Paragraph 2:8–17

This beautiful poem (2:8–17) describes springtime. In springtime, new plants begin to grow, flowers bloom, and fruit trees begin to blossom. In these lines springtime symbolizes that love was growing between the woman and the man. The woman first spoke to herself, but then she quoted the man as he invited her to come out of her house and go away with him.

This poem begins and ends in a similar way. At the beginning (2:8–9) the man came to the woman over the mountains like a gazelle or stag. At the end (2:17) he again roamed on the mountains like a gazelle or stag.

In these lines the woman spoke. However, from 2:10b through 2:14 she quoted what the man said. Then she continued speaking in 2:15–17.

2:16–17

In these verses the woman is probably now outside in the countryside with her beloved.

2:16a

My beloved is mine and I am his;

My beloved belongs to me and I belong to him.
My love, you^(sing) are mine and I am yours.

My beloved is mine and I am his: Here the woman probably spoke directly to her beloved. However, she spoke as though she were speaking to someone else about him. In Hebrew poetry it is common to speak that way. In some languages it is more natural to indicate that the woman spoke directly to the man. For example:

My beloved, you are mine, and I am yours.

This statement implies that the man and woman loved each other in a way that they did not love anyone else. Try to find a poetic way to say this. Some other ways to say it in English are:

My beloved, you belong to me, and I belong to you.

My love, you are my own, and I am your own.

You are the one I love, and I am the one you love.

2:16b

he pastures his flock among the lilies.

He grazes in fields of lilies.
You^(sing) feed yourself where the fragrant flowers grow.

he pastures his flock among the lilies: There are two ways to interpret the verb that the BSB translates as he pastures:

It means “he grazes.” In this context it implies that the man feeds or nourishes himself among lilies. For example:
he grazes among the lilies. (NET) (ESV, NAB, NCV, NET, NIV, NJPS, NLT)
It means “he pastures (his flock),” and it implies that he feeds his flock. For example:
he pastures his flock among the lilies. (RSV) (BSB, RSV, CEV, GW, NASB, NJB, REB, GNT)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). The emphasis in this context is on the shepherd himself, not on his sheep. The author does not mention sheep or shepherding anywhere else in this section (2:8–3:5). The author compares the man to a stag in 2:17, so interpretation (1) fits the context well.Similarly, in 2:8 the man (or gazelle) is leaping across the hills before it is made clear in 2:9 that it is a simile. However, in some languages a literal translation gives a wrong meaning. See the next note for more information.

Because the BSB follows interpretation (2), the NET will be used as the source line in the Display.

(NET) he grazes among the lilies: In Hebrew the phrase he grazes among the lilies literally means that he stands among the lilies and eats them. Figuratively, the woman referred to herself as lilies, as she did in 2:1b. In 2:2 the man compared her to a lily among thorns. Here in 2:16 the woman said that the man feeds himself among the lilies. Figuratively, this means that he was happy and nourished by being with her.

It may be helpful to include a footnote to make this figurative meaning clear. For example:

“Grazing among the lilies” has a figurative meaning here. It probably refers back to 2:1–2 where the woman described herself as a common lily, and the man described her as a lily among thorns. This implies that in 2:16 lilies are also a symbol for the woman. The man enjoys being with her.

This same figure of speech also occurs in 6:3. (Other figurative uses of “lilies” occur in 4:5, 5:13, 6:2 and 7:2. But those figures do not have the same significance as the figures in 2:16 and 6:3.)

In some languages it is necessary to make explicit that the author used a metaphor or simile. It may also be necessary to mention the gazelle and young stag in 2:16, as well as in 2:17. For example:

^16aMy beloved is mine and I am his.

^17c Like a gazelle ^17dor young stag, ^16bhe browses among the lilies.

^17aUntil the day breathes

^17band the shadows flee,

^17cturn, my beloved, be like a gazelle ^17dor a young stag upon rugged mountains.

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / 123person

דּוֹדִ֥⁠י לִ⁠י֙ וַ⁠אֲנִ֣י ל֔⁠וֹ

lover_of,my to=me and,I to=him/it

The woman is speaking about the man in the third person even though she is most likely speaking directly to the man. This is common in Hebrew poetry. If this would not be natural in your language, you can translate this in a way that indicates that the woman is speaking directly to the man. Alternate translation: [My beloved, you belong to me, and I belong to you]

הָ⁠רֹעֶ֖ה בַּ⁠שּׁוֹשַׁנִּֽים

[who,is]_grazing among,lilies

The phrase the man grazing among the lilies could mean: (1) that the man himself is grazing among the lilies. (2) that the man grazes his flock of animals among the lilies. Alternate translation: [the man grazing his flock among the lilies]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

הָ⁠רֹעֶ֖ה בַּ⁠שּׁוֹשַׁנִּֽים

[who,is]_grazing among,lilies

Here the woman is speaking of the man as if he were “a gazelle or a young stag” ([2:9](../02/09.md)) that eats among the lilies. She is using lilies to represent herself as she did in [2:1](../02/01.md). Here, the lilies probably represent the woman’s lips. The meaning here is that the man finds sustenance and enjoyment through being with the woman and kissing her lips. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [my beloved gets pleasure grazing among the lilies] or [my beloved gets pleasure as he grazes among the lilies]

Note 3 topic: translate-unknown

בַּ⁠שּׁוֹשַׁנִּֽים

among,lilies

See how you translated “lily” (the singular form of lilies) in [2:1](../02/01.md).

OET-LV English word order (‘Reverse’ interlinear)

Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.

Acknowledgements: The Hebrew text, lemmas, and morphology are all thanks to the OSHB and some of the glosses are from Macula Hebrew.