OET interlinear SNG 4:12

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / infostructure

גַּ֥ן ׀ נָע֖וּל אֲחֹתִ֣⁠י כַלָּ֑ה גַּ֥ל נָע֖וּל מַעְיָ֥ן חָתֽוּם

garden locked sister_of,my bride spring locked fountain sealed

If it would be more natural in your language, you could change the order of these phrases. Alternate translation: [My sister, my bride; you are a locked garden, a locked spring, a sealed fountain]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

גַּ֥ן ׀ נָע֖וּל אֲחֹתִ֣⁠י כַלָּ֑ה

garden locked sister_of,my bride

The man is speaking of the woman as if she were a locked garden. He uses garden as a poetic way of referring to the woman herself, and by saying she is a locked garden he means that the woman is both beautiful and seemingly inaccessible like a locked garden. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [You are like a locked garden, my sister, my bride]

Note 3 topic: translate-unknown

גַּ֥ן ׀ נָע֖וּל אֲחֹתִ֣⁠י כַלָּ֑ה

garden locked sister_of,my bride

The word translated as garden refers to a large, enclosed area where bushes, flowers, plants, and trees grow. If your readers would not be familiar with this type of garden, you could use the name of something similar in your area, or you could use a more general term. Alternate translation: [A locked park where many trees and plants grow is my sister, my bride]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

אֲחֹתִ֣⁠י

sister_of,my

See how you translated the phrase my sister in [4:9](../04/09.md).

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / exmetaphor

גַּ֥ל נָע֖וּל מַעְיָ֥ן חָתֽוּם

spring locked fountain sealed

The man continues to draw an extended comparison between the woman he loves and a garden by speaking of her as if she were a locked spring and a sealed fountain within a locked garden. The man means that the woman’s body is beautiful and inaccessible like a locked spring or a sealed fountain. You could explain this comparison if it would be helpful to your readers. If you used the alternate translation, “You are like a locked garden, my sister, my bride”, then you should use the alternate translation which follows. Alternate translation: [you are like a locked spring; you are like a sealed fountain]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / parallelism

גַּ֥ל נָע֖וּל מַעְיָ֥ן חָתֽוּם

spring locked fountain sealed

The phrases a locked spring and a sealed fountain mean basically the same thing. The second phrase emphasizes the meaning of the first by repeating the same idea using different words. If it would be helpful to your readers, you could combine the phrases and show the emphasis in some other way.