OET interlinear SNG 6:13

6:13–7:13

The verse numberings were added to the Hebrew text by men who copied it hundreds of years after the text itself was first written. In this verse the numbering is different from the numbering in most English versions, including the BSB. The Hebrew text numbers this verse as 7:1, but the BSB numbers it as 6:13. Because of that, each Hebrew verse in chapter 7 is one number higher than the BSB text. The BSB’s 6:13–7:13 are 7:1–14 in Hebrew. The Notes continues to use the numbering of the BSB.

6:13a

Come back, come back, O Shulammite!: This line is parallel to 6:13b. The Hebrew word that the BSB translates as Come back occurs twice here and twice in 6:13b for emphasis. There are different ways to interpret the word in this context:

1. It means “return, come back.” For example:

   Come back! Come back, young girl from Shulam… (NJB) (BSB, ESV, GW, NASB, NCV, NIV, NJB, NJPS, NLT, REB, RSV)The NET and the NABRE have “turn” here. For example, the NABRE says, “Turn, turn, O Shulammite.” In this context the word “turn” seems somewhat ambiguous. It may imply that the friends were asking her to turn around and return to them (as in the first interpretation) or that she should turn as a part of the dance they wanted her to do for them.

2. It means “dance.” For example:

   Dance, dance, girl of Shulam. (GNT) (GNT, CEV)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). But interpretation (2) is also acceptable. Although 6:13d refers to a dance, the text does not explicitly say that the woman actually danced. Interpretation (1) implies that the women were asking her to return to them and not to go away.

In some languages, repeating the phrase Come back may not emphasize it, or the repetition may not be natural. If that is true in your language, use a different type of emphasis. For example:

• Use punctuation for emphasis. For example, the NRSV has an exclamation mark:

  Return, return, O Shulammite! (NRSV)

• Use a word or phrase that adds emphasis. For example:

  Please return, O Shulammite!

  Oh return to us, woman from Shulam!

• Use two different words or phrases. For example:

  Come back, Shulam woman, return to us!

In some languages it may be more natural to begin the verse with the direct address to the woman. Use a natural way in your language to address her. Some other ways to translate 6:13a are:

Shulam woman, come back!

Please return, lady from Shulam!

Come back, return, Shulam girl!

O: The exclamation O in the BSB indicates that the women spoke directly to the Shulammite. It also adds emphasis to the women’s request that she return. Use a natural way in your language to emphasize the request. See the examples in the preceding note.

Shulammite: The Hebrew word that the BSB translates as Shulammite probably indicates that the woman is from the town of Shulam.Most English versions follow this interpretation, including BSB, ESV, GW, NASB, NCV, NIV, NJB, NJPS, NLT, REB, RSV, and GNT. However, the Hebrew word means “perfect one,” or “peaceful one,” and the NET translates, “Turn, turn, O Perfect One!” The CEV has, “Beautiful woman from Shulam.” Some scholars suggest that the Hebrew name Shulammite is the feminine form of the name “Solomon.” Another suggestion is that “Shulammite” refers to Abishag, the beautiful virgin from the village of Shunem who served King David (1 Kings 1:1–4). (Shulammite is not her name.) For example:

Come back! Come back, young girl from Shulam… (NJB)

It is possible that the word Shulam is derived from the Hebrew root meaning “whole,” “complete” or “perfect.” However, in this context the word has the definite article, so it is more likely that it is a title indicating that she is from Shulam.

6:13b

Come back, come back, that we may gaze upon you: This line is parallel to 6:13a. It adds the new phrase that we may gaze upon you. The author repeated the friends’ request (Come back, come back) from 6:13a, so that the phrase come back occurs four times. This repetition emphasizes that the Jerusalem women really wanted the woman to return. They wanted to look at her and enjoy her beauty.

In some languages it may not be natural to repeat the phrase come back so many times. Use a natural way in your language to emphasize it. For example:

Please come back! We really want to look at you.

come back, that we may gaze upon you: The reason that the friends want the woman to return is so that they can look at her or “gaze at” her again. Some other ways to translate the reason for the request are:

please return so that we may enjoy/gaze-at your great beauty.

come back to us, so that we may gaze at you.

please return and let us have the pleasure of seeing you

6:13c

6:13d

6:13c–d

Why do you look at the Shulammite, as on the dance of Mahanaim?: Here the woman asked a rhetorical question. Scholars are not sure about what the question implies,Some motives that scholars suggest are modesty, insecurity, teasing, flirting, sarcasm, or rebuke. but the meaning is probably similar to the meaning of her statement in 1:6a, “Do not stare at me.”In 1:6 the woman expressed modesty by mentioning her sun-burned appearance. In 2:1 she also modestly compared herself to a common wildflower. She asked the chorus why they wanted to gaze at her. She did not think that she was so beautiful. Maybe she did not want to be the center of attention or a source of entertainment. The other women’s motive and interest in watching her was not like her beloved’s motive—he looked at her because he loved her. In 6:4–9 the man praised her, and in 6:10 the women praised her. In that culture, it often made a moral woman feel uneasy if she received too much praise.Following the woman’s modest statement in 2:1, the man lovingly contradicted her by praising her beauty in 2:2. In a similar manner following her modest statement in 6:13, the man went on to praise her beauty in 7:1–9. So this seems to be another example of the “modesty” motif. Looking back to 1:7 there might be another similarity. She did not want to go through the shepherds’ camp and be taken for an immoral girl. Perhaps here too she wanted to stay out of the limelight. She did not want to be viewed as a camp dancer or an entertainer.

In some languages a rhetorical question with Why may wrongly imply that the woman was angry with the other women. Some other ways to translate the meaning are:

• Use a different type of rhetorical question. For example:

  Should you look at this girl from Shulam, as though I were an entertainer?

• Make the meaning more explicit with a statement and a question. For example:

  What pleasure will you get from looking at me? I am only an ordinary girl from Shulam.

  I’m only a girl from Shulam. Why do you look at me as if I were an entertaining dancer?

• Use a statement. For example:

  There is no reason to keep looking at me, since I am just a young girl from Shulam.

  You should not gaze at me as though I were a camp dancer. I am only a girl from Shulam.

Use a natural way in your language to communicate the meaning that the woman implied.

as on the dance of Mahanaim?: There is an ellipsis in this part of the verse. The full form is:

as though you are looking upon a dance before two armies

The woman used the phrase to describe the way the other women looked at her. The meaning of the Hebrew phrase that the BSB translates as as on the dance of Mahanaim is uncertain. Some ways to interpret it are:

1. It means “a dance before two armies.” This implies performing a dance for soldiers. For example:

   as upon a dance before two armies (ESV) (ESV, NCV, RSV, NASB)

2. The word “Mahanaim” refers to the name of a place. Although the place name means “two groups,” the whole phrase means “the dance of Mahanaim.” For example:

   as on the dance of Mahanaim (NIV) (BSB, GW, NET, NIV, NJPS)

3. It means “two groups of dancers.” It refers to dancing with other people in two groups. (or to two rows of people watching the dance). For example:

   as she moves so gracefully between two lines of dancers (NLT) (NJB, NLT, REB, GNT)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). However, it is not possible to be certain about the correct option, and any of the three options is acceptable.Options (1) and (3) are fairly literal translations based on the Hebrew, “the dance of the two groups.” Option (2) is a transliteration of the Hebrew and indicates that this may be the name of the dance, probably named after a village called Mahanaim. In some languages interpretation (1) may be confusing, and a literal translation of 6:13c–d may imply an immoral action. If that is true in your language, you may follow interpretation (2) or (3) instead.

The dance that the woman referred to was probably beautiful and entertaining. But the woman did not want the other women to look at her as though she were an entertainer.