Lumbo gwe kutanga
1 Lumbo gwe Njimbo, guli gwa Solomoni.
2 Ungati ungandiputa ukandiputilila ne nlomo uwo!
Ludo gugo gozipa kupinda nkumbi we zhambi,
3 zwizholo zwizo zonuhwilila kunozipa seni,
zina lilo lofanana ne mafuta anofafayidziwa mu mbili,
ndizo baanadi bekuda zwingapa!
4 Undikwebele kukuli, titjimbidze tatizha.
Mambo nga bandikwebele mu ng'umbana dzabo dze tjemukati.
Towopembela tikushathila kwazo,
towokudza ludo gugo kupinda nkumbi we zhambi,
ndizo kufanila kube bekuda zwingapa.
5 Ndi ntematema ngono ndi mbuya,
imwi bakololokadzi be Jerusalema,
ndi ntematema se dzitante dze Kedari ,
se zwisitilo zwa Solomoni.
6 Musindilinge ngobe ndili ntematema,
nekuti zhuba landibabula.
Hazwadzi dzangu dzakandigwadzilamoyo,
dzakandiyita ntjengeti we mizhambi,
koga yangu mizhambi andizoitjengeta.
7 Undibudze iwe tjido tje moyo wangu,
kuti unofudza pkhwizi ne mbudzi dzidzo ngayi,
kuti masikati unodzinyalulusa ngayi,
ini ndakafanila kunga nkadzi unodzungayila
pakati kwe ngubi dze bakwinya babo kene?
8 Ha usingazibe, iwe wakanaka kupinda bakadzi bose
tobela mikwala ye pkhwizi ne mbudzi,
ufudze mbudzana dzidzo pejo ne mishasha ye balisi.
9 Ndokufanidzanya iwe tjibhayamoyo tjangu,
ne mbizi hadzi ye koloyi dze ngwa dza Faro.
10 Matama awo akanakisiwa nge zwinonakisa
ntshibha uwo wakanakisiwa
ne ntambo yakalunjigwa ndalama.
11 Towokuthamila mang'ina e golide
akalunjiligwa siliva.
12 Mambo bakati baligele batjaja,
tjizholo tjangu tjikadusa nnuhwo unozipa.
13 Kundili tjibhayamoyo tjangu i hwomwana ye mira,
igele pakati kwe mazhamu angu.
14 Kundili tjibhayamoyo tjangu tjonga lutabi gwe maluba e henna
mu minda ye mizhambi ye Enigedi.
15 Tjidzobona koga, wakanaka tjibhayamoyo tjangu!
Tshobona, wakanaka seni!
Mesho awo anonga e njiba.
16 Tjidzobona, wakanaka kusina themba tjibhayamoyo tjangu,
bulalo gwedu goguta, gubuya kwazo.
17 Thungo dze ng'umba ndedze nsida
makoko ayo nde e nsipuri.
Love Is Better than Wine
1 This is Solomon's
most beautiful song.
She Speaks:
2 Kiss me tenderly!
Your love is better than wine,
3 and you smell so sweet.
All the young women adore you;
the very mention of your name
is like spreading perfume.
* 4 Hurry, my king! Let's hurry.
Take me to your home.
The Young Women Speak:
We are happy for you!
And we praise your love
even more than wine.
She Speaks:
Young women of Jerusalem,
it is only right
that you should adore him.
5 My skin is dark and beautiful,
like a tent in the desert
or like Solomon's curtains.
6 Don't stare at me
just because the sun
has darkened my skin.
My brothers were angry with me;
they made me work in the vineyard,
and so I neglected
my complexion.
7 My darling, I love you!
Where do you feed your sheep
and let them rest at noon?
Don't let the other shepherds
think badly of me.
I'm not one of those women
who shamelessly follow
after shepherds.
He Speaks:
8 My dearest, if you don't know,
just follow the path
of the sheep.
Then feed your young goats
near the shepherds' tents.
9 You move as gracefully
as the pony that leads
the chariot of the king.
10 Earrings add to your beauty,
and you wear a necklace
of precious stones.
11 Let's make you some jewelry
of gold, woven with silver.
She Speaks:
12 My king, while you
were on your couch,
my aroma was a magic charm.
13 My darling, you are perfume
between my breasts;
14 you are flower blossoms
from the gardens of En-Gedi.
He Speaks:
15 My darling, you are lovely,
so very lovely—
your eyes are those of a dove.
She Speaks:
16 My love, you are handsome,
truly handsome—
the fresh green grass
will be our wedding bed
17 in the shade of cedar
and cypress trees.