1 Imi ndi luba le Sharoni,
ndi luba le mikuku.
2 Se luba lipakati kwe mihwa,
tjibhayamoyo tjangu tjakajalo pakati kwe baanadi.
3 Tjibhayamoyo tjangu tjonga nti we dziapuli,
pakati kwe miti imu ishaka,
ndoshatha kugala mu ntutshi wawo,
ne mitjelo yawo inondizipila kwazo.
4 Wakandidanila ku ng'umba ye majo ne zwing'o,
naka fukidziwa ngubo ye ludo.
5 Undisimise nge zhambi dzakaswabisiwa,
ube undinyatutusa nge dziapuli,
ngobe ndogwala gwe ludo.
6 Ungati luboko gugwe gwe lumeshwe
gungabe gulikusi kwe nsholo wangu,
ha gwe luji gwakandigumbatila.
7 Bakololokadzi be Jerusalema,
ndomutunisa nge phala ne phalapala
dze shango, musitange ludo
kuswikila igo guzwilakidza ha gushaka.
Lumbo gwe bubili
8 I hwi le tjido tje moyo wangu!
Bona! Hwouje waswika,
etatha edeluka matombo ne matuthu.
9 Tjibhayamoyo tjangu tjonga phala
kene phalanalume.
Bonani koga, hwouje umile
shule kwe guma,
unoshozhela mu mafesitere
akazwibhatilila nge makwasayile.
10 Tjido tje moyo wangu tjolebeleka,
tjolebeleka tjoti kundili,
“Milika nthu wangu mbuya, izha kundili,
11 ngobe tjibaka tje mbaba tjakapinda,
vula yakana ikapinda.
12 Maluba woboneka mu shango,
tjibaka tjemba tjakotoka
ne nlidzo we njiba unohwika mu shango yedu.
13 Mpaya unozwala phaya,
ne mizhambi inopululudza,
inodusa kunuhwilila kwayo kunozipa.
Milika nthu wangu mbuya,
buya ngeno kundili.”
14 Iwe njiba yangu igele pa phaswa dze shongwe,
wakabgwata pakasitilika pe phaswa,
ima ndibone tjiso tjitjo,
ima ndihwe hwi lilo,
ngobe hwi lilo lozipilila,
ne buso gugo gubuya kwazo.
15 Utibhatile phungubgwe, phungubgwana,
dzinotjinya minda ye mizhambi,
minda yedu ye mizhambi yopululudza wali.
16 Tjibhayamoyo tjangu nge tjangu,
nami ndi watjo,
unofudza pkhwizi dzidze mu maluba matjena.
17 Kuswikila zhuba li bhuda
ne mitutshi ye busiku itizha,
tendebuka, nthu wangu, unge phala
kene phalanalume pezhugwi kwe matombo.
1 I am only a wild flower in Sharon,
a lily in a mountain valley.
The Man
2 Like a lily among thorns
is my darling among women.
The Woman
3 Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest,
so is my dearest compared to other men.
I love to sit in its shadow,
and its fruit is sweet to my taste.
4 He brought me to his banquet hall
and raised the banner of love over me.
5 Restore my strength with raisins
and refresh me with apples!
I am weak from passion.
6 His left hand is under my head,
and his right hand caresses me.
7 Promise me, women of Jerusalem;
swear by the swift deer and the gazelles
that you will not interrupt our love.
The Second Song
The Woman
8 I hear my lover's voice.
He comes running over the mountains,
racing across the hills to me.
9 My lover is like a gazelle,
like a young stag.
There he stands beside the wall.
He looks in through the window
and glances through the lattice.
10 My lover speaks to me.
The Man
Come then, my love;
my darling, come with me.
11 The winter is over; the rains have stopped;
12 in the countryside the flowers are in bloom.
This is the time for singing;
the song of doves is heard in the fields.
13 Figs are beginning to ripen;
the air is fragrant with blossoming vines.
Come then, my love;
my darling, come with me.
14 You are like a dove that hides
in the crevice of a rock.
Let me see your lovely face
and hear your enchanting voice.
15 Catch the foxes, the little foxes,
before they ruin our vineyard in bloom.
The Woman
16 My lover is mine, and I am his.
He feeds his flock among the lilies
17 until the morning breezes blow
and the darkness disappears.
Return, my darling, like a gazelle,
like a stag on the mountains of Bether.