8 O that thou wert as my brother, that sucked the breasts of my mother! when I should find thee without, I would kiss thee; yea, I should not be despised.
2 I would lead thee, and bring thee into my mother’s house, who would instruct me: I would cause thee to drink of spiced wine of the juice of my pomegranate.
3 His left hand should be under my head, and his right hand should embrace me.
4 I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, until he please.
5 Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved? I raised thee up under the apple tree: there thy mother brought thee forth: there she brought thee forth that bare thee.
6 Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame.
7 Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned.
8 We have a little sister, and she hath no breasts: what shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for?
9 If she be a wall, we will build upon her a palace of silver: and if she be a door, we will inclose her with boards of cedar.
10 I am a wall, and my breasts like towers: then was I in his eyes as one that found favour.
11 Solomon had a vineyard at Baalhamon; he let out the vineyard unto keepers; every one for the fruit thereof was to bring a thousand pieces of silver.
12 My vineyard, which is mine, is before me: thou, O Solomon, must have a thousand, and those that keep the fruit thereof two hundred.
13 Thou that dwellest in the gardens, the companions hearken to thy voice: cause me to hear it.
14 Make haste, my beloved, and be thou like to a roe or to a young hart upon the mountains of spices.
Must-Read Christian Books
Desiring God
Piper unpacks "Christian Hedonism": that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him, grounded in Scripture.
View on Amazon
Holiness
A rich, pastoral treatment of sin, sanctification, and the fight for holiness in the Christian life, deeply rooted in Scripture.
View on Amazon
Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God
A robust, Scripture-saturated theology of prayer with practical guidance for deepening communion with God.
View on Amazon
Scripture Alone
Explains and defends the authority and sufficiency of Scripture over all human traditions.
View on Amazon
Knowing Scripture
Teaches how to interpret the Bible rightly, emphasizing its clarity and our responsibility to study it.
View on Amazon
Living the Cross-Centered Life
A call to keep Christ's cross at the center of our thinking, worship, and daily living.
View on Amazon
Future Grace
Argues that faith in God's future grace frees believers from the enslaving power of sin.
View on Amazon
God's Big Picture
Traces the storyline of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation in a clear, Christ-centered way.
View on Amazon
Redemption Accomplished and Applied
A concise, biblical study of Christ's atonement and the application of salvation to believers.
View on Amazon
Concise Theology
Short, Scripture-filled summaries of key doctrines, written with clarity and warmth.
View on Amazon
The Mortification of Sin
A Puritan classic urging believers to put sin to death by the power of the Spirit.
View on Amazon
All of Grace
A simple, powerful explanation of salvation by grace through faith in Christ alone.
View on Amazon
A Body of Divinity
A warm, devotional exposition of the Westminster Shorter Catechism's doctrines.
View on Amazon
The Bondage of the Will
Luther's classic defense of the Bible's teaching on human sin and God's sovereign grace.
View on Amazon
Expository Listening
Teaches Christians how to listen to expository preaching in a way that bears fruit.
View on Amazon
Preaching and Preachers
Classic lectures on the nature and power of biblical preaching.
View on Amazon
Religious Affections
Examines the nature of true spiritual experience and the marks of genuine conversion.
View on Amazon