Song of Songs 4:2

Song of Songs 4:2 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Thy teeth are like a flock of sheep that are even shorn, which came up from the washing; whereof every one bear twins, and none is barren among them.
• New International Version (NIV)Your teeth are like a flock of sheep just shorn, coming up from the washing. Each has its twin; not one of them is alone.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Your teeth are like a flock of shorn ewes that have come up from the washing, all of which bear twins, and not one among them has lost its young.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Your teeth are like a flock of shorn sheep Which have come up from the washing, Every one of which bears twins, And none is barren among them.

Context of Song of Songs 4:2

1You are beautiful, my darling, beautiful beyond words. Your eyes are like doves behind your veil. Your hair falls in waves, like a flock of goats winding down the slopes of Gilead. Your teeth are as white as sheep, recently shorn and freshly washed. Your smile is flawless, each tooth matched with its twin. 3Your lips are like scarlet ribbon; your mouth is inviting. Your cheeks are like rosy pomegranates behind your veil. 4Your neck is as beautiful as the tower of David, jeweled with the shields of a thousand heroes.

Song of Songs 4:2 word by word

שִׁנַּ֙יִךְ֙ כְּעֵ֣דֶר הַקְּצוּב֔וֹת שֶׁעָל֖וּ מִן־הָרַחְצָ֑ה שֶׁכֻּלָּם֙ מַתְאִימ֔וֹת וְשַׁכֻּלָ֖ה אֵ֥ין בָּהֶֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Thy teethשֵׁןshên · toothH8127
• like a flockעֵ֫דֶר‛êder · flockH5739
• shornקָצַבqâtsab · to shearH7094
• which came upעָלָה‛âlâh · to ascend: riseH5927
• from the washingרַחְצָהrachtsâh · washingH7367
• whereof every one bear twinsתָּאַםtâ'am · be doubleH8382
• barrenשַׁכּוּלshakkûl shakkûl · childlessH7909

Commentaries on Song of Songs 4:2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2Thy teeth are like a flock - This comparison appears to be founded on the evenness, neatness, and whiteness of the newly shorn and newly washed sheep.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2each has its twin, and not one of them is lost: Her teeth are complete and symmetrical. In a time when dental care was not advanced, a woman with all her teeth was very special!Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. even shorn--the Hebrew is translated (1Ki 6:25), "of one size"; so the point of comparison to teeth is their symmetry of form; as in "came up from the washing," the spotless whiteness; and in "twins," the exact correspondence of the upper and lower teeth: and in "none barren," none wanting, none without its fellow. Faith is the tooth with which we eat the living bread (Joh 6:35, 54). Contrast the teeth of sinners (Psa 57:4; Pr 30:14); also their end…Read the comment
• Rashi on Tanakh · v. 2Your teeth are like a flock of uniformly shaped [ewes] This praise too is in terms of a woman’s beauty.Read the comment

In the dictionaries

• Barren; Barrenness
• Ethics of Jesus
• Pair

Commentaries on Song of Songs 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary