Song of Solomon 1:10 — Word Study
WLCנָאו֤וּ לְחָיַ֙יִךְ֙ בַּתֹּרִ֔ים צַוָּארֵ֖ךְ בַּחֲרוּזִֽים׃
BSAYour cheekslᵉchîy [comely, lovely to look at] are beautifulnâʼâh■ [lovely, pleasant] with ornamentstôwr [jewels, adornments] your necktsavvâʼr with strings of jewelschârûwz△ [chains, plaits, beads, pearls]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| נָאו֤וּ | they are beautiful | Verb, Piel, perfect third person common plural |
| לְחָיַ֙יִךְ֙ | cheeks your | Noun common masculine dual construct, suffix |
| בַּתֹּרִ֔ים | with strings of jewels | Preposition, noun common masculine plural absolute |
| צַוָּארֵ֖ךְ | neck your | Noun common masculine singular construct, suffix |
| בַּחֲרוּזִֽים׃ | with strings of beads | Preposition, noun common masculine plural absolute |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | Your cheeks are beautiful with ornaments, your neck with strings of jewels. |
| KJV | Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels, thy neck with chains of gold. |
| ASV | Thy cheeks are comely with plaits of hair, Thy neck with strings of jewels. |
| YLT | Comely have been thy cheeks with garlands, Thy neck with chains. |
| WEB | Your cheeks are beautiful with earrings, your neck with strings of jewels. |
| BBE | Your face is a delight with rings of hair, your neck with chains of jewels. |
Where they part company is לְחָיַ֙יִךְ֙ — see How Translations Differ.
One main clause with two subordinate phrases describing adornments for both the cheeks and the neck.
1 of 5 occurs nowhere else in the Old Testament — a word chosen on purpose.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Song of Solomon 1:10
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — The Beauty of the Belovedgenerated
Song of Solomon 1:10 is part of a poetic dialogue where the speaker compares the beloved to a mare among Pharaoh’s chariots, emphasizing her beauty. The verse highlights the adornments that enhance her features, suggesting a connection between beauty and the elegance of jewelry. This theme of beauty is prevalent throughout the Song of Solomon, celebrating love and attraction.
The Key Word — נָאו֤וּ, na.Vugenerated
The verb נָאָה (na'ah) means to be lovely or pleasant. It is used in the Piel form, indicating a state of being attractive. This word conveys the idea of beauty that is not just superficial but also suitable and fitting, enhancing the overall appeal of the subject.
In this context, the use of נָאו֤וּ emphasizes the beauty of the cheeks, suggesting that they are not only physically attractive but also adorned in a way that enhances their loveliness.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
This study reads the verse in the Berean Standard Bible, so the BSB is the wording every comparison below is made against.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The main verb נָאו֤וּ (they are beautiful) governs the entire verse, with two noun phrases following it: one describing the cheeks adorned with ornaments, and the other describing the neck adorned with strings of jewels. The structure emphasizes the beauty of the beloved through these comparisons.
The Hebrew word order places emphasis on the beauty of the cheeks first, followed by the neck, creating a layered description that highlights the adornments.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint translates נָאו֤וּ as ὡραιώθησαν, which conveys a sense of being beautified or made lovely. This choice suggests a focus on the transformation of beauty through adornment, aligning with the overall theme of the verse.
The Greek translation captures the essence of the Hebrew, emphasizing the enhancement of beauty through external adornments.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Song of Solomon 1:10 describes the beauty of the beloved's cheeks and neck, adorned with jewels. The speaker admires how these adornments enhance her loveliness, celebrating the connection between beauty and jewelry.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
The speaker is expressing admiration for the beloved's cheeks, suggesting they are lovely and enhanced by ornaments.
The 'strings of jewels' symbolize adornment and beauty, highlighting the beloved's elegance.
This verse emphasizes the celebration of beauty and love, a central theme throughout the Song of Solomon.
The ornaments and strings represent not just physical beauty but also the affection and admiration the speaker has for the beloved.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- How do adornments enhance our perception of beauty in others?
- What qualities do you find beautiful in the people around you?
- In what ways can we celebrate the beauty of those we love?
- How does the imagery in this verse reflect the importance of love and attraction?
The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
Your cheeks are beautiful with ornaments, your neck with strings of jewels.
Your cheeks are beautiful with earrings, your neck with strings of jewels.
Your cheeks are beautiful with ornaments, your neck with strings of jewels.
Your cheeks are beautiful with ornaments; your neck is lovely with strings of jewels.
Tyndale line
Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels, thy neck with chains of gold.
Thy cheeks are comely with plaits of hair, Thy neck with strings of jewels.
Thy cheeks are comely with plaits of hair, thy neck with strings of jewels
Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels , thy neck with chains of gold .
We will make thee borders of golde with studdes of siluer.
Strictly literal
Thy cheeks are comely with bead-rows, Thy neck with ornamental chains.
Comely have been thy cheeks with garlands, Thy neck with chains.
Your cheeks have been lovely with garlands, your neck with chains.
Comely are thy cheeks between strings [of pearls], thy neck with rows [of jewels].
Your cheeks are beautiful with ornaments, your neck with strings of jewels.
From the Latin
We will make thee chains of gold, inlaid with silver.
Simplified
Your beautiful cheeks adorned with ornaments, your neck with strings of jewels.
Your face is a delight with rings of hair, your neck with chains of jewels.
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text and the Septuagint agree in their wording for נָאו֤וּ and the subsequent phrases, indicating a consistent understanding of the beauty being described. The Septuagint matches the Hebrew word-for-word, confirming the translation's faithfulness.
נָאו֤וּ לְחָיַ֙יִךְ֙ בַּתֹּרִ֔ים צַוָּארֵ֖ךְ בַּחֲרוּזִֽים׃
5 of the 5 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Song of Solomon 1:10
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
נָאָה (na'ah) is a Hebrew verb that means to be comely or beautiful, suggesting suitability or pleasantness. It is primarily used in the Pi‛lel form, indicating a state of being attractive or fitting. The entries emphasize its implications of beauty and appropriateness, but do not provide specific verse references.
[נָאָה] vb. only Pi‛lel be comely, befitting
base
H4998 נָאָה be comely, befitting
4998 na'ah naw-aw'
a primitive root; properly, to be at home, i.e. (by
implication) to be pleasant (or suitable), i.e.
beautiful:--be beautiful, become, be comely.
נָאָה (na.ah) — be lovely.
1) to be comely, be beautiful, be befitting
1a) (Pilpel)
1a1) to be comely
1a2) to be befitting
V-Qal-Perf-3cp — Verb · Piel · perfect third person common pluralHVpp3cp
לְחִי (lechi) refers to the jaw or cheek, derived from a root meaning to be soft, highlighting its fleshy nature. It encompasses both the jawbone of animals and the cheek of humans. The entries also note its connection to the name Lehi, which shares the same root.
לְחִי n.m. jaw, cheek
jaw, jawbone, of animal
cheek, of man
base
H3895 לְחִי jaw, cheek
3895 lchiy lekh-ee'
from an unused root meaning to be soft; the cheek (from its
fleshiness); hence, the jaw-bone:--cheek (bone), jaw (bone).
לְחִי (le.chi) — Lehi.
This name means jaw, cheek
Another name of le.chi (לֶחִי "Lehi" H3896)
לְחִי (le.chi) — jaw.
1) jaw, cheek
1a) jaw, jawbone (of animal)
1b) cheek (of man)
N-cd | Suff — Noun common masculine dual construct · suffixHNcmdc/Sp2fs
תּוֹר (tor) refers to a plait or turn, often associated with hair or gold. It can also denote a succession or order, suggesting a sequence or arrangement. The word is derived from a root meaning 'to turn' and encompasses concepts like border and row.
תּוֹר, תֹּר n.m. plait, turn
base
H8447 תּוֹר, תּוֹר, תֹּר
8447 towr tore
or tor {tore}; from 8446; a succession, i.e. a string or
(abstractly) order:--border, row, turn.
see HEBREW for 08446
תּוֹר (tor) — plait.
1) circlet, plait, turn (of hair or gold)
2) (CLBL) succession, order
Prep | N-mp — Preposition · noun common masculine plural absoluteHRd/Ncmpa
→ Betrothal presents of Ge 24:53
→ Borrowed from Egyptians by Israelites Ex 3:22; 11:2; 12:35
→ Dedicated to the tabernacle Ex 35:22; Nu 31:50-52
→ Regarded by Jacob as obnoxious to holiness Ge 35:4; Ex 33:4-6; Isa 3:18-21
→ Tokens of love Eze 16:11-13
→ Worn by men Eze 23:42
The Hebrew word צַוָּאר (*tsavvar*) primarily means 'neck' or 'back of the neck,' and can refer to both humans and animals. It is related to the word צַוָּרוֹן (*tsavvaron*), which means 'necklace,' as noted in Song of Solomon 4:9. The term is derived from a root meaning 'binding,' suggesting a connection to burdens carried on the neck.
צַוָּאר n.m. neck, back of neck
base
[צַוָּרוֹן] n.[m.]pl. necklace;—sf. Ct 4:9.
ref
H6677a צַוָּאר neck, back of neck H6677b צַוָּרוֹן n. [m.] pl. necklace
6677 tsavva'r tsav-vawr'
or tsavvar (Nehemiah 3:5) {tsav-vawr'}; or tsavvaron (Song of
Solomon 4:9) {tsav-vaw-rone'}; or (feminine) tsavva.rah (Micah
2:3) {tsav-vaw-raw'}; intensively from 6696 in the sense of
binding; the back of the neck (as that on which burdens are
bound):--neck.
see HEBREW for 06696
צַוָּאר (tsav.var) — neck.
1) neck, back of neck
1a) neck, back of neck (of man)
1b) neck (of animals)
Aramaic equivalent: tsav.var (צַוַּאר "neck" H6676)
צַוָּרוֹן (tsav.va.ron) — necklace.
necklace
N-ms | Suff — Noun common masculine singular construct · suffixHNcmsc/Sp2fs
חָרוּז (charuwz) refers to a string of beads or a beaded necklace, derived from a root meaning to perforate. It is mentioned in the context of jewelry in the Old Testament, specifically in Song of Solomon 1:10. The entries consistently describe it as a chain or string of pearls and gems.
[חָרוּז] n.[m.] string of beads, only pl. Ct 1:10
ref
H2737 חָרוּז
2737 charuwz khaw-rooz'
from an unused root meaning to perforate; properly, pierced,
i.e. a bead of pearl, gems or jewels (as strung):--chain.
חָרוּז (cha.ruz) — string.
a beaded necklace, string of beads
Prep | N-mp — Preposition · noun common masculine plural absoluteHRd/Ncmpa