Translation
I opened for my Love, but my Love had turned away; he had simply vanished.
Go to footnote numberMy soul fled away when he spoke.
Go to footnote numberI looked for him but did not find him.
I called him but he did not answer.
Paraphrase
I finally did it, I went to tell him my answer was “yes”, I would grant him access,
but it was too late, the opportunity had passed.
My soul fled away when he had been vulnerable and shown me his real self.
I tried to find a way to make this happen but I could not find any.
I tried to open communication with him but there was no answer.
Footnotes
1: “vanished”
The Hebrew presents an interesting word choice here, it literally means “to pass on, pass by, pass through, pass over.” However, it is used in figurative speech for things that “vanish,” such as clouds, shadows, and brooks.
2
The verb used here means “when he spoke” if it was the Hebrew verb. A number of translations have chosen to go with the meaning of this word in other languages of that region, i.e. “he departed,” because it fits the context better. The connection between speech and depart is that speech is a way to “send something out to someone, or send something out against someone.” The other uses of this word in Hebrew consistently pertain to speaking, so I have translated it as “when he spoke” even though it does not flow as well. The lack of flow does not bother me because I do not see The Song as telling a story, but rather as packing together a series of word pictures which work in unison to paint a great mural of the marriage relationship.