3:3a–b
I encountered the watchmen on their rounds of the city: These watchmen were men who guarded the city. They walked about in it at night to ensure that people were safe from dangers. In some languages it may be more natural to change the order of some information in this verse. For example:
3b As the people who guard the town walked through it, 3a they saw me.
It also may be helpful in some languages to introduce the city guards more explicitly. For example:
There were some watchmen who guarded the city. They saw me as they walked through the streets.
-or-
The city guards were walking through the streets, and they met/saw me.
encountered: The verb encountered does not imply here that the watchmen were searching for the woman. They probably saw her as they went about in the city to keep people safe from possible dangers. Use an appropriate verb in your language. Notice that some examples in the preceding note use the verb “saw.”
In Hebrew a form of this verb is the last word in 3:2 and the first word here in 3:3. It emphasizes a contrast: In 3:2 the woman did not find her beloved, but here in 3:3 the watchmen found her instead.
on their rounds of the city: This clause implies that the watchmen were doing their regular work of patrolling the city. They walked around in it to make sure that the town and its people were safe from danger. They were going through the city like that when they saw the woman. She was also roaming the city to look for her beloved. Some other ways to translate this clause are:
as they went about in the city (Revised Standard Version)
-or-
while they were guarding the town
3:3c
Have you seen the one I love: This question has no introduction, but the context indicates that the woman asked this question to the watchmen. In some languages it may be necessary to introduce the question with this information. For example:
I asked them, “Have you seen my true love?”
the one I love: This phrase was also used in 3:1a and 3:2c. It refers to the woman’s beloved. Refer to him here in a natural way in your language.
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