my hands dripped with myrrh / my fingers with liquid myrrh

The interconfessional Chichewa translation (publ. 1999) uses the ideophones noninoni and chuchuchu in Song of Songs 5:5. Noninoni is used to emphasize a smooth and slippery substance with a tactile and sensual component (“my hands were slick with myrrh”) and chuchuchu describes a the sound of a gentle, continuous dropping. (Source: Ernst Wendland)

Ideophones are a class of sound symbolic words expressing human sensation that are used as literary devices in many African languages. (Source: Philip Noss)

See also his lips are lilies dripping liquid myrrh.

myrrh

The Greek and Hebrew that is translated as “myrrh” in English is translated as “bitter medicine” in Michoacán Nahuatl and as “myrrh perfume” in Tzotzil (source: Ronald D. Olson in Notes on Translation January, 1968, p. 15ff.).

In Mark 15:23, Usila Chinantec translates it as “the herb myrrh which is useful so that one not feel pain in his body.” (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)

 

Myrrh is probably the most precious spice in the Bible. It was worth more than its weight in gold. Our experts agree that the Hebrew word mor refers to the resin of one of the Commiphora genus, either myrrha, abyssinica or schimperi, all of which grew in what is now Yemen, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Madagascar. Other kinds of myrrh may have come from India (Commiphora erythraea, Commiphora opobalsamum). A more difficult question is the meaning of the word deror in Exodus 30:23. In the other places where it occurs it means “freedom” or “liberty.” This is the basis for the word “liquid” in some versions, but there is no certainty that “free” means “liquid.” The fact that myrrh was sometimes mixed with wine may suggest that deror means “liquid” here, but on the other hand, the weight of the myrrh is given in dry measure rather than liquid measure, which argues against it.

The myrrh plant is a bush or shrub with thick thorny branches that project and bend at odd angles. The leaves come in sets of three. The fruit is oval like a plum. The wood and bark have a pleasant smell. The gum oozes naturally from the branches, though some harvesters incise the branches to increase the flow. The sap or gum is clear or yellowish brown when it comes out, but gets darker as it dries. The taste of the gum is bitter (note the similarity of mor to the Hebrew word mar meaning “bitter”). In markets the gum is often found mixed with that of the kataf bush (bisabol).

God prescribed myrrh as an ingredient of the holy anointing oil (Exodus 30:23), and it is used as perfume in Esther, Psalms, Proverbs, and eight times in Song of Songs. It was brought as an expensive gift by the Magi to the new King (Matthew 2:11). As Jesus was dying on the cross, sympathetic bystanders may have offered it to him mixed with wine (Mark 15:23; see the parallel account in Matthew 27:34). Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes to prepare Jesus’ body for burial (John 19:39). In ancient Egypt myrrh was burned on the altars of the sun god, and in Persia it was attached to the crowns of kings when they appeared in public. Romans burned myrrh at funerals and cremations, which helps to explain its inclusion in the list of spices in Revelation 18:13. Today it is used in perfumes, lotions, and even in toothpaste.

Varieties of myrrh grow in the Horn of Africa and Madagascar, so people from those areas should have no difficulty finding words for it. As to whether the myrrh in Exodus 30:23 was liquid or solid, there seems to be no consensus, and the translator may be forgiven for simply ignoring the Hebrew word deror . Possible transliterations are Hebrew mor, Arabic mar, French mireh, and Spanish/Portuguese mirra.

Harvesting myrrh, Wikimedia Commons

Source: Each According to its Kind: Plants and Trees in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

See also mixture of myrrh with aloes.

complete verse (Song of Solomon 5:5)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Song of Solomon 5:5:

  • Kupsabiny: “I prepared to open the door.
    I smeared my hands with oil that smells sweet
    and while that oil was dripping from my fingers
    I took hold of the thing used to bar the door and opened for (him).” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “I got up to open door for My beloved,
    Myrrh was dripping from my hand.
    Myrrh kept falling down as I grasped the handle of the bolt.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “I got-up/arose to-let- him -in. And when- I -held the lock/bar of the door, fragrant/sweet-smelling myrrh dripped from my hand.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “I got up to open the door for the one who loves me,
    but first I put a lot of myrrh on my hands.
    The myrrh was dripping from my fingers
    while I unlatched the bolt.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Song of Songs 5:5

I arose to open to my beloved: whether this is a dream or reality, we are told that the young woman got up to open the door for her lover. If we follow a more literal approach, we can say “I got out of bed to open the door for my lover.” However, since it is possible that this sentence has a double meaning, we may do well to translate in a more general way: “I got up” or “I went to let my lover in.” Good News Translation has taken the Hebrew verb translated “rise” in its freer sense: “I was ready to let him come in.”

My hands dripped with myrrh: most commentators assume that the woman had anointed herself with spices and aromatic oils before going to bed (Pro 7.17). If so it is unlikely that her hands still dripped with them after having been asleep for some time. Either we have to make allowances for poetic exaggeration (hyperbole), or we must assume that she quickly anointed herself again before going to the door. In 4.11 we met the verb “drip with,” used there also with sweet spices. Jerusalem Bible suggests that the verb means “ran off my hands.” It is possible that there is some idiomatic meaning in this expression, but if so its significance is now lost. We take it at face value. On myrrh see 1.13 and comments. We can translate as “my hands were wet with myrrh [or, perfume]” or follow Good News Translation “my hands were covered with myrrh.”

My fingers with liquid myrrh: the verb “drip” from the previous clause also serves as the verb for this clause. Its omission from the second clause is a case of what is called ellipsis. My fingers is parallel with “my hands.” Liquid myrrh is one of several kinds of myrrh, perhaps one that flows naturally from the bark of the tree from which it is taken. The Hebrew participle means “dripping” according to Gordis, or “flowing.” Such myrrh was apparently highly valued. Jerusalem Bible suggests “pure myrrh”; New American Bible has “choice myrrh.” Revised Standard Version liquid seems a natural parallel to accompany the verb “drip.”

We can note here that there are two parallel clauses, the second of which is more precise in meaning than the first: “fingers” instead of “hands,” and “liquid myrrh” instead of “myrrh” alone. This variation from one line to the next is certainly part of the beauty of the poem, but this feature may not transfer well in the translation. If this is the case, these two lines can be combined.

Upon the handles of the bolt: with Good News Translation we can assume that the young woman “grasped” the door handle, and we can supply that verb if required. The handles of the bolt may be translated as “the door handle.” The Hebrew plural translated handles comes from the word “palm of the hand” and has an extended meaning, including any object shaped like a cupped hand. Its use here is poetic and the only example applying to a handle. Like the word “hand” there is probably a double meaning in the word handles. Thus there is strong sexual suggestion in this phrase.

For translation we suggest:

• My hands were wet with myrrh, my fingers with liquid perfume as I grasped the door handle.

The entire verse can say:

• I went to let my lover in.
My hands were dripping with myrrh,
As I grasped the lock.

• I rose to open for my lover,
And my hands dripped with myrrh—
Fine myrrh dripped from my fingers—
As I grasped the handle.

Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Zogbo, Lynell. A Handbook on the Book of Song of Songs. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1998. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Song of Songs 5:5

5:5a

I rose up to open for my beloved: Here the woman left her bed to open (the door) for her beloved to come in. She had become eager to see him, so she was willing to put on her robe again, as she mentioned in 5:3. Some other ways to translate this clause are:

I got up to open the door for my love.
-or-
I ⌊quickly⌋ left my bed and went to open up to my beloved.

5:5b–c

My hands dripped with myrrh, my fingers with flowing myrrh: In 5:5b and 5:5c the meaning is repeated to emphasize it. Both clauses indicate that liquid myrrh dripped from the woman’s hands (and fingers). The text may imply that when the woman got up, she quickly poured myrrh on her hands, and some of the myrrh dripped from them. This is a hyperbole. It probably indicates that she was now eager to please the man.

Some other ways to translate the parallel clauses are:

• Translate the meaning twice in slightly different ways. For example:

5b myrrh perfume covered my fingers 5c and dripped from my hands

• Combine 5:5b and 5:5c and translate the meaning only once. For example:

my hands were dripping with myrrh perfume

Translate the meaning in a natural way in your language.

hands…fingers: The words hands and fingers have the same meaning here. The author repeated the meaning to add poetic interest and emphasis. He did not imply any difference in meaning.

myrrh: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as myrrh occurs twice in this verse. Both times it refers to the liquid form of the myrrh perfume. This word also occurred in 1:13, 3:6, 4:6, and 4:14. (In 1:13a–b and 4:6 the myrrh was probably in solid form.)

Here the word myrrh in 5:5b and the phrase “flowing myrrh” in 5:5c refer to the same substance. In this context myrrh can also be translated generally as “perfume.” In the dream that the woman described, myrrh probably symbolizes her loving desire for the man.

For more information about myrrh, see the note on 3:6c.

5:5c

my fingers with flowing myrrh: There is an ellipsis in 5:5c, and the word “dripped” is implied. In many languages translators need to supply this implied verb. For example:

my fingers ⌊dripped⌋ with flowing myrrh.

The myrrh dripped or flowed from her hands and fingers onto the handles of the bolt (5:5d). Some other ways to translate the phrase in 5:5c are:

my fingers were wet with myrrh
-or-
My fingers dripped with lovely myrrh (New Living Translation (2004))

flowing myrrh: The Hebrew phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as flowing myrrh and the parallel “dripped” myrrh in 5:5b probably refer to the same type of myrrh. For more information about myrrh, see the note on myrrh in 3:6c.

5:5d

on the handles of the bolt: The phrase, handles of the bolt, refers to the object that was used to bolt (lock) the door. This bolt was often a metal or wooden bar. It was fastened to the door with a lock. Some other ways to translate 5:5c are:

• Use a specific phrase that is natural in your language. For example:

the handle of the door (Good News Translation)
-or-
the latch handles

• Use a more general phrase that does not refer specifically to the lock. For example:

to open the door (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
as I pulled back the bolt (New Living Translation (2004))

Use a natural phrase in your language to refer to a lock or whatever is natural in your culture to lock or bar a door.

General Comment on 5:5

The Notes suggest that the dripping myrrh on the woman’s hands is hyperbole. It is probably not literal but a symbol for feelings of love. This symbolic myrrh emphasizes that the woman had strong feelings of love for the man.

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