Nineveh to Fall

[a]An attacker(A) advances against you, Nineveh.
    Guard the fortress,
    watch the road,
    brace yourselves,
    marshal all your strength!

The Lord will restore(B) the splendor(C) of Jacob
    like the splendor of Israel,
though destroyers have laid them waste
    and have ruined their vines.

The shields of the soldiers are red;
    the warriors are clad in scarlet.(D)
The metal on the chariots flashes
    on the day they are made ready;
    the spears of juniper are brandished.[b]
The chariots(E) storm through the streets,
    rushing back and forth through the squares.
They look like flaming torches;
    they dart about like lightning.

Nineveh summons her picked troops,
    yet they stumble(F) on their way.
They dash to the city wall;
    the protective shield is put in place.
The river gates(G) are thrown open
    and the palace collapses.
It is decreed[c] that Nineveh
    be exiled and carried away.
Her female slaves moan(H) like doves
    and beat on their breasts.(I)
Nineveh is like a pool
    whose water is draining away.
“Stop! Stop!” they cry,
    but no one turns back.
Plunder the silver!
    Plunder the gold!
The supply is endless,
    the wealth from all its treasures!
10 She is pillaged, plundered, stripped!
    Hearts melt,(J) knees give way,
    bodies tremble, every face grows pale.(K)

11 Where now is the lions’ den,(L)
    the place where they fed their young,
where the lion and lioness went,
    and the cubs, with nothing to fear?
12 The lion killed(M) enough for his cubs
    and strangled the prey for his mate,
filling his lairs(N) with the kill
    and his dens with the prey.(O)

13 “I am against(P) you,”
    declares the Lord Almighty.
“I will burn up your chariots in smoke,(Q)
    and the sword(R) will devour your young lions.
    I will leave you no prey on the earth.
The voices of your messengers
    will no longer be heard.”(S)

Woe to Nineveh

Woe to the city of blood,(T)
    full of lies,(U)
full of plunder,
    never without victims!
The crack of whips,
    the clatter of wheels,
galloping horses
    and jolting chariots!
Charging cavalry,
    flashing swords
    and glittering spears!
Many casualties,
    piles of dead,
bodies without number,
    people stumbling over the corpses(V)
all because of the wanton lust of a prostitute,
    alluring, the mistress of sorceries,(W)
who enslaved nations by her prostitution(X)
    and peoples by her witchcraft.

“I am against(Y) you,” declares the Lord Almighty.
    “I will lift your skirts(Z) over your face.
I will show the nations your nakedness(AA)
    and the kingdoms your shame.
I will pelt you with filth,(AB)
    I will treat you with contempt(AC)
    and make you a spectacle.(AD)
All who see you will flee(AE) from you and say,
    ‘Nineveh(AF) is in ruins(AG)—who will mourn for her?’(AH)
    Where can I find anyone to comfort(AI) you?”

Are you better than(AJ) Thebes,(AK)
    situated on the Nile,(AL)
    with water around her?
The river was her defense,
    the waters her wall.
Cush[d](AM) and Egypt were her boundless strength;
    Put(AN) and Libya(AO) were among her allies.
10 Yet she was taken captive(AP)
    and went into exile.
Her infants were dashed(AQ) to pieces
    at every street corner.
Lots(AR) were cast for her nobles,
    and all her great men were put in chains.(AS)
11 You too will become drunk;(AT)
    you will go into hiding(AU)
    and seek refuge from the enemy.

12 All your fortresses are like fig trees
    with their first ripe fruit;(AV)
when they are shaken,
    the figs(AW) fall into the mouth of the eater.
13 Look at your troops—
    they are all weaklings.(AX)
The gates(AY) of your land
    are wide open to your enemies;
    fire has consumed the bars of your gates.(AZ)

14 Draw water for the siege,(BA)
    strengthen your defenses!(BB)
Work the clay,
    tread the mortar,
    repair the brickwork!
15 There the fire(BC) will consume you;
    the sword(BD) will cut you down—
    they will devour you like a swarm of locusts.
Multiply like grasshoppers,
    multiply like locusts!(BE)
16 You have increased the number of your merchants
    till they are more numerous than the stars in the sky,
but like locusts(BF) they strip the land
    and then fly away.
17 Your guards are like locusts,(BG)
    your officials like swarms of locusts
    that settle in the walls on a cold day—
but when the sun appears they fly away,
    and no one knows where.

18 King of Assyria, your shepherds[e] slumber;(BH)
    your nobles lie down to rest.(BI)
Your people are scattered(BJ) on the mountains
    with no one to gather them.
19 Nothing can heal you;(BK)
    your wound is fatal.
All who hear the news about you
    clap their hands(BL) at your fall,
for who has not felt
    your endless cruelty?(BM)

Footnotes

  1. Nahum 2:1 In Hebrew texts 2:1-13 is numbered 2:2-14.
  2. Nahum 2:3 Hebrew; Septuagint and Syriac ready; / the horsemen rush to and fro.
  3. Nahum 2:7 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  4. Nahum 3:9 That is, the upper Nile region
  5. Nahum 3:18 That is, rulers

17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun, who cried in a loud voice to all the birds(A) flying in midair,(B) “Come,(C) gather together for the great supper of God,(D) 18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals, and the mighty, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all people,(E) free and slave,(F) great and small.”(G)

19 Then I saw the beast(H) and the kings of the earth(I) and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse(J) and his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet(K) who had performed the signs(L) on its behalf.(M) With these signs he had deluded(N) those who had received the mark of the beast(O) and worshiped its image.(P) The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake(Q) of burning sulfur.(R) 21 The rest were killed with the sword(S) coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse,(T) and all the birds(U) gorged themselves on their flesh.

Read full chapter

Bible Gateway Recommends