² Even though the destroyer has destroyed Judah,
    the Lord will restore its honor.
Israel’s vine has been stripped of branches,
    but he will restore its splendor.

³ Shields flash red in the sunlight!
    See the scarlet uniforms of the valiant troops!
Watch as their glittering chariots move into position,
    with a forest of spears waving above them.^[b]
4 The chariots race recklessly along the streets
    and rush wildly through the squares.
They flash like firelight
    and move as swiftly as lightning.
⁵ The king shouts to his officers;
    they stumble in their haste,
    rushing to the walls to set up their defenses.
⁶ The river gates have been torn open!
    The palace is about to collapse!
⁷ Nineveh’s exile has been decreed,
    and all the servant girls mourn its capture.
They moan like doves
    and beat their breasts in sorrow.
⁸ Nineveh is like a leaking water reservoir!
    The people are slipping away.
“Stop, stop!” someone shouts,
    but no one even looks back.
⁹ Loot the silver!
    Plunder the gold!
There’s no end to Nineveh’s treasures—
    its vast, uncounted wealth.
¹⁰ Soon the city is plundered, empty, and ruined.
    Hearts melt and knees shake.
The people stand aghast,
    their faces pale and trembling.

¹¹ Where now is that great Nineveh,
    that den filled with young lions?
It was a place where people—like lions and their cubs—
    walked freely and without fear.
¹² The lion tore up meat for his cubs
    and strangled prey for his mate.
He filled his den with prey,
    his caverns with his plunder.

¹³ “I am your enemy!”
    says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
“Your chariots will soon go up in smoke.
    Your young men^[c] will be killed in battle.
Never again will you plunder conquered nations.
    The voices of your proud messengers will be heard no more.”