Nahum 3

Amplified Bible, Classic Edition

3 Woe to the bloody city! It is full of lies and booty and [there is] no end to the plunder!^(A)

²The cracking of the whip, the noise of the rattling of wheels, and prancing horses and chariots rumbling and bounding,

³Horsemen mounting and charging, the flashing sword, the gleaming spear, a multitude of slain and a great number of corpses, no end of corpses! [The horsemen] stumble over the corpses!

⁴All because of the multitude of the harlotries [of Nineveh], the well-favored harlot, the mistress of deadly charms who betrays and sells nations through her whoredoms [idolatry] and peoples through her enchantments.

⁵Behold, I am against you, says the Lord of hosts, and I will lift up your skirts over your face, and I will let the nations look on your nakedness [O Nineveh] and the kingdoms on your shame.

⁶I will cast abominable things at you and make you filthy, treat you with contempt, and make you a gazingstock.

⁷And all who look on you will shrink and flee from you and say, Nineveh is laid waste; who will pity and bemoan her? Where [then] shall I seek comforters for you?

⁸Are you better than No-amon [Thebes, capital of Upper Egypt], that dwelt by the rivers or canals, that had the waters round about her, whose rampart was a sea [the Nile] and water her wall?

⁹Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength, and that without limit. Put and the Libyans were her helpers.

¹⁰Yet she was carried away; she went into captivity. Her young children also were dashed in pieces at all the street corners; lots were cast [by the Assyrian officers] for her nobles, and all her great men were bound with chains.

¹¹You will be drunk [Nineveh, with the cup of God’s wrath]; you will be dazed. You will seek and require a refuge because of the enemy.

¹²All your fortresses are fig trees with early figs; if they are shaken they will fall into the mouth of the eater.

¹³Behold, your troops in the midst of you are [as weak and helpless as] women; the gates of your land are set wide open to your enemies [without effort]; fire consumes your bars.

¹⁴Draw for yourself the water [necessary] for a [long continued] siege, make strong your fortresses! Go down into the clay pits and trample the mortar; make ready the brickkiln [to burn bricks for the bulwarks]!

¹⁵[But] there [in the very midst of these preparations] will the fire devour you; the sword will cut you off; it will destroy you as the locusts [destroy]. Multiply yourselves like the licking locusts; make yourselves many like the swarming locusts!

¹⁶You increased your merchants more than the [visible] stars of the heavens. The swarming locust spreads itself and destroys, and then flies away.

¹⁷Your princes are like the grasshoppers and your marshals like the swarms of locusts which encamp in the hedges on a cold day—but when the sun rises, they fly away, and no one knows where they are.

¹⁸Your shepherds are asleep, O king of Assyria; your nobles are lying still [in death]. Your people are scattered on the mountains and there is no one to gather them.

¹⁹There is no healing of your hurt; your wound is grievous. All who hear the news about you clap their hands over [what has happened to] you. For upon whom has not your [unceasing] evil come continually?

Nahum 3

New International Version

Woe to Nineveh

3 Woe to the city of blood,^(A)
    full of lies,^(B)
full of plunder,
    never without victims!
²The crack of whips,
    the clatter of wheels,
galloping horses
    and jolting chariots!
³Charging cavalry,
    flashing swords
    and glittering spears!
Many casualties,
    piles of dead,
bodies without number,
    people stumbling over the corpses^(C)—
⁴all because of the wanton lust of a prostitute,
    alluring, the mistress of sorceries,^(D)
who enslaved nations by her prostitution^(E)
    and peoples by her witchcraft.

⁵“I am against^(F) you,” declares the Lord Almighty.
    “I will lift your skirts^(G) over your face.
I will show the nations your nakedness^(H)
    and the kingdoms your shame.
⁶I will pelt you with filth,^(I)
    I will treat you with contempt^(J)
    and make you a spectacle.^(K)
⁷All who see you will flee^(L) from you and say,
    ‘Nineveh^(M) is in ruins^(N)—who will mourn for her?’^(O)
    Where can I find anyone to comfort^(P) you?”

⁸Are you better than^(Q) Thebes,^(R)
    situated on the Nile,^(S)
    with water around her?
The river was her defense,
    the waters her wall.
⁹Cush^[a]^(T) and Egypt were her boundless strength;
    Put^(U) and Libya^(V) were among her allies.
¹⁰Yet she was taken captive^(W)
    and went into exile.
Her infants were dashed^(X) to pieces
    at every street corner.
Lots^(Y) were cast for her nobles,
    and all her great men were put in chains.^(Z)
¹¹You too will become drunk;^(AA)
    you will go into hiding^(AB)
    and seek refuge from the enemy.

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

¹⁴Draw water for the siege,^(AH)
    strengthen your defenses!^(AI)
Work the clay,
    tread the mortar,
    repair the brickwork!
¹⁵There the fire^(AJ) will consume you;
    the sword^(AK) will cut you down—
    they will devour you like a swarm of locusts.
Multiply like grasshoppers,
    multiply like locusts!^(AL)
¹⁶You have increased the number of your merchants
    till they are more numerous than the stars in the sky,
but like locusts^(AM) they strip the land
    and then fly away.
¹⁷Your guards are like locusts,^(AN)
    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.

¹⁸King of Assyria, your shepherds^[b] slumber;^(AO)
    your nobles lie down to rest.^(AP)
Your people are scattered^(AQ) on the mountains
    with no one to gather them.
¹⁹Nothing can heal you;^(AR)
    your wound is fatal.
All who hear the news about you
    clap their hands^(AS) at your fall,
for who has not felt
    your endless cruelty?^(AT)

Footnotes

Nahum 3:9 That is, the upper Nile region
Nahum 3:18 That is, rulers

Nahum 3

New King James Version

The Woe of Nineveh

3 Woe to the ^(A)bloody city!
It is all full of lies and robbery.
Its ^[a]victim never departs.
²The noise of a whip
And the noise of rattling wheels,
Of galloping horses,
Of ^[b]clattering chariots!
³Horsemen charge with bright sword and glittering spear.
There is a multitude of slain,
A great number of bodies,
Countless corpses—
They stumble over the corpses—
⁴Because of the multitude of ^[c]harlotries of the ^[d]seductive harlot,
^(B)The mistress of sorceries,
Who sells nations through her harlotries,
And families through her sorceries.

⁵“Behold, I am ^(C)against you,” says the Lord of hosts;
^(D)“I will lift your skirts over your face,
I will show the nations your nakedness,
And the kingdoms your shame.
⁶I will cast abominable filth upon you,
Make you ^(E)vile,^[e]
And make you ^(F)a spectacle.
⁷It shall come to pass that all who look upon you
^(G)Will flee from you, and say,
^(H)‘Nineveh is laid waste!
^(I)Who will bemoan her?’
Where shall I seek comforters for you?”

⁸^(J)Are you better than ^(K)No^[f] Amon
That was situated by the ^[g]River,
That had the waters around her,
Whose rampart was the sea,
Whose wall was the sea?
⁹Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength,
And it was boundless;
^(L)Put and Lubim were ^[h]your helpers.
¹⁰Yet she was carried away,
She went into captivity;
^(M)Her young children also were dashed to pieces
^(N)At the head of every street;
They ^(O)cast lots for her honorable men,
And all her great men were bound in chains.
¹¹You also will be ^(P)drunk;
You will be hidden;
You also will seek refuge from the enemy.

¹²All your strongholds are ^(Q)fig trees with ripened figs:
If they are shaken,
They fall into the mouth of the eater.
¹³Surely, ^(R)your people in your midst are women!
The gates of your land are wide open for your enemies;
Fire shall devour the ^(S)bars of your gates.

¹⁴Draw your water for the siege!
^(T)Fortify your strongholds!
Go into the clay and tread the mortar!
Make strong the brick kiln!
¹⁵There the fire will devour you,
The sword will cut you off;
It will eat you up like a ^(U)locust.

Make yourself many—like the locust!
Make yourself many—like the swarming locusts!
¹⁶You have multiplied your ^(V)merchants more than the stars of heaven.
The locust plunders and flies away.
¹⁷^(W)Your commanders are like swarming locusts,
And your generals like great grasshoppers,
Which camp in the hedges on a cold day;
When the sun rises they flee away,
And the place where they are is not known.

¹⁸^(X)Your shepherds slumber, O ^(Y)king of Assyria;
Your nobles rest in the dust.
Your people are ^(Z)scattered on the mountains,
And no one gathers them.
¹⁹Your injury has no healing,
^(AA)Your wound is severe.
^(AB)All who hear news of you
Will clap their hands over you,
For upon whom has not your wickedness passed continually?

Footnotes

Nahum 3:1 Lit. prey
Nahum 3:2 bounding or jolting
Nahum 3:4 Spiritual unfaithfulness
Nahum 3:4 Lit. goodly charm, in a bad sense
Nahum 3:6 despicable
Nahum 3:8 Ancient Thebes; Tg., Vg. populous Alexandria
Nahum 3:8 Lit. rivers, the Nile and the surrounding canals
Nahum 3:9 LXX her

Nahum 3

King James Version

3 Woe to the bloody city! it is all full of lies and robbery; the prey departeth not;

²The noise of a whip, and the noise of the rattling of the wheels, and of the pransing horses, and of the jumping chariots.

³The horseman lifteth up both the bright sword and the glittering spear: and there is a multitude of slain, and a great number of carcases; and there is none end of their corpses; they stumble upon their corpses:

⁴Because of the multitude of the whoredoms of the wellfavoured harlot, the mistress of witchcrafts, that selleth nations through her whoredoms, and families through her witchcrafts.

⁵Behold, I am against thee, saith the Lord of hosts; and I will discover thy skirts upon thy face, and I will shew the nations thy nakedness, and the kingdoms thy shame.

⁶And I will cast abominable filth upon thee, and make thee vile, and will set thee as a gazingstock.

⁷And it shall come to pass, that all they that look upon thee shall flee from thee, and say, Nineveh is laid waste: who will bemoan her? whence shall I seek comforters for thee?

⁸Art thou better than populous No, that was situate among the rivers, that had the waters round about it, whose rampart was the sea, and her wall was from the sea?

⁹Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength, and it was infinite; Put and Lubim were thy helpers.

¹⁰Yet was she carried away, she went into captivity: her young children also were dashed in pieces at the top of all the streets: and they cast lots for her honourable men, and all her great men were bound in chains.

¹¹Thou also shalt be drunken: thou shalt be hid, thou also shalt seek strength because of the enemy.

¹²All thy strong holds shall be like fig trees with the firstripe figs: if they be shaken, they shall even fall into the mouth of the eater.

¹³Behold, thy people in the midst of thee are women: the gates of thy land shall be set wide open unto thine enemies: the fire shall devour thy bars.

¹⁴Draw thee waters for the siege, fortify thy strong holds: go into clay, and tread the morter, make strong the brickkiln.

¹⁵There shall the fire devour thee; the sword shall cut thee off, it shall eat thee up like the cankerworm: make thyself many as the cankerworm, make thyself many as the locusts.

¹⁶Thou hast multiplied thy merchants above the stars of heaven: the cankerworm spoileth, and fleeth away.

¹⁷Thy crowned are as the locusts, and thy captains as the great grasshoppers, which camp in the hedges in the cold day, but when the sun ariseth they flee away, and their place is not known where they are.

¹⁸Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria: thy nobles shall dwell in the dust: thy people is scattered upon the mountains, and no man gathereth them.

¹⁹There is no healing of thy bruise; thy wound is grievous: all that hear the bruit of thee shall clap the hands over thee: for upon whom hath not thy wickedness passed continually?

Nahum 3

EasyEnglish Bible

Nineveh has done many bad things

3 Terrible things will happen to you, Nineveh. Your people are murderers and they love to tell lies. The city is full of valuable things that they have taken from other people. ²Listen to the loud noises of the whips, the chariots, the wheels and the feet of the horses. The chariots are moving fast towards Nineveh. ³See the bright swords and spears in the hands of the horses' riders. There are dead bodies that are lying in the streets. It is like mountains of dead bodies everywhere. There are so many dead bodies that men fall over the bodies. ⁴This is because Nineveh has sold herself to the enemies of God. She is like a beautiful prostitute. She uses her body and her bad magic to make all the people in other countries her slaves.

⁵This is why I am against you, says the Lord Almighty. I will make you like a woman whose skirt is up over her face. I will show the countries that you are like that woman. You will be like a woman who is not wearing any clothes. ⁶I will throw dirt at you. I will do with you like you were nothing. And I will make everyone ashamed of you. ⁷When people see you, they will run away. And they will say, ‘They have destroyed Nineveh. Nobody will be sad.’ There will be nobody to help you.

⁸Remember the city of Thebes that was near the River Nile. It had water all round it. The river kept it safe, like a wall. Nineveh is not better than Thebes was. ⁹The countries of Ethiopia and Egypt were strong friends. And Put and Libya were strong friends too.

¹⁰But the enemies of Thebes took its people away and they made them slaves. They cut their babies to pieces in every street. They played games with the great men from Thebes and they put them in iron chains. ¹¹You will be like a man who has drunk too much alcohol. And you will try to hide. You will try to get help from your enemy. ¹²All your strong places are like fig trees. They will fall very easily when the enemies shake them. And your valuable things will be like figs that fall into people's mouths. ¹³Look at your soldiers, they are all like women! Your enemies have burned your gates and they have pushed them wide open.

¹⁴Take as much water as you can for the attack. Make your walls strong. Do repairs to your buildings. ¹⁵The fire will burn you. The sword will cut you and it will kill you like grasshoppers. Grow in number like the grasshoppers and locusts.

¹⁶You welcomed traders into your city until there were more than all the stars in the sky. But they are like locusts. They take everything from the land and then they fly away. ¹⁷Your army and officers are so many that they are like locusts. Locusts stay on the walls on a cold day. But when the sun comes out, they fly away. And then nobody knows where they go.

¹⁸King of Assyria, the people who keep your people safe are asleep. Also, your powerful men are lying down to rest. Your people have run away to the mountains with nobody to get them together.

¹⁹You have received a bad wound and nobody can make it better. People have heard about what happened to you. All of them are very happy and they clap their hands. That is because you have done cruel things to all of them.

Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC)

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New International Version (NIV)

Nahum 3

Amplified Bible, Classic Edition

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