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

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

The 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:

Because 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.

Behold, 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.

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

And 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?

Art 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?

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

10 Yet 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.

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

12 All 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.

13 Behold, 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.

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

15 There 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.

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

17 Thy 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.

18 Thy 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.

19 There 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?

O bloody city! It is all full of lies and robbery. And its prey never departs:

the noise of a whip and the noise of the moving of the wheels and the beating of the horses and the leaping of the chariots.

The horseman lifts up both the bright sword and the glittering spear. And a multitude is slain, and the dead bodies are many. There is no end of their corpses. They stumble over their corpses,

because of the multitude of the fornications of the beautiful harlot, who is a mistress of witchcraft and sells the people through her whoredom and the nations through her witchcrafts.

“Behold, I come upon you,” says the LORD of Hosts, “and will uncover your skirts upon your face, and will show the nations your filthiness, and the kingdoms your shame.

“And I will cast filth upon you, and make you vile, and will set you as a spectacle.

“And it shall happen at that time that all those who look upon you shall flee from you, and say, ‘Nineveh is destroyed! Who will have pity upon her?’ Where shall I seek comforters for you?”

Are you better than No, who was full of people, which lay in the rivers and had the waters all around it, whose ditch was the sea, and her wall from the sea?

Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength. And there was no end. Put and Lubim were her helpers.

10 Yet she was carried away and went into captivity. Also, her young children were dashed in pieces at the head of all the streets. And they cast lots for her noble men. And all her mighty men were bound in chains.

11 Also, you shall be drunk. You shall hide yourself and shall seek help because of the enemy.

12 All your strong cities shall be like fig trees with the first ripe figs. For if they are shaken, they fall into the mouth of the eater.

13 Behold, your people within you are women. The gates of your land shall be opened to your enemies. The fire shall devour your bars.

14 Draw water for the siege. Fortify your strongholds. Go into the clay and temper the mortar. Make strong bricks.

15 There shall the fire devour you. The sword shall cut you off. It shall eat you up like the locusts. You are multiplied like the locusts, multiplied like the swarming locusts.

16 You have multiplied your merchants above the stars of heaven. The locust plunders and flies away.

17 Your princes are as the swarming locusts, and your captains as the great grasshoppers which remain in the hedges in the cold time. When the Sun rises, they flee away. And the place where they are is not known.

18 Your shepherds sleep, O king of Assyria! Your strong men lie down. Your people are scattered upon the mountains. And no man gathers.

19 There is no healing of your wound. Your plague is grievous. All who hear of you shall clap their hands over you. For upon whom has not your malice passed continually?

Nínive acabará como Tebas

¡Ay de la ciudad sanguinaria! Toda ella es engaño; está llena de pillaje y de incesante rapiña. Viene sonido de látigo, estruendo de ruedas, caballos galopando, carros que rebotan, jinetes que avanzan, resplandor de espada y fulgor de lanza. Habrá gran número de muertos y multitud de cadáveres. Tan numerosos serán sus cuerpos que tropezarán en ellos. Esto sucederá debido a la multitud de las fornicaciones de la prostituta, de bella apariencia y experta en hechizos, que seduce a las naciones con sus fornicaciones y a los pueblos con sus hechizos.

“¡Heme aquí, yo estoy contra ti!, dice el SEÑOR de los Ejércitos. Te levantaré la falda hasta la cara y mostraré a las naciones tu desnudez y a los reinos tu ignominia. Echaré sobre ti inmundicias; te trataré con desdén y te pondré por espectáculo. Sucederá que todos los que te vean huirán de ti. Y dirán: ‘¡Nínive ha sido destruida! ¿Quién se compadecerá de ella? ¿Dónde le[a] habré de buscar consoladores?’”.

¿Eres acaso mejor que Tebas[b] que estaba asentada junto al Nilo, rodeada de aguas, cuyo baluarte y muralla era una concentración de aguas? Etiopía y Egipto eran su poderío ilimitado; Fut y los libios acudían en su[c] ayuda. 10 También ella partió al destierro; fue llevada en cautiverio. También sus pequeñitos fueron estrellados en los cruces de las calles. Sobre sus nobles echaron suertes y todos sus grandes fueron aprisionados con grillos. 11 Tú también serás embriagada. Estarás oculta; también tú buscarás refugio por causa del enemigo.

Vanos esfuerzos por librar a Nínive

12 Todas las fortificaciones son como higueras cargadas de higos: Si las sacuden, caerán en la boca del que los ha de comer. 13 He aquí que tu pueblo en medio de ti es como las mujeres. Las puertas de tu tierra serán abiertas de par en par a tus enemigos; el fuego consumirá tus cerrojos.

14 Provéete de agua para el asedio; refuerza tus fortalezas. Entra en el lodo; pisa el barro; toma el molde de hacer ladrillos. 15 Allí te devorará el fuego y la espada te exterminará como devora la langosta.

¡Multiplícate como el saltón! ¡Multiplícate como la langosta! 16 Aumentaste tus mercaderes más que las estrellas del cielo. Como langostas se descapullan y vuelan. 17 Tus oficiales serán como saltamontes y tus capitanes como enjambre de langostas que se asientan sobre los vallados en un día de frío, y que salido el sol huyen y su lugar no se conoce más.

18 ¡Se han dormido tus pastores, oh rey de Asiria; han reposado tus valientes! Tu pueblo se ha dispersado por los montes y no hay quien lo reúna. 19 No hay medicina para tu quebranto; tu llaga es incurable. Todos los que oyen de tu fama aplaudirán a causa de ti, porque ¿sobre quién no ha pasado de continuo tu maldad?

Footnotes

  1. Nahúm 3:7 Según LXX; heb., te.
  2. Nahúm 3:8 Heb., No-amón, ciudad importante de Egipto.
  3. Nahúm 3:9 Según LXX; heb., tu.