The Daily Audio Bible
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God Is Awesome
1 The [a]oracle (a burdensome message—a pronouncement from God) concerning [b]Nineveh [the capital city of Assyria]. The book of the vision of Nahum of Elkosh [which he saw in spirit and prophesied].
2
The Lord is a jealous and avenging God [protecting and demanding what is rightfully and uniquely His];
The Lord avenges and He is full of wrath.
The Lord takes vengeance on His adversaries,
And He reserves wrath for His enemies.(A)
3
The Lord is slow to anger and great in power
And He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished.
The Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm,
And the clouds are the dust beneath His feet.(B)
4
He rebukes the sea and dries it up;
He dries up all the rivers [illustrating His judgment].
Bashan [on the east] and [Mount] Carmel [on the west] wither,
And [in the north] the blossoms of Lebanon fade.
5
The mountains quake before Him
And the hills melt away;
Indeed the earth is shaken by His presence—
Yes, the world and all that dwell in it.
6
Who can stand before His indignation [His great wrath]?
And who can stand up and endure the fierceness of His anger?
His wrath is poured out like fire
And the rocks are destroyed by Him.
7
The Lord is good,
A strength and stronghold in the day of trouble;
He knows [He recognizes, cares for, and understands fully] those who take refuge and trust in Him.(C)
8
But with an [c]overwhelming flood [of judgment through invading armies]
He will make a complete destruction of [d]its site
And will pursue His enemies into darkness.
9
Whatever [plot] you [Assyrians] devise against the Lord,
He will make a complete end of it;
Affliction [of God’s people by the hand of Assyria] will not occur twice.
10
Like tangled thorn branches [gathered for fuel],
And like those drowned in drunkenness,
[e]The people of Nineveh are consumed [through fire]
Like stubble completely withered and dry [in the day of the Lord’s wrath].(D)
11
From you [O Nineveh],
One has gone forth who plotted evil against the Lord,
A malevolent [f]counselor [the king of Assyria].(E)
12 This is what the Lord says,
“Though they are at full strength and many in number,
Even so, they will be cut off and pass away.
Though I have afflicted you and caused you grief [O Jerusalem],
I will afflict you no longer.(F)
13
“Now, I will break his yoke [of taxation] off you,
And I will tear off your shackles.”(G)
14
The Lord has given a command concerning you [O king of Nineveh]:
“Your name will no longer be perpetuated.
I will cut off the carved idols and cast images
From the temple of your gods;
I will prepare your grave,
For you are vile and unworthy.”(H)
15
Behold, on the mountains the feet of him who brings good news [telling of Assyria’s destruction],
Who announces peace and prosperity!
Celebrate your feasts, O Judah;
Perform your vows.
For the wicked one [the king of Assyria] will never again pass through you;
He is completely cut off.(I)
The Overthrow of Nineveh
2 [g]The one who scatters has come up against you [Nineveh].
Man the fortress and ramparts, watch the road;
[h]Strengthen your back [prepare for battle], summon all your strength.
2
For the Lord will restore the splendor and majesty of Jacob
Like the splendor of [ancient and united] Israel,
Even though destroyers have destroyed them
And ruined their vine branches.(J)
3
The shields of his soldiers [of [i]Media and Babylon] are colored red;
The warriors are dressed in scarlet.
The chariots blaze with fire of [flashing] steel
When he is prepared to march,
And the cypress spears are brandished [for battle].
4
The chariots race madly in the streets;
They rush wildly in the broad plazas.
Their appearance is like torches;
They rush in various directions like forked lightning.
5
[j]He remembers and summons his nobles;
They stumble in their march [terrified because of the attack].
They hurry to the city wall,
And the [k]mantelet is prepared and firmly set up.
6
The gates of the rivers [surrounding Nineveh] are opened
And the palace [of sun-dried brick] is dissolved [by the torrents].
7
It is decreed:
Nineveh is stripped, and she is carried away,
And her handmaids are moaning like the sound of doves,
Beating on their breasts [in sorrow].
8
Though Nineveh was like a pool of water throughout her days,
Now her inhabitants are fleeing;
“Stop! Stop!” [a few cry,]
But no one turns back.
9
Plunder the silver!
Plunder the gold!
For there is no end to the treasure—
Wealth from every precious object.
10
She is emptied! She is desolate and waste!
Hearts melting [in fear] and knees knocking!
Anguish is in the whole body,
And the faces of all grow pale!(K)
11
Where is the den of the lions (Assyria)
And the feeding place of the young lions,
Where the lion, lioness, and lion’s cub prowled
With nothing to fear?
12
The lion [of Assyria] tore enough for his cubs (Assyrian citizens),
Killed [enough prey] for his lionesses,
And filled his lairs with prey
And his dens with torn flesh.
13 “Behold, I am against you [Nineveh],” declares the Lord of hosts, “and I will burn your chariots in the smoke, and the sword will devour your young lions. I will cut off your prey from the land, and the voice of your messengers will no longer be heard.”
Nineveh’s Complete Ruin
3 Woe (judgment is coming) to the city of blood [guilty of murder and mayhem], completely full of lies and pillage;
Her prey never departs [alive].(L)
2
The noise of the [cracking of the] whip,
The noise of the rattling of the wheel,
Galloping horses
And rumbling and bounding chariots [in the assault of Nineveh]!
3
Horsemen charging,
Swords flashing, spears gleaming,
Many slain, a mass of corpses,
No end of corpses—
The horsemen stumble over the corpses!
4
All because of the many acts of prostitution of [Nineveh] the prostitute,
The charming and well-favored one, the mistress of sorceries,
Who betrays nations by her acts of prostitution (idolatry)
And families by her sorceries.
5
“Behold, I am against you,” declares the Lord of hosts,
“And I will lift up your skirts over your face,
And I will let the nations look at your nakedness [O Nineveh]
And the kingdoms at your disgrace.
6
“I will throw filth on you
And make you vile and treat you with contempt,
And set you up as a spectacle.
7
“And it will come about that all who see you
Will shrink back and run from you and say,
‘Nineveh is completely ruined!
Who will grieve for her?’
Where will I seek comforters for you?”
8
Are you better than [l]Thebes,
Which was situated by the waters of the Nile,
With water surrounding her,
Whose defense was the sea (the Nile),
Whose wall consisted of the sea?
9
Ethiopia was her strength,
And Egypt too, without limits.
[m]Put and Lubim were among her helpers.
10
Yet she became an exile;
She went into captivity.
Her young children were dashed to pieces
At the head of every street;
They cast lots for her honorable men,
And all her great men were bound with chains.
11
You too [Nineveh] will become drunk [with the cup of God’s wrath];
You will be hidden.
You too [Nineveh] will search [in vain] for a refuge from the enemy.
12
All your fortresses are [nothing but] fig trees with ripe figs—
When shaken they fall into the mouth of the eater.
13
Behold, your people are [as weak and helpless as] women in your midst!
The gates of your land are opened wide to your enemies;
Fire consumes the bars across your gates.
14
Draw water for a [long, continued] siege!
Strengthen your fortresses!
Go down to the clay pits, trample the mortar!
Prepare the brick kiln [to burn bricks for the rampart]!
15
But there [in the very midst of these preparations] the fire will devour you;
The sword will cut you down;
It will devour you as the locust does.
Multiply yourself like the creeping locusts;
Multiply yourself like the swarming locusts.
16
You have increased your traders more than the [visible] stars of heaven—
The creeping locust strips and destroys and then flies away.
17
Your guardsmen are like the swarming locusts.
Your marshals are like the hordes of grasshoppers
Settling in the stone walls on a cold day.
When the sun rises, they fly away,
And no one knows the place where they are.
18
Your shepherds are asleep, O king of Assyria;
Your nobles are lying down [in death].
Your people are scattered on the mountains
And there is no one to gather them.
19
There is no relief and healing for your hurt;
Your wound is incurable.
All who hear the news about you
Clap their hands over [what has happened to] you.
For on whom has your [unceasing] evil not come continually?
The Seventh Seal—the Trumpets
8 When He (the Lamb) broke open the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour [in awe of God’s impending judgment].(A) 2 Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven [a]trumpets were given to them.
3 Another angel came and stood at the altar. He had a golden [b]censer, and much [c]incense was given to him, so that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints (God’s people) on the golden altar in front of the throne.(B) 4 And the smoke and fragrant aroma of the incense, with the prayers of the saints (God’s people), ascended before God from the angel’s hand. 5 So the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it to the earth; and there were peals of thunder and loud rumblings and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.(C)
6 Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound them [initiating the judgments].
7 The first [angel] sounded [his trumpet], and there was [a storm of] hail and fire, mixed with blood, and it was hurled to the earth; and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.(D)
8 The second angel sounded [his trumpet], and something like a great mountain blazing with fire was hurled into the sea; and a third of the sea was turned to blood;(E) 9 and a third of the living creatures that were in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.
10 The third angel sounded [his trumpet], and a great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch [flashing across the sky], and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of [fresh] waters. 11 The name of the star is [d]Wormwood; and a third of the waters became wormwood, and many people died from the waters, because they had become bitter (toxic).
12 Then the fourth angel sounded [his trumpet], and a third of the sun and a third of the moon and a third of the stars were struck, so that a third of them would be darkened and a third of the daylight would not shine, and the night in the same way [would not shine].(F)
13 Then I looked, and I heard a solitary eagle flying in [e]midheaven [for all to see], saying with a loud voice, “[f]Woe, woe, woe [great wrath is coming] to those who dwell on the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpets which the three angels are about to sound [announcing ever greater judgments]!”
Thanks for the Lord’s Goodness to Israel.
136 [a]Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
For His lovingkindness (graciousness, mercy, compassion) endures forever.
2
Give thanks to the God of gods,
For His lovingkindness endures forever.
3
Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
For His lovingkindness endures forever.
4
To Him who alone does great wonders,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
5
To Him who made the heavens with skill,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
6
To Him who stretched out the earth upon the waters,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
7
To Him who made the great lights,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
8
The sun to rule over the day,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
9
The moon and stars to rule by night,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
10
To Him who struck the firstborn of Egypt,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(A)
11
And brought Israel out from among them,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(B)
12
With a strong hand and with an outstretched arm,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
13
To Him who divided the [b]Red Sea into parts,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(C)
14
And made Israel pass through the midst of it,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
15
But tossed Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
16
To Him who led His people through the wilderness,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
17
To Him who struck down great kings,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
18
And killed mighty kings,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(D)
19
Sihon, king of the Amorites,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(E)
20
And Og, king of Bashan,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(F)
21
And gave their land as a heritage,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
22
Even a heritage to Israel His servant,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(G)
23
Who [faithfully] remembered us in our lowly condition,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
24
And has rescued us from our enemies,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
25
Who gives food to all flesh,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
26
Give thanks to the God of heaven,
For His lovingkindness (graciousness, mercy, compassion) endures forever.
7
Two things I have asked of You;
Do not deny them to me before I die:
8
Keep deception and lies far from me;
Give me neither poverty nor riches;
Feed me with the food that is my portion,
9
So that I will not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?”
Or that I will not be poor and steal,
And so profane the name of my God.(A)
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.