Nahum 3

1 Woe to the bloody city! It is all full of lies [and] violence; the prey departeth not.

Woe to the city of blood! She is all full of deceit and robbery; She ceaseth not from plunder.

2 The crack of the whip, and the noise of the rattling of the wheels, and of the prancing horses, and of the bounding chariots!

[[Hark!]] The noise of the whip! The noise of the rattling of the wheels, And of the prancing horses, And of the bounding chariots!

3 The horseman springing up, and the glitter of the sword, and the flash of the spear, and a multitude of slain, and a mass of carcases, and no end of corpses: they stumble over their corpses.

The horseman lifteth up the flame of the sword, And the lightning of the spear; There is a multitude of the slain; heaps of dead bodies; There is no end to the carcasses; they stumble over the carcasses.

4 — Because of the multitude of the fornications of the well-favoured harlot, mistress of sorceries, that selleth nations through her fornications, and families through her sorceries,

It is because of the many whoredoms of the harlot, The graceful beauty, the mistress of enchantments, That sold nations by her whoredoms, And kingdoms by her enchantments.

5 behold, I am against thee, saith Jehovah of hosts; and I will uncover thy skirts upon thy face, and I will shew the nations thy nakedness, and the kingdoms thy shame.

Behold, I am against thee, saith Jehovah of host, And I will lift up thy trail over thy face, And I will show the nations thy nakedness, And the kingdoms thy shame.

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

And I will cast abominable filth upon thee, And I will dishonor thee, and make thee a gazing-stock,

7 And it shall come to pass, [that] all they that see thee shall flee from thee, and shall say, Nineveh is laid waste! Who will bemoan her? whence shall I seek comforters for thee?

And all that see thee shall flee from thee, And shall say, “Nineveh is laid waste; Who will bemoan her? Whence shall I seek comforters for thee?”

8 Art thou better than No-Amon, that was situate among the rivers, [that had] the waters round about her, whose rampart was the sea, [and] of the sea was her wall?

Art thou better than No-Ammon, That dwelt by the rivers, That had the waters round about her, Whose fortress was the sea, And whose wall was from the waters?

9 Ethiopia was her strength, and Egypt, and it was infinite; Phut and the Libyans were her helpers.

Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength, a countless multitude; Phut and Lybia were thy helpers!

10 She too was carried away, she went into captivity: her infants 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 with chains.

Yet was she carried away; she went into captivity; Her children were dashed in pieces at the head of all the streets; For her honorable men they cast lots, And all her great men were bound in chains.

11 Thou also shalt be drunken: thou shalt be hid; thou also shalt seek a refuge from the enemy.

Thou also shalt drink to the full; Thou, too, shalt be hidden; Thou shalt seek a refuge from the enemy!

12 All thy strongholds are [like] fig-trees with the first-ripe figs: if they be shaken, they even fall into the mouth of the eater.

All thy strong-holds shall be like fig-trees with the first ripe figs; If they be shaken, they fall into the mouth of the eater.

13 Behold, thy people in the midst of thee are [as] women: the gates of thy land are set wide open unto thine enemies; the fire devoureth thy bars.

Behold, thy people shall be women in the midst of thee; The gates of thy land shall be set wide open to thine enemies; The fire shall devour thy bars.

14 Draw thee water for the siege, strengthen thy fortresses; go into the clay, and tread the mortar, make strong the brick-kiln.

Draw thee water for the siege, Fortify thy strongholds. Go into the clay, and tread the mortar; Repair the brick-kiln!

15 There shall the fire devour thee; the sword shall cut thee off; it shall devour thee like the cankerworm. Make thyself many as the cankerworm, make thyself many as the locust.

Then shall the fire devour thee; The sword shall cut thee off, It shall devour thee like the locust; Though thou art increased like the locusts, Though thou art increased like the thick locusts.

16 Thou hast multiplied thy merchants more than the stars of the heavens; the cankerworm spreadeth himself out and flieth away.

Thy merchants have been more numerous than the stars of heaven; The locusts spread themselves and fly away.

17 Thy chosen men are as the locusts, and thy captains as swarms of grasshoppers, which camp in the hedges in the cold day: when the sun ariseth they flee away, and their place is not known where they are.

Thy princes are like locusts, And thy captains like swarms of locusts, Which encamp in the hedges in the time of cold; But when the sun ariseth, they flee away, And the place is not known where they are.

18 Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria; thy nobles lie still; thy people are scattered upon the mountains, and no man gathereth them.

Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria! Thy nobles take their rest, Thy people are scattered on the mountains, and none gathereth them.

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

Thy bruise is incurable; Thy wound is mortal. All that hear of thee shall clap their hands over thee; For upon whom hath not thy wickedness passed continually?