Nahum 3
1 What a disaster is coming upon this murderous city with all its treachery! It is full of wealth it has robbed, and always has plenty of victims.
Woe to the city full of blood! It is all full of lies and stolen property; victims are always in her.
2 Listen to the noise: whips crack, wheels clatter, horses gallop, chariots rattle!
But now there is the noise of whips and the sound of rattling wheels, prancing horses, and bounding chariots.
3 Horsemen charge, swords flash, spears glitter! Many dead, piles of corpses, countless bodies—so many that people stumble over them.
There are attacking horsemen, flashing swords, glittering spears, heaps of corpses, great piles of bodies. There is no end to the bodies; their attackers stumble over them.
4 All this happens because the repeated prostitution of Nineveh the prostitute, the beautiful mistress with her deadly charms who seduces nations into slavery by her prostitution and her witchcraft.
This is happening because of the lustful actions of the beautiful prostitute, the expert in witchcraft, who sells nations through her prostitution, and peoples through her acts of witchcraft.
5 Watch out! For I am against you, declares the Lord Almighty. I will lift your skirts over your face and let the nations see your nakedness, and kingdoms see your shame.
“See, I am against you—this is the declaration of Yahweh of hosts—I will raise up your skirt over your face and show your private parts to the nations, your shame to the kingdoms.
6 I will throw filth at you. I will treat you with contempt, and make a spectacle of you.
I will throw disgusting filth on you and make you vile; I will make you someone that everyone will look at.
7 Then everyone who sees you will shun you saying, “Nineveh is ruined! But who is going to mourn your loss?” Where should I look to find anyone to comfort you?
It will come about that everyone who looks at you will flee from you and say, 'Nineveh is destroyed; who will weep for her?' Where can I find anyone to comfort you?”
8 Are you any better than the city of Thebes on the River Nile, surrounded by water? Water was its defense, water was its wall.
Nineveh, are you better than Thebes, that was built on the Nile River, that had water around her, whose defense was the ocean, whose wall was the sea itself?
9 The city ruled Egypt and Ethiopia. Put and Libya were its allies.
Cush and Egypt were her strength, and there was no end to it; Put and Libya were allies to her.
10 Yet its people were also taken away into exile, into captivity. Their babies were dashed to pieces in every street. Their nobles were bound in chains and taken away as servants, chosen by lot.
Yet Thebes was carried away; she went into captivity; her young children were dashed in pieces at the head of every street; her enemies threw lots for her honorable men, and all her great men were bound in chains.
11 You too will behave like a drunk. You will hide in fear, trying to find a place safe from the enemy.
You also will become drunk; you will try to hide, and you will also look for a refuge from your enemy.
12 All your fortresses are like fig trees ripe with fruit—they fall when they are shaken into the mouth of the one eating.
All your fortresses will be like fig trees with the earliest ripe figs: if they are shaken, they fall into the mouth of the eater.
13 Look! Your soldiers are women among you. The gates of your land are wide open to your enemies; the bars of the gates will be set on fire.
See, the people among you are women; the gates of your land have been opened wide to your enemies; fire has devoured their bars.
14 Store water to prepare for a siege! Strengthen your fortresses! Go to the clay pits to tread it well, mix the cement, get your brick molds ready!
Go draw water for the siege; strengthen your fortresses; go into the clay and tread the mortar; pick up the molds for the bricks.
15 But even so, there the fire will consume you, you will be cut down by the sword. You will be destroyed as if you were devoured by a swarm of locusts. So multiply yourselves like locusts, like a swarm of locusts.
Fire will devour you there, and the sword will destroy you. It will devour you as young locusts devour everything. Make yourselves as many as the young locusts, as many as the full-grown locusts.
16 You increased your merchants so that there are more of them than the stars of heaven. But like locusts they strip everything and then fly away.
You have multiplied your merchants more than the stars in the heavens; but they are like young locusts: they plunder the land and then fly away.
17 Your leaders are like locusts, your officials like a swarm of locusts. They rest on walls on a cold day, but when the sun rises they fly away, and no one knows where they've gone.
Your princes are as many as the full-grown locusts, and your generals are like swarms of them that camp in the walls on a cold day. But when the sun rises they fly away to no one knows where.
18 King of Assyria, your shepherds are asleep, your princes are slumbering. Your people are scattered across the mountains and no one can gather them.
King of Assyria, your shepherds are asleep; your rulers are lying down resting. Your people are scattered on the mountains, and there is no one to gather them.
19 There is no way to heal your injuries, you are too badly wounded. Everyone who hears this news will applaud what has happened to you, for was there anyone who escaped your continuous cruelty?
No healing is possible for your wounds. Your wounds are severe. Everyone who hears the news about you will clap their hands in joy over you. Who has escaped your constant wickedness?
