Nahum 3

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

Woe [to] the city of blood, She is all full with lies [and] burglary, Prey does not depart.

2 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 sound of a whip, And the sound of the rattling of a wheel, And of a prancing horse, and of a bounding chariot, Of a horseman mounting.

3 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:

And the flame of a sword, and the lightning of a spear, And the abundance of the wounded, And the weight of carcasses, Indeed, there is no end to the bodies, They stumble over their bodies.

4 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.

Because of the abundance of the fornications of a harlot, The goodness of the grace of the lady of witchcrafts, Who is selling nations by her fornications, And families by her witchcrafts.

5 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.

“Behold, I [am] against you,” A declaration of YHWH of Hosts, “And have removed your skirts before your face, And have showed nations your nakedness, And kingdoms your shame,

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

And I have cast on you abominations, And dishonored you, and made you as a sight.

7 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?

And it has come to pass, Each of your beholders flees from you, And has said: Nineveh is spoiled, Who bemoans for her? From where do I seek comforters for you?”

8 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?

Are you better than No-Ammon, That is dwelling among brooks? Waters she has around her, Whose bulwark [is] the sea, waters her wall.

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

Cush her might, and Egypt, and there is no end. Put and Lubim have been for your help.

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.

Even she becomes an exile, She has gone into captivity, Even her sucklings are dashed to pieces At the top of all out-places, And for her honored ones they cast a lot, And all her great ones have been bound in chains.

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

Even you are drunken, you are hidden, Even you seek a strong place, because of an 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.

All your fortresses [are] fig trees with first-fruits, If they are shaken, They have fallen 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.

Behold, your people [are] women in your midst, To your enemies thoroughly opened Have been the gates of your land, Fire has consumed your bars.

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

Waters of a siege draw for yourself, Strengthen your fortresses, Enter into mire, and tread on clay, Make strong a brick-kiln.

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.

There a fire consumes you, A sword cuts you off, It consumes you as a cankerworm! Make yourself heavy as the cankerworm, Make yourself heavy as the locust.

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

Multiply your merchants above the stars of the heavens, The cankerworm has stripped off, and flees 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].

Your crowned ones [are] as a locust, And your princes as great grasshoppers, That encamp in hedges in a day of cold, The sun has risen, and it flees away, And its place where they are is not known.

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].

Your friends have slumbered, king of Asshur, Your majestic ones rest, Your people have been scattered on the mountains, And there is none gathering.

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?

There is no weakening of your destruction, Your striking [is] grievous, All hearing your fame have clapped the hand at you, For over whom did your wickedness not pass continually?