Nahum 3

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

Woe to the bloody city! Full of lies and plunder, without end is the spoil.

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.

Hear the crack of the whip, hear the rattle of wheels. Galloping horses, jolting chariots.

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:

Horsemen charging, swords flashing, spears glittering, a multitude of slain, a heap of bodies, no end to the corpses over which people stumble!

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 you acted like a whore, bewitching the nations, enticing the peoples,

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.

I am against you, Nineveh’ the Lord of hosts declares. ‘I will strip your clothes and show the nations your nakedness, and the kingdoms your shame.

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

‘I will fling loathsome filth at you, and make you an object of contempt, a spectacle,

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?

so that everyone who sees you will flee from you and say: “Nineveh is laid waste, who will mourn for her?”

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 any better than Thebes, which stood on the banks of the Nile, with waters around as a rampart, whose wall was the sea of waters?

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

Her strength was Ethiopia and Egypt. The Libyans were her helpers, and Put with its countless people.

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.

Yet she was exiled and made captive. On all corners of the streets her infants were dashed to pieces. Lots were cast for her nobles, all her great ones were bound in chains.

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

‘You too, Nineveh, will be drunk with fear; you too will seek a place of escape from the foe.

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 the first ripe figs; if shaken, they 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.

Your troops are weak as women before your foes; the gates of your land are wide open; your defenses burned down.

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

‘Draw water for the siege, strengthen your forts. Go to the clay pits and tread the clay; take up the brick moulds.

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 the fire will consume you, the sword will cut you down. Multiply like the locust or a swarm of grasshoppers.

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

Increase the numbers of your merchants until they are more than the stars of heaven,

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].

until your watchmen are locusts, and your scribes like grasshoppers, which swarm in the hedges on a cold day; but when the sun rises they fly away, no one knows where.

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].

‘King of Assyria: your princes slumber, your nobles sleep! Your people are scattered on the mountains with no one to gather 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?

There is no healing for your hurt, your wound is incurable. All who hear of your fate clap their hands in joy, for who has escaped your limitless cruelty?’