Nahum 3
1 Woe to the city of blood! it is all full of lies and robbery; never ceaseth the preying;
Terrible things will happen to [Nineveh], that city [that is full of people who] murder [MTY] and lie. [The city is] full of things that were seized [from other countries by their soldiers]; [their armies] continually [LIT] have acted brutally towards people whom they conquered.
2 The noise of a whip, and the noise of the rattling of wheels, and of prancing horses, and of the skipping chariots.
But [now listen to the enemy soldiers coming to attack Nineveh]; [listen to them] cracking their whips, and [listen to the] rattle of [their chariot] wheels! [Listen to] their galloping horses and their chariots as they bounce along!
3 Horsemen mount, and there are the flaming sword and the glittering spear: and there is a multitude of slain, and heaps of carcasses; and without end are the corpses; they stumble on their corpses;
[Look at their] flashing swords and glittering spears as the horsemen race forward! Many [people of Nineveh will be] killed; [there will be] piles of corpses, [with the result that] people will stumble over them.
4 Because of the multitude of the lewd deeds of the harlot, that is rich in gracefulness, the mistress of witchcrafts, that selleth nations through her lewd deeds, and families through her witchcrafts.
All [that will happen] because [Nineveh is like] [MET] a beautiful prostitute [who lures men to where they will be ruined]; [Nineveh is a beautiful city] which has attracted/enticed [people of] other nations [to come there]. [The people of Nineveh] taught those people [of other nations rituals of] magic, and caused them to become their slaves.
5 Behold, I will be against thee, saith the Lord of hosts; and I will lay thy skirts open over thy face, and I will let nations see thy nakedness, and kingdoms thy shame.
[So] the Commander of the armies of angels says to [the people of Nineveh]: “I am your enemy, and I will [cause the people in other] nations to see you [completely] humiliated like [MET] [women who have committed adultery are humiliated by] having their skirts lifted high, [with the result that] people can see their naked [bodies].
6 And I will cast abominable filth upon thee, and defile thee, and will render thee a dirt-heap.
I will cause rubbish/garbage to be thrown at you; I will show [others] that I despise you very much, and I will cause you to be publicly ridiculed.
7 And it shall come to pass, that all they that see thee shall flee from thee, and say, Laid waste is Nineveh: who will condole with her? whence shall I seek comforters for thee?
All those who see you will turn their backs to you and say, ‘Nineveh is ruined, but absolutely no one [RHQ] will mourn for it.’ No one will regret Nineveh being destroyed!”
8 Art thou better than No-amon, that was situated on the rivers, that had water round about her, the rampart of which was the sea, and the walls of which rose out of the sea?
Your city is certainly [RHQ] no safer than Thebes [city] was. [Thebes was an important city] beside the Nile [River]; the river was [like] [SIM] a wall that protected the city [DOU].
9 Ethiopia the numerous, and Egypt that was without end, Put and Lubim were thy helpers.
[The rulers of] Ethiopia and Egypt helped Thebes; there was no limit to their power. [The governments of the nearby countries of] Put and Libya were also allies of Thebes.
10 Yet also she was exiled, was carried away into captivity; also her young children were dashed in pieces at the corners of all streets: and for her honorable men they cast lots, and all her great ones were bound with chains.
But Thebes was captured, and [its people were] (exiled/forced to go to other countries). Their babies were dashed to pieces in the streets [of the city]. [Enemy soldiers] (cast lots/threw small marked stones) to decide who would get each official in Thebes [to become his slave]. All the leaders of Thebes were fastened/tied by chains.
11 Thou also shalt be made drunken, thou shalt be hidden from view: thou also shalt seek refuge because of the enemy.
You [people of Nineveh] will similarly become dazed and drunk, and you will search for places to hide [to escape] from your enemies.
12 All thy strong-holds shall be like fig-trees with the first ripe figs, which, if they be shaken, will fall into the mouth of the eater.
[Your enemies will cause] the walls around your city to fall down like [SIM] the first figs that fall from fig trees [each year]. [Your city will be captured easily, like] [MET] [figs that fall] into the mouths [HYP] of those who shake the fig trees.
13 Behold, thy people are become women in the midst of thee: unto thy enemies are the gates of thy land set wide open; the fire hath devoured thy bars.
Look at your soldiers! They will be [as weak/helpless as] [MET] women! The gates of your city will be opened wide [to allow] your enemies [to enter them], [and then] the bars of those gates will be burned.
14 Water for the siege draw for thyself, fortify thy strongholds: go into the clay, and tread the mortar, make strong the brick-kiln.
Store up water [now to use when] your enemies surround the city! Repair the forts! Dig up clay and trample it [to make it soft], and put it into molds to make bricks [to repair the walls]!
15 There shall the fire devour thee; the sword shall cut thee off, it shall devour thee up like the cankerworm: [though] thou make thyself many as the cankerworm; make thyself many as the locusts.
[Nevertheless, your enemies] will burn your [city]; they will kill you with their swords; they will kill you like [SIM] locusts [destroy crops].
16 [Though] thou hadst multiplied thy merchants more than the stars of heaven: the cankerworm spreadeth itself out, and flieth away.
In your [city] there are now very many merchants; [it seems that] there are more of them than there are stars. But [when your city is being destroyed, those merchants will take the valuable things and disappear] [like] [SIM] locusts that strip the leaves from plants and [then] fly away.
17 Thy crowned ones are like the locusts, and thy leaders like the swarms of locusts, which camp in the hedges on a cold day, but when the sun ariseth they flee away, and their place is not known where they are.
Your leaders are [also] like a swarm of [SIM] locusts [DOU] that crowd together on the stone fences/walls on a cold day, and [then] fly away when the sun comes up, and no one knows where they have gone.
18 Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria; thy valiant men are at rest: scattered are thy people upon the mountains, and there is none that gathereth them.
O King of Assyria, your officials will [all] be dead [EUP]; your important people will lie down and rest [forever]. Your people will be scattered over the mountains, and there will no one to gather them [together].
19 There is no healing for thy breach; fatal is thy wound: all that hear the report of thee will clap their hands over thee; for over whom did not thy wickedness pass continually?
You [are like someone who] has a wound that cannot be healed; [it will be] a wound that causes him to die. And all those who hear about what has happened to you will clap their hands [joyfully]. [They will say, ] “Everyone has [RHQ] suffered because he continually was [very] cruel to us.”
