Nahum 3
1 Wo to the citee of bloodis, al of leesyng, ful of to-reendyng; raueyn shal not go awei fro thee.
Woe to the city of blood! She is all full of deceit and robbery; She ceaseth not from plunder.
2 Vois of scourge, and vois of bire of wheel, and of hors makynge noise, and of foure horsid carte brennynge, and of kniyt stiynge vp,
[[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 and of schynynge swerd, and glesenynge spere, and of slayn multitude, and of greuouse fallyng, nether ther is eende of careyns. And thei schulen falle togidere in her bodies,
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 for the multitude of fornicaciouns of the hoore fair and plesaunt, and hauynge witchecraftis; which seelde folkis in her fornicaciouns, and meynees in her enchauntementis, ether 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 Lo! Y to thee, seith the Lord God of oostis; and Y schal schewe thi schameful thingis in thi face; and Y schal schewe to folkis thi nakidnesse, and to rewmes thin yuel fame.
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 Y schal cast out on thee thin abhomynaciouns, and Y schal punysche thee with dispitis, and Y schal putte thee in to ensaumple.
And I will cast abominable filth upon thee, And I will dishonor thee, and make thee a gazing-stock,
7 And it schal be, ech man that schal se thee, schal skippe awei fro thee, and schal seie, Nynyue is distried. Who schal moue heed on thee? wherof schal Y seke to thee a coumfortour?
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 Whether thou art betere than Alisaundre of puplis, that dwellith in floodis? Watris ben in cumpas therof, whos richessis is the see, watris ben wallis therof.
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 Ethiope is strengthe therof, and Egipt, and there is noon ende; Affrik and Libie weren in help therof.
Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength, a countless multitude; Phut and Lybia were thy helpers!
10 But and it in `passyng ouer is led in to caitifte; the litle children therof ben hurtlid doun in the heed of alle weies. And on the noble men therof thei kesten lot, and alle grete men therof ben set togidere in gyues.
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 And thou therfor schalt be drunkun, and schalt be dispisid, and thou schalt seke helpe of enemye.
Thou also shalt drink to the full; Thou, too, shalt be hidden; Thou shalt seek a refuge from the enemy!
12 Al thi strengthis as a fige tree, with hise figis vnripe; if thei schulen be schakun, thei schulen falle in to the mouth of the etere.
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 Lo! thi puple ben wymmen in the myddil of thee; the yatis of thi lond schulen be schewid to openyng to thin enemyes; fier schal deuoure thin herris.
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 Drawe vp to thee water for asegyng, bilde thi strengthis; entre in fen, and trede, thou vndurgoynge holde a tiel stoon.
Draw thee water for the siege, Fortify thy strongholds. Go into the clay, and tread the mortar; Repair the brick-kiln!
15 There fier schal ete thee, thou schalt perische bi swerd, it schal deuoure thee, as bruke doith; be thou gaderid togidere as a bruke, be thou multiplied as a locuste.
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 madist thi marchaundises mo than ben sterris of heuene; a bruke is spred abrood, and flei awei.
Thy merchants have been more numerous than the stars of heaven; The locusts spread themselves and fly away.
17 Thi keperis ben as locustis, and thi litle children ben as locustis of locustis, whiche sitten togidere in heggis in the dai of coold; the sun is risun, and thei fledden awei, and the place of hem is not knowun, where thei weren.
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 Thi scheepherdis napten, thou kyng Assur, thi princes schulen be biried; thi puple ofte was hid in hillis, and ther is not that schal gadere.
Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria! Thy nobles take their rest, Thy people are scattered on the mountains, and none gathereth them.
19 Thi sorewe is not priuy, thi wounde is worst; alle men that herden thin heryng, pressiden togidere hond on thee, for on whom passide not thi malice euermore?
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?
