Nahum 1–2

1^aAn oracle concerning ^bNineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum of Elkosh.

God’s Wrath Against Nineveh

^2cThe Lord is a jealous and avenging God;

the Lord is avenging and wrathful;

^dthe Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries

and ^ekeeps wrath for his enemies.

^3fThe Lord is slow to anger and ^ggreat in power,

and ^hthe Lord will by no means clear the guilty.

ⁱHis way is in whirlwind and storm,

and the clouds are the dust of his feet.

^4jHe rebukes the sea and makes it dry;

he dries up all the rivers;

^kBashan and ^lCarmel wither;

the bloom of ^kLebanon withers.

^5mThe mountains quake before him;

ⁿthe hills melt;

the earth heaves before him,

^othe world and all who dwell in it.

^6pWho can stand before his indignation?

Who can endure the heat of his anger?

His wrath ^qis poured out like fire,

and ^rthe rocks are broken into pieces by him.

^7sThe Lord is good,

^ta stronghold in the day of trouble;

^uhe knows those who take refuge in him.

⁸But ^vwith an overflowing flood

he will make a complete end of the adversaries,¹

and ^wwill pursue his enemies into darkness.

⁹What ^xdo you plot against the Lord?

^yHe will make a complete end;

trouble will not rise up a second time.

¹⁰For they are ^zlike entangled thorns,

like drunkards as they drink;

^athey are consumed like stubble fully dried.

¹¹From you came one

^bwho plotted evil against the Lord,

a worthless counselor.

¹²Thus says the Lord,

“Though they are at full strength and many,

^cthey will be cut down and pass away.

^dThough I have afflicted you,

I will afflict you no more.

¹³And now ^eI will break his yoke from off you

and will burst your bonds apart.”

¹⁴The Lord has given commandment about you:

^f“No more shall your name be perpetuated;

from ^gthe house of your gods I will cut off

the carved image and the metal image.

^hI will make your grave, ⁱfor you are vile.”

^{152 j}Behold, upon the mountains, ^kthe feet of him

who brings good news,

who publishes peace!

^lKeep your feasts, O Judah;

^mfulfill your vows,

ⁿfor never again shall the worthless pass through you;

he is utterly cut off.

The Destruction of Nineveh

2^oThe scatterer has come up against you.

^pMan the ramparts;

watch the road;

dress for battle;¹

collect all your strength.

²For ^qthe Lord is restoring the majesty of Jacob

as the majesty of Israel,

for plunderers have plundered them

and ^rruined their branches.

³The shield of his mighty men is red;

^shis soldiers are clothed in scarlet.

The chariots come with flashing metal

on the day he musters them;

the cypress spears are brandished.

^4tThe chariots race madly through the streets;

they rush to and fro through the squares;

they gleam like torches;

they dart like lightning.

⁵He remembers ^uhis officers;

^vthey stumble as they go,

they hasten to the wall;

the siege tower² is set up.

^6wThe river gates are opened;

the palace ^xmelts away;

⁷its mistress³ is ^ystripped;⁴ she is carried off,

her slave girls ^zlamenting,

moaning like doves

and beating their breasts.

^8bNineveh is like a pool

whose waters run away.⁵

“Halt! Halt!” they cry,

but ^cnone turns back.

⁹Plunder the silver,

plunder the gold!

There is no end of the treasure

or of the wealth of all precious things.

^10dDesolate! Desolation and ruin!

^eHearts melt and ^fknees tremble;

^ganguish is in all loins;

^hall faces grow pale!

¹¹Where is the lions’ den,

the feeding place of ⁱthe young lions,

where the lion and lioness went,

where his cubs were, with ^jnone to disturb?

^12kThe lion tore enough for his cubs

and ^lstrangled prey for his lionesses;

he filled his caves with prey

and his dens with torn flesh.

^13mBehold, I am against you, declares the Lord of hosts, and ⁿI will burn your⁶ chariots in smoke, and the sword shall devour your young lions. I will cut off your prey from the earth, and ^othe voice of your messengers shall no longer be heard.