English Standard Version

Darby Bible Translation

Woe to Nineveh

Woe to the bloody city,
all full of lies and plunder —
no end to the prey!

Judgment against Nineveh

Woe to the bloody city! It is all full of lies [and] violence; the prey departeth not.

The crack of the whip, and rumble of the wheel,
galloping horse and bounding chariot!

The crack of the whip, and the noise of the rattling of the wheels, and of the prancing horses, and of the bounding chariots!

3

Horsemen charging,
flashing sword and glittering spear,
hosts of slain,
heaps of corpses,
dead bodies without end —
they stumble over the bodies!

3

The horseman springing up, and the glitter of the sword, and the flash of the spear, and a multitude of slain, and a mass of carcases, and no end of corpses: they stumble over their corpses.

4

And all for the countless whorings of the prostitute,
graceful and of deadly charms,
who betrays nations with her whorings,
and peoples with her charms.

4

-- Because of the multitude of the fornications of the well-favoured harlot, mistress of sorceries, that selleth nations through her fornications, and families through her sorceries,

5

Behold, I am against you,
declares the Lord of hosts,
and will lift up your skirts over your face;
and I will make nations look at your nakedness
and kingdoms at your shame.

5

behold, I am against thee, saith Jehovah of hosts; and I will uncover thy skirts upon thy face, and I will shew the nations thy nakedness, and the kingdoms thy shame.

6

I will throw filth at you
and treat you with contempt
and make you a spectacle.

6

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

7

And all who look at you will shrink from you and say,
“Wasted is Nineveh; who will grieve for her?”
Where shall I seek comforters for you?

7

And it shall come to pass, [that] all they 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

Are you better than Thebesa
that sat by the Nile,
with water around her,
her rampart a sea,
and water her wall?

8

Art thou better than No-Amon, that was situate among the rivers, [that had] the waters round about her, whose rampart was the sea, [and] of the sea was her wall?

9

Cush was her strength;
Egypt too, and that without limit;
Put and the Libyans were herb helpers.

9

Ethiopia was her strength, and Egypt, and it was infinite; Phut and the Libyans were her helpers.

10

Yet she became an exile;
she went into captivity;
her infants were dashed in pieces
at the head of every street;
for her honored men lots were cast,
and all her great men were bound in chains.

10

She too was carried away, she went into captivity: her infants 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 with chains.

11

You also will be drunken;
you will go into hiding;
you will seek a refuge from the enemy.

11

Thou also shalt be drunken: thou shalt be hid; thou also shalt seek a refuge from the enemy.

12

All your fortresses are like fig trees
with first-ripe figs —
if shaken they fall
into the mouth of the eater.

12

All thy strongholds are [like] fig-trees with the first-ripe figs: if they be shaken, they even fall into the mouth of the eater.

13

Behold, your troops
are women in your midst.
The gates of your land
are wide open to your enemies;
fire has devoured your bars.

13

Behold, thy people in the midst of thee are [as] women: the gates of thy land are set wide open unto thine enemies; the fire devoureth thy bars.

14

Draw water for the siege;
strengthen your forts;
go into the clay;
tread the mortar;
take hold of the brick mold!

14

Draw thee water for the siege, strengthen thy fortresses; go into the clay, and tread the mortar, make strong the brick-kiln.

15

There will the fire devour you;
the sword will cut you off.
It will devour you like the locust.
Multiply yourselves like the locust;
multiply like the grasshopper!

15

There shall the fire devour thee; the sword shall cut thee off; it shall devour thee like the cankerworm. Make thyself many as the cankerworm, make thyself many as the locust.

16

You increased your merchants
more than the stars of the heavens.
The locust spreads its wings and flies away.

16

Thou hast multiplied thy merchants more than the stars of the heavens; the cankerworm spreadeth himself out and flieth away.

17

Your princes are like grasshoppers,
your scribesc like clouds of locusts
settling on the fences
in a day of cold —
when the sun rises, they fly away;
no one knows where they are.

17

Thy chosen men are as the locusts, and thy captains as swarms of grasshoppers, which camp in the hedges in the cold day: when the sun ariseth they flee away, and their place is not known where they are.

18

Your shepherds are asleep,
O king of Assyria;
your nobles slumber.
Your people are scattered on the mountains
with none to gather them.

18

Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria; thy nobles lie still; thy people are scattered upon the mountains, and no man gathereth them.

19

There is no easing your hurt;
your wound is grievous.
All who hear the news about you
clap their hands over you.
For upon whom has not come
your unceasing evil?

19

There is no healing of thy breach; thy wound is grievous; all that hear the report of thee clap the hands over thee; for upon whom hath not thy wickedness passed continually?

Parallel

English Standard Version

Darby Bible Translation

Nahum 3

Nahum 3