Nahum 2
1 The one who will dash you to pieces is coming up against you. Man the city walls, guard the roads, make yourselves strong, assemble your armies.
A crusher has come up before your face: keep a good look-out, let the way be watched, make yourself strong, let your power be greatly increased.
2 For Yahweh is restoring the majesty of Jacob, like the majesty of Israel, although the plunderers devastated them and destroyed their vine branches.
For the Lord will make good the vine of Jacob, as well as the vine of Israel: for the wasters have made them waste and sent destruction on the branches of their vine.
3 The shields of his mighty men are red, and the soldiers are clothed in scarlet; the chariots flash with their metal on the day that they are made ready, and the cypress spears are waved in the air.
The body-covers of his fighting men have been made red, the men of war are clothed in bright red: the war-carriages are like flames of fire in the day when he gets ready, the horses are shaking.
4 The chariots speed through the streets; they rush back and forth in the wide streets. They look like torches, and they run like lightning.
The war-carriages are rushing through the streets, pushing against one another in the wide ways, looking like burning lights, running like thunder-flames.
5 The one who will dash you to pieces calls his officers; they stumble over each other in their march; they hurry to attack the city wall. The large shield is made ready to protect these attackers.
He takes the record of his great men: they go falling on their way; they go quickly to the wall, the cover is made ready.
6 The gates at the rivers are forced open, and the palace falls to ruins.
The river doorways are forced open, and the king's house is flowing away.
7 Huzzab is stripped of her clothes and is taken away; her female servants moan like doves, beating on their breasts.
And the queen is uncovered, she is taken away and her servant-girls are weeping like the sound of doves, hammering on their breasts.
8 Nineveh is like a leaking pool of water, with its people fleeing away like rushing water. Others shout, “Stop, stop,” but no one looks back.
But Nineveh is like a pool of water whose waters are flowing away; Keep your place, they say; but no one is turning back.
9 Take the silver plunder, take the gold plunder, for there is no end to it, to the splendor of all Nineveh's beautiful things.
Take silver, take gold; for there is no end to the store; take for yourselves a weight of things to be desired.
10 Nineveh is empty and ruined. Everyone's heart melts, everyone's knees strike together, and anguish is in everyone; their faces are all pale.
Everything has been taken from her, all is gone, she has nothing more: the heart is turned to water, the knees are shaking, all are twisted in pain, and colour has gone from all faces.
11 Where now is the lions' den, the place where the young lion cubs were fed, the place where the lion and lioness walked, with the cubs, where they were afraid of nothing?
Where is the lions' hole, the place where the young lions got their food, where the lion and the she-lion were walking with their young, without cause for fear?
12 The lion tore his victims to pieces for his cubs; he strangled victims for his lionesses, and filled his cave with victims, his dens with torn carcasses.
Food enough for his young and for his she-lions was pulled down by the lion; his hole was full of flesh and his resting-place stored with meat.
13 “See, I am against you—this is the declaration of Yahweh of hosts. I will burn your chariots in the smoke, and the sword will devour your young lions. I will cut off your prey from your land, and the voices of your messengers will be heard no more.”
See, I am against you, says the Lord of armies, and I will have your war-carriages burned in the smoke, and your young lions will be food for the sword: you will no longer get your food by force on the earth, and the voice of your she-lions will be stopped for ever.
