The burden
of Nineveh.
The book
of the vision
of Nahum the Elkoshite.
God is jealous,
and the LORD revengeth;
the LORD revengeth,
and is furious;
the LORD
will take vengeance
on his adversaries,
and
he reserveth wrath
for his enemies.
The LORD
is slow to anger,
and great
in power,
and will not
at all acquit the wicked:
the LORD
hath his way
in the whirlwind
and in the storm,
and the clouds
are the dust
of his feet.
He rebuketh the sea,
and maketh
it dry,
and drieth up all
the rivers:
Bashan languisheth,
and Carmel,
and
the flower
of Lebanon languisheth.
The mountains quake
at him,
and the hills melt,
and the earth
is burned
at his presence,
yea,
the world,
and all that
dwell therein.
Who can stand
before his indignation?
and
who can abide in
the fierceness
of his anger?
his fury
is poured
out like fire,
and the rocks
are thrown down by him.
The LORD
is good,
a strong hold
in the day
of trouble;
and
he knoweth them
that trust
in him.
But with an overrunning
flood
he
will make
an utter end
of the place
thereof,
and darkness
shall pursue
his enemies.
What do
ye imagine
against the LORD?
he will make
an utter end:
affliction
shall not rise
up the second time.
For while
they be folden
together
as thorns,
and
while they
are drunken
as drunkards,
they
shall be devoured
as stubble
fully dry.
There is
one
come out of thee,
that imagineth evil
against the LORD,
a wicked counsellor.
Thus saith the LORD;
Though
they be quiet,
and likewise many,
yet thus
shall
they be cut down,
when
he shall pass through.
Though I
have afflicted thee,
I will afflict
thee no more.
For now will
I break
his yoke from
off thee,
and will burst
thy bonds
in sunder.
And the LORD
hath given
a commandment concerning thee,
that no more
of thy
name
be sown:
out of the house
of thy gods
will
I cut off
the graven image
and the molten image:
I will make
thy grave;
for thou art vile.
Behold
upon the mountains the feet
of him that
bringeth good tidings,
that publisheth peace!
O Judah,
keep thy solemn feasts,
perform thy vows:
for the wicked
shall no more pass
through thee;
he is utterly cut off.
He that
dasheth in pieces
is come up
before thy face:
keep the munition,
watch the way,
make thy loins strong,
fortify thy
power mightily.
For the LORD
hath turned away the excellency
of Jacob,
as the excellency
of Israel:
for the emptiers
have emptied them out,
and marred
their vine branches.
The shield
of his mighty men
is made red,
the valiant men
are in scarlet:
the chariots
shall be
with flaming torches
in the day
of his preparation,
and the fir trees
shall be terribly shaken.
The chariots
shall rage
in the streets,
they shall justle one
against another
in the broad ways:
they shall seem like torches,
they shall run like
the lightnings.
He shall recount
his worthies:
they shall stumble
in their walk;
they shall make haste
to the wall
thereof,
and the defence
shall be prepared.
The gates
of the rivers
shall be opened,
and the palace
shall be dissolved.
And Huzzab
shall be led away captive,
she shall be brought up,
and her maids
shall lead
her as
with the voice
of doves,
tabering
upon their breasts.
But Nineveh
is of old like
a pool of water:
yet
they shall flee away.
Stand,
stand,
shall
they cry;
but none
shall look back.
Take
ye the spoil
of silver,
take the spoil
of gold:
for there is none
end of the store
and glory
out of all the pleasant furniture.
She is empty,
and void,
and waste:
and the heart melteth,
and the knees
smite together,
and much pain
is in all loins,
and the faces
of them all gather blackness.
Where is the dwelling
of the lions,
and the feedingplace
of the young lions,
where the lion,
even the old lion,
walked,
and the lion's whelp,
and none
made them afraid?
The lion
did tear
in pieces enough
for his whelps,
and strangled
for his lionesses,
and filled
his holes
with prey,
and his dens
with ravin.
Behold,
I am against thee,
saith the LORD
of hosts,
and I
will burn
her chariots
in the smoke,
and the sword
shall devour
thy young lions:
and
I will cut off
thy prey
from the earth,
and the voice
of thy messengers
shall no more
be heard.
Woe to the bloody city!
it is all full of
lies and robbery;
the prey
departeth not;
The noise
of a whip,
and the noise
of the rattling
of the wheels,
and
of the pransing horses,
and
of the jumping chariots.
The horseman
lifteth up both
the bright sword
and the glittering spear:
and there is
a multitude
of slain,
and a great number
of carcases;
and there is none
end
of their corpses;
they stumble
upon their corpses:
Because
of the multitude
of the whoredoms
of the wellfavoured harlot,
the mistress
of witchcrafts,
that selleth nations
through her whoredoms,
and families
through her witchcrafts.
Behold,
I am against thee,
saith the LORD
of hosts;
and
I will discover
thy
skirts upon thy face,
and I
will shew
the nations thy nakedness,
and the kingdoms thy shame.
And I
will cast
abominable filth
upon thee,
and make thee vile,
and will set thee
as a gazingstock.
And it
shall come
to pass,
that all
they that look
upon thee
shall flee
from thee,
and say,
Nineveh is laid waste:
who will bemoan her?
whence shall
I seek comforters
for thee?
Art
thou better
than populous No,
that was
situate
among the rivers,
that had
the waters round
about it,
whose rampart
was the sea,
and her wall
was from the sea?
Ethiopia
and Egypt
were her strength,
and it
was infinite;
Put
and Lubim
were thy helpers.
Yet was
she carried away,
she went into captivity:
her young children
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
in chains.
Thou also shalt be
drunken:
thou shalt be hid,
thou also shalt seek strength
because of the enemy.
All thy strong holds
shall be like fig trees
with the firstripe figs:
if they
be shaken,
they shall even fall
into the mouth
of the eater.
Behold,
thy people
in the midst
of thee
are women:
the gates of thy
land
shall be set wide open
unto thine enemies:
the fire
shall devour
thy bars.
Draw thee waters
for the siege,
fortify thy strong holds:
go into clay,
and tread
the morter,
make strong
the brickkiln.
There shall
the fire
devour thee;
the sword
shall cut thee
off,
it shall eat thee
up like
the cankerworm:
make thyself many
as the cankerworm,
make thyself many
as the locusts.
Thou hast multiplied
thy merchants above
the stars
of heaven:
the cankerworm spoileth,
and fleeth away.
Thy crowned
are as the locusts,
and thy captains
as the great grasshoppers,
which camp
in the hedges
in the cold day,
but
when the sun
ariseth
they flee away,
and their place
is not known
where they are.
Thy shepherds slumber,
O king
of Assyria:
thy nobles
shall dwell
in the dust:
thy people
is scattered
upon the mountains,
and no man
gathereth them.
There is
no healing
of thy bruise;
thy wound
is grievous:
all that
hear the bruit
of thee
shall clap
the hands over thee:
for upon whom hath not
thy wickedness
passed continually?