Nahum 2

The Fall of Nineveh

1 The one who scatters is coming up against you. Guard the fortress, watch the road, brace yourself, gather all your strength.

2 The LORD will restore the majesty of Jacob like the majesty of Israel, though destroyers have laid them waste and ruined their vines.

3 The shields of his warriors are red, the soldiers dressed in scarlet. The chariots flash with metal on the day he prepares for battle, and the spears are brandished.

4 The chariots race wildly through the streets, rushing back and forth in the squares. They look like flaming torches, darting like lightning.

5 He calls for his officers, but they stumble as they advance. They rush to the wall, and the defensive shield is set up.

6 The river gates are opened, and the palace collapses.

7 It is decided, she is stripped and carried away. Her servants moan like doves and beat their chests.

8 Nineveh is like a pool whose water is draining away. People shout, “Stop, stop!” but nobody turns back.

9 Plunder the silver, plunder the gold. There is no end to the treasure, wealth from every precious thing.

10 She is empty, desolate, ruined. Hearts melt, knees knock, bodies tremble, faces grow pale.

The Lion’s Den Destroyed

11 Where is the lions’ den, the feeding place of the young lions, where the lion and lioness walked and the cubs had nothing to fear,

12 The lion tore enough for his cubs and strangled prey for his lionesses. He filled his caves with prey and his dens with torn flesh.

13 “Look, I am against you,” declares the LORD of armies. “I will burn up your chariots in smoke, and the sword will devour your young lions. I will cut off your prey from the land, and the voices of your messengers will be heard no more.”