Nahum 3:16
New International Version
You have increased the number of your merchants till they are more numerous than the stars in the sky, but like locusts they strip the land and then fly away.

New Living Translation
Your merchants have multiplied until they outnumber the stars. But like a swarm of locusts, they strip the land and fly away.

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

Berean Standard Bible
You have multiplied your merchants more than the stars of the sky. The young locust strips the land and flies away.

King James Bible
Thou hast multiplied thy merchants above the stars of heaven: the cankerworm spoileth, and flieth away.

New King James Version
You have multiplied your merchants more than the stars of heaven. The locust plunders and flies away.

New American Standard Bible
You have made your traders more numerous than the stars of heaven— The creeping locust sheds its skin and flies away.

NASB 1995
You have increased your traders more than the stars of heaven— The creeping locust strips and flies away.

NASB 1977
You have increased your traders more than the stars of heaven— The creeping locust strips and flies away.

Legacy Standard Bible
You have increased your traders more than the stars of heaven— The creeping locust strips and flies away.

Amplified Bible
You have increased your traders more than the [visible] stars of heaven— The creeping locust strips and destroys and then flies away.

Christian Standard Bible
You have made your merchants more numerous than the stars of the sky. The young locust strips the land and flies away.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
You have made your merchants more numerous than the stars of the sky. The young locust strips the land and flies away.

American Standard Version
Thou hast multiplied thy merchants above the stars of heaven: the canker-worm ravageth, and fleeth away.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And you have multiplied your Merchants more than the stars of Heaven the crawling locust sheds skin and flies away

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Thou hast multiplied thy merchandise beyond the stars of heaven: the palmerworm has attacked it, and has flown away.

Contemporary English Version
More merchants are in your city than there are stars in the sky--but they are like locusts that eat everything, then fly away.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Thou hast multiplied thy merchandises above the stars of heaven: the bruchus hath spread himself and flown away.

English Revised Version
Thou hast multiplied thy merchants above the stars of heaven: the cankerworm spoileth, and flieth away.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
You have produced more businessmen than there are stars in the sky. [They are] like locusts that attack and then fly away.

Good News Translation
You produced more merchants than there are stars in the sky! But now they are gone, like locusts that spread their wings and fly away.

International Standard Version
You added to your inventory of businessmen— they number more than the stars of heaven. The creeping locust sheds its skin and flies away.

JPS Tanakh 1917
Thou hast multiplied thy merchants Above the stars of heaven; The canker-worm spreadeth itself, and flieth away.

Literal Standard Version
Multiply your merchants above the stars of the heavens, | The cankerworm has stripped off, and flees away.

Majority Standard Bible
You have multiplied your merchants more than the stars of the sky. The young locust strips the land and flies away.

New American Bible
You have made your traders more numerous than the stars of the heavens; like grasshoppers that shed their skins and fly away.

NET Bible
Increase your merchants more than the stars of heaven! They are like the young locust which sheds its skin and flies away.

New Revised Standard Version
You increased your merchants more than the stars of the heavens. The locust sheds its skin and flies away.

New Heart English Bible
You have increased your merchants more than the stars of the skies. The grasshopper strips, and flees away.

Webster's Bible Translation
Thou hast multiplied thy merchants above the stars of heaven: the canker-worm spoileth, and flieth away.

World English Bible
You have increased your merchants more than the stars of the skies. The grasshopper strips and flees away.

Young's Literal Translation
Multiply thy merchants above the stars of the heavens, The cankerworm hath stripped off, and doth flee away.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Judgment Against Nineveh
15There the fire will devour you; the sword will cut you down and consume you like a young locust. Make yourself many like the young locust; make yourself many like the swarming locust! 16You have multiplied your merchants more than the stars of the sky. The young locust strips the land and flies away. 17Your guards are like the swarming locust, and your scribes like clouds of locusts that settle on the walls on a cold day. When the sun rises, they fly away, and no one knows where.…

Cross References
Psalm 105:34
He spoke, and the locusts came--young locusts without number.

Isaiah 23:8
Who planned this against Tyre, the bestower of crowns, whose traders are princes, whose merchants are renowned on the earth?

Joel 1:4
What the devouring locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten; what the swarming locust has left, the young locust has eaten; and what the young locust has left, the destroying locust has eaten.


Treasury of Scripture

You have multiplied your merchants above the stars of heaven: the cankerworm spoils, and flees away.

above.

Genesis 15:5
And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.

Genesis 22:17
That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;

Nehemiah 9:23
Their children also multipliedst thou as the stars of heaven, and broughtest them into the land, concerning which thou hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it.

spoileth.

Jump to Previous
Cankerworm Canker-Worm Creeping Flee Flees Fleeth Flies Flieth Grasshopper Heaven Heavens Increased Itself Locust Merchants Multiplied Multiply Skies Sky Spoileth Spreadeth Spreads Stars Strip Stripped Strips Traders Wings
Jump to Next
Cankerworm Canker-Worm Creeping Flee Flees Fleeth Flies Flieth Grasshopper Heaven Heavens Increased Itself Locust Merchants Multiplied Multiply Skies Sky Spoileth Spreadeth Spreads Stars Strip Stripped Strips Traders Wings
Nahum 3
1. The destruction of Nineveh.














(16) Spoileth.--Better, spreads itself out: swarms out to spoil.

Verse 16. - Its extensive commercial relations shall not save it. Thou hast multiplied thy merchants. Nineveh was most favourably situated for carrying on commerce with other countries. The roads from Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, and Phoenicia, that led into Media, Persia, and the interior of Asia, converged at Nineveh, and brought thither merchandise from all lands; and the Assyrians themselves exported their own produce and manufactures to the far West. Among these are enumerated textile fabrics, carpets, dyed attire, and embroidered work, carvings in ivory, gems, spices (see Rawlinson, 'Anc. Mon.,' 2:179, etc.; Layard, 'Nineveh,' 2:414, etc.). The cankerworm spoileth; or, spreadeth itself for plunder; Vulgate, expansus est; Septuagint, ὥρμησεν, "attacked." The cankerworm (see note on ver. 15) are the enemy,who spread themselves over the rich produce of Nineveh, and then flee away laden with spoil. Pusey makes the cankerworm represent Nineveh. She spread herself everywhere wasting and plundering, and now she is gone, has disappeared. But the former explanation better suits the comparison in ver. 15, where "the licker" is the enemy; and it is most natural that the prophet should allude to the fate of that commercial wealth which he has just mentioned, as in previous verses he contrasts the riches and power of Nineveh with the ruin that awaits them.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
You have multiplied
הִרְבֵּית֙ (hir·bêṯ)
Verb - Hifil - Perfect - second person feminine singular
Strong's 7235: To be or become much, many or great

your merchants
רֹֽכְלַ֔יִךְ (rō·ḵə·la·yiḵ)
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural construct | second person feminine singular
Strong's 7402: To travel for, trading

more than the stars
מִכּוֹכְבֵ֖י (mik·kō·wḵ·ḇê)
Preposition-m | Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 3556: A star, a prince

of the sky.
הַשָּׁמָ֑יִם (haš·šā·mā·yim)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 8064: Heaven, sky

The young locust
יֶ֥לֶק (ye·leq)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3218: A devourer, the young locust

strips the land
פָּשַׁ֖ט (pā·šaṭ)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 6584: To strip off, make a dash, raid

and flies away.
וַיָּעֹֽף׃ (way·yā·‘ōp̄)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5774: To fly, to faint


Links
Nahum 3:16 NIV
Nahum 3:16 NLT
Nahum 3:16 ESV
Nahum 3:16 NASB
Nahum 3:16 KJV

Nahum 3:16 BibleApps.com
Nahum 3:16 Biblia Paralela
Nahum 3:16 Chinese Bible
Nahum 3:16 French Bible
Nahum 3:16 Catholic Bible

OT Prophets: Nahum 3:16 You have increased your merchants more than (Nah. Na)
Nahum 3:15
Top of Page
Top of Page