The Woe of Nineveh

1Woe to the bloody city! it is all full of lies and robbery; the prey departs not;

2The noise of a whip, and the noise of the rattling of the wheels, and of the prancing horses, and of the jumping chariots.

3The horseman lifts up both the bright sword and the glittering spear: and there is a multitude of slain, and a great number of carcasses; and there is no end of their corpses; they stumble upon their corpses:

4Because of the multitude of the whoredoms of the well favored harlot, the mistress of witchcrafts, that sells nations through her whoredoms, and families through her witchcrafts.   unfaithfulness, prostitution, idolatry; sorceries

5Behold, I am against you, says the Lord of hosts; and I will discover your skirts upon your face, and I will show the nations your nakedness, and the kingdoms your shame.   Jehovah^s.f. Tsebaoth^p.f; expose you

6And I will cast abominable filth upon you, and make you vile, and will set you as a gazing stock.   evil; spectacle

7And it shall come to pass, that all they that look upon you shall flee from you, and say, Nineveh is laid waste: who will bemoan her? where shall I seek comforters for you?

8Are you 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?   a specific place, namely Thebes; located

9Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength, and it was infinite; Put and Lubim were your helpers.

10Yet 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 honorable men, and all her great men were bound in chains.   gambled

11You also shall be drunk: you shall be hidden, you also shall seek strength because of the enemy.

12All your strong holds shall be like fig trees with the first ripe figs: if they be shaken, they shall even fall into the mouth of the eater.   fortifications

13Behold, your people in the midst of you are women: the gates of your land shall be set wide open to your enemies: the fire shall devour your bars.

14Draw you waters for the siege, fortify your strong holds: go into clay, and tread the mortar, make strong the brick kiln.

15There shall the fire devour you; the sword shall cut you off, it shall eat you up like the cankerworm: make yourself many as the cankerworm, make yourself many as the locusts.

16You have multiplied your merchants above the stars of heaven: the cankerworm spoils, and flies away.   strips

17Your crowned are as the locusts, and your captains as the great grasshoppers, which camp in the hedges in the cold day, but when the sun arises they flee away, and their place is not known where they are.   princes, leaders

18Your shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria: your nobles shall dwell in the dust: your people is scattered upon the mountains, and no man gathers them.

19There is no healing of your bruise; your wound is grievous: all that hear the bruit of you shall clap the hands over you: for upon whom has not your wickedness passed continually?   report