The Siege and Fall of Nineveh
Nahum 2:1-13
Nah.2.1 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- הנה: PART
- על: PREP
- ההרים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- רגלי: NOUN,f,pl,cons
- מבשר: PREP
- משמיע: VERB,hiph,ptc,act,NA,m,sg
- שלום: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חגי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- חגיך: NOUN,m,pl,2ms,abs
- שלמי: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- נדריך: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- כי: CONJ
- לא: PART_NEG
- יוסיף: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- עוד: ADV
- לעבר: INF,qal
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- בליעל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כלה: ADV
- נכרת: VERB,niphal,perf,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 52:7 (verbal): Shares near-identical language—'how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace'—the same image of a messenger bringing good news and peace.
- Romans 10:15 (quotation): New Testament citation of Isaiah 52:7 ('How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace'), echoing the messenger-of-good-news motif found in Nahum 2:1.
- Isaiah 40:9 (allusion): Also uses the mountain-high proclamation motif ('O Zion... get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem... lift up thy voice'), thematically close in calling a messenger to proclaim good tidings from the heights.
- Nahum 1:15 (verbal): A closely parallel verse within the same book with almost identical phrasing about the feet of the bringer of good tidings and the proclamation of peace—internal literary repetition.
- Proverbs 25:25 (thematic): Conveys a related theme—'good news from a far country is like cold water to a thirsty soul'—connecting the beneficial impact of 'good tidings' proclaimed to a people in need.
Alternative generated candidates
- Behold, on the mountains the feet of one who brings good tidings, who proclaims peace. O Judah, keep your festivals; fulfill your vows; for no more shall the wicked pass through you—he is utterly cut off.
- Behold, on the mountains the feet of one who brings good news, who proclaims peace! Rejoice, O Judah; keep your feasts, fulfill your vows—for the scoundrel shall pass through you no more; he is cut off, he is destroyed.
Nah.2.2 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- עלה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- מפיץ: VERB,piel,ptc,m,sg
- על: PREP
- פניך: NOUN,f,pl,abs+PRON,2,m,sg
- נצור: VERB,qal,imp,2,m,sg
- מצרה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- צפה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- דרך: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- חזק: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- מתנים: NOUN,m,du,abs
- אמץ: VERB,qal,imp,2,m,sg
- כח: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מאד: ADV
Parallels
- Joshua 1:9 (verbal): Contains the same exhortation חֲזַק וֶאֱמָץ (be strong and courageous), echoing Nahum's 'אמץ כח מאד' as a call to strength.
- Ezekiel 33:7 (verbal): God appoints a 'watchman' (צָפָה) to keep watch for the land—paralleling Nahum's command to 'set a watch/path watch' (צפה־דרך) against approaching danger.
- Nehemiah 4:9 (thematic): Describes communal preparation and standing guard while rebuilding fortifications—closely parallels Nahum's imagery of watchfulness and strengthening defenses in anticipation of siege.
- 2 Chronicles 32:5 (structural): Hezekiah strengthens and equips the city's defenses (walls, towers, commanders) in face of threat, matching Nahum's call to fortify, strengthen loins/arms and prepare for attack.
Alternative generated candidates
- Arise—stand guard; you who sit on the roads, watch the way; strengthen your loins, take courage; be very strong.
- The attacker advances before your face: set the watch, guard the road; strengthen your loins, take courage—gird yourself with mighty power.
Nah.2.3 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כי: CONJ
- שב: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- את: PRT,acc
- גאון: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יעקב: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- כגאון: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,const
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כי: CONJ
- בקקום: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בקקים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- וזמריהם: CONJ+NOUN,f,pl,abs+3,pl
- שחתו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
Parallels
- Psalm 85:1 (verbal): Psalm 85:1 speaks of God restoring the fortunes of Jacob ('You have restored the fortunes of Jacob'), closely echoing Nahum's claim that the LORD will restore the glory/splendor of Jacob/Israel.
- Joel 1:12 (verbal): Joel 1:12 laments that 'the vine is dried up and the fig tree languishes,' directly paralleling Nahum's image of ruined vines and fig‑trees as signs of devastation.
- Jeremiah 30:3 (thematic): Jeremiah 30:3 promises that God will 'restore the fortunes of my people Israel,' sharing Nahum's broader theme of divine restoration of Jacob/Israel after judgment.
- Amos 9:11–15 (thematic): Amos 9:11–15 foretells the restoration of Israel—repairing what is ruined and renewing agricultural bounty—paralleling Nahum's juxtaposition of punishment and the future restoration of Israel's glory.
Alternative generated candidates
- For the LORD restores the majesty of Jacob like the majesty of Israel; the marauders have plundered them and ruined their vine-branches.
- For the LORD will restore the splendor of Jacob as the splendor of Israel; for the plunderers have plundered them and have ruined their vine-branches.
Nah.2.4 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- מגן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- גבריהו: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מאדם: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אנשי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- חיל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מתלעים: VERB,hitpael,ptcp,3,m,pl
- באש: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- פלדות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- הרכב: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ביום: PREP
- הכינו: VERB,hiph,imp,2,m,pl
- והברשים: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,def
- הרעלו: VERB,hifil,perf,3,m,pl
Parallels
- Nahum 2:3 (structural): Immediate context depicting shields, valor and the assaulting troops; continues the same battle imagery and military details (shields, men of might).
- Habakkuk 1:8 (verbal): Similar vivid portrayal of an invading cavalry—swift, fierce horsemen and chariots—echoing Nahum’s depiction of mounted troops and flashing weapons.
- Joel 2:4-5 (thematic): Describes an overwhelming warlike force with the appearance and movement of horses and horsemen; parallels the image of cavalry and the terrifying advance of troops.
- Psalm 20:7 (thematic): Contrasts human reliance on chariots and horses with reliance on God; thematically linked to Nahum’s focus on military power (chariots, cavalry) as instruments of violence.
- Isaiah 31:1 (thematic): Warning against trusting in horses and chariots for help; thematically connected to prophetic treatments of military forces and their futility apart from God.
Alternative generated candidates
- The shield of his mighty men is crimson; the valiant are clothed in scarlet. The chariots flash with steel in the day they are made ready; the cavalry prance—the chargers rear.
- The shield of his mighty men is dyed red; the valiant are clothed in crimson. The chariots flash like torches on the day they are readied; the spears glitter like lightning.
Nah.2.5 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- בחוצות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- יתהוללו: VERB,hitpael,impf,3,m,pl
- הרכב: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ישתקשקון: VERB,hitpael,impf,3,m,pl
- ברחבות: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- מראיהן: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs+3,f,pl
- כלפידם: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs+3,m,pl
- כברקים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ירוצצו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
Parallels
- 2 Samuel 22:11-16 (verbal): Uses violent, luminous imagery (chariot/whirlwind, lightning, flashes) of rapid, devastating movement—parallels Nahum’s simile of chariots like torches/lightning.
- Habakkuk 3:8-11 (thematic): Warrior/visitation vision with horses, chariots and lightning-like motion; evokes the same swift, fiery assault imagery as Nahum 2:5.
- Joel 2:2-11 (thematic): Description of an invading force as overwhelming, swift and consuming (fire, lightning-like speed); thematically parallels Nahum’s depiction of chariots racing through the streets.
- Jeremiah 4:13 (verbal): Directly compares invading chariots to a whirlwind—a closely related metaphor to Nahum’s image of chariots dashing like lightning through the broad ways.
Alternative generated candidates
- In the streets they riot; the chariots clatter, they jostle in the broad ways; they gleam like torches, they run like lightning.
- In the streets they riot; the chariots clatter in the broad ways—their appearance is like torches; they rush on like bolts of lightning.
Nah.2.6 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- יזכר: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- אדיריו: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- יכשלו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- בהליכתם: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ימהרו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- חומתה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- והכן: VERB,hiph,impv,2,m,sg
- הסכך: NOUN,m,sg,def
Parallels
- Joel 2:5 (verbal): Language and image of warriors hastening to and climbing/assaulting the wall—echoes Nahum’s 'they shall hasten to the wall' and the assault on fortifications.
- Isaiah 37:36 (thematic): Divine overthrow of an Assyrian host in which fighting men and leaders are struck down—parallels Nahum’s picture of nobles stumbling and military collapse.
- 2 Kings 19:35 (structural): Parallel historical account (same event as Isaiah 37:36) of the sudden rout of Assyria, underscoring the motif of a broken military and exposed city.
- Zephaniah 2:13-15 (allusion): Prophecy announcing Nineveh’s humiliation and ruin—imagery of exposed gates, fallen city, and the disgrace of its leaders closely mirrors Nahum’s oracle.
Alternative generated candidates
- Their nobles are shaken; they stumble in their marching. They hasten to the wall—the rampart is prepared.
- Their nobles are dismayed; they stumble in their march. They hurry to the wall; the defenses are made ready.
Nah.2.7 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- שערי: NOUN,m,pl,cstr
- הנהרות: NOUN,m,pl,def
- נפתחו: VERB,niphal,perf,3,m,pl
- וההיכל: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,def
- נמוג: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Nahum 3:8 (verbal): Also depicts a great city 'situate among the rivers' whose watery defenses are part of the oracle against it — echoes Nahum 2:7’s river-gate imagery applied to a doomed city.
- Habakkuk 3:8 (verbal): The prophet asks whether God’s anger is 'against the rivers,' personifying rivers in the scene of divine judgement, paralleling Nahum’s motif of rivers as instruments/locations of destruction.
- Genesis 7:11 (thematic): The Flood narrative describes the 'windows of heaven' and 'fountains of the great deep' being opened—a related motif of waters being unleashed to destroy a city/world, resonant with 'gates of the rivers opened.'
- Revelation 16:12 (thematic): In the final judgments the Euphrates is manipulated (dried up) to prepare the way for divine action; like Nahum, rivers are portrayed as pivotal elements in eschatological/military events.
- Psalm 46:4 (thematic): Speaks of a river that makes glad the city of God — a contrasting use of river imagery (life-giving vs. destructive) that illuminates Nahum’s depiction of rivers as part of a city’s downfall.
Alternative generated candidates
- The gates by the river are opened; the palace dissolves.
- The river-gates are opened, and the palace melts away.
Nah.2.8 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- והצב: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- גלתה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- העלתה: VERB,hifil,perf,3,f,sg
- ואמהתיה: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- מנהגות: VERB,qal,ptcp,3,f,pl
- כקול: PREP
- יונים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- מתפפת: VERB,hitpael,ptcp,3,f,pl
- על: PREP
- לבבהן: NOUN,m,pl,abs
Parallels
- Isaiah 13:18 (thematic): Both prophetic passages portray the brutality of conquest—children dashed and merciless treatment of the defeated—echoing Nahum’s depiction of captured women and communal devastation.
- Lamentations 1:6 (thematic): Lamentations pictures the daughters/people of Zion in mourning and exile; like Nahum, it emphasizes vulnerable women and the communal suffering that follows a city’s fall.
- Song of Solomon 2:14 (verbal): Uses the simile of a dove to describe a young woman; Nahum’s explicit comparison of maidens to doves draws on the same imagery of tenderness, vulnerability and plaintive sound.
- Psalm 55:6 (verbal): The psalm’s longing for wings 'like a dove' and the dove‑image of flight and distress parallels Nahum’s image of women as fluttering doves—emphasizing fear, vulnerability, and the impulse to flee.
Alternative generated candidates
- The host has fled, taken away; her maidens moan like doves, each beating upon her breast.
- The people flee—she is carried away; her handmaids lead her like doves, beating upon their breasts.
Nah.2.9 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ונינוה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כברכת: NOUN,f,sg,cons
- מים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- מימי: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,cons
- היא: PRON,dem,3,f,sg
- והמה: PRON,3,m,pl
- נסים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- עמדו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- עמדו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- ואין: CONJ+PART,exist
- מפנה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Nahum 1:8 (thematic): Same prophecy: Yahweh’s fierce, overwhelming judgment likened to floods that leave no escape—shared imagery of destruction and inability to flee.
- Nahum 3:8-10 (verbal): Continues the account of Nineveh’s downfall; depicts soldiers fleeing, attempts at defense and ultimate failure, closely echoing the flight and lack of return in 2:9.
- Jonah 3:5-10 (allusion): Earlier prophetic episode about Nineveh’s repentance and deliverance—serves as a theological contrast to Nahum’s depiction of Nineveh’s final collapse and futile flight.
- Jeremiah 51:36-37 (thematic): God dries up seas and rivers as part of judgment against a great city (Babylon); parallels the motif of waters and loss of refuge used to portray a city’s destruction.
Alternative generated candidates
- Nineveh is like a pool whose waters flee away; "Stop! Stop!" they cry—but none turns back.
- Nineveh is like a pool of water: "Stop! Stop!" they cry—yet there is no turning back.
Nah.2.10 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- בזו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- כסף: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בזו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- זהב: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואין: CONJ+PART,exist
- קצה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לתכונה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כבד: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- מכל: PREP
- כלי: NOUN,m,pl,const
- חמדה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Ezekiel 7:19 (verbal): Explicitly speaks of silver and gold being cast out and unable to deliver in the day of judgment—directly parallels the image of abundant treasure and its worthlessness at destruction.
- Zephaniah 1:18 (verbal): Declares that neither silver nor gold will be able to save in the day of the LORD’s wrath, echoing the theme that wealth and precious vessels cannot prevent ruin.
- Ezekiel 27:12-24 (thematic): Catalogue of a city's merchandise and precious wares and the subsequent loss of those treasures—parallels the picture of great wealth and its plunder.
- Lamentations 4:1 (thematic): Laments how gold and fine adornment have lost their glory—echoes the motif of once‑precious items rendered worthless by destruction.
- Habakkuk 2:8-9 (thematic): Pronounces judgment on those who amass wealth by violence and predicts they will be plundered—reflects the reversal in which accumulated treasures are taken away.
Alternative generated candidates
- With her is silver, with her is gold; there is no end to the store of every desirable vessel.
- Silver in this, gold in that; there is no end to their treasure—more precious than any desirable vessel.
Nah.2.11 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- בוקה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ומבוקה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ומבלקה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ולב: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,const
- נמס: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ופק: CONJ+VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ברכים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- וחלחלה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- בכל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מתנים: NOUN,m,du,abs
- ופני: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,cons
- כלם: PRON,3,m,pl
- קבצו: VERB,qal,imp,2,mp
- פארור: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Joel 2:6 (verbal): Both passages use the formula 'all faces shall gather blackness' (or similar) to describe the pallor/shock on people's faces in the face of invading/destructive forces.
- Isaiah 13:7-8 (thematic): Parallel imagery of terror at impending destruction—'every man's heart shall melt,' fear, pangs and anguish—mirroring Nahum's language of hearts melting and bodily trembling.
- Psalm 22:14 (verbal): Psalmist's line 'my heart is like wax; it is melted' echoes Nahum's 'לב נמס' (the heart melts), a vivid metaphor for overwhelming fear and collapse of courage.
- Habakkuk 3:16 (thematic): Habakkuk describes bodily reactions to divine/terrifying revelation—trembling, quivering lips, and shaking bones—resonant with Nahum's catalog of physical terror (knees knocking, loins trembling).
- Isaiah 21:4 (thematic): Isaiah's 'my heart panted, fearfulness affrighted me' parallels the emotional/physical panic in Nahum (heart melting, trembling knees), another depiction of panic at impending calamity.
Alternative generated candidates
- Wail! Crash! Panic! The heart melts, knees knock; anguish in all loins, and every face grows pale.
- Wail! Wail! and lament! The heart melts, the knees knock; trembling seizes all loins; all faces grow pale and sink.
Nah.2.12 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- איה: ADV,interr
- מעון: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אריות: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ומרעה: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הוא: PRON,3,m,sg
- לכפרים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- הלך: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אריה: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- לביא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- שם: ADV
- גור: VERB,qal,imp,2,m,sg
- אריה: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- ואין: CONJ+PART,exist
- מחריד: VERB,piel,ptc,0,m,sg
Parallels
- Ezekiel 19:2-9 (thematic): A poetical lament that uses the image of a lion and its cubs to describe princes/leadership and their capture — closely parallels Nahum’s rhetorical question about the lion’s lair and feeding-place.
- Genesis 49:9 (verbal): Jacob’s blessing calls Judah a 'young lion' (lion’s cub), employing the same lion-and-offspring imagery to characterize a polity and its power.
- Hosea 5:14 (thematic): God speaks of coming 'as a lion' against Israel/Ephraim — uses lion-as-predator imagery to portray judgment, similar to Nahum’s depiction of a once-feared lion’s haunt now challenged.
- 1 Samuel 17:34-37 (thematic): David’s memory of a lion seizing sheep (and his defense of the flock) evokes the lion-as-predator motif; thematically comparable to Nahum’s picture of a lion’s den and its young.
Alternative generated candidates
- Where is the den of lions, the feeding-place for the young lions—where the lion went, and brought his cubs, and none made them afraid?
- Where is the lion's den, the feeding-place of lionesses, where the lion went to bring his cub and none made him afraid?
Nah.2.13 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אריה: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- טרף: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בדי: ADV
- גרותיו: NOUN,f,pl,cstr+3ms
- ומחנק: VERB,ptc,qal,m,sg
- ללבאתיו: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs+3ms
- וימלא: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- טרף: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חריו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+3ms
- ומענתיו: NOUN,f,pl,abs+3ms
- טרפה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Psalm 10:9 (verbal): Uses the same image of a predator lying in wait “in a secret place”/“in his lair,” echoing the verb and setting of a lion in its den (בדי גרותיו).
- Job 4:10–11 (thematic): Speaks of the roaring lion and the fate of its prey/young—parallel language about a lion’s violence and the breaking/devouring of victims, resonating with Nahum’s predator imagery.
- Amos 3:8 (thematic): The motif of the lion’s roar as an announcement of divine action or judgment (’The lion has roared; who will not fear?’) connects to Nahum’s use of lion-judgment imagery to depict destruction.
- Ezekiel 19:2–9 (allusion): An extended lament using lion and lion‑whelp imagery to describe princes taken and torn—comparable to Nahum’s picture of lions, their dens, and prey to portray violent overthrow and ruin.
Alternative generated candidates
- The lion tore enough for his cubs and strangled prey for his lionesses; he filled his dens with spoil and his lairs with torn flesh.
- A lion has torn enough for his lair and strangled for his den; he filled his caves with prey and his lairs with torn flesh.
Behold, upon the mountains are the feet of one who brings good news, who proclaims peace: celebrate your feasts, O Judah; fulfill your vows; for the worthless one shall pass through you no more — he is utterly cut off.
Rise up, spread out upon your ramparts; keep watch, O fortress; look toward the road. Gird your loins; take courage; gather your great strength.
For the LORD will restore the splendor of Jacob as the splendor of Israel; the devastators have devastated them and have ruined their vine-branches.
The shields of his mighty men are crimson; the warriors are clothed in scarlet. The chariots flash like steel on the day they are made ready; the spears are brandished.
In the streets they rush headlong; they clatter in the squares. Their appearance is like torches; they run like lightning.
Her nobles stumble as they go; they hurry to the wall; the bulwarks are made ready, the defense prepared.
The river-gates are opened and the palace melts away.
She is carried off, her escort flees; her maidens moan like doves, beating upon their breasts.
Nineveh is like a pool whose waters are fleeing away: "Stand! Stand!" they call, but none looks back.
They fling away silver, they fling away gold; there is no end to their treasures — every precious vessel is burdensome.
Woe! Woe! Cry and lament! My heart melts, my knees tremble; anguish seizes every thigh; every face grows pale.
Where is the den of lions, the feeding-place for young lions, where the lion went to bring his cub, and none made him afraid?
The lion tore enough for his young, he strangled for his lionesses, and filled his caves with prey, his dens with torn flesh.