Nineveh’s Wickedness and Doom
Nahum 3:1-19
Nah.3.1 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- הוי: INTJ
- עיר: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- דמים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- כלה: ADV
- כחש: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- פרק: VERB,qal,impv,2,m,sg
- מלאה: ADV
- לא: PART_NEG
- ימיש: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- טרף: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Isaiah 1:21 (verbal): Isaiah speaks of the once‑faithful city becoming corrupt and filled with blood and falsehood — language and accusation of a 'city full of blood/lying' closely echoing Nahum's indictment.
- Ezekiel 22:2 (verbal): Ezekiel asks, 'What is this city that is full of blood?' — a near‑verbatim thematic parallel condemning a city's pervasive bloodguilt.
- Micah 3:1-3 (thematic): Micah condemns leaders who consume/bleed the people, take bribes and plunder — parallel themes of violence, exploitation and corrupt urban leadership found in Nahum.
- Revelation 17:6 (allusion): The woman (city) is described as 'drunk with the blood of the saints,' echoing the prophetic motif of a metropolis stained with blood and judged for its crimes (New Testament apocalyptic fulfillment/resonance).
Alternative generated candidates
- Woe to the bloody city! It is full of lies and plunder; the prey will never depart.
- Woe to the bloody city! She is all full of lies and plunder; her prey never departs.
Nah.3.2 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- קול: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- שוט: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וקול: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- רעש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אופן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וסוס: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- דהר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ומרכבה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- מרקדה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Nahum 2:3-4 (verbal): Immediate parallel within Nahum: similar vocabulary and imagery of wheels, chariots, prancing horses and the sound/noise of approaching war.
- Joel 2:4-5 (thematic): Uses military imagery of horses and chariots and the sound of their advance to describe an invading force—echoes the same auditory and martial motifs.
- Habakkuk 1:8 (thematic): Describes swift, fierce horsemen and a rapid military onslaught—comparable emphasis on horses and the terror of their approach.
- Psalm 20:7 (thematic): Contrasts reliance on chariots and horses with reliance on God; shares the cultural motif of chariots and horses as military power.
- Zechariah 9:10 (allusion): Prophetic reversal of chariot/horse power (cutting off chariots and war-horses); relates to the theme of chariots as instruments of warfare and their ultimate defeat.
Alternative generated candidates
- The sound of the whip and the sound of trampling—the wheel rattles, the horse dashes, the chariot leaps.
- The sound of the whip, the clamor of the wheel, the neighing of horses and the prancing of chariots.
Nah.3.3 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- פרש: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- מעלה: VERB,qal,ptcp,m,sg
- ולהב: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חרב: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- וברק: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חנית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ורב: CONJ+ADJ,m,sg
- חלל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וכבד: CONJ+ADJ,m,sg,abs
- פגר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואין: CONJ+PART,exist
- קצה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לגויה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- וכשלו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בגויתם: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Nah.2:3-4 (verbal): Same oracle against Nineveh: both verses use military imagery (chariots, horses, spear/sword, glittering weaponry) to portray violent assault and slaughter; close verbal and thematic continuity within Nahum.
- Isaiah 34:6-7 (verbal): Graphic portrayal of the Lord's sword drenched in blood and the slaughter of nations; echoes Nahum's language of a blood‑soaked sword and abundant corpses—similar imagery of divine/destructive violence.
- Ezekiel 39:17-20 (thematic): Describes corpses and the aftermath of a great slaughter (birds and beasts feasting on the fallen), resonating with Nahum's emphasis on multitudes of slain and unsparing devastation.
- Isaiah 13:15-16 (thematic): Prophecy of Babylon's violent overthrow with graphic images of slaughter and bodies of the slain—parallels Nahum's depiction of overwhelming carnage and fallen corpses.
- Rev.19:21 (thematic): New Testament depiction of the defeated being slain by the sword of the rider on the white horse; echoes the motif of decisive, sword‑wrought destruction and masses of the slain found in Nahum 3:3.
Alternative generated candidates
- Horseman mounts; sword like fire, spear like lightning—many are the slain, a mass of corpses; there is no end to the dead; they stumble over their corpses.
- Horsemen mounting; sword flashing like lightning, spear gleaming; there are many slain, a great heap of corpses—there is no end to the slain, they stumble over the dead.
Nah.3.4 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- מרב: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- זנוני: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- זונה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- טובת: NOUN,f,sg,cs
- חן: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- בעלת: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כשפים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- המכרת: NOUN,f,sg,def
- גוים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- בזנוניה: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs,3,f
- ומשפחות: CONJ+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- בכשפיה: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs,3,f
Parallels
- Revelation 17:1-5 (verbal): Describes a ‘mother of harlots’ who corrupts kings and nations—directly parallels Nahum’s image of a seductive, prostitution‑like power that 'sells nations'.
- Revelation 18:3 (verbal): Speaks of the nations being made drunk with the wine of her fornication—echoes Nahum’s charge that the city wins over nations through sexual/ideological seduction.
- Ezekiel 23:37-39 (thematic): Uses the prostitute metaphor for cities/peoples who corrupt nations through idolatry and sexual unfaithfulness—parallel imagery of harlotry and political/spiritual betrayal.
- Hosea 4:12-14 (thematic): Links Israel’s unfaithfulness to prostitution and to seeking out soothsayers/witchcraft—resonates with Nahum’s coupling of harlotry and ‘witchcraft’ (כשפים).
- Jeremiah 51:7 (thematic): Describes Babylon as a cup that makes all the earth drunk, seducing nations—parallels the motif of a city that captures and corrupts nations through its allure.
Alternative generated candidates
- Because of the many harlotries of the alluring harlot—graceful and practiced in witchcraft—she has sold nations by her prostitution and clans by her sorceries.
- Because of the multitude of your harlotries, O harlot, mistress of sorceries—who sells nations by her harlotry and families by her sorcery.
Nah.3.5 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- הנני: PRT+PRON,1,sg
- אליך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- נאם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- צבאות: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- וגליתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,c,sg
- שוליך: VERB,qal,ptcp,_,m,sg
- על: PREP
- פניך: NOUN,f,pl,abs+PRON,2,m,sg
- והראיתי: CONJ+VERB,hiphil,perf,1,sg
- גוים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- מערך: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וממלכות: CONJ+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- קלונך: NOUN,m,sg,abs,2,ms
Parallels
- Isaiah 47:3–4 (verbal): Addresses Babylon’s humiliation with the same image of exposed nakedness and public shame—God declares he will uncover her and make nations see her disgrace (close verbal and thematic parallel).
- Ezekiel 16:37–39 (verbal): God promises to take away Jerusalem’s dignity, strip her, and expose her to nations so they may see her shame—uses the same motif of stripping/uncovering as divine judgment.
- Ezekiel 23:10–11 (allusion): Describes the sisters’ prostitution and how God gave them over to lovers who uncovered their nakedness and shame; echoes the imagery of exposure and humiliation used against a city.
- Hosea 2:3 (verbal): God threatens to strip Israel of her finery and expose her as punishment for harlotry—similar idiom of uncovering/stripping as divine retribution for unfaithfulness.
- Revelation 17:16 (thematic): The beast and the kings strip the great prostitute of her clothes and eat her—New Testament recapitulation of the motif of a city/prostitute publicly stripped and shamed as judgment.
Alternative generated candidates
- Behold, I am against you, declares the LORD of hosts; I will lift up your skirts over your face and make the nations see your nakedness and the kingdoms your shame.
- Behold, I am against you, declares the LORD of hosts; I will uncover your skirts before the nations and make the kingdoms see your nakedness.
Nah.3.6 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- והשלכתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,comm,sg
- עליך: PREP+2ms
- שקצים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ונבלתיך: VERB,qal,perf,1,c,sg
- ושמתיך: CONJ+VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg,obj:2,f,sg
- כראי: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Deuteronomy 28:37 (verbal): Pronounces that the afflicted nation will become a 'horror, a proverb, and a byword' among peoples—parallel language of public disgrace and being set forth as an object of scorn like Nahum's 'set you as a spectacle.'
- Jeremiah 13:14 (verbal): God declares He will make the guilty a 'horror to all the kingdoms of the earth,' echoing Nahum's theme of divine shame and exposure before the nations.
- Habakkuk 2:16 (thematic): Speaks of disgrace and 'filth at your feet' replacing glory—resonates with Nahum's image of casting abominations/filth and making the city vile.
- Lamentations 2:15 (thematic): Describes the city as a spectacle of derision—passersby clap, scoff, and mock—paralleling Nahum's portrayal of public humiliation and exposure.
Alternative generated candidates
- I will throw abominations upon you, make you a disgrace, and set you as a loathsome spectacle.
- I will cast abominations upon you and make you desolate; I will put you to open shame and make you a spectacle.
Nah.3.7 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- והיה: VERB,qal,imperfect,3,m,sg
- כל: DET
- ראיך: VERB,qal,ptc,3,mp
- ידוד: VERB,qal,ptc,3,m,pl
- ממך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- ואמר: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- שדדה: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- נינוה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- מי: PRON,interr,sg
- ינוד: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- לה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- מאין: ADV,interrog
- אבקש: VERB,qal,impf,1,_,sg
- מנחמים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- לך: PRON,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Lamentations 1:2 (verbal): Jerusalem laments that she has no comforters and that former friends have become enemies—language and theme nearly identical to Nineveh’s abandonment and lack of mourners/comforters.
- Ezekiel 26:16 (thematic): Oracle against Tyre: onlookers are appalled and the city comes to a dreadful end—parallel motif of a great city undone and abandoned by allies and observers.
- Revelation 18:11-19 (allusion): The fall of Babylon: merchants and onlookers stand far off, lament or mock the ruined city; the passage echoes OT city-oracle language about deserted metropolises and lack of comforters.
- Isaiah 47:11 (thematic): Isaiah’s taunt against Babylon—sudden calamity and inability to avert or find help—parallels Nineveh’s unexpected ruin and absence of rescuers or comforters.
Alternative generated candidates
- All who look on you will flee from you and say, “Nineveh is laid waste—who will grieve for her? Where shall I seek anyone to comfort you?”
- All who look on you shall flee from you and say, “Nineveh is laid waste—who will mourn for her? Where shall I seek comforters for you?”
Nah.3.8 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- התיטבי: VERB,hitpael,perf,2,f,sg
- מנא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אמון: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הישבה: PART,qal,ptc,f,sg,def
- ביארים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- מים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- סביב: ADV
- לה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- אשר: PRON,rel
- חיל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ים: NOUN,m,sg,cs
- מים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- חומתה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Ezekiel 29:3 (verbal): Speaks of Egypt/Pharaoh 'lying in the midst of his rivers' like Nahum's depiction of No-Amon 'sitting among the rivers'—both emphasize dependence on surrounding waters as a supposed protection.
- Ezekiel 30:14 (allusion): Also prophesies against No (No-Amon/Thebes); both verses name the same city and announce judgment despite its situation 'among the rivers.'
- Isaiah 19:5-7 (thematic): Foretells the drying up/weakening of the Nile and the consequent shame of Egypt—parallel theme: a city secure because of its waters will be exposed and brought low.
- Ezekiel 26:3-5 (verbal): Describes Tyre as 'in the midst of the sea' and treats the sea as its rampart; similar imagery to Nahum's 'waters around her' and 'her wall was the sea,' showing maritime defenses that fail under divine judgment.
Alternative generated candidates
- Are you better than No‑Amon, that sat among the rivers, with waters around her, whose rampart was the sea, whose wall was the sea?
- Are you better than populous No‑Amon, which sat by the rivers, whose waters encompassed her and the Nile was her defense?
Nah.3.9 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כוש: NOUN,prop,sg,m
- עצמה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ומצרים: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ואין: CONJ+PART,exist
- קצה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- פוט: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ולובים: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- היו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בעזרתך: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,2,ms
Parallels
- Genesis 10:6 (structural): Same ethnographic list (Cush, Mizraim/Egypt, Put, Lubim/Libya) as descendants of Ham — shared names and groupings underlying prophetic references to these nations.
- Isaiah 30:1-3 (thematic): Condemns seeking help from Egypt/Cush and trusting foreign military power; parallels Nahum’s theme that Egypt and Cush as allies cannot ultimately save a threatened city.
- Isaiah 31:1-3 (thematic): Warnings against reliance on Egypt and its chariots/horses; like Nahum 3:9 it emphasizes the futility of trusting Egypt and similar foreign powers for deliverance.
- Ezekiel 30:4-6 (verbal): Enumerates Cush, Put (Libya) and other nations in a prophetic oracle about Egypt’s downfall — uses many of the same ethnic names and portrays their involvement in imperial judgment, echoing Nahum’s list of allied peoples.
Alternative generated candidates
- Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength; Put and the Libyans were among her helpers.
- Cush and Egypt were her strength; and there was no limit to her help—Put and the Libyans were her allies.
Nah.3.10 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- גם: ADV
- היא: PRON,dem,3,f,sg
- לגלה: VERB,qal,inf
- הלכה: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- בשבי: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- גם: ADV
- עלליה: NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,3,f,sg
- ירטשו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- בראש: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,cstr
- כל: DET
- חוצות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ועל: CONJ+PREP
- נכבדיה: NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,3,f,sg
- ידו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- גורל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וכל: CONJ+PRON,indef
- גדוליה: NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,3,f,sg
- רתקו: VERB,qal,perf,3,pl
- בזקים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
Parallels
- Isaiah 13:16 (verbal): Uses the same violent image of children being dashed in the streets before the conquerors—close verbal and thematic parallel to Nahum’s description of slaughtered children.
- Psalm 137:9 (thematic): Expresses the motif of violent retribution against children of the enemy; thematically parallels Nahum’s depiction of brutal treatment of the conquered population.
- 2 Kings 25:7 (verbal): Describes the capture of Jerusalem’s leaders and the binding of the king in chains—parallels Nahum’s note that the great men were bound and the people taken captive.
- Psalm 22:18 (verbal): Mentions casting lots in the context of divvying up the spoils (garments); parallels Nahum’s image of casting lots for the nobles as part of the conquerors’ division of spoil and fate.
Alternative generated candidates
- Yet she also went into exile; she went into captivity. Her youths were dashed to pieces in every street; and over all her treasures they cast lots; all her great men were bound with fetters.
- Yet she too went into exile; she is carried off into captivity. Her youths are dashed in pieces at the head of every street; they cast lots for her nobles, and all her great men are bound in chains.
Nah.3.11 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- גם: ADV
- את: PRT,acc
- תשכרי: VERB,qal,impf,2,f,sg
- תהי: VERB,qal,juss,3,f,sg
- נעלמה: ADJ,f,sg
- גם: ADV
- את: PRT,acc
- תבקשי: VERB,qal,impf,2,f,sg
- מעוז: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מאויב: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Jonah 3:5-10 (thematic): Same city (Nineveh) but a contrasting outcome: Jonah records Nineveh’s repentance and turning to God, whereas Nahum pronounces inevitable disgrace—both engage the theme of the city’s response before divine judgment.
- Isaiah 29:9-10 (verbal): Uses the image of being stunned/drunk and blind as the effect of divine action (ʻdrunkennessʼ/confusion)—parallel metaphor for peoples’ disorientation when judgment comes.
- Nahum 3:7 (structural): Internal parallel within the oracle against Nineveh: both verses stress abandonment and the city’s loss of refuge/comforters—echoing the motif of seeking safety from the enemy and finding none.
- Jeremiah 51:7 (verbal): Babylon is said to have made the nations ʻdrinkʼ (become drunk) and so suffers reciprocal judgment—similar intoxicating imagery used to portray a city’s arrogance and its coming downfall.
- Amos 6:1 (thematic): Condemns complacent, secure urban elites who will be brought low—themewise kin to Nahum’s taunt that the proud city will be humbled and will seek refuge in vain.
Alternative generated candidates
- You too shall be drunk—vanish away; you shall seek a stronghold from the enemy.
- You also will be drunk; you will hide; you will seek refuge from the foe.
Nah.3.12 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כל: DET
- מבצריך: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- תאנים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- עם: PREP
- בכורים: NOUN,m,pl,cs
- אם: CONJ
- ינועו: VERB,niphal,impf,3,m,pl
- ונפלו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- על: PREP
- פי: NOUN,m,sg,construct
- אוכל: VERB,qal,part,1,m,sg
Parallels
- Hosea 9:10 (verbal): Israel compared to early/first-ripe figs (ראשׁית/בכורים) — similar fig-tree/first-ripe imagery and vulnerability to being eaten, close verbal parallel to Nahum's fortress-as-figs motif.
- Joel 1:12 (thematic): The vine and fig tree languish and fruit fails — uses fig-tree/harvest imagery to signify devastation, thematically like Nahum's shaken fortresses that fall into the eater's mouth.
- Habakkuk 3:17 (thematic): ‘Though the fig tree should not blossom…’ — loss of figs/fruit as a symbol of national calamity, thematically parallel to Nahum's image of figs and destruction.
- Micah 7:1 (verbal): Language of desiring the first-ripe fruit/early harvest (בכורים) and scarcity of fruit — echoes Nahum's 'figs with first-ripe fruit' motif linking fruitfulness and vulnerability.
Alternative generated candidates
- All your strongholds are fig trees with first-ripe figs; when shaken, they fall into the mouth of the eater.
- All who gather figs along the hedges—those first-ripe—are doomed: if they but tremble, they fall into the mouth of the devourer.
Nah.3.13 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- הנה: PART
- עמך: NOUN,m,sg,suff-2m
- נשים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- בקרבך: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs,prs:2ms
- לאיביך: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs,2ms
- פתוח: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- נפתחו: VERB,niphal,perf,3,m,pl
- שערי: NOUN,m,pl,cstr
- ארצך: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אכלה: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- אש: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- בריחיך: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs+2ms
Parallels
- Lamentations 2:7 (verbal): Uses nearly identical imagery of gates and bars destroyed—‘her gates have sunk into the ground; he has broken her bars,’ paralleling Nahum’s ‘the gates of your land are open… fire has devoured your bars.’
- Isaiah 3:26 (thematic): Speaks of a city whose men are gone into exile so that ‘all that remain are women’ and the city’s defenses are compromised—echoing Nahum’s depiction of weakness within and vulnerability to enemies.
- Zephaniah 2:13-15 (allusion): Prophecy of judgment on Assyria/Nineveh—humiliation, desolation and loss of strength—closely parallels Nahum’s announcement of Nineveh’s exposure, open gates and destruction.
- Jeremiah 52:7-11 (structural): Narrates the siege and breach of Jerusalem—walls and gates broken and people carried off—providing a historical precedent for the motif of gates opened to enemies and the city laid bare as in Nahum 3:13.
Alternative generated candidates
- Behold, your people in your midst are women; the gates of your land are opened to your enemies—fire has devoured your bars.
- Look, your people are women in your midst; the gates of your land are opened to your enemies; fire has devoured your bars.
Nah.3.14 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- מי: PRON,interr,sg
- מצור: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- שאבי: VERB,qal,imp,2,fs
- לך: PRON,2,m,sg
- חזקי: VERB,qal,imp,2,f,sg
- מבצריך: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- באי: PREP+VERB,qal,ptcp,m,pl
- בטיט: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ורמסי: CONJ+VERB,qal,imp,2,fs
- בחמר: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- החזיקי: VERB,hif,perf,3,m,pl
- מלבן: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Ezekiel 4:1-3 (structural): Ezekiel models a siege with a clay brick and siege-works (portraying the city and siege), echoing Nahum's concrete imagery of clay, mortar and brick-strengthening as part of siege preparations.
- Jeremiah 51:58 (thematic): Both passages depict the futility of urban defenses—walls and gates failing—and foresee burning and destruction of the fortified city.
- 2 Kings 25:9-10 (thematic): The account of Jerusalem's walls being broken and the city burned by besiegers parallels Nahum's portrayal of fortified works and brick structures being overcome and consumed.
- Zephaniah 2:13-15 (thematic): Zephaniah's oracle against the great northern/urban powers (their defenses and strongholds) and prediction of desolation resonates with Nahum's motif of futile fortification and impending destruction.
Alternative generated candidates
- Take counsel, strengthen your defenses; go into the clay, tread the mortar, repair the brickwork.
- Draw water for the siege; strengthen your defenses—pile up the mud, tread the mortar, repair the brick kiln.
Nah.3.15 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- שם: ADV
- תאכלך: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,sg
- אש: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- תכריתך: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,sg
- חרב: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- תאכלך: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,sg
- כילק: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- התכבד: VERB,hitpael,impf,3,f,sg
- כילק: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- התכבדי: VERB,hitpael,impf,2,f,sg
- כארבה: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Joel 1:4 (thematic): Uses locust imagery of utter devastation—'the locust has eaten'—paralleling Nahum's simile of destruction 'it shall devour thee like the locust.'
- Exodus 10:12-15 (verbal): Describes the plague of locusts that 'covered the land' and 'devoured' all vegetation—an earlier OT precedent for comparing total ruin to swarms of locusts, as in Nahum.
- Joel 2:3 (verbal): Portrays an advancing, consuming force with fire before them and a flame behind—language of fire and devouring destruction echoes Nahum's 'there the fire shall devour thee.'
- Amos 4:9 (thematic): Attributes judgment to pestilence/locust-like devastation—'I struck you with blight and locusts'—connecting the prophetic motif of agriculturally complete destruction used by Nahum's locust comparison.
- Nahum 2:13 (structural): Within the same oracle against Nineveh, this verse also pictures the city's ruin by fire and sword ('I will burn her chariots in smoke'); it is an internal parallel reinforcing the combined imagery of fire, sword, and complete devouring found in 3:15.
Alternative generated candidates
- There fire will devour you; the sword will cut you off. It will devour you like the locust—multiply like the locust, increase like the grasshopper.
- There fire will devour you; the sword will cut you off; it will devour you like the locust. Make yourself many as the locust; make yourself numerous as the grasshopper.
Nah.3.16 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- הרבית: VERB,hif,perf,2,m,sg
- רכליך: NOUN,m,pl,abs+2ms
- מכוכבי: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,const
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- ילק: VERB,qal,ipf,3,m,sg
- פשט: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ויעף: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Genesis 15:5 (verbal): Uses the phrase ‘as the stars of heaven’ to indicate vast multitude; Nahum likewise compares the multitude of merchants to the stars (numerical imagery).
- Joel 2:4-5 (verbal): Describes locusts/caterpillars that strip and fly away—paralleling Nahum’s image of a devouring, flying swarm (ילק…פשט ויעף).
- Ezekiel 27:23-24 (thematic): Depicts extensive merchants and international trade centered in a proud city (Tyre); parallels Nahum’s focus on a city’s many merchants and commercial prosperity subject to prophetic judgment.
- Revelation 18:11-17 (structural): Portrays merchants mourning the sudden fall of a great commercial city and the loss of merchandise—echoing the prophetic motif of abundant traders who are stripped and ruined.
Alternative generated candidates
- You multiplied your traders like the stars of heaven; the locust strips off and flies away.
- You multiplied your merchants like the stars of heaven—but like the locust they strip and fly away.
Nah.3.17 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- מנזריך: NOUN,m,pl,poss,2,m,sg
- כארבה: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וטפסריך: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,poss,2,m,sg
- כגוב: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- גבי: NOUN,m,sg,abs+1s
- החונים: PART,qal,ptc,pl,m,def
- בגדרות: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ביום: PREP
- קרה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- שמש: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- זרחה: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- ונודד: CONJ+VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ולא: CONJ
- נודע: VERB,niphal,perf,3,m,sg
- מקומו: NOUN,m,sg,abs,poss:3,m
- אים: PART,interr
Parallels
- Joel 2:4-5 (thematic): Joel uses locust imagery to describe an invading force—'they leap on the city, they run like mighty men'—parallel to Nahum's metaphor of guards/officials as swarming locusts (an armylike destructive swarm).
- Exodus 10:12-15 (thematic): The plague of locusts in Egypt describes vast swarms that cover the land and consume all, then are driven away; parallels Nahum's use of locust behavior (swarming, consuming, then disappearing) and underscores the image of transient, devouring attackers.
- Proverbs 30:27 (verbal): Proverbs explicitly notes the organized movement of locusts ('locusts have no king yet they advance in ranks'), echoing Nahum's depiction of many clustered guards/officials 'like locusts' or 'swarms' occupying the walls.
- Joel 2:25 (thematic): Joel's statement about restoration for what 'the locust hath eaten' highlights the locust as a biblical emblem of devastation; this reinforces Nahum's use of locust imagery to portray destructive, consuming forces associated with the city's defenders.
Alternative generated candidates
- Your guards are like locusts and your officers like swarms of grasshoppers that settle in hedges; in the cold they cluster, when the sun rises they fly away—and no one knows where.
- Your princes are like locusts and your rulers like a swarm that lodges among the hedges; on the day the sun rises they fly away, and no one knows where they are.
Nah.3.18 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- נמו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- רעיך: NOUN,m,sg,abs,2,m,sg
- מלך: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- אשור: NOUN,prop,m,sg
- ישכנו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- אדיריך: NOUN,m,pl,abs+prs2ms
- נפשו: NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- עמך: NOUN,m,sg,suff-2m
- על: PREP
- ההרים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- ואין: CONJ+PART,exist
- מקבץ: VERB,qal,ptcp,ms
Parallels
- Joel 2:4-5 (verbal): Uses locust imagery to describe an invading force—swarms compared to soldiers—parallel to Nahum’s comparison of Assyrian leaders and troops to locusts.
- Isaiah 10:12-15 (thematic): Condemns Assyrian arrogance and predicts divine judgment: Assyria’s boasting and eventual humiliation echo Nahum’s depiction of mighty Assyrian rulers who will be laid low.
- Zephaniah 2:13-15 (thematic): Pronounces the ruin of Assyria/Nineveh and describes its desolation and shame—a prophetic parallel to Nahum’s oracle of Nineveh’s undoing and the futility of its strength.
- Isaiah 37:36 (cf. 2 Kings 19:35) (structural): Narrative account of the sudden destruction of the Assyrian army—complements Nahum’s image of numerous Assyrian forces disappearing as if swept away.
Alternative generated candidates
- Your leaders sleep, your princes lie down; your people are scattered on the mountains—there is no one to gather them.
- Are your warriors asleep, O king of Assyria? Your nobles lie still; your people are scattered on the mountains—there is no one to gather them.
Nah.3.19 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אין: PART,neg
- כהה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לשברך: VERB,qal,infc,2,m,sg
- נחלה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- מכתך: NOUN,f,sg,suff-2ms
- כל: DET
- שמעי: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- שמעך: NOUN,m,sg,suff:2,m,sg
- תקעו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- כף: NOUN,f,sg,construct
- עליך: PREP+2ms
- כי: CONJ
- על: PREP
- מי: PRON,interr,sg
- לא: PART_NEG
- עברה: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- רעתך: NOUN,f,sg,abs+2,m
- תמיד: ADV
Parallels
- Nahum 3:18 (verbal): Immediate parallel in the same oracle—repeats the language of an incurable wound and grievous blow (׳אין רפואה למכתך׳), forming a close verbal echo and continuation of the theme of ruin and humiliation.
- Jeremiah 30:12-13 (verbal): Jeremiah uses an almost identical formula about an incurable hurt and persistent calamity (׳אין רפואה לחלך... לא־מכתך׳), echoing the motif of indelible destruction and divine punishment.
- Isaiah 1:6 (thematic): Isaiah depicts the nation as having no soundness from head to toe—only grievous wounds and putrefying sores—paralleling Nahum's imagery of an incurable, spreading wound that signals total civic/ethical collapse.
- Zephaniah 2:13-15 (thematic): Zephaniah pronounces desolation on a proud, secure city (names and imagery often associated with Assyria/Nineveh), linking arrogance, sudden downfall, and public humiliation—themes central to Nahum 3:19.
- Psalm 47:1 (thematic): The psalm calls the peoples to 'clap your hands' in triumph; Nahum's image of those who hear the news clapping over Nineveh likewise evokes public rejoicing at a defeated enemy and communal celebration of justice.
Alternative generated candidates
- There is no healing for your bruise; your wound is grievous. All who hear the report of you clap their hands over you—for upon whom has not your evil continually fallen?
- There is no healing for your hurt; your wound is grievous. All who hear the report of you clap their hands over you—for upon whom has not your evil passed continually?
Woe to the bloody city—full of lies and plunder; no prey ever departs from her.
The sound of the whip, the crash of trampling, the wheel, the charging horse, the leaping chariot.
Horsemen mount; the sword flashes like fire, the spear like lightning. A great slaughter—many corpses; their bodies are heavy, with no end to the slain; they stumble upon their corpses.
Because of the abundance of harlotries of the harlot, the alluring one, skilled in sorcery—she sold nations by her prostitution and families by her witchcraft.
Behold, I am against you, declares the LORD of hosts; I will uncover your skirts upon your face and make nations see your disgrace and kingdoms your shame.
I will cast abominations upon you and make you vile; I will set you as a spectacle.
All who see you will flee from you and say, “Nineveh is laid waste; who will lament for her? From where shall I seek comforters for you?”
Are you better than No‑Amon, she that sat by the rivers, that had the waters round about her—whose strength was the sea, whose wall was the sea?
Cush was her strength and Egypt without end; Put and the Libyans were at her help.
Yet she also went into exile—led away captive; her infants were dashed in pieces at the head of every street, and all her nobles were bound with fetters.
You also shall be made drunk; you shall go into hiding; you shall seek a fortress from the foe.
All your strongholds are like fig trees with first-ripe figs—if they are shaken, they fall into the eater’s mouth.
Behold, your people in your midst are women; the gates of your land are opened to your enemies; fire devours your bars.
Draw water for the siege; strengthen your fortresses; rush into the clay, tread the mortar, repair the brickwork.
There fire will consume you; the sword will cut you off—devouring you like the locust; multiply as locusts, stripping and flying away.
You increased your merchants as the stars of heaven—innumerable; the swarm strips and flies away.
Your watchmen are like locusts and your officers like swarms of grasshoppers settling on the walls; when the sun rises they fly away, and no one knows where.
Your shepherds were asleep—O king of Assyria—your nobles lay in slumber; your people are scattered on the mountains, with no one to gather them.
There is no healing for your bruise; your wound is grievous. All who hear the news of you clap their hands at you; for upon whom has not your evil passed continually?