Nahum 2:1, 3; 3:1-3, 6-7
Chapter 2
1
Feast in Jerusalem
Look, there on the mountains, the feet of someone bringing good news, someone who proclaims peace. Judah, celebrate your festivals and fulfill your vows. For the wicked have been defeated, and they will no longer attack you.Chapter 3
1
Bloodthirsty City
Woe to the bloody city, city of lies and plunder,O city of endless loot!
2
But look! The crack of whips,the rumble of wheels, and the clatter of hooves!
3
See the frantic chargers,the flashing swords and shimmering spears,the heaps of wounded,the dead and dying—We trip over corpses!
6
I will throw filth at you, I will treat you with contempt, and turn you intoa shameful spectacle,
7
so that everyone who sees you will turn away in disgust and say: Nineveh—a city of lust—is in ruins. Who will mourn for her?Where can we find one to comfort her?
Commentaries
Feast in Jerusalem.
These verses mark the transition to a new oracle, where the focus shifts from the judgment and destruction of Nineveh to the salvation of Judah.
Assault and Conquest of Nineveh.
The poetic beauty of these verses is lost in translation. Hebrew poetry emphasizes rhythm and sound to depict the relentless pounding of horses’ hooves and terrified hearts (5:11). The city of Nineveh, capital of the mighty Assyrian Empire, fell in 612 B.C. after a siege by the armies of the Medes and Babylonians.
It looks like the besiegers diverted the channels of the Tigris River to break down the terracotta walls (7). The female slaves mentioned in verse 8 would be the women of the king’s harem.
The “lion” is the king of Assyria who used terror, punishment, torture, and unusual humiliations to subjugate and exploit the people (12-14). God punishes violence and the violation of the rights of the most vulnerable both outside and inside Israel. Those who wield power must use it to bring justice to the poorest (Is 10:1-2; Mi 2:1).
Bloodthirsty City.
Nineveh is described as a prostitute (4), and as such, she will face the punishment typical for prostitutes and adulterers among the peoples of the ancient Near East (5-7). Her crimes are the cause of her shame before all nations.