1 I t is bad for the city of blood, full of lies and stolen riches! There is no end of her prizes of war!

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

2 T he noise of the whip, the noise of the wheel, running horses and rolling war-wagons!

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

3 H orsemen rushing to battle, swords and spears shining, many dead, too many dead bodies to number! They fall over the dead bodies!

The horseman lifteth up both the bright sword and the glittering spear: and there is a multitude of slain, and a great number of carcases; and there is none end of their corpses; they stumble upon their corpses:

4 A ll this is because of the many sins of the woman who sells the use of her body. She tempts with her beauty and uses witchcraft. She sells nations by her sinful acts, and families by her witchcraft.

Because of the multitude of the whoredoms of the wellfavoured harlot, the mistress of witchcrafts, that selleth nations through her whoredoms, and families through her witchcrafts.

5 “ I am against you,” says the Lord of All. “I will lift up your clothing over your face and let the nations see your body. The nations will see your shame.

Behold, I am against thee, saith the Lord of hosts; and I will discover thy skirts upon thy face, and I will shew the nations thy nakedness, and the kingdoms thy shame.

6 I will throw dirt on you and make you unclean. People will look at you and see how bad you are.

And I will cast abominable filth upon thee, and make thee vile, and will set thee as a gazingstock.

7 A ll who see you will leave you and say, ‘Nineveh is destroyed! Who will have sorrow for her?’ Where can I find anyone to comfort you?”

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

8 A re you better than Thebes, which is by the Nile River? Water was all around her. The sea kept her safe, for the water was her wall.

Art thou 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?

9 E thiopia and Egypt were her strength, with too many to number. Put and Lubim were among her helpers.

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

10 Y et she was taken away to a strange land. She was taken away in chains. Her small children were beaten to death at every street corner. They drew names to see who would get her men of honor. And all her great men were put in chains.

Yet 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 honourable men, and all her great men were bound in chains.

11 Y ou also will become drunk. You will be hidden. You will look for a safe place from those who hate you.

Thou also shalt be drunken: thou shalt be hid, thou also shalt seek strength because of the enemy.

12 A ll your strong towers are like fig trees with first-fruits. When they are shaken, they fall into the mouth of the one who eats them.

All thy strong holds shall be like fig trees with the firstripe figs: if they be shaken, they shall even fall into the mouth of the eater.

13 Y our soldiers are all women. The gates of your land are opened wide to those who hate you. Fire destroys your gates.

Behold, thy people in the midst of thee are women: the gates of thy land shall be set wide open unto thine enemies: the fire shall devour thy bars.

14 S tore up water to drink when you are shut in by armies! Make your walls stronger! Go into the clay to make more clay blocks for building!

Draw thee waters for the siege, fortify thy strong holds: go into clay, and tread the morter, make strong the brickkiln.

15 T here the fire will destroy you. The sword will kill you. It will destroy you like the locust. Make yourselves as many as the locusts, as many as the flying locusts.

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

16 Y ou have more traders than the stars of heaven. The locust destroys everything from the land and flies away.

Thou hast multiplied thy merchants above the stars of heaven: the cankerworm spoileth, and fleeth away.

17 Y our watchmen are like the flying locusts. Your leaders are like clouds of locusts. They stay in the stone walls on a cold day. When the sun rises they fly away and no one knows where they are.

Thy crowned are as the locusts, and thy captains as the great grasshoppers, which camp in the hedges in the cold day, but when the sun ariseth they flee away, and their place is not known where they are.

18 Y our shepherds are sleeping, O king of Assyria. Your leaders are lying down. Your people have gone everywhere on the mountains. And there is no one to gather them together again.

Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria: thy nobles shall dwell in the dust: thy people is scattered upon the mountains, and no man gathereth them.

19 N othing can heal your hurt. Your sore cannot be cured. All who hear about you will clap their hands over you. For who has not suffered under your sinful ways again and again?

There is no healing of thy bruise; thy wound is grievous: all that hear the bruit of thee shall clap the hands over thee: for upon whom hath not thy wickedness passed continually?