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Yahweh's Destruction of Nineveh

^1 (F1)The one who ^(C1)scatters has come up against ^(F2)you.
Guard the fortification, watch the road;
Strengthen your loins, ^(F3)instill your power with exceeding courage.

² For Yahweh will restore the ^(C1)majesty of Jacob
^(C2)Like the majesty of Israel,
Even though those who empty them have emptied them to destruction
And ^(C3)ruined their vine branches.

³ The shields of ^(F1)his mighty men are colored red,
The valiant men are dressed in ^(C1)(F2)scarlet,
The chariots are enveloped in ^(F3)flashing steel
^(F4)When he is set up to march,
And the cypress ^(C2)spears are brandished.

⁴ The ^(C1)chariots race madly in the streets;
They rush wildly in the ^(F1)squares;
Their appearance is like torches;
They dash to and fro like lightning flashes.

⁵ He remembers his ^(C1)mighty ones;
They ^(C2)stumble in their march;
They hurry to her wall,
And the ^(F1)mantelet is set up.

⁶ The gates of the rivers are opened,
And the palace is melted away.

⁷ So it stands fixed:
She is exiled, she is carried away,
And her maidservants are ^(C1)moaning like the sound of doves,
^(C2)Beating on their hearts.

⁸ Though Nineveh was like a pool of water throughout her days,
Now they are fleeing;
"Stand! Stand!"
But ^(C1)no one ^(F1)turns back.

⁹ Plunder the silver!
Plunder the ^(C1)gold!
And there is no limit to the treasure—
^(F1)Wealth from every kind of desirable object.

¹⁰ She is ^(C1)emptied! Yes, she is emptied out and eviscerated!
^(C2)Hearts are melting and knees knocking!
Also anguish is in all their loins,
And all their ^(C3)faces ^(F1)turn pale!

¹¹ Where is the den of the lions
And the feeding place of the ^(C1)young lions,
Where the lion, lioness, and lion's cub prowled,
With nothing to make them tremble?

¹² The lion tore enough for its cubs
And strangled enough for its lionesses
And filled its lairs with torn up prey
And its dens with torn up flesh.

¹³ "Behold, ^(C1)I am against you," declares Yahweh of hosts. "And I will ^(C2)burn up her chariots in smoke, and a sword will devour your young lions; and I will ^(C3)cut off your prey from the land, and no longer will the voice of your messengers be heard."