¹ Woe to thee, O city of blood, all full of lies and violence: rapine shall not depart from thee.

² The noise of the whip, and the noise of the rattling of the wheels, and of the neighing horse, and of the running chariot, and of the horsemen coming up,

³ And of the shining sword, and of the glittering spear, and of a multitude slain, and of a grievous destruction: and there is no end of carcasses, and they shall fall down on their dead bodies.

⁴ Because of the multitude of the fornications of the harlot that was beautiful and agreeable, and that made use of witchcraft, that sold nations through her fornications, and families through her witchcrafts.

⁵ Behold I come against thee, saith the Lord of hosts: and I will discover thy shame to thy face, and will shew thy nakedness to the nations, and thy shame to kingdoms.

⁶ And I will cast abominations upon thee, and will disgrace thee, and will make an example of thee.

⁷ And it shall come to pass that every one that shall see thee, shall flee from thee, and shall say: Ninive is laid waste: who shall bemoan thee? whence shall I seek a comforter for thee?

⁸ Art thou better than the populous Alexandria, that dwelleth among the rivers? waters are round about it: the sea is its riches, the waters are its walls.

⁹ Ethiopia and Egypt were the strength thereof, and there is no end: Africa and the Libyans were thy helpers.

¹⁰ Yet she also was removed and carried into captivity: her young children were dashed in pieces at the top of every street, and they cast lots upon her nobles, and all her great men were bound in fetters.

¹¹ Therefore thou also shalt be made drunk, and shalt be despised: and thou shalt seek help from the enemy.

¹² All thy strong holds shall be like fig trees with their green figs: if they be shaken, they shall fall into the mouth of the eater.

¹³ Behold thy people in the midst of thee are women: the gates of thy land shall be set wide open to thy enemies, the fire shall devour thy bars.

¹⁴ Draw thee water for the siege, build up thy bulwarks: go into the clay, and tread, work it and make brick.

¹⁵ There shall the fire devour thee: thou shalt perish by the sword, it shall devour thee like the bruchus: assemble together like the bruchus, make thyself many like the locust.

¹⁶ Thou hast multiplied thy merchandises above the stars of heaven: the bruchus hath spread himself and flown away.

¹⁷ Thy guards are like the locusts: and thy little ones like the locusts of locusts which swarm on the hedges in the day of cold: the sun arose, and they flew away, and their place was not known where they were.

¹⁸ Thy shepherds have slumbered, O king of Assyria, thy princes shall be buried: thy people are hid in the mountains, and there is none to gather them together.

¹⁹ Thy destruction is not hidden, thy wound is grievous: all that have heard the fame of thee, have clapped their hands over thee: for upon whom hath not thy wickedness passed continually?

¹ He that dasheth in pieces is come up before thy face: keep the munition, watch the way, make thy loins strong, fortify thy power mightily.

² For the LORD hath turned away the excellency of Jacob, as the excellency of Israel: for the emptiers have emptied them out, and marred their vine branches.

³ The shield of his mighty men is made red, the valiant men are in scarlet: the chariots shall be with flaming torches in the day of his preparation, and the fir trees shall be terribly shaken.

⁴ The chariots shall rage in the streets, they shall justle one against another in the broad ways: they shall seem like torches, they shall run like the lightnings.

⁵ He shall recount his worthies: they shall stumble in their walk; they shall make hast to the wall thereof, and the defence shall be prepared.

⁶ The gates of the rivers shall be opened, and the palace shall be dissolved.

⁷ And Huzzab shall be led away captive, she shall be brought up, and her maids shall lead her as with the voice of doves, tabering upon their breasts.

⁸ But Nineveh is of old like a pool of water: yet they shall flee away. Stand, Stand, shall they cry; but none shall look back.

⁹ Take ye the spoil of silver, take the spoil of gold: for there is none end of the store and glory out of all the pleasant furniture.

¹⁰ She is empty, and void, and waste: and the heart melteth, and the knees smite together, and much pain is in all loins, and the faces of them all gather blackness.

¹¹ Where is the dwelling of the lions, and the feedingplace of the young lions, Where the lion, even the old lion, walked, and the lion's whelp, and none made them afraid?

¹² The lion did tear in pieces enough for his whelps, and strangled for his lionesses, and filled his holes with prey, and his dens with ravin.

¹³ Behold, I am against thee, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will burn her chariots in the smoke, and the sword shall devour thy young lions: and I will cut off thy prey from the earth, and the voice of thy messengers shall no more be heard.