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Nineveh's Fate Is Sealed

Nineveh, do you feel safer
    than the city of Thebes?[a]
The Nile River
    was its wall of defense.[b]
Thebes trusted the mighty power
    of Ethiopia[c] and Egypt;
the nations of Put[d] and Libya
    were her allies.
10 But she was captured and taken
    to a foreign country.
Her children were murdered
    at every street corner.
The members of her royal family
    were auctioned off,
and her high officials
    were bound in chains.

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Footnotes

  1. 3.8 Thebes: In 663 b.c., the Assyrian King Ashurbanipal captured this Egyptian city, which seems to have been built with protection similar to that of Nineveh.
  2. 3.8 was its … defense: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  3. 3.9 Ethiopia: The Hebrew text has “Cush,” which was a region south of Egypt that included parts of the present countries of Ethiopia and Sudan.
  4. 3.9 Put: A region in Africa, possibly part of the present country of Libya.

Are you better than(A) Thebes,(B)
    situated on the Nile,(C)
    with water around her?
The river was her defense,
    the waters her wall.
Cush[a](D) and Egypt were her boundless strength;
    Put(E) and Libya(F) were among her allies.
10 Yet she was taken captive(G)
    and went into exile.
Her infants were dashed(H) to pieces
    at every street corner.
Lots(I) were cast for her nobles,
    and all her great men were put in chains.(J)

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Footnotes

  1. Nahum 3:9 That is, the upper Nile region