The LORD's Avenging Wrath

11 The [1] oracle of Nineveh . The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite .

2 A jealous and avenging God is the Lord ; The Lord is avenging and [2]wrathful e . The Lord takes vengeance on His adversaries , And He reserves wrath for His enemies . 3 The Lord is slow to anger and great in power , And the Lord will by no means leave the guilty unpunished . In whirlwind and storm is His way , And clouds are the dust beneath His feet . 4 He rebukes the sea and makes it dry ; He dries up all the rivers . Bashan and Carmel wither ; The blossoms of Lebanon wither . 5 Mountains quake because of Him And the hills dissolve ; Indeed the earth is upheaved by His presence , The world and all the inhabitants in it. 6 Who can stand before His indignation ? Who can endure the burning of His anger ? His wrath is poured out like fire And the rocks are broken up by Him. 7 The Lord is good , A stronghold in the day of trouble , And He knows those who take refuge in Him. 8 But with an overflowing flood He will make a complete end of [3]its site , And will pursue His enemies into darkness .

9 Whatever you devise against the Lord , He will make a complete end of it. Distress will not rise up twice . 10 Like tangled thorns , And like those who are drunken with their drink , They are consumed As stubble completely withered . 11 From you has gone forth One who plotted evil against the Lord , A [4] wicked counselor . 12 Thus says the Lord , "Though they are at full strength and likewise many , Even so , they will be cut off and pass away . Though I have afflicted you, I will afflict you no longer . 13 "So now , I will break his yoke bar from upon you, And I will tear off your shackles ." 14 The Lord has issued a command concerning [5]you: "[6]Your name will no longer be perpetuated . I will cut off [7] idol and [8]image From the house of your gods . I will prepare your grave , For you are contemptible ."

The Tidings of Nineveh's Fall

15 [9]Behold , on the mountains the feet of him who brings good news , Who announces peace ! Celebrate your feasts , O Judah ; Pay your vows . For never e again will the [10]wicked one pass through you; He is cut off completely .

21 The one who scatters has come up against you. Man the fortress , watch the road ; Strengthen your back , summon all your strength . 2 For the Lord will restore the splendor of Jacob Like the splendor of Israel , Even though devastators have devastated them And destroyed their vine branches . 3 The shields of his mighty men are colored red , The warriors are dressed in scarlet , The chariots are enveloped in flashing steel When he is prepared to march, And the cypress spears are brandished . 4 The chariots race madly in the streets , They rush wildly in the squares , Their appearance is like torches , They dash to and fro like lightning flashes . 5 He remembers his nobles ; They stumble in their march , They hurry to her wall , And the mantelet is set up. 6 The gates of the rivers are opened And the palace is dissolved . 7 It is fixed : She is stripped , she is carried away , And her handmaids are moaning like the sound of doves , Beating on their breasts . 8 Though Nineveh was like a pool of water throughout her days , Now they are fleeing ; "Stop , stop ," But no one turns back . 9 Plunder the silver ! Plunder the gold ! For there is no limit to the treasure - Wealth from every kind of desirable object . 10 She is emptied ! Yes, she is desolate and waste ! Hearts are melting and knees knocking ! Also anguish is in the whole body And all their faces are grown pale !

11 Where is the den of the lions And the feeding place of the young lions , Where e the lion , lioness and lion's cub prowled , With nothing to disturb them? 12 The lion tore enough for his cubs , Killed enough for his lionesses , And filled his lairs with prey And his dens with torn flesh .

The Utter Ruin of Nineveh

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

31 Woe to the bloody city , completely full of lies and pillage ; Her prey never departs . 2 The noise of the whip , The noise of the rattling of the wheel , Galloping horses And bounding chariots ! 3 Horsemen charging , Swords flashing , spears gleaming , Many slain , a mass of corpses , And countless dead bodies - They stumble over the dead bodies ! 4 All because of the many harlotries of the harlot , The charming one , the mistress of sorceries , Who sells nations by her harlotries And families by her sorceries . 5 "Behold , I am against you," declares the Lord of hosts ; "And I will lift up your skirts over your face , And show to the nations your nakedness And to the kingdoms your disgrace . 6 "I will throw filth on you And make you vile , And set you up as a spectacle . 7 "And it will come about that all who see you Will shrink from you and say , 'Nineveh is devastated ! Who will grieve for her?' Where will I seek comforters for you?"

8 Are you better than No-amon e , Which was situated by the waters of the Nile , With water surrounding her, Whose rampart was the sea , Whose wall consisted of the sea ? 9 Ethiopia was her might , And Egypt too, without limits . Put and Lubim were among her helpers . 10 Yet she became an exile , She went into captivity ; Also her small children were dashed to pieces At the head of every street ; They cast lots for her honorable men, And all her great men were bound with fetters . 11 You too will become drunk , You will be hidden . You too will search for a refuge from the enemy . 12 All your fortifications are fig trees with ripe fruit - When shaken , they fall into the eater's mouth . 13 Behold , your people are women in your midst ! The gates of your land are opened wide to your enemies ; Fire consumes your gate bars . 14 Draw for yourself water for the siege ! Strengthen your fortifications ! Go into the clay and tread the mortar ! Take hold of the brick mold ! 15 There fire will consume you, The sword will cut you down ; It will consume you as the locust does. Multiply yourself like the creeping locust , Multiply yourself like the swarming locust . 16 You have increased your traders more than the stars of heaven - The creeping locust strips and flies away . 17 Your guardsmen are like the swarming locust . Your marshals are like hordes of grasshoppers Settling in the stone walls on a cold day . The sun rises and they flee , And the place where they are is not known . 18 Your shepherds are sleeping , O king of Assyria ; Your nobles are lying down . Your people are scattered on the mountains And there is no one to regather them. 19 There is no relief for your breakdown , Your wound is incurable . All who hear about you Will clap their hands over you, For on whom has not your evil passed continually ?

The Song of the 144,000

141 Then I looked , and behold , the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion , and with Him one hundred and forty-four e thousand , having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads . 2 And I heard a voice from heaven , like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder , and the voice which I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps . 3 And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders ; and no one could learn the song except the one hundred and forty-four e thousand who had been purchased from the earth . 4 These are the ones who have not been defiled with women , for they have kept themselves chaste . These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever e He goes . These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb . 5 And no lie was found in their mouth ; they are blameless .

The Messages of the Three Angels

6 And I saw another angel flying in midheaven , having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth , and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people ; 7 and he said with a loud voice , " Fear God , and give Him glory , because the hour of His judgment has come ; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters." 8 And another angel , a second one , followed , saying , " Fallen , fallen is Babylon the great , she who has made all the nations drink of the wine of the passion of her immorality ." 9 Then another angel , a third one , followed them, saying with a loud voice , "If anyone worships the beast and his image , and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand , 10 he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God , which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger ; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb . 11 "And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever ; they have no rest day and night , those who worship the beast and his image , and whoever e receives the mark of his name ." 12 Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus .

13 And I heard a voice from heaven , saying , "Write , ' Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on!' " "Yes ," says the Spirit , "so that they may rest from their labors , for their deeds follow with them."

The Harvest of the Earth

14 Then I looked , and behold , a white cloud , and sitting on the cloud was one like a son of man , having a golden crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand . 15 And another angel came out of the temple , crying out with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud , " Put in your sickle and reap , for the hour to reap has come , because the harvest of the earth is ripe ." 16 Then He who sat on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth , and the earth was reaped . 17 And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven , and he also had a sharp sickle . 18 Then another angel , the one who has power over fire , came out from the altar ; and he called with a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle , saying , " Put in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth , because her grapes are ripe ." 19 So the angel swung his sickle to the earth and gathered the clusters from the vine of the earth , and threw them into the great wine press of the wrath of God . 20 And the wine press was trodden outside the city , and blood came out from the wine press , up to the horses' bridles , for a distance of two hundred miles .