John Calvin on Nahum 3:19

The Prophet shows here more clearly, that when the empire of Nineveh should be scattered, it would be an incurable evil, that every hope of a remedy would be taken away. Though the wicked cannot escape calamity, yet they harbor false expectations, and think that they can in a short time gather new strength. Hence, in order to take from them this hope, the Prophet says, that there would be no contraction of the fracture אין-כהה לשברך — No stopping or restraining to thy breach. The word is applied to the restraint put on men’s wickedness, 1 Samuel 3:13, and to the checking and restraining of the spread of leprosy, Leviticus 6:28. The breach or breaking was such that there was no stopping of it from becoming entire and complete. The Septuagint gives the meaning—”ουκ εστιν εασις τη συντριβη σου — there is no healing to thy breach.” — Ed. And this is a striking similitude; for he compares the ruin of Nineveh to a wound which cannot be seamed and healed. There is then no contraction; some render it, a wrinkle, but improperly. There is then no contraction: and he adds, Thy stroke is full of pain; Rather, “grievous is thy stroke.” The verb is נחלה, from חלה, to be languid, and sometimes, to make languid, grievous or afflictive, and then in Niphal, as here, to be grievous. See the same clause in Jeremiah 10:19. As a noun it is rendered “grief” in Isaiah 17:11. — Ed. that is, the pain of thy stroke cannot be allayed. This is one thing, — that the ruin of Nineveh would be irreparable.

Then he says, Whosoever shall hear the report, shall strike the hand on thy account Many give this rendering, They shall clap the hand over thee, or with the hands; and they think that the singular is put for the plural number. But as in Hebrew to strike the hand is a token of consent, it would not be unsuitable to say, that the Prophet means, that wherever the report of this calamity would be heard, all would express their approbation, “See, God has at length proved himself to be the just avenger of so much wickedness.” To strike the hand is said to be done by those who make an agreements or when any one pledges himself for another. The phrase here used, תקע כף, is found in three other places, Psalm 47:1; Proverbs 17:18; 22:26. In the first it is a symptom of joy; and in the two other places, in the sense here mentioned. — Ed.

As then in giving pledges, and in other compacts, men are said to strike the hand; so also all shall thus give their assent to God’s judgment in this case, “O how rightly is this done! O how justly has God punished these tyrants, these plunderers.” They will then strike the hand on thy account; that is, “This thy ruin will be approved;” as though he said, “Not only before God art thou, Nineveh, accursed, but also according to the consent of all nations.” And thus he intimates, that Nineveh would perish in the greatest dishonor and disgrace. It sometimes happens that an empire falls, and all bewail the event: but God here declares, that he would not be satisfied with the simple destruction of the city Nineveh without adding to it a public infamy, so that all might acknowledge that it happened through his righteous judgment.

He afterwards adds, For upon whom has not thy wickedness passed continually? This is a confirmation of the last clause; and this reason will suit both the views which have been given. If we take the striking of the hand for approbation, this reason will be suitable. — How? For all nations will rejoice at thy destruction, because there is no nation which thou hast not in many ways injured. So also, in token of their joy, all will congratulate themselves, as though they were made free; or they will clap their hands, that is, acknowledge that thou hast been destroyed by the judgment of God, because all had experienced how unjustly and tyrannically thou hast ruled. As then thy wickedness has been like a deluge, and hast nearly consumed all the earth, all will clap or shake their hands at thy ruin.

And he says, continually, to show that God’s forbearance had been long exercised. Hence, also, it appears, that the Assyrians were inexcusable, because, when God indulgently spared them, they did not repent, but pursued their wicked ways for a long course of time. As then to their sinful licentiousness they added perverseness, every excuse was removed. But the Prophet does, at the same time, remind the Israelites, that there was no reason for them to be cast down in their minds, because God did not immediately execute punishment; for by the word תמיד, tamid, he insinuates, that God would so suspend for a time his judgment as to Nineveh, that his forbearance and delay might be an evidence of his goodness and mercy. We hence see that the Prophet here opposes the ardor of men, for they immediately grow angry or complain when God delays to execute vengeance on their enemies.

He shows that God has a just reason for not visiting the wicked with immediate punishment; but yet the time will come when it shall appear that they are altogether past recovery, — the time, I say, will come, when the Lord shall at length put forth his hand and execute his judgment.

Prayer.

Grant, Almighty God, that as we are not able to keep a firm footing in the way of justice and uprightness, — O grant, that, being governed by thy Spirit, we may restrain ourselves from doing any harm, and thus abstain from all evil deeds, and that we may labor to do good to all, so that we may, by experience, find that all are protected by thee, who so conform themselves to the rule of thy Law, that they take no advantage of the simple, either for the purpose of ruining or of injuring them, but who, being content with their own small portion, know that there is nothing better than to be wholly subject to thee, and to thy guidance: and may we thus live in forbearance and justice towards our neighbors, that we may, at the same time, rely on thy mercy, by which alone we can be defended, and made safe against so many assaults of Satan and of the wicked, until, having at length completed the course of our warfare, we shall come into that blessed rest which has been prepared for us in heaven by Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.

End of the Commentaries on Nahum.

A Translation of Calvin’s Version of

The Book of Jonah.

Chapter 1

1 And the word of Jehovah came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,

2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, to that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness has ascended before my face.”

3 But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of Jehovah, and went down to Joppa, and found a ship, which was going to Tarshish; and he paid the fare, and went down into it,, that he might go with them to Tarshish from the presence of Jehovah.

4 And Jehovah sent a strong wind on the sea, and a great tempset arose in the sea, and the ship was thought to be breaking:

5 And the mariners feared, and cried every one to his god, and cast out the wares, which were in the ship, into the sea, that it might be lightened of them; but Jonah had gone down to the sides of the ship; and he lay down and slept.

6 And the pilot came to him, and he said to him, — “What meanest thou, O sleeper? Arise, call on thy God, if so be that God will show himself propitious to us, that we may not perish.”

7 And they said each to his friend, — “Come and let us cast lots, that we may know for what cause is this evil come upon us.” And they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah.

8 And they said to him, — “Tell us now why has this evil happened to us, what is thy work, and whence comest thou, what is thy country, and from what people art thou?”

9 And he said to them, — “I am an Hebrew, and I fear Jehovah, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”

10 And the men feared with great fear, and said to him, — “Why hast thou done this?” (52) For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of Jehovah, because he had told them.

11 And they said to him, “What shall we do to thee, that the sea may be still to us?” for the sea was going and was tempestuous.

12 And he said to them, — “Take me and cast me into the sea, and the sea will be still to you; for I know that on my account is this great tempest come upon you.”

13 But the men toiled to bring back the ship, (59) and they could not; for the sea was going and was tempestuous against them.

14 And they cried to Jehovah, and said, — “We beseech, Jehovah, we pray, that we perish not for the life of this man, and lay not on us innocent blood; for thou, Jehovah, hast done as it has seemed good to thee.” (62)

15 Then they took Jonah, and cast him into the sea; and the sea stopped from its raging.

16 And with great fear, the men feared Jehovah, and sacrificed a sacrifice to Jehovah, and vowed vows.

17 And Jehovah provided a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the bowels of the fish three days and three nights.

CHAPTER 2

1 And Jonah prayed to Jehovah his God from the belly of the fish,

2 And said, — I cried in my distress to Jehovah, and he heard me; (75) From the belly of the grave I cried, thou didst hear my voice.

3 But cast me hadst thou into the deep, Into the midst of the seas, and the flood surrounded me; All thy billows and waves over me passed:

4 Then I said, — “I am driven from the sight of thine eyes; But I would again see the temple of thy holiness.”

5 Beset me did the waters even to the soul, The deep on every side surrounded me, The sedge was wrapped around my head:

6 To the roots of the mountains I descended, The earth with its bars was around me forever: But to ascend hast thou made my life from the grave, O Jehovah my God.

7 When fail did my soul within me, Jehovah did I remember, And enter did my prayer into the temple of thy holiness.

8 They who observe lying vanities, Their own mercy forsake: (87)

9 But I, with the voice of praise, will sacrifice to thee; What I have vowed will I pay: To Jehovah belongs salvation.

10 And Jehovah commanded the fish, and it cast forth Jonah on the dry land.

CHAPTER 3

1 And the word of Jehovah came to Jonah the second time, saying, —

2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, to that great city, and proclaim to it the proclamation which I command thee.” (92)

3 And Jonah arose, and went to Nineveh, according to the command of Jehovah.

4 Now Nineveh was a very great city, a journey of three days. And Jonah began to enter a journey of one day, and cried and said, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.”

5 And the men of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them:

6 For word had come to the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and cast aside his splendid robe from him, and put on sackcloth and sat on ashes;

7 And it was proclaimed and published through Nineveh, by the counsel of the king and his nobles, saying, — “Man and beast! Ox and sheep! Let them taste nothing, let them not be fed, and let them not drink water;

8 And let man and beast put on sackcloth, and cry to God mightily; (107) and return let every one from his evil way, and from the plunder that is in their hands.

9 Who knows, whether God will change and repent, and turn away from the fury of his wrath, that we perish not?”

10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil which he had declared that he would do to them, and did it not.

CHAPTER 4

1 And Jonah was grievously displeased, and he was very angry; (116) and he prayed to Jehovah, and said, —

2 “I pray thee, Jehovah, was not this my word, when I was yet in my own land? I therefore hastened to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that thou are a God full of grace, and merciful, slow to wrath, great in kindness, and who repentest of evil.

3 And thou, Jehovah, take, I pray, my life from me; for better it is for me to die than to live.”

4 And Jehovah said to him, — “Doest thou well in being angry?” (129)

5 And Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east over against the city, and made there for himself a tent, and sat under it in the shade, until he saw what might be in the city.

6 And Jehovah God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up for Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, and free him from his distress; and Jonah rejoiced for the gourd with great joy.

7 God also prepared a worm, when the morning rose the next day, which smote the gourd, and it withered:

8 And it was, when the sun arose, that God prepared an impetuous wind, and the sun smote the head of Jonah, and he fainted, and wished for himself that he might die, and said, “Better is my death than my life.”

9 And God said to Jonah, — “Doest thou well in being angry for the gourd?” and he said, — “I do well in being angry even unto death.”

10 And Jehovah said, — “Thou wouldest have spared the gourd, for which thou hast not labored, and which thou has not raised up; the daughter of a night it was, It is literally, “the son of a night,” but as cucurbita, gourd, is feminine, Calvin adopted filia instead of filius — Ed. and as the daughter of a night it has passed away;

11 And should I not spare Nineveh, this great city, in which there are twelve times ten thousand men, every one of whom knows not his right hand from his left, and also many animals?”

a translation of

Calvin’s Version of

The Prophecies of Micah.

CHAPTER 1

1 The word of Jehovah, which came to Micah, the Morasthite, in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem:

2 Hear, all ye people, Give ear, O earth, and its fullness; (155) And the Lord Jehovah shall be against you a witness, Even the Lord from the temple of his holiness:

3 For, behold, Jehovah goeth forth from his place, And will descend and tread on the heights of the earth;

4 And melt shall the mountains under him, And rent shall be the valleys; As wax before the fire, As waters rolling into a lower place. (160)

5 For the wickedness of Jacob is all this, And for the transgressions of the house of Israel: What is the wickedness of Jacob? Is it not Samaria? And what are the high places of Judah? Are they not those of Jerusalem? (162)

6 I will therefore make Samaria A heap of the field, a plantation for vineyards; And I will roll into the valley its stones, And its foundations will I discover;

7 And all her graven images shall be broken down, And all her rewards shall be burnt in the fire, And all her idols will I lay desolate; For from the reward of a harlot hath she gathered, And to the reward of a harlot shall they return.

8 For this will I wail and howl, I will go spoiled and naked; I will make wailing as the dragons, And mourning as the daughters of the ostrich: (170)

9 For grievous is her stroke, For it has come to Judah, It has reached the gate of my people—even Jerusalem.

10 In Gath tell ye it not; weeping, weep not; In the house of Ophrah, roll thyself in the dust.

11 Pass over also, thou inhabitant of Saphir, Naked and in shame; Go forth shall not the inhabitant of Zaanan, In the mourning of Beth-ezel; She will take from you her station. (176)

12 Verily, grieved for good has the inhabitant of Maroth; For come down has evil from Jehovah To the gate of Jerusalem.

13 Tie the chariot to the dromedary, Thou inhabitant of Lachish; The beginning of sin has she been to the daughter of Zion; For in thee have been found the transgressions of Israel.

14 Thou shalt therefore send presents, For Moresheth-gath, to the sons of Achzib, (180) Who have been a deception to the kings of Israel.

15 Yet a possessor will I send to thee, inhabitant of Mareshah; Even to Adullam, the glory of Israel, shall he come.

16 Make bald, and poll thyself, For the children of thy delicacies; Enlarge thy baldness as the eagle, Inasmuch as they have migrated from thee.

CHAPTER 2

1 Woe to those who devise iniquity, And contrive wickedness on their beds! When the morning shines, they execute it; For to do it their hand is ready.

2 And they covet fields, and forcibly take them; And houses, and they take them away; And they oppress a man and his house, A man and his heritage. (187)

3 Therefore, thus saith Jehovah, — Behold, I am devising against this family an evil, From which ye shall not remove your necks; And ye shall not walk in your height, For an evil time will it be.

4 In that day shall they take up against thee a proverb, And bewail with a lamentable lament, And say, “Wasted, we are laid waste; The portion of my people has he changed; How he takes away from me instead of restoring! Our fields he divides.” (191)

5 There shall not therefore be for thee One to cast a line for lot in the assembly of Jehovah.

6 “Prophecy not, ye who prophesy;” — They shall not prophesy for them; — He will not take reproaches. (195)

7 O thou who art called the house of Jacob! Is the Spirit of Jehovah straightened? Are these his works? Are not my words good to him Who walks uprightly? (201)

8 And they who were heretofore my people, Have risen up as an enemy against me; The robe of beauty they plunder From those who pass by securely, As those who return from war. (203)

9 The women of my people have ye expelled From the house of their delights; From their children have ye taken away My ornament forever. (204)

10 Arise, depart, for this is not your rest; Because it has been polluted: (206) He will scatter you with a violent scattering.

11 If a man, walking in the spirit, and lying deceitfully, says, “I will prophesy to thee of wine and of strong drink,” He shall be the prophet of this people. (208)

12 Gathering, I will gather the whole of thee Jacob, Assembling, I will assemble the residue of Israel; I will set them together as the sheep of Bozrah, As a flock in the midst of its fold; They shall make a noise on account of the number of men.

13 Ascend shall a breaker before them, They shall break through and pass the gate; Yea, they shall go out through it; And pass shall their king before them, And Jehovah at their head. (215)

CHAPTER 3

1 And I said, “Hear, I pray, ye princes of Jacob; And ye rulers of the house of Israel: Is it not for you to know judgment?”

2 But they hate good and love evil; They pull off the skin from them, And the flesh from their bones:

3 Yea, they devour the flesh of my people, And their skin they strip from them, And their bones they break, And make them small as for the pot, And their flesh for the cauldron.

4 They shall then cry to Jehovah, And he will not answer them, But he will hide his face from them at that time, As they have acted perversely in their doings.

5 Thus saith Jehovah to the Prophets, Who deceive my people, And bite with their teeth, and cry, “Peace;” And when any one putteth not in their mouth, Against him they declare war;

6 Night shall therefore be to you instead of a vision, And darkness shall be to you instead of divination;’ And set shall the sun on the Prophets, And darkened over them shall be the day: (227)

7 And ashamed shall be the seers, And confounded shall be the diviners; And they shall all cover their lips, For there will be no answer from God.

8 But I indeed am filled with power, By the Spirit of Jehovah, yea, with judgment and courage, To declare to Jacob his wickedness, And to Israel his sin.

9 Hear this, I pray, ye princes of the house of Jacob, And ye rulers of the house of Israel, Who abominate judgment, And all rectitude pervert; (237)

10 Who build Zion by blood, And Jerusalem by iniquity.

11 Its princes judge for reward, And its priests for wages teach, And its prophets for money divine; And on Jehovah they lean, saying, “Is not Jehovah in the midst of us? Come upon us shall no evil.”

12 Therefore for you Zion as a field shall be plowed, And Jerusalem shall be a heap, And the mount of the house as the heights of a forest.

CHAPTER 4

1 But it shall be in the last days, That the mount of the house of Jehovah Shall be set in order on the top of the mountains, And elevated shall it be above the hills; And assemble there shall nations; (252)

2 And go shall many nations and say, — “Come and let us ascend to the mount of Jehovah, And to the house of the God of Jacob; And he will teach us of his ways, And we will walk in his paths:” For from Zion shall go forth a law, And the word of Jehovah from Jerusalem;

3 And he will rule among many people, And convince strong nations afar off; (260) And beat their swords shall they into plowshares, And their spears into pruninghooks; And lift up shall not a nation against a nation a sword, And they shall learn war no more;

4 And they shall sit everyone under his own vine, And under his own fig-tree; And none will there be to terrify them; For thus hath the mouth of Jehovah of hosts spoken.

5 For all people shall walk, Every one in the name of his god; (271) But we will walk In the name of Jehovah our God forever.

6 In that day, saith Jehovah, I will assemble the lame, And the driven out will I gather, And her whom I have afflicted:

7 And I will make the lame a remnant, And the driven out a strong nation; Reign over them shall Jehovah on mount Zion, From henceforth, even forever.

8 And thou tower of the flock, The fortress of the daughter of Zion, To thee it shall come; Yea, come shall the former dominion; The kingdom, to the daughter of Jerusalem.

9 Why dost thou now cry with a loud crying? Is there no king in thee? Has thy counselor perished? For seized thee has pain as one in travail.

10 Be in pain, and groan, O daughter of Zion, As a woman in travail; For go forth shalt thou from the city, And thou shalt dwell in the field, Yea, thou shalt go as far as Babylon; There shalt thou be delivered, There shall Jehovah redeem thee From the hand of thy enemies.

11 And now gathered against thee are many nations, Who say, “Let her be condemned, And look shall our eye on Zion.” (284)

12 But they know not the thoughts of Jehovah, And understand not his counsel; For he shall gather them as a handful to the floor.

13 Arise, and thrash, thou daughter of Zion; For thy horn will I make iron, And thy hoofs will I make brass; And thou shalt tear in pieces strong nations; And consecrate to Jehovah their wealth, And their substance to the Lord of the whole earth.

CHAPTER 5

1 Assemble now thyself, thou daughter of a troop; A siege has he set against us: (294) With a rod shall they smite on the cheek the judge of Israel.

2 And thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, Art small to be among the thousands of Judah! From thee shall to me come forth One to be a ruler in Israel; And his goings forth are from the beginning, From the days of ages.

3 He will therefore give them up till the time, When she who travails shall bring forth, And return to the children of Israel Shall the residue of his brethren:

4 And he shall stand and feed in the power of Jehovah, In the majesty of the name of Jehovah his God; And they shall quietly dwell, For he shall now be magnified to the ends of the earth.

5 And he shall be our peace; When the Assyrian shall come into our land, And when he shall tread in our palaces, Then we shall set up against him seven shepherds, And eight princes of men;

6 And they shall lay waste The land of the Assyrian by the sword, And the land of Nimrod by their swords; (311) And he will deliver us from the Assyrian, When he shall come into our land, And when he shall tread in our borders.

7 And the residue of Jacob shall be, Among the nations, in the midst of many people, As a dew from Jehovah, as drops of rain on the grass; Which tarries not for man, nor waits for the sons of men.

8 The residue of Jacob shall also be, Among the nations, in the midst of many people, As a lion among the beasts of the forest, As a young lion among a flock of sheep, Who, when he passes through, tears and carries away, And no one can deliver.

9 Exalted shall be thy hand above thine enemies, And all thine adversaries shall be cut off.

10 And it shall be in that day, saith Jehovah, That I will cut off thy horses from the midst of thee, And I will destroy thy chariots;

11 And cut off will I the cities of thy land, And will overthrow all thy fortresses;

12 And I will cut off diviners from thine hand, And soothsayers shall not be to thee;

13 And cut off will I thy graven images, And thy stature from the midst of thee, And thou shalt no more bow down Before the work of thy hands;

14 And I will demolish thy groves from the midst of thee, That I man destroy thine enemies;

15 And in anger and fury will I execute on the nations A vengeance, which they have not heard.

CHAPTER 6

1 Hear ye now what Jehovah saith, — “Arise, contend before the mountains, And let the hills hear thy voice.”

2 Hear, ye mountains, the controversy of Jehovah, And ye strong foundations of the earth; For Jehovah has a controversy with his people, And with Israel he will contend: —

3 “My people! What have I done to thee? And in what have I molested thee? Testify against me.

4 I have indeed made thee to ascend from Egypt, And from the house of servants I redeemed thee; I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.

5 My people! Remember now What Balak, the king of Moab, consulted, And what Balaam, the son of Bosor, answered him, And what happened from Shittim even to Gilgal, That thou mayest know the righteousness of Jehovah.” (336)

6 “Wherewith shall I approach Jehovah? And bow down myself before the high God? Shall I approach him with burnt-sacrifices? With calves a year old?

7 Will Jehovah be pleased with thousands of rams? With ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my first-born as my sin-offering? The fruit of my loins as an expiation For the wickedness of my soul?” —

8 He hath declared to thee, O man, what is good: And what does Jehovah require from thee, But to do justice, and to love mercy, And to humble thyself to walk with thy God?

9 The voice of Jehovah crieth to arouse; And the man of understanding will see his name: Hear ye the rod, and who testifies of it.

10 Are there still in the house of the wicked The treasures of iniquity, And the scanty detestable measure?

11 Shall I justify balances of wickedness, And the bag of deceitful weights?

12 For her rich men have filled themselves by violence, And her inhabitants have spoken falsehood, And their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

13 And I also by smiting will afflict thee, And thee will I destroy for thy sins: (352)

14 Thou shalt eat and not be satisfied, And thy casting down shall be in the midst of thee; And thou shalt lay hold, and not deliver, And what thou deliverest will I give up to the sword:

15 Thou shalt sow and not reap, Thou shalt press the oil, and not anoint thyself with oil, And the new wine, and not drink wine.

16 For observed are the statues of Omri, And every work of the house of Ahab; And ye walk in their counsels, That I should make thee a desolation, And her inhabitants an hissing; And the reproach of my people ye shall bear.

CHAPTER 7

1 Woe is me! For I am as the ingatherings of summer, And as the bunches of the vintage: There is no cluster to eat; The ripe fruits my soul hath desired. (360)

2 Perished has the meek from the land, And upright among men there is none; For all lie in wait for blood, Every one hunts his brother with a net.

3 To effect the wickedness of their hands, The prince asketh, and the judge also, for reward. And the great man speaks himself Of the mischief of his soul; and they wrap it up. (365)

4 The good among them is like a brier, The upright is worse than a thorn-hedge: The day of thy watchmen, thy visitation, is coming; They shall be their confusion.

5 Trust not a friend, put no faith in a counselor; From her who sleepeth in thy bosom, Guard the openings of thy mouth:

6 For the son dishonors his father, The daughter rises up against her mother, The daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; Enemies to man are his own domestics.

7 But I to Jehovah will look, I will wait for the God of my salvation; Hear me will my God.

8 Rejoice not thou over me, my enemy; (374) Though I have fallen, I shall rise again; When I sit in darkness, Jehovah will be my light.

9 The wrath of Jehovah will I bear, (For I have sinned against him,) Until he plead my cause, And execute judgment for me; He will bring me to light, I shall see his righteousness:

10 And see shall my enemy, And cover her shall shame, who said to me, — “Where is Jehovah thy God?” Mine eyes shall see her; And now trodden shall she be as the mire of the street.

11 The day to build thy walls! That day shall remove far the decree:

12 And in that day to thee shall they come From Assyria and the cities of the fortress, From the fortress also to the river, (386) And from sea to sea, and from mountain to mountain, —

13 But the land shall become a desolation, On account of its inhabitants, For the fruit of their works.

14 Feed thy people by thy crook, Thy flock of thy heritage, Who dwell in solitude, in the wood, As in the midst of Carmel; They shall be fed in Bashan and Gilead, As in the days of old. (392)

15 As in the days of thy going forth from the land of Egypt, I will show to him wonderful things.

16 Shall see the nations, And be ashamed of all their might; They shall lay their hand on their mouth, Their ears shall become deaf;

17 They shall lick the dust as a serpent, As reptiles of the earth shall they move from their holes; Jehovah our God shall they dread, And they shall be afraid of thee.

18 What God is like thee, Taking away iniquity, And passing over transgression, As to the remnant of his heritage? He will not retain forever his anger, For he loveth mercy:

19 He will return, he will have mercy on us; He will tread down our iniquities, And cast into the depths of the sea all their sins:

20 Thou wilt grant truth to Jacob, Mercy to Abraham; Which thou hast sworn to our fathers In the days of old.

a translation of

Calvin’s Version of

The Prophecies of Nahum.

CHAPTER 1

1 The burden of Nineveh, — the book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite:

2 A God jealous, and an avenger is Jehovah; Avenger is Jehovah, and a retainer of wrath; Take vengeance does Jehovah on his enemies, And keep it for his adversaries: (421)

3 Jehovah is slow to wrath, and great in power, And by clearing he will not clear: Jehovah! In the whirlwind and tempest is his way, And the cloud is the dust of his feet: (424)

4 He chides the sea, and it becomes dry; And all the rivers he dried up; Languish do Bashan and Carmel, And the flower of Lebanon languishes:

5 Mountains tremble at him, and hills melt; And burn does the earth before his face, Yea, the world, and all who dwell in it. (427)

6 Before his indignation who can stand? And who can bear the fierceness of his wrath? (429) His fury is poured out like fire, And rocks dissolve before him.

7 Good is Jehovah for strength in the day of distress; And he knoweth them who hope in him.

8 But with an inundation, he, passing through, Will make a consummation in her place; (433) And pursue shall darkness his enemies.

9 What do ye imagine against Jehovah? A consummation he makes! Not rise again shall affliction.

10 They who are like entangled thorns, And drunken as with their own drinking — Devoured shall they be as stubble fully dry. (437)

11 From thee has gone forth a contriver of evil Against Jehovah, a wicked counselor.

12 Thus saith Jehovah, — Though they are secure, and though they are many, They shall yet be cut off, and he shall pass through: (443) And through I have afflicted thee, I will afflict thee no more;

13 For now will I break off from thee his yoke, And his bonds will I burst asunder.

14 And a command respecting thee hath Jehovah given, — “Let none be sown hereafter of thy name;” From the house of thy gods will I cut off The graven and the molten image; I will make thy grave, for thou art execrable.

15 Behold on the mountains the feet of him Who announceth, who publisheth peace! Celebrate thou, Judah, thy solemnities, Perform thy vows; for pass through thee Shall the wicked one no more, — he is wholly cut off.

CHAPTER 2

1 Come up is the destroyer before thy face; Watch the fortress, guard the way, (455) Make strong the loins, fortify mightily thy strength:

2 (For taken away hath Jehovah the pride of Jacob, As he had done as to the pride of Israel; As he had done as to the pride of Israel; For emptied them the emptiers, And their branches have they cut down:)

3 The shield of his mighty ones are made red, The men of his strength are clad in scarlet; With the fire of torches is the chariot, In the day of his expedition; And the fir-trees tremulously shake:

4 In the wide places they madden with their chariots, The hurry away through the streets, The appearance of them is that of lamps, As lightnings they run here and there.

5 He will remember his valiant men, They shall stumble in their march, They shall hasten to her wall, And prepared will be the defense.

6 The gates of the rivers are opened, And the palace is dissolved;

7 And she which stood firm is cast into exile, And her maids lead her as with the voice of doves, Beating on their breasts. (463)

8 And yet Nineveh had been As a pool of waters from ancient days; But now they flee — “Stand ye, stand;” And no one regards.

9 Take ye away the silver, take away the gold; For there is no end of her preparations; Her glory is from every desirable vessel. (468)

10 Emptied and emptied is she, and denuded; And the heart is melted; And there is a knocking of the knees, And trembling in all loins, And the faces of all withdraw their brightness. (472)

11 Where is the abode of lions? Where came the lion, the lioness, the cub of the lion; And none terrified them. (474)

12 The lion tare what sufficed his whelps, And strangled for his lionesses, And filled with raving his caves, And his dens with prey.

13 Behold, I am against thee, saith Jehovah of hosts, And I will burn with smoke her chariot, And thy young lions shall the sword devour, And I will cut off from the land thy prey, And the sound of thy teeth shall no more be heard.

CHAPTER 3

1 Oh blood city! The whole is full of deceit, and of ravin; From it the prey departs not.

2 The sound of the whip! The sound of the rattling of the wheel! And the horse prancing, and the chariot bounding!

3 The horseman urging onward! And the flame of the sword, and the lightning of the spear! And the number of the slain, and the mass of carcasses! And there is no end to her dead bodies, They stumble on their carcasses!

4 This is for the multitude of the fornications Of the harlot who excels in beauty, The mistress of sorceries, Who sells nations by her fornications, And tribes by her sorceries. (481)

5 Behold, I am against thee, saith Jehovah of hos