Nah 2:5-10 | KingComments | STEP | Here we are told what the king of Assyria thinks. God knows the thoughts of the hearts of all people. The king of Assyria thinks he can repel the attack and counts on “his nobles”, the military leaders. They rush to the wall. The protection of the wall is of the utmost importance during a siege. But at the hour of truth, they stumble in their haste to climb the wall. The nobles come too late, because the attackers have already set up the mantelet to storm the wall.

‏ Nahum 2:5-10

Progress in the Battle

Here we are told what the king of Assyria thinks. God knows the thoughts of the hearts of all people. The king of Assyria thinks he can repel the attack and counts on “his nobles”, the military leaders. They rush to the wall. The protection of the wall is of the utmost importance during a siege. But at the hour of truth, they stumble in their haste to climb the wall. The nobles come too late, because the attackers have already set up the mantelet to storm the wall.

Water Flood as a Weapon

The fall is unstoppable. In a few words the fall of Nineveh is described. For this, God uses a flood of “the rivers” which brings down the wall and destroys the palace. At Nineveh three rivers come together. The Tigris flows close to the walls, the Khosr and the Tebiltu flow through the city. The “gates” of the rivers can refer to sluices or dams that control the water flows. By opening the sluices and breaking through the dams, an enormous flood of water is given free rein. The inhabitants of the palace dissolve from fear of the unstoppable water flow.

The Misery of Nineveh

Here we see the result of the final overrun in Nah 2:6. “Stripped” means stripped of all her luster. The inhabitants of the city are seen as handmaids. They mourn their fate, which can be heard in their sound similar to doves and can be seen beating on their breasts.

On the Run

Nineveh has been arrogant and proud since her birth. Now that her end has come, there is nothing left of it. What offered a natural protection, has become her downfall. Here again irony can be heard. What she first enjoyed in selfishness as the content of her origin and life, is the cause of her death.

Orders to soldiers to stay at their posts are ignored by them. They have all fled in panic.

Call to Plunder Nineveh

Once the defensive walls have fallen and the defenders have fled, the enormous treasures piled up in the city can be plundered. The call to do so comes from God through the prophet. Nineveh always made this call himself when the Assyrians went to war to conquer territories. As a result, she became the richest city in the near east. Now she suffers the same fate. The rich stock of all kinds of precious objects seems endless. The enemies can take their course.

All Wealth and Hope Are Gone

The victory over the city is powerfully summed up in the three words of the first line of this verse – emptied, desolate, waste – that sound like a rhyme in Hebrew (buqah umebuqah umebullaqah). In synonyms the devastation is described, as if there are no words enough to indicate how great and thorough it is. A city that was once rich and influential is now a wretched mess, without treasures and without life. That is what remains of power used against God.

The inhabitants of the city who flee are no better off. All courage has been lost to them, all power has disappeared. Wherever there should be strength, “hearts and knees”, all strength is gone. There is anguish in the whole body. Powerlessness is already hopeless and when anguish is added, the situation is completely hopeless. And not only is there no view of outcome, the view that is there makes all faces grow pale, that is to say, all color is draining from the faces, they become white as a sheet. There is only a view of horror and an abundance of misery.