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Friday, May 16th, 2025
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Read the Bible

English Standard Version

Nahum 3:3

Horsemen charging, flashing sword and glittering spear, hosts of slain, heaps of corpses, dead bodies without end— they stumble over the bodies!

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - War;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Dead, the;   Nineveh;   Spear;   Sword, the;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Nineveh;   War;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Blade;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Elkosh;   Nahum (2);   Holman Bible Dictionary - Jonah;   Nahum;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Lightning;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Assyria;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Na'hum;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Armor;   Army;   Assyria;   Carcass;   Glitter;   Heap;   Nahum, the Book of;   War;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Charging horseman,flashing sword,shining spear;heaps of slain,mounds of corpses,dead bodies without end—they stumble over their dead.
Hebrew Names Version
the horseman mounting, and the flashing sword, the glittering spear, and a multitude of slain, and a great heap of corpses, and there is no end of the bodies. They stumble on their bodies,
King James Version (1611)
The horseman lifteth vp both the bright sword, & the glittering speare, and there is a multitude of slaine, and a great number of carkeises: and there is none ende of their corpses: they stumble vpon their corpses,
King James Version
The horseman lifteth up both the bright sword and the glittering spear: and there is a multitude of slain, and a great number of carcases; and there is none end of their corpses; they stumble upon their corpses:
New American Standard Bible
Horsemen charging, Swords flashing, spears gleaming, Many killed, a mass of corpses, And there is no end to the dead bodies— They stumble over the dead bodies!
New Century Version
Horses are charging, swords are shining, spears are gleaming! Many are dead; their bodies are piled up— too many to count. People stumble over the dead bodies.
Amplified Bible
Horsemen charging, Swords flashing, spears gleaming, Many slain, a mass of corpses, No end of corpses— The horsemen stumble over the corpses!
Geneva Bible (1587)
The horseman lifteth vp both the bright sword, and the glittering speare, and a multitude is slaine, and the dead bodyes are many: there is none ende of their corpses: they stumble vpon their corpses,
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Horsemen charging, Swords flashing, spears gleaming, Many slain, a mass of corpses, And countless dead bodies— They stumble over the dead bodies!
Legacy Standard Bible
Horsemen charging,And swords flaming, and spears flashing,Many slain, a mass of corpses,And there is no end to dead bodies—They stumble over the dead bodies!
Berean Standard Bible
Charging horseman, flashing sword, shining spear; heaps of slain, mounds of corpses, dead bodies without end-they stumble over their dead-
Contemporary English Version
cavalry attacking, swords and spears flashing; soldiers stumbling over piles of dead bodies.
Complete Jewish Bible
cavalry charging, swords flashing, spears glittering — and hosts of slain, heaps of bodies; there is no end to the corpses; they stumble over their corpses.
Darby Translation
The horseman springing up, and the glitter of the sword, and the flash of the spear, and a multitude of slain, and a mass of carcases, and no end of corpses: they stumble over their corpses.
Easy-to-Read Version
Soldiers on horses are attacking, their swords are shining, their spears are gleaming! There are many dead people. Dead bodies are piled up—too many bodies to count. People are tripping over the dead bodies.
George Lamsa Translation
The horseman driving, with the flash of the sword and the glittering spear! And there is a multitude of slain, and a great number of corpses; there is no end to corpses; they stumble over their corpses.
Good News Translation
Cavalry troops charge, swords flash, spears gleam! Corpses are piled high, dead bodies without number— men stumble over them!
Lexham English Bible
Chariots charge! Swords flash! Spears glitter! Many corpses are piled high! There is no end to the slain! They stumble over their dead!
Literal Translation
The horseman lifts up both the gleam of the sword and the lightning of the spear, and many are slain, and there are a mass of dead bodies, and no end of corpses; they stumble on their dead bodies,
American Standard Version
the horseman mounting, and the flashing sword, and the glittering spear, and a multitude of slain, and a great heap of corpses, and there is no end of the bodies; they stumble upon their bodies;—
Bible in Basic English
Horsemen driving forward, and the shining sword and the bright spear: and a great number of wounded, and masses of dead bodies; they are falling over the bodies of the dead:
JPS Old Testament (1917)
The horseman charging, and the flashing sword, and the glittering spear; and a multitude of slain, and a heap of carcases; and there is no end of the corpses, and they stumble upon their corpses;
Bishop's Bible (1568)
The horseman lifting vp both the glistering blade of the sword & also the shining speare, many wounded, many corpses, and no end of carcasses, they shall stumble at dead bodies.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
and of the mounting rider, and of the glittering sword, and of the gleaming arms, and of a multitude of slain, and of heavy falling: and there was no end to her nations, but they shall be weak in their bodies
English Revised Version
the horseman mounting, and the flashing sword, and the glittering spear; and a multitude of slain, and a great heap of carcases: and there is none end of the corpses; they stumble upon their corpses:
World English Bible
the horseman mounting, and the flashing sword, the glittering spear, and a multitude of slain, and a great heap of corpses, and there is no end of the bodies. They stumble on their bodies,
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
and of schynynge swerd, and glesenynge spere, and of slayn multitude, and of greuouse fallyng, nether ther is eende of careyns. And thei schulen falle togidere in her bodies,
Update Bible Version
the horseman mounting, and the flashing sword, and the glittering spear, and a multitude of slain, and a great heap of corpses, and there is no end of the bodies; they stumble on their bodies;-
Webster's Bible Translation
The horseman lifteth up both the bright sword, and the glittering spear: and [there is] a multitude of slain, and a great number of carcasses; and [there is] no end of [their] corpses; they stumble upon their corpses:
New English Translation
The charioteers will charge ahead; their swords will flash and their spears will glimmer! There will be many people slain; there will be piles of the dead, and countless casualties— so many that people will stumble over the corpses.
New King James Version
Horsemen charge with bright sword and glittering spear. There is a multitude of slain, A great number of bodies, Countless corpses-- They stumble over the corpses--
New Living Translation
See the flashing swords and glittering spears as the charioteers charge past! There are countless casualties, heaps of bodies— so many bodies that people stumble over them.
New Life Bible
Horsemen rushing to battle, swords and spears shining, many dead, too many dead bodies to number! They fall over the dead bodies!
New Revised Standard
Horsemen charging, flashing sword and glittering spear, piles of dead, heaps of corpses, dead bodies without end— they stumble over the bodies!
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Horsemen uplifting both the flashing sword, and the lightning spear, Aye, a mass of slain, and a weight of dead bridles, - and no end of corpses, so that they stumble upon their corpses.
Douay-Rheims Bible
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.
Revised Standard Version
Horsemen charging, flashing sword and glittering spear, hosts of slain, heaps of corpses, dead bodies without end--they stumble over the bodies!
Young's Literal Translation
And the flame of a sword, and the lightning of a spear, And the abundance of the wounded, And the weight of carcases, Yea, there is no end to the bodies, They stumble over their bodies.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
There the horse men get vp with naked swerdes, and glisterynge speares: There lyeth a multitude slayne, and a greate heape of deed bodies: There is no ende of deed coarses, yee men fall vpon their bodies:

Contextual Overview

1 Woe to the bloody city, all full of lies and plunder— no end to the prey! 2 The crack of the whip, and rumble of the wheel, galloping horse and bounding chariot! 3 Horsemen charging, flashing sword and glittering spear, hosts of slain, heaps of corpses, dead bodies without end— they stumble over the bodies! 4 And all for the countless whorings of the prostitute, graceful and of deadly charms, who betrays nations with her whorings, and peoples with her charms. 5 Behold, I am against you, declares the Lord of hosts, and will lift up your skirts over your face; and I will make nations look at your nakedness and kingdoms at your shame. 6 I will throw filth at you and treat you with contempt and make you a spectacle. 7 And all who look at you will shrink from you and say, "Wasted is Nineveh; who will grieve for her?" Where shall I seek comforters for you?

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

bright sword and the glittering spear: Heb. flame of the sword, and lightning of the spear, Nahum 2:4, Genesis 3:24, Habakkuk 3:11

and there: Isaiah 37:36, Ezekiel 31:3-13, Ezekiel 39:4

Reciprocal: Jeremiah 47:3 - the noise Ezekiel 21:10 - it is furbished Ezekiel 23:24 - with chariots Ezekiel 26:7 - with horses Joel 2:5 - the noise Amos 8:3 - many Nahum 2:5 - they shall stumble

Cross-References

Genesis 3:12
The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate."
Genesis 3:13
Then the Lord God said to the woman, "What is this that you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."
Genesis 3:16
To the woman he said, "I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be contrary to your husband, but he shall rule over you."
Genesis 3:17
And to Adam he said, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
Genesis 20:6
Then God said to him in the dream, "Yes, I know that you have done this in the integrity of your heart, and it was I who kept you from sinning against me. Therefore I did not let you touch her.
1 Chronicles 16:22
saying, "Touch not my anointed ones, do my prophets no harm!"
Job 1:11
But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face."
Job 2:5
But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face."
Job 19:21
Have mercy on me, have mercy on me, O you my friends, for the hand of God has touched me!
1 Corinthians 7:1
Now concerning the matters about which you wrote: "It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

The horseman lifteth up both the bright sword and the glittering spear,.... Or, "the flame of the sword and the glittering spear" w; he rides with a drawn sword, which, being brandished to and fro, looks like a flame of fire; or with a spear made of polished iron, or steel, which, when vibrated and moved to and fro, glitters like lightning; a large number of which entering the city must be terrible to the inhabitants of it:

and [there is] a multitude of slain, and a great number of carcasses; of dead men lying in the streets, pierced and slain with the bright sword and glittering spear of the Medes and Chaldeans:

and [there is] none end of [their] corpses; the number of them could not be told; they lay so thick in all parts of the city, that there was no telling them:

they stumble upon their corpses; the Ninevites in fleeing, and endeavouring to make their escape, and the Medes and Chaldeans pursuing them.

w להב חרב וברק חנית "flammam gladii et fulgorem hastae", Piscator; "flammam gladii et fulgur hastae", Cocceius; "flamma gladii et fulgur lanceae", Burkius.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The horseman lifteth up - Rather, “leading up : the flash of the sword, and the lightning of the spear.” Thus, there are, in all, seven inroads, seven signs, before the complete destruction of Nineveh or the world; as, in the Revelations, all the forerunners of the Judgment of the Great Day are summed up under the voice of seven trumpets and seven vials. Rup.: “God shall not use homes and chariots and other instruments of war, such as are here spoken of, to judge the world, yet, as is just, His terrors are foretold under the name of those things, wherewith this proud and bloody world hath sinned. For so all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.” Matthew 26:52. They who, abusing their power, have used all these weapons of war, especially against the servants of God, shall themselves perish by them, and there shall be none end of their corpses, for they shall be corpses forever: for, dying by an everlasting death, they shall, without end, be without the true life, which is God.” “And there is a multitude of slain.” Death follows on death. The prophet views the vast field of carnage, and everywhere there meets him only some new form of death, slain, carcasses, corpses, and these in multitudes, an oppressive heavy number, without end, so that the yet living stumble and fall upon the carcasses of the slain. So great the multitude of those who perish, and such their foulness; but what foulness is like sin?


 
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