Judgment on Nineveh

1O bloody citie, stuffed throughout with falsehood, with extreme dealing, nor wilbe brought from spoyling.

2The noyse of the whippe, the noyse of ratling of wheales, the praunsing of horses, and the iumping of charets:

3The 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.

4Because of the manyfolde fornication of the beautifull harlot, ful of charmes, that selles nations by the meanes of her whordome, and the people through her charminges.

5Lo I against thee sayth the Lorde of hoastes, and will turne vp thy skirtes ouer thy face, and wil shewe the gentiles thy fylth, and kingdomes thy shame:

6And will cast vpon thee abominable filth, and wil bring thee downe, and wil make thee as vile as doung.

7And it shall come to passe that all that shall behold thee, shall flee from thee, and shall say, Niniue is destroyed, and who is greeued therwith? from whence shall I seke out comforters for thee?

8Wilt thou count thy selfe better then Alexandria the great, that was scituate amonges the riuers, compassed round about with water, whose fortresse was the sea and had her wall from the sea?

9Ethiopia and Egypt were thy strength, and there was none end of ayde, Phut and Lubim were thy helpers.

10Notwithstanding she passed away, she went into captiuitie, her children also were dashed in peeces in the top of all the streetes: for her horrible men they cast lottes, and all her great states they chayned in fetters.

11And thou also shalt be drunke with trouble thou shalt be hyd: thou also shalt seke after strength against thine enemie.

12All thy strong aydes are as figge trees with the first ripe figges: if they be stirred, they fal into the mouth of the eater.

13Behold thy men are as baren women in the middest of thee, the gates of thy lande shalbe set wyde open to thine enemies, fire hath deuoured thy barres.

14Drawe thee water for the siege, strengthen thy fortes, go into the clay, treade the morter, make strong the brickyll.

15There the fire shall deuoure thee, the sword shall cut thee of, shall deuoure as the locust, though thou be multiplied as the locust, though thou be as many as the grashopper.

16Thou hast increased thy marchauntes as the starres of heauen, the locust spoyleth, and fleeth away.

17Thy princes are as grashoppers, and thy rulers as great locustes, they swarme in hedges in cold weather, the sunne ariseth and they flee, and the place where they were is not knowen.

18Thy sheepheardes O king of Assur slumber, thy noble men shall dwell in death thy people is scattered vpon the mountaynes, & there is none to gather them together.

19Thy wound shall not be healed, thy plague is great, all that heare of thee, clap their handes: For to whom hath not thy euil dealing pearsed continually?