1 Doomed is the lying, murderous city,
full of wealth to be looted and plundered!
2 Listen! The crack of the whip,
the rattle of wheels,
the gallop of horses,
the jolting of chariots!
3 Cavalry troops charge,
swords flash, spears gleam!
Corpses are piled high,
dead bodies without number—
men stumble over them!
4 Nineveh the whore is being punished.
Attractive and full of deadly charms,
she enchanted nations and enslaved them.
5 The Lord Almighty says,
“I will punish you, Nineveh!
I will strip you naked
and let the nations see you,
see you in all your shame.
6 I will treat you with contempt
and cover you with filth.
People will stare at you in horror.
7 All who see you will shrink back.
They will say, ‘Nineveh lies in ruins!
Who has any sympathy for her?
Who will want to comfort her?’”
8 Nineveh, are you any better than Thebes, the capital of Egypt? She too had a river to protect her like a wall—the Nile was her defense. 9 She ruled Ethiopia and Egypt, there was no limit to her power; Libya was her ally. 10 Yet the people of Thebes were carried off into exile. At every street corner their children were beaten to death. Their leading men were carried off in chains and divided among their captors.
11 Nineveh, you too will fall into a drunken stupor! You too will try to escape from your enemies. 12 All your fortresses will be like fig trees with ripe figs: shake the trees, and the fruit falls right into your mouth! 13 Your soldiers are helpless, and your country stands defenseless before your enemies. Fire will destroy the bars across your gates. 14 Draw water to prepare for a siege, and strengthen your fortresses! Trample the clay to make bricks, and get the brick molds ready! 15 No matter what you do, you will still be burned to death or killed in battle. You will be wiped out like crops eaten up by locusts.
You multiplied like locusts! 16 You produced more merchants than there are stars in the sky! But now they are gone, like locusts that spread their wings and fly away. 17 Your officials are like a swarm of locusts that stay in the walls on a cold day. But when the sun comes out, they fly away, and no one knows where they have gone!
18 Emperor of Assyria, your governors are dead, and your noblemen are asleep forever! Your people are scattered on the mountains, and there is no one to bring them home again. 19 There is no remedy for your injuries, and your wounds cannot be healed. All those who hear the news of your destruction clap their hands for joy. Did anyone escape your endless cruelty?
1 'Bakici se 'ditufuro, koweogaro ago ŋgatoparo ono te kandrakozi be,
se ŋgadriamba na toparo zevona kyeko!
2 Nyeri kporo co'da ro,
lagyi pa arabia ro ro,
loŋga farasii ro,
oye gbäṛägbäṛä arabia kyila ro robe!
3 Gbiriṛi farasi'bai ro,
lägu si bando ro ro, ndi lägu äzui robe!
Utufu lidri te amba.
Avo lo'dete azi drisi,
avo otivo i'do,
lidri ka ugu lo'dete avo drisi!
4 Ninewe orivoya twi ta ronyioye robe.
Se orivoya 'dieye ro ago twi tetedri oye koziro be ono,
anya ka tu'dei odo ta ronyiro ago tetedri anyaro rosi.
5 OPI Mbaraekye ekye:
“Ma kyilaro mibe, Ninewe!
Mototrina mi 'da bägyulu ro
ago ma'bana tu'dei 'da a'do bägyuluro miro ondrene,
andrena driupi cini miro 'da.
6 Ma'bana mi 'da undiro,
ago mayena mi 'da koziro,
ago ma'bana mi 'da ŋga uguro ro
7 'Dise cini kayibe mi ondre eŋgyeruna 'da kovole.
Ànya atanayi 'da ekye: ‘Ninewe te tandroro!
A'di a'dona ni tusuro anya ta ya?
A'di olena ni anya i'dwene ya?’ ”
8 Ninewe, inye'do mi kadopara ndrani Tebesa, se orivoya loto Naile kala ono riya? Se gyi orivoya gbikyi lomvoigyesi anya gagaza oso tiṛi ronye. 9 Anya ka Kusa ndi Ezipeto be mirina ni, mbara anyaro äduna i'do; Puta ndi Libiya be a'dote opa'ba anyaro. 10 Caoko äŋgyi lidri Tebesa rote lozo, ànya oyite midiro. Ato ŋgagaŋwà ànyaro te ṛi cuku litiŋwà cini ro yasi. Elewe 'diorooro ànyaro te vodo ovosi ago embe dri'bai ànyaro te kpeye nyori si.
11 Ninewe, nya'dona kpa 'da oso wa fu mi ni! Nya'dona 'da wiriwiri ro. Miṛina vo kpa 'da ruopane ni kyila'baazii miro ri. 12 Tiṛi obeobero mbaraekye miro a'dona 'da oso ice kyi'du ro se doŋgodri na kate 'do ronye: nyakayi ice na be, doŋgo na layi dori kala miro ya! 13 Kyila'bai miro orivoya oso 'ditoko ronye. Dereŋwai miro te uŋbo kyila'baazii miro ri eciza. Asi je gboloi dereŋwa kala ro miro te. 14 Mindi gyi nja ta drî miro umuna rota, ago mi'ba tiṛii miro a'done ṛatararo! Miga gyini, mito koro tu'bu o'beza, ago mi'be tu'bu nja! 15 Ca lau asi ujena mi 'da, äfuna mi 'da kyila ye. Ayona mi 'da oso tombi kabe ŋgaluru onya ronye.
Nyilitite amba oso tombi ronye! 16 Nyiliti ŋgalogye'bai miro te ndrani 'bi'bi vo'buyakuru ro drisi! Oko yauono ànya oyite oso tombi kabe kufu iro pere ago koŋga gwo zwi 'do ronye. 17 Dri'bai losi ro miro ago gaga'bai miro orivoya oso lowa tombi ro se kabe lori tiṛi drisi tu ki'dwe rosi 'do ronye. Oko ondro kitu kitute oko, ànya ŋgayite ärri; 'diaza ni vose ànya koyiyibe kigye kote!
18 'Bädri'ba Asaria ro, wari'bai miro todrayite, ago 'di'desii miro u'duyite äduako. Lidri miro eperete 'bereŋwai drisi, ago 'diaza te i'do ogone ànya logone 'bäru. 19 Liti aza i'do laza miro edeza, ago laza miro unina ko ozwane. Ànya se cini keriyi ta rueza miro robe iyi 'biyi drì ànyaro te midri riyäsi ago atayite ekye: Inye'do ta siombaro miro ono a'di iŋgyi ko niya?