Nahum 3:9
in Nahum 3Cush and Egypt were her boundless strength; Put and Libya were her allies.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength, and it was infinite; Put and Lubim were thy helpers.
KJV
Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength, and it was infinite; Put and Lubim were thy helpers.
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This verse in Nahum 3
Commentary
8 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength - Literally, “Egypt was strength , and Ethiopia, and boundless.” He sets forth first the imperial might of No; then her strength from foreign, subdued power. The capital is a sort of impersonation of the might of the state; No, of Egypt, as Nineveh, of Assyria. When the head was cut off or the heart ceased to beat, all was lost. The might of Egypt and Ethiopia was the might of No, concentrated in her. They were strength, and that strength unmeasured by any human standard.
This site's exposition
Art thou better than populous No
on Nahum 3:8-10
No, populous No, is Thebes on the Nile, and the comparison is the chapter's historical anchor, since Nineveh's own armies under Ashurbanipal had sacked Thebes within living memory of Nahum's audience, a fall the prophet's hearers could verify rather than merely imagine. Her defenses were a river for a rampart and a sea for a wall, her allies Ethiopia, Egypt, Put and Lubim, strength that looked infinite and still failed, her children dashed and her great men bound and cast for by lot. The argument runs from the greater to the lesser precedent, if Thebes with such strength fell, Nineveh's own coming fall is no longer merely threatened but demonstrated.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 8 and following) Are you better than Amon ((Vulgate: Alexandria of the nations)), who lived by the rivers? Her water was like a sea, her walls were like fortifications, Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength, and there was no end to her wealth; Africa and Libya were her allies. But she too was led into captivity, her young children were dashed to pieces at every street corner, her nobles were cast lots upon, and all her dignitaries were bound in chains.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
It was infinite - There was no end to their confidence and warlike provisions. Put - Or the Moors, who lie westward of Alexandria. Lubim - The people that inhabited that which is now called Cyrene.
Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength,....
Ethiopia, or Arabia, was her strength, either by the wealth brought to her in a way of trade or by the auxiliary forces furnished for military service. The whole country of Egypt also contributed to the strength of this populous city; so that it was infinite, and there was no end of it (so it might be rendered);
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
As, however, the Lubim are always connected with the Egyptians and Ethiopians, they are perhaps distinct from the Libyans. The Lubim were probably at first wandering tribes, who afterwards were settled under Carthage in the region of Cyrene, under the name Libyans. thy--No's. helpers--literally, "in thy help," that is, among thy auxiliaries.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength - The land of Cush, not far from Diospolis; for it was in Arabia, on the Red Sea. Put and Lubim - A part of Africa and Libya, which were all within reach of forming alliances with No-Ammon or Diospolis.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
She, too, went into exile —She, too, went into exile. Nevertheless, their greatness did not stand up before Nebuchadnezzar.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
9 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כּ֥וּשׁ | kush | Cush | H3568 → | |
| עָצְמָ֛ה | ʾatzemah | [was] strength its | H6109 → | |
| וּמִצְרַ֖יִם | umitzrayim | and Egypt | H4714 → | |
| וְאֵ֣ין | veein | and there not | H369 → | 789 times |
| קֵ֑צֶה | ketzeh | [was] an end | H7097 → | 97 times |
| פּ֣וּט | put | Put | H6316 → | |
| וְלוּבִ֔ים | veluvim | and [the] Libyans | H3864 → | |
| הָי֖וּ | hayu | they were | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| בְּעֶזְרָתֵֽךְ׃ | beezratekh | <in> help your | H5833 → |
כּ֥וּשׁCush
kushH3568 →
עָצְמָ֛ה[was] strength its
ʾatzemahH6109 →
וּמִצְרַ֖יִםand Egypt
umitzrayimH4714 →
וְאֵ֣יןand there not
veeinH369 →789 times
קֵ֑צֶה[was] an end
ketzehH7097 →97 times
פּ֣וּטPut
putH6316 →
וְלוּבִ֔יםand [the] Libyans
veluvimH3864 →
הָי֖וּthey were
hayuH1961 →3559 times
בְּעֶזְרָתֵֽךְ׃<in> help your
beezratekhH5833 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Ezekiel 27:10Men of Persia, Lydia, and Put served as warriors in your army. They hung their shields and helmets on your walls; they gave you splendor.
it leads to
- Ezekiel 30:5
Cush, Put, and Lud, and all the various peoples, as well as Libya and the men of the covenant land, will fall with Egypt by the sword.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Ezekiel 38:5
Persia, Cush, and Put will accompany them, all with shields and helmets,
- Ezekiel 30:5
Through
Ezekiel 38:5Persia, Cush, and Put will accompany them, all with shields and helmets,
it leads to
- Ezekiel 27:10
Men of Persia, Lydia, and Put served as warriors in your army. They hung their shields and helmets on your walls; they gave you splendor.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Genesis 10:6
The sons of Ham: Cush, Mizraim, Put, and Canaan.
- Ezekiel 27:10
Through
2 Chronicles 12:3with 1,200 chariots, 60,000 horsemen, and countless troops who came with him out of Egypt—Libyans, Sukkites, and Cushites.
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 16:8
Were not the Cushites and Libyans a vast army with many chariots and horsemen? Yet because you relied on the LORD, He delivered them into your hand.
- 2 Chronicles 16:8
Through
Ezekiel 30:5Cush, Put, and Lud, and all the various peoples, as well as Libya and the men of the covenant land, will fall with Egypt by the sword.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 25:20
all the mixed tribes; all the kings of Uz; all the kings of the Philistines: Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod;
- Jeremiah 25:20
Through
Isaiah 20:5Those who made Cush their hope and Egypt their boast will be dismayed and ashamed.
it leads to
- Isaiah 30:3
But Pharaoh’s protection will become your shame, and the refuge of Egypt’s shade your disgrace.
- Isaiah 30:5
everyone will be put to shame because of a people useless to them. They cannot be of help; they are good for nothing but shame and reproach.”
- Isaiah 30:3
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies2
About Nahum
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Edward Bouverie Pusey, The Minor Prophets: A Commentary; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Nahum; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.