Nahum 2:7
in Nahum 2It is decreed that the city be exiled and carried away; her maidservants moan like doves, and beat upon their breasts.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And it is decreed: she is uncovered, she is carried away; and her handmaids moan as with the voice of doves, beating upon their breasts.
KJV
And Huzzab shall be led away captive, she shall be brought up, and her maids shall lead her as with the voice of doves, tabering upon their breasts.
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This verse in Nahum 2
Commentary
8 notes on this verseAnd Huzzab shall be led away captive,.... The Targum translates it the queen; and Jarchi and Aben Ezra, after R.
This site's exposition
The river gates are thrown open
on Nahum 2:6-8
"The river gates are thrown open and the palace collapses," and the ancient accounts of Nineveh's fall record the river turned against the city. The Hebrew the Berean text renders "It is decreed" has also been read as the queen, the city personified, or a name, Huzzab.
This site's exposition
moan like doves
The Hebrew word the Berean text renders as decreed was once read as a name, Huzzab, which Adam Clarke took for the queen of Nineveh. It is now read as the decree itself. Her servants mourn like doves and beat their breasts in grief.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 3 and following) The shield of the strong is ablaze, the men of the army in scarlet; the fiery chariots are on the day of its preparation; and the drivers are asleep, they are disturbed on the journey, the chariots collide in the streets. Their appearance is like torches, like lightning running to and fro. They will remember their mighty men, they will rush on their way, they will quickly climb its walls, and the shelter will be prepared.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
16 ), noted for their mourning, Isa. xxxviii. They shall be tabering upon their breasts, beating their own breasts in grief and vexation, as if they were drumming upon them, for so the word signifies.
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The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The first word should he rendered, “And it is decreed; She shall be laid bare. It is decreed.” All this took place, otherwise than man would have thought, because it was the will of God.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
MAURER makes it not a proper name, and translates, "It is established," or "determined" (compare Ge 41:32). English Version is more supported by the parallelism. led away captive--The Hebrew requires rather, "she is laid bare"; brought forth from the apartments where Eastern women remained secluded, and is stripped of her ornamental attire.
And Huzzab shall be led away captive - Perhaps Huzzab means the queen of Nineveh, who had escaped the burning mentioned above by Diodorus. As there is no account of the queen being burnt, but only of the king, the concubines, and the eunuchs, we may, therefore, naturally conclude that the queen escaped; and is represented here as brought up and delivered to the conqueror; her maids at the same time bewailing her lot. Some think Huzzab signifies Nineveh itself.
The words behind it
10 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְהֻצַּ֖ב | vehutzav | and it has been fixed | H5324 → | |
| גֻּלְּתָ֣ה | guletah | it was uncovered | H1540 → | |
| הֹֽעֲלָ֑תָה | hoalatah | it was taken away | H5927 → | 890 times |
| וְאַמְהֹתֶ֗יהָ | veamhoteiha | and maidservants its | H519 → | |
| מְנַֽהֲגוֹת֙ | menahagoyt | [are] moaning | H5090 → | |
| כְּק֣וֹל | kekol | like [the] sound of | H6963 → | 506 times |
| יוֹנִ֔ים | yonim | doves | H3123 → | |
| מְתֹפְפֹ֖ת | metofefot | [they are] beating | H8608 → | |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| לִבְבֵהֶֽן׃ | livehen | hearts their | H3824 → |
וְהֻצַּ֖בand it has been fixed
vehutzavH5324 →
גֻּלְּתָ֣הit was uncovered
guletahH1540 →
הֹֽעֲלָ֑תָהit was taken away
hoalatahH5927 →890 times
וְאַמְהֹתֶ֗יהָand maidservants its
veamhoteihaH519 →
מְנַֽהֲגוֹת֙[are] moaning
menahagoytH5090 →
כְּק֣וֹלlike [the] sound of
kekolH6963 →506 times
יוֹנִ֔יםdoves
yonimH3123 →
מְתֹפְפֹ֖ת[they are] beating
metofefotH8608 →
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
לִבְבֵהֶֽן׃hearts their
livehenH3824 →
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
Isaiah 38:14I chirp like a swallow or crane; I moan like a dove. My eyes grow weak as I look upward. O Lord, I am oppressed; be my security.”
it leads to
- Isaiah 59:11
We all growl like bears and moan like doves. We hope for justice, but find none, for salvation, but it is far from us.
- Psalms 69:3
I am weary from my crying; my throat is parched. My eyes fail, looking for my God.
- Psalms 119:122–123
Ensure Your servant’s well-being; do not let the arrogant oppress me.
- Job 30:29
I have become a brother of jackals, a companion of ostriches.
- Psalms 123:1–4
I lift up my eyes to You, the One enthroned in heaven.
- Isaiah 59:11
Through
Luke 23:48And when all the people who had gathered for this spectacle saw what had happened, they returned home beating their breasts.
it leads to
- Luke 18:13
But the tax collector stood at a distance, unwilling even to lift up his eyes to heaven. Instead, he beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner!’
- Luke 18:13
Through
Luke 23:27A great number of people followed Him, including women who kept mourning and wailing for Him.
it leads to
- Luke 8:52
Meanwhile, everyone was weeping and mourning for her. But Jesus said, “Stop weeping; she is not dead but asleep.”
- Luke 8:52
Through
Isaiah 59:11We all growl like bears and moan like doves. We hope for justice, but find none, for salvation, but it is far from us.
it leads to
- Isaiah 38:14
I chirp like a swallow or crane; I moan like a dove. My eyes grow weak as I look upward. O Lord, I am oppressed; be my security.”
- Isaiah 38:14
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies2
On this verse
On this chapter
About Nahum
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); 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) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.