God Is Awesome

1The pronouncement of Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite:

2A jealous and avenging God is the LORD;

The LORD is avenging and [a]wrathful.

The LORD takes vengeance on His adversaries,

And He reserves wrath for His enemies.

3The LORD is slow to anger and great in power,

And the LORD will by no means leave the guilty unpunished.

In the gale and the storm is His way,

And clouds are the dust beneath His feet.

4He rebukes the sea and dries it up;

He dries up all the rivers.

Bashan and Carmel wither,

The blossoms of Lebanon wither.

5Mountains quake because of Him,

And the hills come apart;

Indeed the earth is upheaved by His presence,

The world and all the inhabitants in it.

6Who can stand before His indignation?

Who can endure the burning of His anger?

His wrath gushes forth like fire,

And the rocks are broken up by Him.

7The LORD is good,

A stronghold in the day of trouble,

And He knows those who take refuge in Him.

8But with an overflowing flood

He will make a complete end of [b]its site,

And will pursue His enemies into darkness.

9Whatever you devise against the LORD,

He will make a complete end of it.

Distress will not rise up twice.

10Like tangled thorns,

And like those who are drunken with their drink,

They are consumed

Like stubble completely dried up.

11From you has gone out

One who plotted evil against the LORD,

A [c]wicked counselor. 12This is what the LORD says:

“Though they are at full strength and so they are many,

So also they will be cut off and pass away.

Though I have afflicted you,

I will afflict you no longer.

13“So now, I will break his yoke from upon you,

And I will tear your shackles to pieces.”

14The LORD has issued a command concerning [d]you:

“[e]Your name will no longer be perpetuated.

I will eliminate the carved image and the cast metal image

From the house of your gods.

I will prepare your grave,

For you are contemptible.”

15[f]Behold, on the mountains, the feet of him who brings good news,

Who announces peace!

Celebrate your feasts, Judah,

Pay your vows.

For never again will the [g]wicked one pass through you;

He is eliminated completely.