6 And I
will cast abominable filth upon thee, and make thee vile, and will set thee as
a gazingstock.
“Abominable filth,” the Hebrew word is almost always in
relation to idolatry; the names of their gods would be drug through the dung
heaps and manure piles. In ancient times, for a people to be defeated meant
their gods were defeated as well by the conquerors gods. Just as people stared
in disbelief as Assyria marched their captives away in a horrid fashion, so too
would Babylon do such to them.
That is the trouble with a reputation of extreme acts of
humiliation and dehumanization of an enemy. Woe upon them if the tables ever is
turned, for what they did to others will be done to them in a more extreme
fashion than they could imagine. To capture a beast that one once feared is to
unleash every ounce of anger upon it. The word “gazing stock” means to be made a
public example of.
7 And it
shall come to pass, that all they that look upon thee shall flee from thee, and
say, Nineveh is laid waste: who will bemoan her? whence shall I seek comforters
for thee?
For Assyria to be overthrown is to now fear and run from the
ones who conquered them! To look upon the humiliated Assyrians is to flee
before the Babylonians get a hold of you and do that to you. But we see the
same will be said in the future of Babylon.
Rev. 18:4-19 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying,
Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye
receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath
remembered her iniquities. Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto
her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her
double. How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much
torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am
no widow, and shall see no sorrow. Therefore shall her plagues come in one day,
death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for
strong is the Lord God who judgeth her. And the kings of the earth, who have
committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and
lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning, Standing afar off
for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that
mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come. And the merchants of the earth
shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and
fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all
manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of
brass, and iron, and marble, And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and
frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and
sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men. And the fruits
that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were
dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at
all. The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand
afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, And saying, Alas,
alas that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet,
and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls! For in one hour so great
riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships,
and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, And cried when they
saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!
And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying,
Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the
sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
8 Art thou
better than populous No, that was situate among the rivers, that had the waters
round about it, whose rampart was the sea, and her wall was from the sea?
God asks through Nahum if Nineveh thinks her better than
Thebes whom the Assyrians themselves sacked in 663 BCE.
“Nahum prophesied that Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, would
be destroyed by God, just as No-Amon was pillaged by Assyrians in 663 BC (Nah.
3:8). Later Jeremiah (46:25) and Ezekiel (30:14-16) predicted the
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, would punish the king of Egypt, destroy the
gods of Egypt, and bring further desolation to Thebes. This was proof that God
had power over all nations and that their gods were powerless.” – Nelson’s
Illustrated Bible Dictionary
9 Ethiopia
and Egypt were her strength, and it was infinite; Put and Lubim were thy helpers.
Gen. 10:6-13 And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and
Phut, and Canaan. And the sons of Cush; Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and
Raamah, and Sabtechah: and the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan. And Cush begat
Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before
the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the
LORD. And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and
Calneh, in the land of Shinar. Out of that land went forth Asshur, and builded
Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah, And Resen between Nineveh and Calah:
the same is a great city. And Mizraim begat Ludim, and Anamim, and Lehabim, and
Naphtuhim,
These nations were related to forefathers of Assyrians. Put
and Lubim are thought possibly to be modern day Libya. They are often mentioned
in connection with Egypt and Ethiopia.
II Chron. 12:3 With twelve hundred chariots, and threescore
thousand horsemen: and the people were without number that came with him out of
Egypt; the Lubims, the Sukkiims, and the Ethiopians.
Ezk. 27:10 They of Persia and of Lud and of Phut were in
thine army, thy men of war: they hanged the shield and helmet in thee; they set
forth thy comeliness.
