Nahum's Sarcasm (Nahum 2:1-5)

This study was done using the Amplified Bible, which I don't have permission to publish, so I will replace the verses here with the American Standard Version.  Because of that some of the comments may not totally make sense because the AMP has expanded explanations.  I would highly recommend going to a site like BibleGateway.com where you can read the AMP version for free.

Nahum Chapter 2

 1. He that dasheth in pieces is come up against thee: keep the fortress, watch the way, make thy loins strong, fortify thy power mightily.

 As mentioned in the AMP version, this is a sarcastic message to Nineveh by the prophet.  As Elijah mocked the prophets of Baal so Nahum is mocking the Ninevites who were in a time of expansion when this was written.  They were growing in strength and becoming ever stronger, believing that they could not possibly fall.  Nahum knew that for all their strength it would come to a bitter and bloody end, as it certainly did.

2 For Jehovah restoreth the excellency of Jacob, as the excellency of Israel; for the emptiers have emptied them out, and destroyed their vine-branches.

     A.  What a declaration of redemption!  God's desire has always been to restore the excellency of His people.  They so often open the gates and allow plunderers to come in and empty them of their goods, but God is there waiting to restore and bless.

3 The shield of his mighty men is made red, the valiant men are in scarlet: the chariots flash with steel in the day of his preparation, and the cypress spears are brandished.

  A.  The Medes in fact did use red shields and clothing as is depicted in the image of a Median cavalryman here.

Median Cavalryman

It is also likely that the redness of the shields is also in reference to the blood of those killed in the battle.  In the case of the fire and steel it is historically recorded that the Medes and Babylonians always carried torches with them into battle.  Aside from providing light at night, they were also used to honor their gods.

4 The chariots rage in the streets; they rush to and fro in the broad ways: the appearance of them is like torches; they run like the lightnings.

   A.  What an image of desperation and chaos is this prophecy of what Nineveh will look like when that inevitable war was to come.  The wild, bewildered attempts to escape by the Ninevites as they are overrun by torch carrying chariots of the Babylonian army.  Without a doubt the Babylonians used those torches to set homes and anything else they could on fire.  One can only imagine the terror they must have felt when the overwhelming surge of the enemy began to push through the streets.

5 He remembereth his nobles: they stumble in their march; they make haste to the wall thereof, and the mantelet is prepared.

     A.  At this point, when the siege actually took place, the brilliant king Ashurbanipal had died, and a less effective king, the son of Ashurbanipal, named Sin-shar-ishkun was ruling in Nineveh.  Once Ashurbanipal had died, the kingdom of Assyria began to unravel fairly quickly.  There were multiple violent conflicts, including with his own brother whom he removed from the throne.   He was killed in the attack.