Nahum 3:15
“There shall the fire devour thee; the sword shall cut thee off, it shall eat thee up like the cankerworm: make thyself many as the cankerworm, make thyself many as the locusts.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Fire and sword will consume Nineveh like devouring locusts; though she multiply her numbers, she cannot escape.
What Does Nahum 3:15 Mean?
Despite all her frantic preparations, fire will devour Nineveh and the sword will cut her off, consuming her as the cankerworm, a stage of the locust, strips a field bare. Then the prophet turns the locust image against her with biting irony: multiply yourself like the cankerworm, multiply like the locusts, make your numbers as vast as a swarm. The taunt invites her to gather all the strength she can, knowing it will avail nothing against the judgment now falling.
Locusts were the ancient world's picture of overwhelming, uncountable multitude, and Assyria had been just such a swarm devouring the nations. Now the devourer is itself devoured, and no increase of numbers can change the outcome. The verse exposes the futility of trusting in sheer size and force. What looked invincible in its multitude is consumed like dry stubble. The same God who can summon or scatter a swarm holds every empire in His hand. Lasting security is never found in numbers but in Him, and against His decree even the greatest multitude is powerless.