v1: The enemy attacking Nineveh; yet any preparation will prove futile.

v2: Israel restored, but Nineveh destroyed.

v3-4: The army attacking Nineveh; the prophet sees the certain victory, the victorious army.

v5: Nineveh has "his picked troops," yet they are useless in the day of God's wrath.

v6: The city destroyed by rivers; the Tigris overflowed, bringing down the city walls, allowing the attacking armies, led by Babylon, to enter the city and defeat it, see Ezek 32.22-23.

v7: "It is decreed," for God has spoken; this will certainly happen.

v8: People run away in fear, like water draining away.

v9: There is great spoil in Nineveh, since it enjoyed dominion over many nations. Yet those riches also prove useless in the day of doom.

v10: The city becomes empty and desolate; the image is of a people suffering terribly.

v11-12: The lions, the leaders of Nineveh; they enjoyed security in their dwelling, their lairs, feeding on the people whom they devoured, gathering their wealth for themselves.

v13: The flood waters were significant in the defeat of Nineveh, but it was the sword that actually devoured them.