The first half of this verse reminds the reader of three features of Nineveh before its destruction: exalted, secure, and self-sufficient. Its economy was good, the arts were flourishing, and the population had time for leisure. Assyria in the height of its glory revelled in these experiences of prosperity. She suffered no external threats from her neighbors. Plundering the wealth of all the nations, she lived in pleasure and prosperity. All this prosperity led Nineveh to a single conclusion. She assumed her own self-sufficiency.
1 But God cannot abide the inflated ego of men.2
15 This is the exultant city that lived securely, that said in her heart, “I am, and there is no one else.” What a desolation she has become, a lair for wild beasts! Everyone who passes by her hisses and shakes his fist.