By calling it the bloody city Nahum is once again recalling the way the Assyrians have treated others. It is a city and a nation that has used violence and bloodshed to destroy all those it has invaded. A bloodthirsty city is a city where man is glorified instead of God. This stands in stark contrast with the new Jerusalem described in Revelation 21:1 – 22:21 where God is at the centre.1
It is also a city full of lies. The Assyrians had mastered the art of deception by making great promises of peace and prosperity to all those who would come to her, but instead bringing death and destruction when they did. A clear example of this is seen in 2 Kings 18:31–32 where a representative is sent by Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, to try and turn Israel against Hezekiah with words of deceit and deception.2
The result of many years of deceit and bloody violence against other nations is that Nineveh had become a city full of plunder. They had stripped their enemies of everything. There was no end to the prey.
These words take us back to the image of lions caught up in a feeding frenzy in Nahum 2:11–13. For many years Assyria treated other nations with endless exploitation and cruelty.
But all of that is about to change. As the Lord comes in judgment against them, they are going to experience for themselves what they have done to others.
1 Woe to the bloody city, all full of lies and plunder no end to the prey!