Nahum 2:3 - Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible

The shield; one part for the whole of the armour and furniture, or harness. Of his, Medes or Chaldeans, mighty men; soldiers, more particularly the brave and stout ones, who were the choice men of the army. Is made red; either coloured red by the dyer, or else dyed red with the blood of the slain. The valiant men are in scarlet: this explains the former; they used this colour much, either to terrify the enemy, or to conceal their own wounds widen the blood on other colour would have disclosed them. The chariots; much used in the wars of those countries, and the great men usually fought in them in those days. Shall be with flaming torches; either because they did force fire out of the stones by their swift motion over them, or rather because there were torches always carried in them, to light them that rode in them by night, and to be in readiness to fire the houses of cities or tents in the camp they did break into. In the day of his preparation; when he shall muster his armies, and bring together his magazines, and prepare his engines. The fir trees shall be terribly shaken; by axes cutting them down for several uses in the war, for torches, for lances, for building forts, and many other uses. This is parallel with Isaiah 14:8. Whole forests were sometimes destroyed by great armies, which cut them down for their service.