Nahum

Nahum

Historical Background and Purpose

The book of Nahum can been seen as a sequel to the book of Jonah.  In the book of Jonah, God commanded His prophet, Jonah, to go and warn the people of Nineveh of God's impending judgment of them.  Eventually, Jonah did warn them and the people of Nineveh repented.  God saw their repentent response and did not destroy them.  The book of Nahum was written by the prophet, Nahum, about one hundred years after the prophet, Jonah, had delivered His message to the people of Nineveh.  During Nahum's time, "Assyria was at its full strength, arrogant after having conquered Egypt (663 BC) and before it was defeated by Babylon (609 BC). . . In 722 BC Assyria defeated the northern kingdom of Israel.  Now, almost a hundred years later, the southern kingdom of Judah was ruled by Manasseh, a puppet king by the Assyrians" (see the introduction to Nahum in the Sourceview Bible).  God is holy.  God is all-powerful.  God is just.  God is faithful.  God demonstrates these qualities and others as He judges the wicked people of Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, for their wickedness.  The purpose of the book of Nahum was to comfort the people the people of Judah.  This book demonstrates that God is holy and God will not allow evil to triumph.  God will indeed punish the evildoers and good will triumph!

Character and Nature of God

The book of Nahum demonstrates that the LORD takes revenge on His enemies and He will not allow the guilty to go unpunished.  Nahum 1:2-3 states, "The LORD is a jealous God, filled with vengeance and rage.  He takes revenge on all who oppose him and continues to rage against his enemies! The LORD is slow to get angry, but his power is great and he never lets the guilty go unpunished."  However, the LORD is also good and is a strong refuge when trouble comes for those who trust in him (see Nahum 1:7-8).  God announced, "I am your enemy!" twice to the people of Nineveh (see Nahum 2:13, 3:5).  God then destroyed the Assyrians with His great power.  God is holy and God will not allow the guilty to go unpunished.  God is all-powerful and nothing (not even the Assyrians with their great power) can prevent God from doing all that He has determined to do.  God is good and good will triumph over evil!

God's Redemptive Plan for Mankind

God is holy and God will not allow the guilty to go unpunished.  The Assyrians committed great evil in the sight of the LORD and the LORD destroyed them with His great power.  While it is true that God will not allow the guilty to go unpunished, it is also true that God is good.  Nahum 1:7 states, "the LORD is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him."  God comforted the people of Judah with His message to them through Nahum.  Basically, God told the people of Judah that He would destroy their enemies (the Assyrians) and He would restore its honor (see Nahum 1:15-2:2).   Nahum 2:2 states, "Even though the destroyer has destroyed Judah, the LORD will restore its honor.  Israel's vine has been stipped of branches, but he will restore its splendor."  This verse demonstrates what God did for the people of Judah in its past and what God will do for the people of Judah in the future.  Good will triumph over evil!  God will triumph!

Personal Application

As I was studying the book of Nahum, it comforted me to know that God will not allow evil to prevail.  Good will prevail over evil.  God prevails over His enemies!  Our good God prevails!  Sometimes it does indeed appear that evil is prevailing; however, evil will not prevail in the end.  God will prevail!  For my part, I will continue to do my best to do what God has commanded us to do.  In His Word, God commands us to love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love others as ourselves; therefore, that is what I am going to do!

Point of Passion

My point of passion is to know God and to make Him known.  Throughout the Bible, God instructs us on what to do and what not to do.  Throughout the book of Nahum, God clearly demonstrates that He will not allow the guilty to go unpunished.  However, God also reassures us that He is good and He will be a strong refuge for us when trouble comes.  He will be near to those who trust in Him.  I will teach others these truths about God and I will continue to encourage others to place their hope and their trust in Him.