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<h2><a onclick="return mV('Nah',1,'1-');">Nah 1</a> - Coming Judgment on Nineveh</h2>
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<p>A. The character of the God who brings judgment.</p>
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<p class="c1">1. (<a onclick="return mV('Nah',1,1);">1</a>) The burden of Nahum.</p>
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<p class="c2">The burden against Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.</p>
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<p class="c4"><span>a. <b><span class="c3">The burden</span></b></span>: In the prophets, a <b><span class="c3">burden</span></b><span> is a "heavy" message of weighty importance, heavy in the sense that it produces sorrow or grief.</span></p>
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<p class="c5"><span>i. </span>"<i>Massa</i> comes from the verb 'to lift up' (<i>nasa</i>), and so it can mean 'to carry' or 'to lift up the voice.' From the first meaning comes the translation 'burden,' or 'load'; and from the second meaning we get the translation 'oracle,' or 'utterance.'" (Wolf, in his commentary on Isaiah) Grammatically, we may be able to say "oracle," but since these are <i>heavy</i> oracles, we are justified in calling them <i>burdens</i>.</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. "<i>Massa</i> not only signifies a <i>burden</i>, but also a thing <i>lifted up</i>, <i>pronounced</i>, or <i>proclaimed</i>; also a <i>message</i>. It is used by the prophets to signify the <i>revelation</i> which they have received from God to deliver to any particular people." (Clarke)</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">Against Nineveh</span></b>: <span>The capital of the Assyrian Empire was Nineveh, the city that heard the preaching of Jonah a hundred years before and repented. Nahum will address a city that has slipped back into sin, and is again ripe for judgment.</span></p>
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<p class="c5"><span>i. Among other things, the Prophecy of Nahum shows us that God not only deals with individuals as individuals, He also deals with nations as nations. </span>"This is the prophecy which sets forth, more clearly than any other, the truth concerning the wrath of God, in its national application." (Morgan) Nations will be held to account by God.</p>
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<p class="c5"><span>ii. Nineveh was an ancient, famous city. It was founded by the first world dictator, Nimrod (</span><a onclick="return mV('Gen',10,11);">Gen 10:11</a>) "From Nineveh's walls, temples, palaces, inscriptions, and reliefs, mute yet elaborate witness is given to a city that flourished up to its destruction in 612 <span class="c6">b.c.</span> Accordingly, the magnificent buildings, artistic designs, and water-supply projects of Nineveh have resulted in its being likened to ancient Versailles." (<i>Major Cities of the Biblical World</i>)</p>
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<p class="c4"><span>c. <b><span class="c3">The book of the vision</span></b></span>: This was more than a message communicated to Nahum in words or phrases from God. Because this is a <b><span class="c3">vision</span></b>, in some way Nahum <i>saw</i> it. When we see the vivid, descriptive way Nahum writes we understand that <b><span class="c3">the book</span></b> records what he saw in his <b><span class="c3">vision</span></b>.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. <a onclick="return mV('Isa',2,1);">Isa 2:1</a> says: <i>T<span>he word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem</span></i>. Isaiah <i>saw</i> a <i>word</i>, and in some sense Nahum also did.</p>
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<p class="c4">d. <b><span class="c3">Nah the Elkoshite</span></b>: We don't know anything else about <b><span class="c3">Nah</span></b> or the city of Elkosh. The name <b><span class="c3">Nah</span></b> is an abbreviated form of the name <i>Neh</i>, which means "Comfort of Yahweh." It may be that Elkosh was in the region of Galilee, because the city of Capernaum (<a onclick="return mV('Mat',4,13);">Mat 4:13</a>; <a onclick="return mV('Mar',9,33);">Mar 9:33</a>; <a onclick="return mV('Jhn',2,12);">Jhn 2:12</a>) was named after <b><span class="c3">Nah</span></b> (<i>Kephar-Nahum</i>, "City of Nahum").</p>
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<p class="c5">i. We don't know exactly when Nahum gave this prophecy. He mentions the destruction of the Egyptian city <i>No Amon</i> (Thebes) in <a onclick="return mV('Nah',3,8);">Nah 3:8</a> and Thebes fell to the Assyrians in 663 <span class="c6">b.c.</span>, so Nahum must have been written after that. Nineveh was destroyed 50 years after No Amon (612 <span class="c6">b.c.</span>).</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. It is likely that Nahum was written during the <i>height</i> of Nineveh's power. "It was concerned with Nineveh, and was delivered almost certainly when she was at the height of her power." (Morgan)</p>
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<p class="c1">2. (<a onclick="return mV('Nah',1,'2-8');">2-8</a>) The judgments of a merciful God.</p>
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<p class="c2">God <i>is </i>jealous, and the <span class="c6">Lord</span> avenges; the <span class="c6">Lord</span> avenges and <i>is </i>furious. The <span class="c6">Lord</span> will take vengeance on His adversaries, and He reserves <i>wrath </i>for His enemies; the <span class="c6">Lord</span> <i>is </i>slow to anger and great in power, and will not at all acquit <i>the wicked. </i>The <span class="c6">Lord</span> has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds <i>are </i>the dust of His feet. He rebukes the sea and makes it dry, and dries up all the rivers. Bashan and Carmel wither, and the flower of Lebanon wilts. The mountains quake before Him, the hills melt, and the earth heaves at His presence, yes, the world and all who dwell in it. Who can stand before His indignation? And who can endure the fierceness of His anger? His fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by Him. The <span class="c6">Lord</span> <i>is </i>good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knows those who trust in Him. But with an overflowing flood He will make an utter end of its place, and darkness will pursue His enemies.</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">The <span class="c6">Lord</span> is slow to anger and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked</span></b>: Nahum begins his prophecy by considering the <i>character</i> of the God who brings judgment.</p><ul class="c6"><li><b><span class="c3">God is jealous</span></b>: How can it be said that God is <b>jealous</b>? "God's jealousy is love in action. He refuses to share the human heart with any rival, not because He is selfish and wants us all for Himself, but because He knows that upon that loyalty to Him depends our very moral life...God is not jealous <i>of</i> us: He is jealous <i>for</i> us." (Redpath in <i>Law and Liberty</i>)<b><span class="c3"></span></b></li><li><b><span class="c3">The <span class="c6">Lord</span> will take vengeance on His adversaries</span></b>: Man needs to understand that he can't fight against God and hope to prevail. Everyone who sets themselves against God will end up receiving His <b><span class="c3">vengeance</span></b>.<b><span class="c3"></span></b></li><li><b><span class="c3">The <span class="c6">Lord</span> is slow to anger</span></b>: God is far more patient than man. Though there is a time and place where He does display His <b><span class="c3">anger</span></b>, it doesn't come quickly or capriciously. <span>"God's sword of justice is in its scabbard: not rusted in it - it can be easily withdrawn - but held there by that hand that presses it back into its sheath, crying, 'Sleep, O sword, sleep; for I will have mercy upon sinners, and will forgive their transgressions.'" (Spurgeon)</span><b><span class="c3"></span></b></li><li><b><span class="c3">And great in power</span></b>: Knowing God's power should make us <i>trust</i> in His help (because He is able to help) and to <i>fear</i> His judgment (knowing that He judges with <b><span class="c3">power</span></b>).<b><span class="c3"></span></b></li><li><b><span class="c3">Will not at all acquit the wicked</span></b>: God is not like an unjust judge who simply lets the guilty go out of a false sense of compassion. We can't just figure that God will say, "Let's let bygones be bygones" when we get to heaven. Sin must be accounted for, because He <b><span class="c3">will not acquit the wicked</span></b>. Every sin will be paid for - either in hell or at the cross - but God <b><span class="c3">will not acquit the wicked</span></b>. "<span>Never once has he pardoned an unpunished sin; not in all the years of the Most High, not in all the days of his right hand, has he once blotted out sin without punishment." (Spurgeon)</span><b><span class="c3"></span></b></li><li><b><span class="c3">The <span class="c6">Lord</span> has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm</span></b>: God's power is so great that it controls the mightiest forces known to man. A huge <b><span class="c3">whirlwind</span></b> or <b><span class="c3">storm</span></b> is nothing to God, because He <b><span class="c3">has His way</span></b> in them.<b><span class="c3"></span></b></li><li><b><span class="c3">His fury is poured out like fire</span></b>: When God is resisted long enough and rejected strongly enough, eventually His judgment comes. He is <b><span class="c3">slow to anger</span></b>, but when it does come <b><span class="c3">His fury is poured out like fire</span></b>. Understanding this should make man quick to repent and wary of presuming on God's patience.<b><span class="c3"></span></b></li><li><b><span class="c3">The <span class="c6">Lord</span> is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble</span></b>: Those who love Him and trust Him see the goodness of God, and find protection in His <b><span class="c3">stronghold</span></b> - which is the <span class="c6">Lord</span> Himself. "<span>Remember that it is only a <i>day; </i>it is not a week, nor a month, and God will not permit the devil to add an extra hour to that day; it is a 'day <i>of </i>trouble.' There is an end to all our griefs." (Spurgeon)</span><b><span class="c3"></span></b></li><li><b><span class="c3">He knows those who trust in Him</span></b>: Not only does He know them in the sense of identification, but also in the sense of <i>relationship</i>. <b><span class="c3">Trust</span></b> implies relationship, and God <b><span class="c3">knows those who trust in Him</span></b>. <span>"Once more, dear friends, this word 'know' here means <i>loving communion</i></span>...<span>God knows us; he knows our prayers and tears, he knows our wishes, he knows that we are not what we want to be, but he knows what we do desire to be. He knows our aspirations, our sighs, our groans, our secret longings, our own chastenings of spirit when we fail; he has entered into it all. He says, 'Yes, dear child, I know all about you; I have been with you when you thought you were alone. I have read what you could not read, the secrets of your own heart that you could not decipher I have known them all, and I still know them.'" (Spurgeon)</span></li></ul>
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<p class="c4">b. How important it is to know that <b><span class="c3">the <span class="c6">Lord</span> is good</span></b>!</p><ul class="c6"><li>God is good in His very being - it is His very <i>nature</i> to be good</li><li>God is good independently - no one must <i>help</i> Him be good</li><li>God is eternally and unchangeably good</li><li>God is good in each one of His Divine Persons</li><li>God is good in all His acts of grace</li><li>God is good in all His plans and purposes for our life</li></ul>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">With an overflowing flood He will make an utter end of its place</span></b>: Taking into account the character of God, though His <b><span class="c3">slow to anger</span></b> and <b><span class="c3">good</span></b>, He cannot forever overlook the sin and rebellion of the Assyrians. Their end in judgment will come like <b><span class="c3">an overflowing flood</span></b>.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. The <b><span class="c3">overflowing flood</span></b> was fulfilled both figuratively and literally. "According to secular accounts, during the final siege of Nineveh by a rebel army of Persians, Medes, Arabians, and Babylonians, unusually heavy rains caused the rivers to flood and to undermine the city's walls, which then collapsed...the invading armies entered the city through this breach in its defenses." (Boice)</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. The <b><span class="c3">utter end of its place</span></b> was also literally fulfilled. "Not only were these people lost from history, even the city was lost until it was discovered by archaeologists, beginning in the 1840's." (Boice)</p>
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<p class="c5">iii. "The author is not expressing some personal feeling of vindication over some hurt by the oppressor, nor even a nationalistic chauvinism that pagan nations must be punished. Rather, Yahweh is applying his universal standard against evil, no matter who is responsible." (Baker)</p>
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<p>B. Nineveh destroyed, Judah delivered.</p>
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<p class="c1">1. (<a onclick="return mV('Nah',1,'9-11');">9-11</a>) The destruction of Nineveh.</p>
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<p class="c2">What do you conspire against the <span class="c6">Lord</span>? He will make an utter end <i>of it. </i>Affliction will not rise up a second time. For while tangled <i>like </i>thorns, and while drunken <i>like </i>drunkards, they shall be devoured like stubble fully dried. From you comes forth <i>one </i>who plots evil against the <span class="c6">Lord</span>, a wicked counselor.</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">He will make an utter end of it</span></b>: Nineveh was ripe for a devastating judgment. This was not a harsh chastening; this was utter destruction to come upon the city. The promise "<b><span class="c3">Affliction will not rise up a second time</span></b>" sounds encouraging, until we realize that it <b><span class="c3">will not rise up a second time</span></b> because the judgment will be so severe the <i>first time</i>.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">They shall be devoured like stubble fully dried</span></b>: The dry leftover stalks of grass are ready to be <b><span class="c3">devoured</span></b> by the smallest flame. This is how ripe Nineveh is for judgment, and how complete the fire of judgment will be when it comes.</p>
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<p class="c1">2. (<a onclick="return mV('Nah',1,'12-13');">12-13</a>) The deliverance of Zion.</p>
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<p class="c2">Thus says the <span class="c6">Lord</span>: "Though <i>they are </i>safe, and likewise many, yet in this manner they will be cut down when he passes through. Though I have afflicted you, I will afflict you no more; for now I will break off his yoke from you, and burst your bonds apart."</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">Though they are safe</span></b>: The enemies of Zion looked mighty; they were <b><span class="c3">safe</span></b> and <b><span class="c3">many</span></b>. Yet they will be devastated by the judgment that the <span class="c6">Lord</span> promised.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">Though I have afflicted you, I will afflict you no more</span></b>: God's people looked weak and <b><span class="c3">afflicted</span></b>; yet God promises that they will be strengthened and restored. The power of their oppressors will be broken (<b><span class="c3">I will break off his yoke from you</span></b>).</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Could not the believer today, who is trapped or oppressed by sin, ask God to break the yoke of sin? It must be done with a complete willingness to <i>walk</i> in the freedom God gives, but only God can <b><span class="c3">break off</span></b> the power of the things that bind us.</p>
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<p class="c1">3. (<a onclick="return mV('Nah',1,14);">14</a>) The end of the wicked in Assyria.</p>
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<p class="c2">The <span class="c6">Lord</span> has given a command concerning you: "Your name shall be perpetuated no longer. Out of the house of your gods I will cut off the carved image and the molded image. I will dig your grave, for you are vile."</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">Your name shall be perpetuated no longer</span></b>: The city of Nineveh was once instantly recognized as one of the great "power cities" of the world. God promises to bring this wicked city so low that they lose their legacy and <b><span class="c3">name</span></b> among the nations.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">I will dig your grave, for you are vile</span></b>: In this vivid - almost extreme - imagery, God warns Nineveh of its coming judgment and destruction.</p>
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<p class="c1">4. (<a onclick="return mV('Nah',1,15);">15</a>) Blessing in Judah.</p>
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<p class="c2">Behold, on the mountains the feet of him who brings good tidings, who proclaims peace! O Judah, keep your appointed feasts, perform your vows. For the wicked one shall no more pass through you; he is utterly cut off.</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">Behold, on the mountains the feet of him who brings good tidings, who proclaims peace!</span></b> The contrast between the fate of the godly and wicked is nothing but <i>good news</i> to Nahum and the people of God.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. <a onclick="return mV('Isa',52,7);">Isa 52:7</a> uses a similar expression, but Isaiah marvels at the <i>beauty</i> of the <i>feet of him who brings good news</i>. Nahum would certainly agree, because those who bring <b><span class="c3">good tidings</span></b> have beautiful feet; they partner with God for the salvation of men. The <b><span class="c3">feet</span></b> speak of activity, motion, and progress, and those who are active and moving in the work of preaching the gospel have <i>beautiful </i><b><span class="c3">feet</span></b>.</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. In Isaiah, the good news is the coming of the Messiah. In Nahum, the good news is the defeat of the enemies of God's people. <a onclick="return mV('Rev',17,'1-');">Rev 17</a> and 18 describe the fall of Babylon, representing the world system and all of its support structure. <a onclick="return mV('Rev',18,'9-19');">Rev 18:9-19</a> shows how the kings and merchants of the earth mourned the fall of Babylon, but <a onclick="return mV('Rev',18,20);">Rev 18:20</a> through <a onclick="return mV('Rev',19,6);">19:6</a> shows how heaven rejoiced over the fall of the world system. What was mourned on earth was applauded in heaven, and the same principle applies in Nahum's prophecy of Nineveh's fall.</p>
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<p class="c5">iii. "Rejoicing is not in this context gleeful gloating at the misfortune of others...Rather it is pleasure at the vindication of God and his promises." (Baker)</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">O Judah, keep your appointed feasts, perform your vows</span></b>: Knowing the grace and mercy of God to His people should not make the believer <i>careless</i> in obedience, it should make the believer more careful to obey every word of the <span class="c6">Lord</span>.</p>
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