Nahum 3

Queen Victoria was celebrating sixty years on the British throne when Rudyard Kipling published his poem “Recessional.” Not everybody in Great Britain liked the poem because it punctured national pride at a time when the empire was at its peak. “Recessional” was a warning that other empires had vanished from the stage of history and England’s might follow in their train. God was still the Judge of the nations. Kipling wrote, Far-called, our navies melt away; On dune and headland sinks the fire: Lo, all our pomp of yesterday Is one with Nineveh and Tyre! Judge of the Nations, spare us yet, Lest we forget—lest we forget!

The prophet Nahum would have applauded the poem, especially Kipling’s reference to Nineveh, for it was Nahum who wrote the Old Testament book that vividly describes the destruction of Nineveh, the event that marked the beginning of the end for the Assyrian Empire. Nahum made it clear that God is indeed the Judge of the nations, and that “[p]ride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall” (Prov. 16: nkjv). In the seventh century BC, the very mention of Nineveh brought fear to people’s hearts, but today, Nineveh is mentioned primarily by Bible students, archeologists, and people interested in ancient history. Sic transit gloria!

In his brief book, Nahum makes three declarations about God and Nineveh.

A. He prays to God—3:1–2 B. He ponders God’s ways—3:3–15 C. He praises God—3:16–19 E s t h e r J e r e m i a h J o n a h J o b L a m e n t a t i o n s M i c a h P s a l m s E z e k i e l N a h u m

Habakkuk P r o v e r b s D a n i e l E c c l e s i a s t e s H o s e a Z e p h a n i a h S o n g o f J o e l H a g g a i S o l o m o n A m o s Z e c h a r i a h I s a i a h O b a d i a h M a l a c h i

Habakkuk in His Time Habakkuk was a contemporary of Nahum, Zephaniah, and Jeremiah, during the reigns of Josiah (640–609 BC) and Jehoiakim (609–598). Assyria was off the scene; Babylon (“the Chaldeans”) was in power. Nebuchadnezzar had defeated Egypt in 605 and was about to attack Judah. Jeremiah had announced that Babylon would invade Judah, destroy Jerusalem and the temple, and send the nation into exile. This happened in 606–586.

Habakkuk’s little book indicates that he knew the Scriptures well, was a competent theologian, and had great faith in God. Because of the psalm in chapter 3, some scholars think he may have been a priest who led worship in the temple. If so, then like Jeremiah and Ezekiel, he was a priest called to be a prophet—a more difficult ministry.

His name means “to embrace” or “to wrestle,” and in his book, he does both. He wrestles with God concerning the problem of how a holy God could use a wicked nation like Babylon to chasten the people of Judah, and then by faith, he embraces God and clings to His promises. Habakkuk also wrestles with the spiritual decline of the nation and why God wasn’t doing something about it. Habakkuk wanted to see the people revived (3:2), but God wasn’t answering his prayers.

The prophet’s statement “The just shall live by his faith” (2:4) is quoted three times in the New Testament (Rom. 1:17; Gal. 3:11; Heb. 10:38). The

“Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Gen. 18:25), God is longsuffering, but there comes a time when His hand of judgment falls. “You have rebuked the nations, You have destroyed the wicked; you have blotted out their name forever and ever” (Ps. 9: nkjv). Nahum gives three reasons why Nineveh deserved to be judged.

Their ruthless bloodshed (vv. 1–3). The Assyrians were clever diplomats who lied to other nations and then broke their promises and destroyed them. They slaughtered people without regard for age or sex, and they stacked up corpses like lumber as warning to anybody who would oppose them. The shedding of innocent blood is a serious sin that God notes, remembers, and judges (Deut. 19:11–13; 2 Kings 21:16; 24:4; Ps. 106:38; Prov. 6:16–17; Isa. 59:7). Depraved dictators who authorize the heartless slaying of innocent victims will someday answer to God for their crimes against Him and humanity.

Their idolatry (vv. 4–7). Often in Scripture, idolatry is associated with prostitution, and when you consider that the chief deity of Nineveh was Ishtar, goddess of sexual passion, fertility, and war, you can understand why Nahum used this metaphor. Because of their spiritual blindness, the Assyrians were ensnared by this evil goddess and were under the control of lust, greed, and violence. People become like the god that they worship (Ps. 115:8), for what we believe determines how we behave. Assyria spread this evil influence to other nations and enslaved them by their sorcery. (See the description of the corrupt end-times religious system given in Rev. 17.)

In ancient times, prostitutes were often shamed by being publicly exposed, and this is what God promised to do to Nineveh. God would expose Assyria’s nakedness before all the nations, and this would be the end of their evil influence. The magnificent wealthy city would become a heap of ruins.

Their pride and self-confidence (vv. 8–19). In this closing paragraph, Nahum uses a number of images to show the Assyrians their weaknesses and assure them of their ultimate defeat.

He begins with a fact of history: the defeat of the Egyptian city of Thebes, or No-Ammon, by the Assyrians, in 663 (vv. 8–11). If you visit Karnak and Luxor in Upper Egypt, you will be at the site of ancient Thebes. This capital city of Upper Egypt was sure it was safe from any invader, yet it went down in defeat before Assyria. Like Nineveh, Thebes was situated by waters that were supposed to be their defense, but the city fell just the same. Thebes had many allies, but they couldn’t protect her.

What Assyria did to the people of Thebes would in turn be done to them: their children would be dashed to pieces, the leaders would become slaves, and the people would become exiles. Now, argues Nahum, if this happened to Thebes, why couldn’t it happen to Nineveh? Their pride and self-confidence would be totally destroyed as the Medes and Babylonians captured the city. Nineveh would drink the cup of God’s wrath and become drunk (v. 11; see Ps. 75:8; Isa. 51:17; Jer. 25:14ff.).

In fact, the conquest would be so easy, it would be like ripe figs dropping into a person’s mouth (Nah. 3:12). Why? Because the ferocious Assyrian soldiers would be drained of their strength and be like women: weak, afraid, and unable to meet the enemy (vv. 13–14). They wouldn’t be able to bar the gates or stop the enemy from setting fire to them, nor would they be able to repair the walls or carry water to put out the fires.

The next image is that of insects (vv. 15–17). The invading soldiers would sweep through the land and the city like a plague of grasshoppers or locusts and wipe everything out. The Babylonian merchants were also like locusts as they collected all the treasures they could find. But the Assyrian leaders were like locusts that go to sleep on the wall on a cold day, but when the sun comes up, they feel the heat and fly away. The king and his council were overconfident, like locusts sleeping on the wall, but when the invasion occurred, they flew off to a safe place!

Assyria was like a scattered flock with sleeping shepherds (v. 18), or like a wounded body with no way to be healed (v. 19a). They had no allies to rescue them, for all the other nations would rejoice when they heard that the Assyrian Empire was no more (v. 19b).

Like the book of Jonah, the book of Nahum ends with a question: “for who has not felt your endless cruelty?” (v. 19 niv). Nahum emphasizes the same truth that was declared by the prophet Amos: God punishes cruel nations that follow inhumane policies and brutal practices (Amos 1—2). Whether it’s practicing genocide, exploiting the poor, supporting slavery, or failing to provide people with the necessities of life, the sins of national leaders are known by God, and He eventually judges.

H A B A K K U KIf you question that fact, go and search for Nineveh.

A. God is indifferent—1:2–4 God’s reply: I am working—1:5–11 B. God is inconsistent—1:12–17

A. Write God’s vision—2:1–3 B. Trust God’s world—2:4–5 “The just shall live by faith”1—2:

C. Declare God’s judgment—2:6–20 1. Woe to the selfish—2:6–8 2. Woe to the covetous—2:9–11 3. Woe to the exploiters—2:12–14 “God’s glory will fill the earth”—2: 4. Woe to the drunkards—2:15–17 5. Woe to the idolaters—2:18–20 “God is still on His throne”—2: