In 612 BC, the Medes and the Babylonians united to attack Nineveh, and the Lord used them to judge the evil city. This chapter is a vivid description of what happened as seen by Nahum in the vision God gave him.
The invaders appear (vv. 1–4). The guards on the walls of the city see the army advancing and the officers issue orders and encourage their soldiers. You can almost hear the sharp commands: “Guard the fortress, watch the road, brace yourself, marshal all your strength!” (v. 1 niv). Above all the noise, the voice of the Lord is heard as He speaks to Israel and Judah and assures them that they will be restored and reunited. (v. 2).
The invading army is formidable with its manpower, armor, weapons, and chariots (vv. 3–4). Already
God is judge: How Nineveh will fall their shields are red with blood. The chariots look like flames of fire as they dash here and there in the streets of the city, and the soldiers find it easy to slaughter the defenseless people.
The city is captured (vv. 5–10). “He” in verse 5 refers to the king of Assyria, who had plotted against the Lord and His people (1:9). He gathers his best officers and gives them orders to protect the wall, but they are too late. They stumble like drunks instead of marching like heroes. The leaders were sure their fortress was impregnable, but their defenses proved to be their undoing.
The Khoser River flowed through the city, so the invaders dammed it up and then released the water so that it destroyed part of the wall and some of the buildings. It was a simple matter for the Medes and Babylonians to enter the city and take control. But they can’t take credit for the victory; it was decreed by God that the city be destroyed and the inhabitants be killed or taken captive (2:7). The invaders were but God’s instruments to execute His will.
First, the soldiers line up the prisoners to march them off to their own lands, where they’ll become slaves. Nahum compares the exodus to water draining out of a pool. Then the soldiers begin looting this fabulously wealthy city, and the people watch with dismay. “Hearts melt, knees give way, bodies tremble, every face grows pale” (v. 10 niv). Nineveh is being treated the way she treated others; her sins had found her out.
The captive leaders are taunted (vv. 11–13). Speaking on behalf of God, the prophet has the last word. As the Assyrian captives are marched away, leaders and common citizens, and the city’s treasures carried off by their captors, Nahum taunts the Ninevites by contrasting their present plight with their former glory.
The image of the lion was often used by the Assyrians in their art and architecture. Visit the Assyrian room in any large museum and you will see huge statues of lions. But even more, the Assyrians acted like lions as they stalked their prey and completely devoured their captives. “Where is the lions’ den now?” Nahum asks as the city is destroyed. “Where is all your prey, the treasures you ruthlessly took from others?” Lions will normally take to their lair enough food for themselves and their cubs, but the Assyrians amassed wealth beyond measure, far more than they needed, and they did it at the cost of human lives.
No wonder the Lord announced, “I am against you” (v. 13). Over a century before, the Lord had sent Jonah to warn Nineveh, and when the city repented, He withdrew His hand of judgment. But now their time was up and the end had come. Assyria would be left with no weapons, no leaders, and no victories to be announced by their messengers. Instead, Assyria’s enemies would hear the voice of couriers announcing peace because Assyria had been defeated (1:15).