Nahum
Book Type
The seventh book of the Minor Prophets; the thirty-fourth book of the Old Testament; the thirty-fourth book of the Bible.Introduction to the Book of Nahum
The book of Nahum is a collection of prophetic oracles that proclaim the fall of Nineveh, a prominent city of the Assyrian Empire. Nahum poetically portrays Nineveh’s demise at the hands of the Babylonians. To do so, he employs images that are common in the Prophetic Books, such as devouring lions (Nah 2:11–12), shameless prostitutes (Nah 3:4–6), and swarming locusts (Nah 3:14–17).No one likes being in the path of imminent disaster, nor is the menacing threat of enemy invasion a pleasant thought. Can God protect in such circumstances? Will God judge wicked aggressors? Nahum’s reply is a clear yes. Nahum’s prophecy assures us that God still controls earth’s history. His messages are a warning to oppressors and a comfort to the oppressed.The book of Nahum dramatically portrays God overwhelming Assyria to relieve his oppressed people. It was certainly a harsh message for Israel’s enemies, but for the people of Judah it was a message of hope.Theme & Overview
Nahum predicts the Lord's judgment on Nineveh for her oppression, cruelty, idolatry and wickedness. Nineveh, the arrogant capital of the Assyrian Empire, would be destroyed.The NIV Student Bible says the book of Nahum stands out from other short prophetic books of the Bible in that it addresses a foreign city—Nineveh—instead of Israel or Judah, although its message is intended as a reminder for God’s people. You can read more background on Judah and its relationship to Nineveh in the historical accounts found in 2 Kings 17–19 and 2 Chronicles 32:1—33:13. The background will help you understand why God was so angry at Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, and how it represented raw, brutal power—“endless cruelty,” as Nahum put it. The book assures its readers that evil does not endure forever, and that God will one day fulfill his plan to permanently restore good. Nahum shows us that God will bring justice. Oppressors will be punished when God takes vengeance on behalf of the oppressed. He brings judgment not only on His own people, but also on all the nations. In Nahum, we see God’s anger toward evil and His desire to rid the world of it. He is not only the God of Israel, but of the whole world—he raises up and throws down nations.Nahum’s depiction of Nineveh contrasts with the city’s portrayal in the book of Jonah, where the people repent and receive mercy. Even though Nahum’s prophecies against Nineveh are grim, they come from a God who doesn’t anger easily (Nah 1:3). Nineveh had been given opportunities to turn from wickedness, but now the time has come for judgment. This judgment amounts to good news for the people of Judah, whom God promises to protect and restore (Nah 1:15; 2:2). Judah and all the other nations that had been terrorized by the Assyrian armies cried out for justice, and God granted it. Nahum concludes his oracle with a message to the Assyrians: Everyone who hears of their downfall will applaud (Nah 3:19). As we seek justice, we should take comfort in knowing that oppression will not last forever. In the face of overwhelming injustice, God is still a refuge for those who trust in Him (Nah 1:7). Yahweh hears, and He will deliver.Author
Nahum, as noted in Nahum 1:1.Recipients
Unlike most of the Minor Prophets, who wrote to people living in Judah and Israel, Nahum was written to the Gentiles of Nineveh. This is the same people to whom God sent the prophet Jonah. This message comes approximately a century after Jonah's message, with a much different situation for the people of the city. Their repentance did not last long, as they are now condemned for their sinful ways.Date
Between approximately 663 and 612 BC.Background
The book begins by describing its contents as an oracle concerning Nineveh—one that was received in a vision by Nahum of Elkosh (Nah 1:1). The name “Nahum” comes from the Hebrew verb meaning “comfort.” Elkosh, Nahum’s hometown, is not mentioned anywhere else in the Old Testament. However, Nahum was probably from Judah (Nah 1:15).Nineveh was one of the most prominent cities of the Assyrian Empire, which was renowned in the ancient world for its cruelty. The Old Testament records the Assyrians destroying and displacing the northern kingdom of Israel (722 BC) and repeatedly threatening the southern kingdom of Judah (see 2 Kgs 18–19; 2 Chr 33:10–13). The book of Jonah records an earlier time when the people of Nineveh expressed repentance (Jonah 3:5), though it appears that this attitude of contrition was long gone by Nahum’s time.
The text of Nahum most likely was written soon after 663 BC, when the Egyptian city of Thebes fell to the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal. The prophet uses this event as an example of the destruction coming to Nineveh (Nah 3:8–10). After Ashurbanipal’s death in 627 BC, Assyria was weakened by a series of internal struggles. At the same time, Babylon grew stronger. In 612 BC Nineveh was conquered by a coalition of Babylonians and Medes. The weakened Assyrians then moved their capital to Harran. Eventually they allied with Egypt, and the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar defeated them again at the Battle of Carchemish in 605 BC (2 Chr 35:20–24; Jer 46:1–2). After this final defeat, they faded from the world stage. Within this turbulent context, Nahum delivers a message of justice.In Nahum’s time, the kingdom of Judah was in danger of being swallowed by a great superpower, the Assyrian empire. From Nineveh, the capital, the great king Ashurbanipal (668–626 BC) brought Assyrian might to its zenith. Its military power and cultural influence spanned the length and breadth of the ancient Near East. Even the age-old city of Thebes had felt the conqueror’s heel (3:8–10).The times were less than encouraging for Nahum and the people of Judah. Israel, their sister kingdom to the north, had already fallen to the Assyrians in 722 BC, and Judah now faced the same imperial enemy. To make matters worse, Ashurbanipal had recently captured Judah’s king, the wicked Manasseh (697–642 BC), and taken him to Babylon (2 Chr 33:10–11). Following his release from captivity, a repentant Manasseh (2 Chr 33:12–17) attempted to undo his former wickedness (2 Kgs 21:1–18; 2 Chr 33:1–9). Despite his efforts, his prior evil influence still permeated the land. This, coupled with the long shadow of Assyrian supremacy, cast a cloud of doom over God’s people. Thus, Nahum’s prophetic messages of Nineveh’s fall and of hope for Judah’s future were timely.The Near East during Nahum’s Time (about 645~615 BC). The Assyrian empire under King Ashurbanipal (668–626 BC) reached its peak and threatened to engulf Judah. Yet Nahum brought hope and the promise that the Assyrian empire would be destroyed. After Ashurbanipal’s death, Assyria quickly lost its strength, and its capital Nineveh was sacked by the Babylonians in 612 BC, marking the end of Assyrian dominance.
The seeds of Assyria’s fall were already being sown in Nahum’s day. After King Ashurbanipal repelled a strong coalition of enemies to the west and resisted his brother’s challenge to the throne, he busied himself with literary and artistic pursuits. Affairs of state languished, and Assyria grew increasingly weak. After Ashurbanipal’s death (626 BC), one after another of the great cities of Assyria began falling to foreign invaders. Then the unthinkable happened—Nineveh itself fell in 612 BC, as Nahum had predicted.The Purpose & Audience (Reasons for the letter)
No empire, however great, is beyond God’s scrutiny. Sooner or later, all must give an account of their actions to the Lord. The reality of the sovereign God’s righteous justice lies beneath the predicted judgment of Nineveh and Assyria. He is in control of everyone and everything on earth. This assures us of God’s concern for all who suffer, whether from the horrors and atrocities of war or from any other oppression. A burdened humankind can be confident that divine justice will ultimately prevail.God is long-suffering (1:3), and his people must be patient. The assurance that this good and caring Lord (1:7) has a distinct purpose for his people (2:2) encourages them to a life of faith and trust. Beyond the book’s menacing tone lies the good news of hope (1:15). The prophet predicts a coming day when God’s people will once again worship him in wondrous peace and joy. They will at last be free of those who would take away their freedom. It is no wonder that subsequent writers of Scripture found in Nahum’s good news a promise of the gospel message (Rom 10:15; see also Isa 52:7). Jesus Christ provides the opportunity for personal deliverance from sin. Knowing that the unbeliever faces an even greater doom than that of fallen Nineveh motivates a missionary effort to carry the good news of the gospel to a dying world.JUDGMENT The main theme of the book is the impending judgment of Nineveh by the Lord (1:1, 8; 2:8–13; 3:7–19) by which he would deliver his people (1:12–15; cp. vv. 7–8). He would pay back Nineveh and the Assyrians in the same way they had mistreated their enemies. Since they were known for scattering their captives in brutal death marches, the Lord would send a scatterer (2:1) to disperse the Assyrians in retaliation for their cruelty (3:18–19; cp. 3:10). Since the Assyrians delighted in shedding blood and piling up the corpses of their foes, he would transform Nineveh into a city of blood with piles of its own corpses (3:1–3).As the Assyrians had plucked the capital city Samaria like a first-ripe fig to devour her (fulfilling Is 28:4), so too the Lord would cause their capital Nineveh and other fortresses to fall into their enemies’ hungry mouths (Nah 3:12). Though Nineveh (like Thebes) was seemingly impregnable because of its military strength (3:8) and its allies (3:9), the Assyrians would be exiled as they had exiled the Egyptians (3:10).GOD, THE CARING WARRIORThe character of God, portrayed as a powerful but caring warrior (1:2–7), was the propelling force behind Nineveh’s judgment. The Lord’s jealousy for his people and his wrath toward his enemies (1:2–3), balanced by his compassion and longsuffering nature (1:3; Ex 34:6–7), seem to pivot on his great power (Nah 1:3) and goodness (1:7). Yahweh the warrior will take vengeance on his enemies (1:2, 3–6). The portrait of the Lord as a God of wrath is consistent with his promise to avenge the blood of his servants (Dt 32:35–36, 42–43). Furthermore, God’s goodness and compassion was not the doting love of the Lord as a permissive or impotent grandparent (2Pt 3:9–10, 12). He was “good” (or kind) to those who took refuge in him (1:7) while bringing destruction on his unrepentant enemies, including Nineveh (1:8).CONTRIBUTION TO THE BIBLEThe book of Nahum provides a great view of a powerful, just God who maintains his absolute moral standards and offers hope to those who are despised and downtrodden. Nahum teaches us to trust God. Even when we despair of any help, we can know that God will stand with those who belong to him.Key Verses (ESV)
Nahum 1:7: "The LORD is good, \ a stronghold in the day of trouble; \ he knows those who take refuge in him." Nahum 1:14: "The LORD has given commandment about you: \ 'No more shall your name be perpetuated; \ from the house of your gods I will cut off \ the carved image and the metal image. \ I will make your grave, \ for you are vile.'"Nahum 1:15: "Behold, upon the mountains, the feet of him \ who brings good news, \ who publishes peace! \ Keep your feasts, O Judah; \ fulfill your vows, \ for never again shall the worthless pass through you; \ he is utterly cut off."Nahum 2:13: "Behold, I am against you, declares the LORD of hosts, and I will burn your chariots in smoke, and the sword shall devour your young lions. I will cut off your prey from the earth, and the voice of your messengers shall no longer be heard."Nahum 3:19: "There is no easing your hurt; \ your wound is grievous. \ All who hear the news about you \ clap their hands over you. \ For upon whom has not come \ your unceasing evil?"Key Passages (NLT)
Na 1:1–3:19 This message concerning Nineveh came as a vision to Nahum, who lived in Elkosh. 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…Structure & Outline 1
StructureNahum can be divided into three parts. In the first (Nah 1:2–15), the prophet announces that Yahweh will take vengeance on Nineveh. This section includes a partial acrostic poem (Nah 1:2–8). The second section (Nah 2:1–13) describes in poetic detail the fall of Nineveh at the hand of Yahweh. The final section (Nah 3:1–19) presents a mocking song (a dirge), which portrays celebration over the fall of Nineveh and its king rather than lamentation.Outline • God’s wrath against Nineveh (Nah 1:1–15) • Depiction of Nineveh’s fall (Nah 2:1–13) • A mocking lament for Nineveh (Nah 3:1–19)Outline 2
Nahum consists of just three chapters, with each chapter emphasizing a particular theme regarding Nineveh. In chapter 1, Nineveh's destruction is initially declared. God emphasizes His great power, showing Himself far superior to other gods (Nahum 1:2–11). He then outlines His punishment for the people of Nineveh due to their sin (Nahum 1:12–15). Chapter 2 details the upcoming destruction of Nineveh. The city will come under attack from an army with shields and chariots (Nahum 2:3). The enemies will enter the city gates with their chariots and defeat the city, plundering the silver and gold (Nahum 2:9). The chariots of Nineveh will burn and their people will be destroyed (Nahum 2:13).Chapter 3 provides detail on various aspects of Nineveh's sin, and its destruction. It is a bloody city, full of violence and prostitution (Nahum 3:1–4). The Lord will bring shame upon them (Nahum 3:5–7). Their people will become exiles, captives, with children and men dying (Nahum 3:10). Fire would destroy them in their places of safety (Nahum 3:15).Unlike the positive results of Jonah's message, this chapter ends with only the negative aspects associated with God's judgment. Nineveh would certainly be destroyed, a prediction historically fulfilled shortly after this prophecy in 612 BC. The remains of the city would not be rediscovered until the nineteenth century.