Introducing Nahum

Introducing Nahum

His name means consolation. His message carries little of it.
About the prophet Nahum we know little more than his hometown, Elkosh. His book is a poem of judgment directed to a city destined for judgment. At least a century earlier, Jonah had preached to Nineveh with reluctance. After all, the powerful Assyrian city was a particularly violent one, impaling its enemies and stacking their bodies at the gates. But Jonah's message broke through. Led by a shaken king, the city turned from their wickedness and was spared.
Then shortly before 612 B.C.—the fall of Nineveh—an angrier prophet brought a message of doom. Nahum sees that the city has fallen back into the cycle of wickedness which was their heritage. He prophesies that the Lord will use Babylon as his instrument of destruction. History confirms all of it: Nineveh was never heard from again.
The book is not a warning, but a hopeless prognosis. "The LORD is a jealous and avenging God," begins Nahum (1:2). Nearly every verse rings with the theme of inevitable judgment. "Nothing can heal your wound; your injury is fatal," concludes Nahum. Then he says that outsiders will applaud the downfall of the Ninevites (3:19).
What comfort can you gain from Nahum? The book speaks to the ultimate sovereignty of God. He judges those who, through the passage of time, ignore God's laws and persecute others. And despite the relentless prophecy of doom, we are assured, "the LORD is good, a refuge in times of trouble" (1:7). In a world which often seems to reward evil and suppress goodness, Nahum stands as a reminder of the absolute standards of God—and the inevitable fate of those who oppose him.