S. Michael Houdmann Supporter Got Questions Ministries

Author:The author of the Book of Nahum identifies himself as Nahum (in the Hebrew "Consoler" or "Comforter") the Elkoshite (1:1). There are many theories as to where that city was though there is n...

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November 15 2013 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

John Appelt Supporter

The book of Nahum was written over 100 years after Jonah preached to the city of Nineveh, the capital of Assyria. Nineveh had repented, but in the meantime, they had returned to their evil ways. Now Nahum prophesied judgments that were to come upon the city. 

The names of the writing prophets have a bearing on the message of their books. Nahum’s name means “comfort” or “full of comfort.” Strangely enough there would be no “comforter” (same word) for Nineveh, Nahum 3:7, who had shown no compassion. Although, Assyria was used by God to punish Israel, she ignored this commission by acting in pride and cruelty against many nations, Isaiah 10:5-7. For that, Nineveh was to be destroyed. 

Nahum declared and described the doom that Nineveh deserved. Nahum alluded to how she would fall, Nahum 1:8, 2:6, 8. The overflowing Tigris River undermined the wall, creating a hole so that the Babylonian army penetrated the city. Nineveh may have thought she was invincible, but she was reminded of No-Amon (Thebes) in Egypt, which although seemingly secure by surrounding waters, had been defeated by Assyria herself, Nahum 2:8-11. Nineveh was just as vulnerable. She would be brought to nothing, like shaking a tree of ripe figs directly into the mouths of eaters, Nahum 3:12. Its armies would be annihilated, like the locusts, which hiding in hedges on cold days, disappear when the sun warms them, Nahum 3:15-17.

Nahum 2-3 describes the awful battle: the clattering chariots that wielded steel axle knives, the galloping horses, the confusion of so many corpses, and the city burning intensely. The city symbolized by powerful lions which the king hunted, Nahum 2:11-12, was completely left desolate. In fact, for many centuries, the location of the ruins of Nineveh was unknown, until discovered in 1849, by Austen Layard. 

But there would be comfort and consolation for the people of Judah because God, in justice and righteousness, will avenge His people, Nahum 1:2. This robber of the nations would be plundered, the torture and oppression would be returned on her. God is patient, not acting impulsively, but will act decisively and powerfully when His anger is aroused, not acquitting the wicked, Nahum 1:3-6. 

God is good to his people, Nahum 1:7, and is their defense, as the people of Jerusalem found out when Sennacherib of Assyria determined to take Jerusalem. Hezekiah prayed and the Lord defeated the Assyrians without Judah having to fight at all, II Chronicles 32:20-22, II Kings 19:32. The verse of Nahum 1:7 has been a great encouragement and comfort to God’s people ever since. 

God promises the complete destruction of Nineveh, Nahum 1:8-14. This was good news for the Jewish people, Nahum 1:15. Compare Paul’s use of it in Romans 10:15. It was the gospel of peace they longed for. Judah will regain her spiritual life and service unto the Lord, Nahum 1:15, 2:2. 

Nahum, “comforter,” gave consolation to a people who had suffered and had been afflicted, by revealing the destruction of Nineveh.

June 26 2023 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Jeffrey Johnson Supporter

What is the book of Nahum?

The Book of Nahum is a short, three-chapter prophetic book in the Old Testament and the Hebrew Bible. Attributed to the prophet Nahum, it is part of a collection of 12 prophetic writings known as "The Twelve" or the Minor Prophets.

The primary message of the book of Nahum is that God is a righteous and just judge who will ultimately destroy evil, punish oppressors, and bring comfort to the oppressed.

With these words, the prophet sets the scene for "the pronouncement against Nineveh." Nahum 1:1-2 ESV: "1The burden of Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite. 2 Jehovah is a jealous God and avengeth; Jehovah avengeth and is full of wrath; Jehovah taketh vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies."

Core Message of the Book of Nahum

The central theme is the judgment and downfall of Nineveh, the violent capital of the ancient Assyrian Empire. Assyria had brutally oppressed the region for generations and had conquered and exiled the northern kingdom of Israel.

Elements of the Book: 

A Poem of Vengeance: 

Rather than calling the Israelites to repentance (as many other prophets did), Nahum's primary focus is to comfort God's people by announcing that their oppressor will finally face divine justice. The Nature of God: The book opens by describing God as slow to anger but immensely powerful. It asserts that He will not leave the guilty unpunished. The Fall of Nineveh: Chapters 2 and 3 feature vivid, poetic descriptions of the siege, the city's burning, and the complete collapse of the Assyrian Empire. 

The prophecy of Nahum illustrates some fundamental Bible principles. The opening words of the vision repeat God's reason for giving the second of the Ten Commandments: "Jehovah is a God exacting exclusive devotion." Immediately thereafter, he makes known the certainty of his "taking vengeance against his adversaries."

Nahum 1:2-3 ESV: "2Jehovah is a jealous God and avengeth; Jehovah avengeth and is full of wrath; Jehovah taketh vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies. 3 Jehovah is slow to anger, and great in power, and will by no means clear the guilty: Jehovah hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet."

Date of Nineveh's Fall. 

Though effaced from the extant cuneiform tablet that relates the fall of Nineveh, the date for this event, the 14th year of Nabopolassar, can be supplied from the context. It is also possible to place the destruction of Nineveh in the framework of Bible chronology. 

According to a Babylonian chronicle, the Egyptians were defeated at Carchemish in the 21st year of Nabopolassar's reign. The Bible shows this took place in the fourth year of Jehoiakim's reign, or in 625 B.C.E. (Jer 46:2). 

The capture of Nineveh (about seven years earlier) in the 14th year of Nabopolassar's reign would fall in the year 632 B.C.E.​

True to the meaning of his name, Nahum provides much comfort for all who seek the peace and salvation that come with God's Kingdom. All of these will surely realise that as recorded in Nahum. 1:7.ESV: " Jehovah is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that take refuge in him."

May 31 2026 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report