Christ in Nahum -- The Comfort of God

The prophet Nahum (Hebrew for “comforter” or “consoler”) tells us that he was an Elkoshite, probably referring to the area where he lived.  We cannot say for sure, but some people believe that Nahum was from the city later called Capernaum, which means “the village of Nahum,” on the Sea of Galilee.  It doesn’t much matter, but I like thinking that he came from the area where Jesus later walked and calmed the sea, especially because one of the major themes of his prophetic book is the comfort of God.  His book was written sometime between 663 B.C. (the date of the destruction of the Egyptian city of Thebes) and 612 B.C. (the date when Nineveh was destroyed).  Nahum referred to the destruction of Thebes:  

Are you better than Thebes, situated on the Nile, with water around her? (Nahum 3:8, New International Version)

And he warned of the eminent destruction of Nineveh, the oldest and largest of the Assyrian cities, near modern day Mosul in Iraq.  This is the same Nineveh where Jonah preached, some 100 - 150 years earlier.  Nineveh repented, but apparently they failed to pass on what they had heard from Jonah to their children and grandchildren, since by the time Nahum wrote, the city had returned to her evil, wicked ways.  (We need to remember this, lest we fail to teach our children and our grandchildren all that we know about God, His sovereignty, His justice, and His love for us.) They had become even more violent, they had returned to the worship of idols, and they were arrogant, even seeing themselves as equals to God.  They were especially brutal in their conquests, not just conquering other kingdoms, but hanging the bodies of their victims on poles and putting their skins on the walls of their tents.  In chapter 1 of Nahum, we see God’s judgment against Nineveh described in minute detail.  In 612 B.C. Nineveh was utterly destroyed, exactly as Nahum had predicted.  

But with an overwhelming flood He will make an end of Nineveh; He will pursue his foes into the realm of darkness. (Nahum 1:8, New International Version)

I will leave it to you to read the short, three chapters of Nahum for all the details.  As you read it, especially the first chapter, know that Nineveh’s destruction was so complete that the exact location of the city was unknown until archeologists found its ruins in 1841 A.D., almost 2500 years later.

God’s sovereign judgment is definitely a major theme of this book, but we are assured that God is not indiscriminate in His wrath and anger.  He reserves His wrath for those who oppose Him:

 

God is jealous, and the Lord avenges; The Lord avenges and is furious. The Lord will take vengeance on His adversaries, and He reserves wrath for His enemies; (Nahum 1:2, New King James Version)

God’s people, Judah, took great comfort in the fact that God would avenge the evil that had been done to them by the Assyrians.  And that comfort is the theme where I want to focus our attention today.  We are told in Malachi 3:6, “I am the Lord, and I do not change,” so we can be assured that God is still jealous, He still avenges, and He is still furious with those who oppose Him.  He will still take vengeance on His adversaries, and He still reserves His wrath for His enemies. 

Just as we have seen in all the other prophetic books, we see God’s comfort in Nahum:

Although I have afflicted you, Judah, I will afflict you no more. Now I will break their yoke from your neck and tear your shackles away. (Nahum 1:12b – 13, New King James Version)

Look, there on the mountains, the feet of one who brings good news, who proclaims peace! Celebrate your festivals, Judah, and fulfill your vows. No more will the wicked invade you; they will be completely destroyed. (Nahum 1:15, New King James Version)

Not only were those words a comfort to Judah at that time, they also look to the coming of Jesus, the Prince of Peace!

 

How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!” Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices; together they shout for joy. When the Lord returns to Zion, they will see it with their own eyes. Burst into songs of joy together, you ruins of Jerusalem, for the Lord has comforted His people, He has redeemed Jerusalem. (Isaiah 52:7-9, New King James Version)

Paul repeats this verse when he refers to Jesus in Romans 10:15 (New King James Version), “And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!’”

God has made peace with us through the blood of Jesus Christ.  We each deserve His wrath and punishment, but when we accept the sin sacrifice paid for us by Jesus, we are declared innocent by our merciful, gracious God.

This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him. (John 3:16-18, The Message)

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7, New International Version) 

The book of Nahum even looks forward to the time to come, when Jesus comes again, places His feet on Mt. Zion, and rules there in His Kingdom! 

Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion. (Revelation 14:1a, New International Version)

Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. (Psalm 2:6-7, King James Version)

But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. (Hebrews 12:22-24, New International Version)

I hope you will join me this week as I praise God, just as Nahum did in chapter 1, verse 7, and as I renew my commitment of my will to His:

 

(You, oh Lord, are) good, (my) refuge in times of trouble.  (You) care for those who trust in You!  (Help me to know You better.  Help me to trust You more. Take my life, and use it for Your purposes.  Amen.)