Nahum, Who?

The next few articles are from the first chapter of the book of Nahum.  This book is one of the so-called “Minor Prophets”, but that’s just because it’s short, not because it isn’t important.

So, let’s establish out the context for the book of Nahum.  When I taught this lesson some weeks back to a Sunday School class (made up of long-time followers of Jesus), I asked, “Who here knows anything about this book or its author?”  When the answers were sparse, I admitted that I started out in a similar place!

The first verse of of the first chapter of this book tells us a few things, though.

A prophecy concerning Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.
Nahum 1:1 NIV

https://nahum.bible/nahum-1-1

What can we learn about the book from its introduction?  Well, it’s about Nineveh, whether a “prophecy concerning Nineveh” (NIV) or the “pronouncement of Nineveh” (NASB).  The KJV says, “The burden of Nineveh.”

Now, this isn’t the only book in the Bible related to Nineveh: if you’ve read the Bible or heard about it, you may know about Jonah and his unconventional “travel plan” by which he got to Nineveh.  By way of timelines, it appears that the events of Jonah took place somewhere between 80 and 180 years before Nahum, so although Nineveh repented at the words of Jonah, they didn’t remain repentant, as we can see from the message shared by Nahum.

For reference, Genesis 10:8-12 talks about a guy named Nimrod (really!) who apparently (if not his father / ancestor Cush) built the city of Nineveh.  And, there are a few more references throughout the Bible about Nineveh.

We also find that the book of Nahum recounts a vision from someone named Nahum (hence, the name of the book), who is “the Elkoshite”, which is likely referring to Nahum’s city of origin.

The Introduction to Nahum in the NIV (along with some online references, noted below) offers some additional input:

• This book – or at least the vision – took place before 612 B.C. (although timelines vary on how much before that), when Assyria – whose capital was Nineveh – was conquered.  However, as of Nahum’s prophecy, the fall of Nineveh hadn’t happened yet and the Assyrians had been oppressing other nations, including Judah.
• Although the book of Nahum appears to be addressed to Judah (the southern kingdom of the Israelites), which hasn’t yet been conquered by the Babylonians (as was discussed in recent lessons from Jeremiah and Lamentations), Israel – the Northern Kingdom – had been taken captive by Assyria and scattered around 723 B.C., so they had experienced their own catastrophe at the hands of the Assyrians.
• The book of Nahum explains why God judged Assyria, despite the fact that Assyria had been used by God for His purposes.  Remember, just because God allows a person, group, or nation to succeed doesn’t mean that they are right with God.

Ref. Timeline of the Minor Prophets (biblestudy.org), The 12 Minor Prophets | My Jewish Learning, Books of the Minor Prophets Timeline – 1.pmd (biblecharts.org), Books of the Minor Prophets Timeline – 2.pmd (biblecharts.org)

And, that last point is probably where I’ll stop for today’s article: Just because God allows a person, group, or nation to succeed temporarily doesn’t mean that they are right with God.  We cannot equate material, political, or military success with God’s favor.  Sometimes, evil nations are used by God to judge others.

So, to be sure that you are right with God, don’t look to your wealth, influence, or intelligence.  Don’t use other people’s opinions of you (and please, don’t use opinions from the Internet) to determine if God is on your side.  Instead, check with God Himself, by reading His word (the Bible), allowing Him to guide your life, and asking Him for insight into where you can change for the better.

I encourage you to read the entire first chapter of Nahum (or just go ahead and read the whole book: it’s only 3 chapters long).  Oh, and one more note before we get into more from this prophecy: the NASB translation of the Bible suggests a heading for chapter 1 as, “God Is Awesome”.  That should get us off on the right foot!

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From Sunday School lesson prepared for August 6, 2023

References:

• The Lookout, August 6, 2023, © 2023 Christian Standard Media.
• Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
• Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation.
• The College Press NIV Commentary – Minor Prophets Volume 2, by Clay Ham and Mark Hahlen.  © 2006 College Press Publishing Co.