In God s Corner Nahum 1:1-8 Lesson for February 28/March 1, 2015 Derek Hickle

Transcription

1 In God s Corner Nahum 1:1-8 Lesson for February 28/March 1, 2015 Derek Hickle Introduction One of the best-known characters of the Old Testament is Jonah, a man sent by God to warn the Assyrian capitol, Nineveh, of God s impending wrath and their need for repentance. Although he had a few scrapes along the way and by no means was in any way excited about his mission or the final result, Jonah managed to convince the people of Nineveh to turn from their wicked ways and kneel before the Lord. This attitude of repentance, however, was short lived. The Lord used the powerful kingdom of Assyria as a tool to discipline the Israelites, with the sacking of Jerusalem and the resulting exile and captivity of her peoples. The Assyrian s though, had turned from their fear of the Lord and brought upon their captives a wholly different kind of punishment than the Lord had decreed, and as such ignited the wrath of God. Enter Nahum, a relatively unknown prophet outside of the Bible Study world. He was sent by God to warn the Assyrians of Nineveh that the Lord would no longer stand for the blatant mistreatment of His people, and that His wrath would soon be poured out against them. This is Nahum s warning to Nineveh The Original Avenger Nahum wastes no time with his message to Nineveh, but instead launches into a great illustration and portrait of the God against whom the Assyrian s had sinned. The LORD is a jealous and avenging God; the LORD is avenging and wrathful; the Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for His enemies. 1:2

2 Nahum first describes God as a jealous Being. Now, usually this word has a negative connotation behind it, but not in this case. The Lord is not jealous in a selfish and self-satisfying manner. God is not jealous OF anyone, but rather is jealous FOR them. He is passionate about the well being of His people. He is passionate about their devotion. He knows what is best for those that are His, and He refuses to settle for less for them. This includes suffering at the hands of Assyria, which brings us Nahum s next point. The Lord is an avenging God; He takes vengeance upon His enemies. This passion and jealousy for the well-being of His people leads God to take vengeance upon those who would harm them. While the Lord had allowed Assyria to discipline His children, they quickly crossed the line from discipline into abuse. Nahum is stating that the Lord of Israel will not settle for such treatment. He will remember the harm done against His people and the Assyrians will suffer as a result. the LORD is slow to anger and great in power, and Lord will by no means clear the guilty. 1:2-3a It is important to note here that God is not the Hulk. He does not stub a toe and destroy a nation. He does not fly into a rage at the slightest provocation. He is not a hothead. Instead, the Lord is patient, wanting all to have the chance to repent and come to know Him. However, this by no means is an indication that He is uncaring or unable to intervene. Quite the contrary, He is also great in power and refuses to turn a blind eye to the injustice against His people. Nahum warns Nineveh that God is not a flippant Being. He is Absolutely Just. He will not simply let things slide in this world, especially not against His people. Ultimate Cosmic Power At this point, we have a man who is warning an extremely powerful and corrupt empire that they had better watch themselves or the God of the people they had just dominated would retaliate.

3 I m sure the Assyrians had a chuckle and asked themselves why they should care. Well, Nahum quickly answers their question: His way is in whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet. He rebukes the sea and makes it dry; he dries up all rivers; Bashan and Carmel wither; the bloom of Lebanon withers. 3b-4 Nahum compares the power of God to a whirlwind and a storm. ILLUSTRATION: Once, a friend and I climbed to the top of an abandoned building downtown to watch a thunderstorm off in the distance. It was breathtaking. Eventually, we stopped paying attention to the storm and lost ourselves in conversation. As time passed, the storm turned and quickly descended upon us, and before we knew it we were smack dab in the middle of it. I remember being terrified as the deafening thunder boomed all around us and the icy rain and winds knocked us around. At one point, lightning cracked right overhead, and the pressure drove us to the ground. I ll never forget that moment, because I was pinned against the roof and temporarily blinded. I literally could not move. The raw power of the storm had quickly and completely overwhelmed me, and I was entirely at its mercy. This is the raw fury to which Nahum compares the power of God. The whirlwind and storms that can wipe us out in an instant are but a mere portion of the Lord s strength. Indeed, the churning, ominous, and terrifying clouds are naught but the dust kicked upon by the feet of God Almighty. Nahum continues, and we see that the Lord s power is absolute; nothing in the world can withstand the strength of His hand. He rebukes both the sea itself and the great rivers of the world and causes dry ground to appear in their wake. Anyone who knew anything of the history of Israel would recall the how the Lord had parted the Red Sea and allowed His people to walk across dry ground unscathed. They would recall and know that this was not merely a bluff.

4 Bashan and Carmel, both lush areas on either side of the sea of Galilee, could have their vegetation stripped in an instant, and the lush blooms of Lebanon could wither to dust at a mere word from the Lord. The mountains quake before him; the hills melt; the earth heaves before him, the world and all who dwell in it. 1:5 There are few things in the world that leave you feeling as completely helpless as an earthquake. The very ground beneath you- that which you trust to be solid and stable- is suddenly no longer safe. The world around you and all within it are thrown about and there is nothing you can do to stop it. This is also that to which Nahum compares the power of the Lord. Earthquakes, volcanoes- the very ground beneath us trembles and quakes at the very presence of the Lord. Nahum has taken everything that is completely out of the Assyrian s hands and proved the Lord s dominion over it all. The people are surrounded by the power of the Lord. From the storms in the skies to the life-giving crops of the earth; from the raging depths of the seas to the very ground beneath one s feet- all of these belong to the Lord, and all of these can bring about destruction for those who would be named His enemies. Who Can Stand? There has been a steady increase in intensity throughout these verses. First, Nahum warns that the Lord is a jealous and avenging God, that His anger has been stored up and shall soon be poured out with great power. Next, Nahum goes on to describe just what the effects of that power can be and how defenseless any man is before the Lord. Now, in light of that, he poses a question to Nineveh: Who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the heat of his anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are broken into pieces by him. 1:6

5 Nahum asks, Who do you think you are? This is the Lord- who are you? This is the One whose anger burns to ash and whose hand grinds stone into dust. Who are you to think you can get away with snubbing Him? The Lord is Good The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him. 1:7 Now, this verse may seem to be completely out of place amidst such a generally ominous section of scripture, but we have to consider that there is a second audience to whom Nahum is speaking: those who are enduring the abuse of Assyria s hand. It is for their benefit that these verses are delivered. They need the reminder that although they have endured such hardships, their God has not abandoned them. He is good, and He is loyal to those who trust in Him. In fact, he says that He is a refuge, a stronghold in the day of trouble. But with an overwhelming flood he will make a complete end of the adversaries, and will pursue his enemies into darkness. 1:8 Nahum goes on, lest the Assyrian s seek to find any comfort or rest in his message to captive Israel. All to stand as adversaries to the Lord and His people will find only an overwhelming flood of darkness awaiting them. There will be no refuge for them then. There will be no stronghold in which to hide. Conclusion While this passage of Scripture may seem at first to be only a tapestry of impending doom, the strands of the Gospel are actually woven all through it.

6 We see that God is a powerful and vengeful Being and not one to be trifled with. He is also slow to anger and Absolutely Just. If this is true, then truly Nahum is correct when he asks, who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the heat of his anger? The answer is no one. Except God Himself. That is exactly what God did on our behalf. Because He is a Just God and refuses to allow sin to go unpunished, and because He is slow to anger and desires all to come to know salvation, He answered Nahum s question Himself. He chose to stand against His own indignation and anger in our place. He came as Christ in order that verse seven could apply to us. He came that we might know that the Lord is GOOD, that He is our refuge and stronghold! He faced the wrath of God and took our punishment upon himself in order that we could intimately know God! The description of God that Nahum provides is almost reminiscent of the introductions that fighters receive as they enter the ring. In this corner, weighing in at more than our scales can read, the One whose power can strip the seas of their strength and rip the ground apart, whose voice along can level mountains and whose anger is like fire, the LORD GOD!!! Can you hear it? The Israelites could. They heard the introduction and were able to find joy in the fact that not only was their God able to win any fight, but He was fighting in THEIR corner! The same is true for us. Because of Christ, God stands ready in our corner. So, we do not have to cringe, shy away, or shift awkwardly in our seats when so ominous a description of the Lord is read, but rather we can take hope because we know exactly who is fighting on our behalf. We can also see from this just how much Christ faced on our behalf. We can understand that the intersection of God being absolutely Just and

7 absolutely Good is the Cross, that Christ stood up to answer the questions posed in verse six. We can find overwhelming thanksgiving in this towards our Lord who sacrificed so much on our behalf. We can also find peace in the midst of an increasingly dark and evil world, because we see that God will never turn a blind eye to the abuse of His people and will by no means clear the guilty. God wants to fight from your corner. Will you let Him?