An Oracle of Divine Retribution for Assyria

In verses 7-8 the prophet Nahum characterizes the city in two interesting ways. First, Nineveh is a princess in mourning. Second, Nineveh is like a rapidly draining pool. Nineveh the princess is stripped of all her beauty and opulence. The city is humiliated by the ravaging destruction of forces that she is no longer strong enough to defeat. The aftermath of the military assault on Nineveh is devastating. The sound of mourning coming from the women left behind is heard. The beautiful servant girls of Nineveh moan and groan in the streets. The beating of the breasts is a sign of lamentation and mourning great loss (see Isa 38:14; Ezek 7:16). All is lost for Nineveh, and no one can help. The city is also said to be like a pool that is being drained out. Everyone who can escape is pouring out of the city and fleeing for their lives. The fullness of the city has turned to emptiness with all its inhabitants running away from it now that it has fallen to a scatterer (v. 1). “‘Stop! Stop!’ they cry, but no one turns back.” People are fleeing Nineveh with no intention of stopping or turning around. The city they had filled is now empty. Each person is desperate to save himself from the total collapse of the regime. The fall of Nineveh represents the fall of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. God has again exercised His divine sovereignty over an empire. It won’t be the last time He does so. God knows how to bring together the exact confluence of factors to cause empires to rise and fall. Assyria would never rise again. Nahum has made the message as clear and convincing as possible through his graphic depictions of the impending fall of Nineveh.

Nineveh was known for its wealth and opulence. Nineveh exacted tribute from countless kings and kingdoms throughout the ancient Near East. No wonder the city is found to possess the greatest treasures (v. 9). Nineveh may have been rich in earthly treasures, but it was poor in true riches. God’s people may not always possess the greatest earthly wealth, but we have been given the greatest wealth in true riches. God’s people possess riches that cannot be bought with the world’s wealth. The riches of this world can be taken away by others, but true riches cannot be plundered by anyone. God had given Nineveh an opportunity to possess true riches back during the time of Jonah. Nineveh repented, but their piety did not last long (see Jonah 3:5-10). Now Nineveh would bear the full weight of its many sins before God. Sinners and sinful nations will be judged by God. Just as there was no escaping the judgment for Nineveh, there will be no escape from divine judgment for sinners. People may run from God, but they will never escape. Nations may deny God, but they will certainly face His judgment.

Nahum comes to a crescendo in his gripping depiction of the fall of Nineveh in verse 10. What better way to articulate the impact on the city than to employ a powerful wordplay that summarizes the state of the situation in the aftermath of divine judgment? “Desolation, decimation, devastation!” all make up “an exclamation of horror at the scene of the ruined city” (Longman, “Nahum,” 807). The first two terms come from the same root, meaning “to empty.” The third term means “to destroy.” These three terms illustrate the totality of the destruction wrought by the invaders. The aftermath is not an attractive scene because the city has been laid to waste and its inhabitants are homeless and utterly destitute. The effects of the scene are described in physiological terms: “Hearts melt, knees tremble, loins shake, every face grows pale!” The devastation is so harrowing that it causes a dire physiological reaction for those who are left to witness it. The inner convulsions are being experienced through adverse physical reactions. All courage has been lost.

The prophet Joel similarly describes the nations’ reaction to the coming of the Day of the Lord when he says, “Nations writhe in horror before them: all faces turn pale” (Joel 2:6). The prophet Isaiah offered this description when he prophesied concerning the judgment to come on the kingdom of Babylon:

Wail! For the day of the Lord is near. It will come like destruction from the Almighty. Therefore everyone’s hands will become weak, and every man’s heart will melt. They will be horrified; pain and agony will seize them; they will be in anguish like a woman in labor. They will look at each other, their faces flushed with fear. Look, the day of the Lord is coming—cruel, with rage and burning anger—to make the earth a desolation and to destroy the sinners on it. (Isa 13:6-9)

Clearly Isaiah was not only describing the eventual doom of Babylon but also the whole world. God will judge the entire world, not just individual kingdoms, and the reaction will be just as the prophet describes. Sinners will certainly face an angry God who called on them to repent, but they refused, to their own eternal detriment.

How is such devastation good news for Judah, the people of God? To the modern reader this might seem cruel and coldhearted, but when one realizes that Assyria is receiving divine justice for its cruel treatment of countless peoples throughout the ancient Near East, then it becomes clear that God is a God of justice, and He will not leave the guilty unpunished (Nah 1:3). God is just as well as loving. Every human possesses some sense of justice even if it has been distorted by sin. When we declare that God is just, we affirm that He is eternally right to exercise justice on humans in accordance with His own character and standard since there is no greater standard for justice than God Himself. The Lord declares to Moses in Exodus 20:5 that He will punish the sins of the fathers to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Him. Though Assyria has mocked God, nevertheless it is God who determines the fate of Assyria and its allies. God will repay people(s) for their sins. God will hold nations accountable for their policies and their practices. God will judge rulers for how they rule and how they conduct themselves while in their seats of power.

Nahum 2:11-13

Nineveh was like a large hollow tree. It may stand tall, but it can easily be cut down. The Neo-Assyrian Empire looked strong from the outside, but beneath the surface it was weak and deteriorating. In verses 11-12 the prophet Nahum issues a prophetic taunt of Nineveh. The image of the lion, mighty and fearless, has now disappeared. Nahum uses the lion image with pointed purpose. Roberts comments:

The lion is a traditional symbol for kingship throughout the Near East, but Nahum may have chosen the lion imagery for this taunt precisely because the lion figures so prominently in Assyrian reliefs and because the Assyrian kings loved to compare themselves to lions. (Nahum, 67)

Where are they now? Gone! The lions’ lair is empty. The Assyrian king gone! His palace empty! There will be nothing left of the king and his cohorts.

It’s one thing to have human enemies, but when the Lord is against you, there is no hope of survival. The Lord declares His opposition with the words, “I am against you” (v. 13). This phrase is a common feature of prophetic literature. Jeremiah the prophet employs this phrase in his oracles. For example, in 21:13 the Lord says, “Beware! I am against you” (see also Jer 50:31; 52:25). The Lord repeatedly speaks these words through the prophet Ezekiel. In 5:8 the Lord declares to the leaders of Jerusalem, “Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: See, I am against you, Jerusalem.” In Ezekiel 13:8 the Lord confronts the lying prophets when He says, “I am against you because you have spoken falsely and had lying visions.” The Lord not only declares His opposition to His own people at times, but also He confronts the nations surrounding His people (see Ezek 21:3; 26:3,8; 29:3). The Lord is against those who do evil (Ps 34:16).

In Nahum 2:13 the Lord vows to destroy the Assyrian military hardware (“chariots”), the king’s officers (“young lions”), and supplies for sustenance (“I will cut off your prey”). This is complete routing of the Assyrian monarch and his royal military machinery. Also, the messengers will be eliminated forever (“your messengers will never be heard again”). This is good news for Judah—God’s people—and for many other peoples who had been subjugated to brutal Assyrian hegemony. This enemy of God’s people will be vanquished forever.

Even though Assyria will be replaced by Babylonian hegemony, at least for a short time God’s people will have rest. They would have permanent rest from their enemies if only they would turn to the Lord in repentance and faith in the covenant (cf. Jer 25:1-14). There is no enemy that cannot be overcome if God’s people remain faithful to His Word. Obedience to the Word of the Lord is the path to blessing and peace (Deut 28). This truth is the same today as it was in the days of the prophet Nahum. In every era the Lord says that if “My people who are called by My name humble themselves, pray and seek My face, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land” (2 Chr 7:14). God will bless His people when we honor Him with true repentance, faith, and holiness.