Nahum 1:6

6 His indignation--who can stand before it? Who can endure {his fierce anger}?^[a] His wrath is poured out like fire; rocks are shattered before^[b] him.

Nahum 1:6 Meaning and Commentary

Nahum 1:6

Who can stand before his indignation?
&c.] No creature whatever; no man nor body of men; not Nineveh, and the inhabitants of it; nor the whole Assyrian empire: and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger?
not the great men of the earth; not kings or generals of armies; not kingdoms and nations, ever so numerous and powerful; but all must be consumed by him, who is a consuming fire; see ( Jeremiah 10:10 ) ( Revelation 6:15-17 ) ; his fury is poured out like fire;
or like metal that is melted by fire, and poured out by the force of it; or like fire of lightning poured out of the heavens, which is quick, powerful, and penetrating, and there is no resisting it: and the rocks are thrown down by him;
by the Lord, by his wrath and fury; kingdoms that seemed as strong and immovable as rocks and mountains are thrown down; as such have been by the force of fire bursting from the midst of them, as Etna, Vesuvius, and others.

Nahum 1:6 In-Context

4 He rebukes the sea and he dries up the rivers; he makes all the rivers run dry. Bashan and Carmel wither; the blossom of Lebanon languishes.

5 Mountains quake before him; the hills shake apart. The earth heaves before him-- the world and all her inhabitants.

6 His indignation--who can stand before it? Who can endure {his fierce anger}? His wrath is poured out like fire; rocks are shattered before him.

7 Yahweh is good--a refuge in [the] day of distress; [he knows] those who take refuge in him.

8 But with a rushing torrent he will bring [Nineveh] to an end; he will chase his enemies into darkness.

Footnotes

• [a] Literally "the heat of his anger"
• [b] Or "by"