Outline
Introduction
- Personal considerations
- The prophet’s place of residence
- The theme of his prophecy
Discussion
- The Date and General Background
A. The method of determining the appropriate date
B. Nahum’s place in sacred history
C. The general background of his message - The Nakedness and Shame of a Sinful City
A. Assyria’s attitude toward God and man
B. A description of the Assyrian atrocities
C. Jehovah’s attitude toward the aggressors - The Integrity and Authenticity of the Book
A. The manner in which scholars view the book
B. The reason for the so-called twofold nature of the contents
C. Concerning the conclusiveness of the proof offered - The Contents of the Book
A. The general outline of the book
B. The type of literature
C. Concerning Hebrew poetry
Conclusion
- The religious value of the prophecy
- It relation to other books of prophecy
- Internal testimony as to its purpose
- Its continuous impressions
Introduction
The word “Nahum” means “comforter” or “compassion.” There is nothing known of this prophet’s personal history, except that which may be learned from the book which bears his name. Anyone who reads his prophecy carefully will be impressed with the idea that he was a man of consuming patriotism, and superb rhetorical power. His book is regarded as one of the masterpieces of the entire Bible. Bewer notes that Nahum pictured the attack on and conquest of the seemingly impregnable city of Nineveh with such brilliance and dramatic power that it still fires the reader’s imagination, and makes him see it in all of its lifelikeness. Nahum was a poet of the first order, and as such he is comparable even to Isaiah.
Bible students disagree regarding the identity of the place where the prophet Nahum lived. He was called the “Elkoshite” (1:1), which means that he was a native or inhabitant of Elkosh, but where was that city or village? Some think that it was probably in Galilee; others, on the bank of the Tigris River, not far from Nineveh; while still others profess to see Elkosh in Capernaum, as the “village of Nahum.” This is a question of interest, although not necessarily of importance. But it is a question which will probably forever remain unanswered.
All Bible students would, of course, like to know where the home of Nahum was located, but that which really counts in his case is the fact that he was a prophet of Jehovah, and as such he spoke the mind of the Almighty. The theme of his prophecy was the approaching fall of Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian Empire. That mighty power had held sway for centuries and is regarded by Bible students as the most brutal of all the ancient nations, the most cruel of them all, and the one which took the greatest delight in recording their atrocities in the inscriptions which adorned their palace walls.
Discussion
The Date and General Background
While Bible students disagree with reference to the time when Nahum spoke, there are within the prophecy itself two fix points between which the date must fall. And while this is recognized by most conservative scholars, it is also true that there is nothing like unanimity among them regarding the dates of the two points in question. The first of these two points, sometimes referred to as the terminus a quo, is the overthrow of No-amon (3:8-10), which has been identified as Thebes, the ancient capital of upper Egypt. The other point, the terminus ad quem, was the downfall of Nineveh, which was still in the future when the prophet uttered his prediction (2:13; 3:5-7).
Although some Bible students are of the opinion that the Assyrian monarch Sargon destroyed No-Amon about the time that he took the ten tribes of Israel into captivity (715 B.C.), it appears that the weight of authority favors Assurbanipal as the conquering king, and the date as 663 B.C. But when we come to the terminus ad quem, the authorities seem to be more evenly divided. Farrah notes that the exact date of the destruction is unknown, but that it took place between 626 and 608 B.C. Driver sets the date at 607, while Smith’s Bible Dictionary, Hasting’s Bible Dictionary, and Bewer, The Book of the Twelve Prophets, set the date of the city’s fall at 612.
But in spite of the variations regarding the two terminus dates just noted, it is almost certain that Nahum predicted the tragic end of the once mighty city of Nineveh sometime between 663 and 606 B.C. It is fair to assume from the book now under consideration that Nineveh was passing through some grave crisis at the time the prophet’s words were spoken or written, and that would indicate that the fall of the city was not in the far distant future when the prophecy was given. This view is confirmed in the light of secular historical facts. The dates given above also indicate that Nahum lived during the reigns of Manasseh, Amon, and Josiah, kings of Judah, and was contemporary with the prophets Jeremiah and Zephaniah.
Bewer sums up the situation in these words: “The Assyrian Empire reached its zenith of its power under Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal. But as has happened so often in history, decline set in like a cancer in an apparently healthy body long before its discovery. The extent to which rottenness had sapped the strength of the once-mighty scourge of nations became apparent upon the death of Assurbanipal in 626 B.C., and the subject nations seized their opportunity. Nabopolassar freed Babylonia from Assyria. King Josiah reasserted the sovereignty of Judah in his reformation in 621, which, from a political point of view, was an act of rebellion against Assyria. Cyaxares, king of Media, besieged Nineveh in 625 but had to withdraw in order to ward off the invasion of his country by the Scythians (see also the Introduction to Zephaniah). In 614 he renewed his attack, and in 612 Nineveh fell under the combined attack of the Medes under Cyaxares and the Babylonians under Nabopolassar”. These facts are substantiated by the authorities already referred to, except for the date of destruction.
The Nakedness and Shame of a Sinful City
“‘Behold I am against you,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘and I will uncover your skirts upon your face; and I will show the nations your nakedness, and the kingdoms your shame’” (3:5). It is difficult for enlightened people of this age to conceive of the atrocities which were committed by the Assyrians, and especially their leaders. The offense of these people was an insolent defiance of Jehovah, and high-handed oppression, not only for His chosen people but also for a multitude of nations upon whom they trampled with brutal inhumanity. It is not necessary to depend upon the enemies of the Assyrians for testimony against them; for their own artists, in a series of pictures with which they adorned the palaces of their kings, have preserved and published to all nations in all subsequent ages Nineveh’s undying shame.
J. H. Morrison, in The Speaker’s Bible (The Minor Prophets, page 130), says, “The Assyrian army was a horde of disciplined savages whose chief delights were to plunder, ravish, and torture. With his own hands their king would gouge out the eyes of noble captives, then perhaps flay them alive, and peg them to the ground to perish. When on the warpath, as his palace sculptures show, he would dine with the bleeding heads of his enemies hung up in front of him to whet his appetite. He spread the terror of his name over Asia. In Isaiah’s phrase, his boast was that he plundered the wealth of nations as one would harry a bird’s nest, and none dared to flutter a wing or chirp. He tore the people from home and country and fixed them together indiscriminately, so that all patriotism might be quenched”.
In speaking of Assurbanipal, who destroyed No-amon and put an end to the Ethiopian dynasty of upper Egypt, Farrar observes that his description of his own atrocities is complacently cruel. He tells how he tore off the lips and hands of kings, and compelled a prince to wear around his neck the decapitated head of his king. At his triumph, the prince was dragged along by three kings of Elam yoked to his war-chariot. In a sculpture now in the British Museum he is represented as sitting at a banquet with his queen and gazing on the head of Nabubelzikri, the Chaldean king who had committed suicide.
But Farrar continues: “Judged from the vaunting inscriptions of her kings, no power more ruthless, more savage, more terrible, ever cast its gigantic shadow on history as it passed on the way to ruin. The kings of Assyria tormented the miserable world. They exult to record how ‘space failed for corpses;’ how unsparing a destroyer is their goddess Ishtar; how they flung away the bodies of the soldiers like so much clay; how they made pyramids of human heads; how they sacrificed holocausts of the sons and daughters of their enemies; how they burned cities; how they filled populous lands with death and devastation; how they reddened broad deserts with carnage of warriors; how they scattered whole countries with the corpses of their defenders as with chaff; how they impaled heaps of men on stakes, and strewed the mountains and choked rivers with dead bones; how they cut off the hands of kings and nailed them on the walls, and left their bodies to rot with bears and dogs on the entrance gates of cities; how they employed nations of captives in making bricks and fetters; how they cut down warriors like weeds, or smote them like wild beasts in the forests, and covered pillars with the flayed skins of rival monarchs”.
Jehovah, more than 100 years earlier, had sent the prophet Jonah to cry against Nineveh. “Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, ‘Go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me’” (Jonah 1:1-2). The prophet at first declined to go, but after his experience with the great fish, the command was repeated. “And the word of Jehovah came to Jonah a second time saying, ‘Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it the preaching that I bid you.’ So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of Jehovah. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, of three days’ journey, and he cried and said, ‘Yet 40 days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown’” (Jonah 1:1-4).
The people of Nineveh believed the preaching of Jonah (3:5). And when they repented of their sins (Matthew 12:41), the Lord spared them. But when Nahum uttered his words against them, their doom was sealed; they had gone beyond repentance; they had reached the point of no return. This should be an impressive lesson to us today; an infallible voice out of the past to all who believe that the things which were written aforetime were written for our learning (Romans 15:4; 1 Corinthians 10:6, 11). God’s people today therefore should never grow weary in their study of the Old Testament.
The Integrity and Authenticity of the Book
Many of the most scholarly works in use today look upon the book of Nahum as being made up of two parts, namely, 1) 1:2-2:13, and 2) the remainder of the book (Ch. 3). They all regard the second part of the book as being genuine, but many hold that the first part was a later addition to the prophecy of Nahum, a kind of introduction to it. Hasting’s Dictionary of the Bible says that until a very few years ago, all three chapters of the book of Nahum were regarded as beyond suspicion, even by the more advanced scholars, but now only chapters 2 and 3 are considered as being the genuine prophecy of Nahum.
The Interpreter’s Bible thinks that chapter 1 was added by the editor of the Book of The Twelve in order to provide a suitable introduction to what is contained in chapters 2 and 3. Bewer, while in general agreement with that which has just been said, is of the opinion that the sum of chapter 1 was added by Nahum himself, or by a later editor. Both scholars consider this part of the book as an acrostic or alphabetic poem, in which each successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet begins a couplet; but, viewed critically, they regard the introductory psalm as being neither complete nor in its original form.
The international Standard Bible Encyclopedia calls attention to denial of the originality of 1:2-2:2, with the exception of 2:1, and recognizes traces of alphabetic arrangement in 1:2-7; but even here the editor notes that the artistic arrangement is not carried through consistently, with only slight evidence of the arrangement in the remainder of the chapter. And inasmuch as acrostic poetry is regarded by these critics as having a later origin than Nahum’s time, they therefore consider that part of this book as being a later addition to the part found in chapters 2 and 3.
But The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia is not willing to concede that chapter 1 is not a part of the original work of Nahum, and cites George Adam Smith as substantiating that viewpoint. Smith’s words are: “Therefore, while it is possible that a later poem has been prefixed to the genuine prophecies of Nahum, and the first chapter supplies many provocations to believe in such a theory, this has not been proved, and the able essays of proof have much against them. The question is open”. But in the new and revised edition, Dr. Smith says, “So I wrote in the first edition of this book. But subsequent criticism by Kautzsch, Kennedy, Budde, and J. M. P. Smith convinces me that this section of the book is from a date after the exile. In particular J. M. P. Smith wisely remarks that “the acrostic form . . . seems too mechanical and artificial for a poet of Nahum’s vigor and freshness”.
This, of course, is a question for textual critics, but even if so, it will have to be admitted, by even the most enthusiastic among those holding this view, that the evidence is not conclusive; and until more proof is produced, we will have to continue to regard the entire book of Nahum as a literary unit — the inspired production of the prophet.
The Contents of the Book
The book of Nahum is roughly divided into three parts, namely,
- the theme of the prophecy and introductory remarks, chapter 1;
- a description of the calamity which would befall Nineveh, chapter 2;
- the reasons for the judgment which would be inflicted, chapter 3.
Each of the three chapters may be further subdivided.
Chapter 1:
- the title of the book;
- the qualities and attributes of Jehovah (2-8);
- the overthrow of Nineveh decreed, and the peace of Judah assured (9-15).
Chapter 2:
- the siege and capture of Nineveh prophetically foretold (1-7);
- the plunder and destruction of the city (8-10);
- the end of Nineveh’s ferocious army (11-13).
Chapter 3:
- the repetition of Nineveh’s doom and its cause (1-7);
- a taunt at the city’s inescapable defeat (8-10);
- a portrait of Nineveh’s utter destruction (11-19).
Nahum has been called one of the world’s greatest poets, and the subject matter about which he wrote was one of the greatest events in history, “and the best description of it is in Nahum’s marvelous poem”. If the prophet seems unmerciful, we must remember that his words were not intended to reflect the moral character or merits of His people, but were concerned with the exultation of a people who had been long enslaved, and who saw their tyrant ready for destruction. Or, to express the same thing in other words, this is an example of the vengeance of Jehovah, after the day of mercy had passed. George Adam Smith notes that the language of the prophet is strong and brilliant; his rhythm rumbles and rolls, leaps and flashes, like the horse and chariots he describes. He then goes on to say that if the original was before us, and that knowledge of the times which the excavation of ancient Assyria may still yield, we might judge Nahum to be an even greater poet than we do.
Knopf points out the fact that Hebrew poetry does not rhyme, but has measured cadences within the lines. “These cadences indicate emotion – two short, sharp beats for alarms; four beats for marching or dignity; three for ordinary; and five for deep feeling, joy or sorrow”. Nahum’s sound pictures of a city’s fall are lost in current Bible translations. However, it is possible, by proper translation of the original Hebrew and arrangement of the English phrases, to imagine ourselves on the very walls of Nineveh, witnessing the whole gripping tragedy. Now the enemy has been sighted. The alarm is given (2:1), in the characteristic two-beat measure of agitation (read the following aloud): “He that dasheth in pieces is come up before you face: keep the munition, watch the way, make thy loins strong, fortify thy power mightily!” Now the tramp of the enemy is heard (again read aloud):
“The shields of his mighty men are made red,
The valiant men are in scarlet.
The chariots come with flaming torches
In the day of his preparation,
And the spears are brandished.
The chariots rage in the streets,
They jostle one another in the broad roads;
They seem like torches,
They run like lightning!” (2:3-4).
Short two-beat lines tell of the conflict:
“He remembers his nobles;
They stumble in their walk;
They make haste to her walls,
And the defense is prepared.
The gates of the rivers are opened,
And the palace is dissolved” (2:5-6).
Then comes the doom of the city:
“It is decreed:
She shall be led away captive,
She shall be brought up;
And her maidservants shall lead her as with the voice of doves,
Beating their breasts.
Though Nineveh of old was like a pool of water,
Now they flee away. ‘Halt! Halt!’ they cry;
But no one turns back” (2:7-8).
In striking four-beat measures imitating the galloping horses, Nahum pictures the looting with the vividness of a newsreel (2:9; 3:2-3):
“Take spoil of silver!
Take spoil of gold!
There is no end of treasure,
Or wealth of every desirable prize. . . .
The noise of a whip
And the noise of rattling wheels,
Of galloping horses,
Of clattering chariots!
Horsemen charge with bright sword and glittering spear.
There is a multitude of slain,
A great number of bodies,
Countless corpses—
They stumble over the corpses”.
Try reading this aloud with a rhythmic cadence, and imagine galloping horses and lurching chariots. “The lines are quite different from those in the usual translations, yet here are the pictures and feelings that Nahum was trying to express to his readers” (Carl S. Knopf, Ask the Prophets, p. 76ff).
The Religious Value of the Prophecy
Farrar points out that the book of Nahum furnishes us with one of the finest examples of Hebrew prophetic poetry in all its lyrical beauty and pictorial vividness, but he knows that it is less directly spiritual than the prophecies of Hosea, Isaiah, or Micah, yet it forcibly brings before us God’s moral government of the world, and the duty of trust in Him as the Avenger of wrongdoers, the sole source of security and peace to those who love Him. These facts can be clearly seen by reading the following verses: “Who can stand before His indignation? And who can endure the fierceness of His anger? His fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by Him. The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knows those who trust in Him. But with an overflowing flood He will make an utter end of its place, and darkness will pursue His enemies. . . . Behold, on the mountains the feet of him who brings good tidings. Who proclaims peace! O Judah, keep your appointed feasts, perform your vows. For the wicked one shall no more pass through you; He is utterly cut off” (1:6-8, 15).
Conclusion
The Interpreter’s Bible observes that the injustices of Nineveh stirred Nahum to the highest degree of moral indignation and burned him to the point where he could utter the truth and language so plain, unvarnished, and memorable that it has survived as the classic description of the tyrant’s fate. The editor then adds that perhaps one of the faults of current preaching is that it lacks Nahum’s concern over entrenched wrong-doing.
Bibliography
- Bewer, Julius A., The Book of The Twelve Prophets, Vol. 2, New York: Harper and Brothers, Publishers, p. 21 ff.
- Driver, S. R. Introduction to the Literature of the Old Testament, New York: Charles Schriber’s Sons, p. 334.
- Farrar, F. W., The Minor Prophets, New York: Anson D. F. Randolph & Company, p. 144 ff.
- Hastings, Edward, The Speaker’s Bible – The Minor Prophets, Aberdeen, Scotland: Office of TSB, p. 130 ff.
- Hastings, James, The Greater Men and Women of the Bible, Vol. IV, New York: Charles Schriber’s Sons, p. 471ff.
- Knopf, Carl Sumner, Ask the Prophets, Nashville: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, p. 75ff.
- Patterson, John, The Goodly Fellowship of the Prophets, New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, p. 109 ff.
- Smith, George Adam, The Book of the Twelve Prophets, Vol. II, New York: Harper and Brothers, Publishers, p. 77ff.
- Harper’s Bible Dictionary, Miller, New York: Harper and Brothers Publishers.
- Dictionary of the Bible, Hastings, New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons.
- Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible, Hackett, Boston: Houghton, Mifflin, & Co.
- The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Orr, Chicago: The Howard Severance Company.
- The Interpreter’s Bible, Buttrick, Nashville: Abingdon Press.
- The Master Bible, Chicago: John Wesley Dixon and Company, p. 968.
- The New Analytical Bible, Chicago: John a Dickinson Publishing Company, p. 105.
Questions for Class Discussion
- What is known of the prophet Nahum?
- Where did he live?
- What is the most important thing regarding him?
- How can we determine the approximate date of his prophecy?
- Why do Bible students differ regarding these historical facts?
- What aid from secular history can we get concerning these matters?
- During what period in Jewish history did Nahum prophesy?
- Who were some of his principal contemporaries?
- Discuss the general background against which Nahum spoke.
- Why were the Assyrians so wicked?
- List some of their atrocities.
- What previous effort had been made to save the people of Nineveh?
- Why did Jonah try to avoid preaching to them?
- What lesson should all of this have for us?
- In what way do modern scholars look upon the book of Nahum?
- What is the motive behind their thinking?
- How do they try to divide the book into two parts?
- What should be our attitude toward the book?
- Discuss the general outline of the contents of Nahum’s prophecy.
- Why does the prophet appear to be so unmerciful?
- Discuss the major difference between Hebrew and English poetry.
- What is the religious value of this book for us?