November 9, 2011
GO TO YOUR ROOM!
Nahum 2
Candace Boutin
Central Truth
God is a just God. And as love is a part of Him, so is judgment. He rewards the faithful and punishes sin.
Key Verse | Nahum 2:13
"Behold, I am against you," declares the LORD of hosts. "I will burn up her chariots in smoke, a sword will devour your young lions; I will cut off your prey from the land, and no longer will the voice of your messengers be heard." (Nahum 2:13)
Nahum 2
The Destruction of Nineveh
1
The scatterer has come up against you.
Man the ramparts;
watch the road;
dress for battle;
1
2:1
Hebrew gird your loins
collect all your strength.
2
For the LORD is restoring the majesty of Jacob
as the majesty of Israel,
for plunderers have plundered them
and ruined their branches.
3
The shield of his mighty men is red;
his soldiers are clothed in scarlet.
The chariots come with flashing metal
on the day he musters them;
the cypress spears are brandished.
4
The chariots race madly through the streets;
they rush to and fro through the squares;
they gleam like torches;
they dart like lightning.
5
He remembers his officers;
they stumble as they go,
they hasten to the wall;
the siege tower
2
2:5
Or the mantelet
is set up.
6
The river gates are opened;
the palace melts away;
7
its mistress
3
2:7
The meaning of the Hebrew word rendered its mistress is uncertain
is stripped;
4
2:7
Or exiled
she is carried off,
her slave girls lamenting,
moaning like doves
and beating their breasts.
8
Nineveh is like a pool
whose waters run away.
5
2:8
Compare Septuagint; the meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
“Halt! Halt!” they cry,
but none turns back.
9
Plunder the silver,
plunder the gold!
There is no end of the treasure
or of the wealth of all precious things.
10
Desolate! Desolation and ruin!
Hearts melt and knees tremble;
anguish is in all loins;
all faces grow pale!
11
Where is the lions' den,
the feeding place of the young lions,
where the lion and lioness went,
where his cubs were, with none to disturb?
12
The lion tore enough for his cubs
and strangled prey for his lionesses;
he filled his caves with prey
and his dens with torn flesh.
13 Behold, I am against you, declares the LORD of hosts, and I will burn your 6 2:13 Hebrew her chariots in smoke, and the sword shall devour your young lions. I will cut off your prey from the earth, and the voice of your messengers shall no longer be heard.
Dive Deeper | Nahum 2
When I misbehaved as a child or went my own way to disobey my parents, I was punished. They sent me to my room or took away privileges, such as allowance or TV. When I was really bad, I got the wooden spoon. Ouch!
Just as my parents did not appreciate my bad behavior, neither does God appreciate ours. In Nahum 2:13, the Lord says, "I am against you." It was strange for me at first to pick this as my key verse because so often I only want to think about the loving, graceful side of God. The side of God that is for us. The English phrase "I am with you," as spoken by the Lord, appears 17 times in the NASB. While God does love us and rewards us for faithfulness and righteousness, He also has a wrathful side.
The English phrase "I am against you," as spoken by the Lord, appears 15 times in the NASB. God is a just God and is against those who continue in their evil and wicked ways. In Nahum the Lord announces judgment against Nineveh because of its oppression, idolatry, and wickedness. This was not the first time the Lord has pronounced judgment against Nineveh.
About a hundred years earlier, He sent Jonah there to preach against it, and the people of Nineveh turned from their evil ways. As a result, God had compassion on them and did not destroy the city (Jonah 3). Thereafter, however, the people of Nineveh returned to their evil ways, and their story does not end well.
When we continue to disobey God or fall back into sin, He is not pleased with us and will provide judgment. 1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." We all are sinners, and, just as we disobeyed our parents, we will continue to disobey God. But we must confess our sins and set our eyes upon His ways, not our own.
Discussion Questions
1. In what areas of your life would God be against you, in the sense we just read? Confess those to Him.
2. Give an example of a time when God blessed you because of your faithfulness.
3. When have you seen God's judgment in your life?
4. Are you prepared to face the ultimate judgment when you stand before God?
WEEKLY FAMILY ACTIVITY
MICAH 7-HABAKKUK 1 (NOVEMBER 7-11)
Read Micah 7:18-20.
What does verse 18 tell us that God will do for Israel, both concerning their sins and what He shows them? What does it mean to be pardoned from something? How is this showing mercy? (Mercy is defined as not getting what we deserve.) What does verse 19 say God will do to their sins?
Read Psalm 103:11-12.
Just as He removes Israel's sins and throws them into the depths of the ocean (Micah 7:19), what does He do to our sins in Psalm 103:12? When God shows His faithfulness to His people, both the Israelites and us, to whom was the promise originally made that He is fulfilling? (Micah 7:20)
Read Genesis 12:1-3, 22:17-18, and Genesis 28:13-15 to see the actual promises made to Abraham and Jacob.
ACTIVITY: Go online and look up how deep the ocean is. If it is in km, convert it into miles (miles = # of km/1.61). Using that number of miles, look up different distances between major cities. Check out those distances on a map. How does it make you feel that God removes your sins so far from you? Take time to pray and thank Him for His mercy!