Nahum Prophet of God’s Consolation
By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe
Nahum is the seventh of the Minor Prophets. His name means consolation. The focus of his prophecy is God’s judgment
against wickedness and His consolation for the righteous.
Even though, during the ministry of Jonah, the powerful
Assyrian city of Nineveh repented and was spared, in later years, the people
returned to their wickedness and were destined to face the judgment of
God. In His mercy, God ordained Nahum to
speak to the people of Nineveh and give them another opportunity to
repent.
The juxtaposition of judgment and mercy is seen in the
first chapter of Nahum. In dealing with
wickedness, “The LORD
is slow to anger and great in power, And will not at all acquit the wicked. The
LORD has His way In the whirlwind
and in the storm, And the clouds are the dust of His feet” Nahum 1:3 (NKJV).
However, God is merciful to the righteous. “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” Nahum 1:7-8 (NKJV).
Nahum’s prophecy was fulfilled when the Babylonian Empire
captured Nineveh in 612 B.C.
As the wickedness of worldly philosophies, decisions and
behaviors seemly surrounds us, we are caught in a whirlwind of fear of the
judgment of God. It is true that if those who continue in their desire to
annihilate Christianity and righteousness continue in their path of
destruction, they will face the judgment of God. Much of the judgment will be the natural consequences
of choices they have made. When we
exchange freedom for license, immorality, addictions, confusion and desolation
of the soul arise. When we destroy the
preborn, we destroy much of our future.
We also destroy much of the present because we no longer value human
life. All lives matter.
God’s judgment may also be seen in our weather patterns
and climatic turmoil. Nahum 1:4-5 (NKJV): “He rebukes the sea and makes it dry,
And dries up all the rivers. Bashan and Carmel wither, And the flower of Lebanon
wilts. The mountains quake before Him, The hills melt, And the earth heaves at
His presence, Yes, the world and all who dwell in it.” Our world is plagued with droughts, tornados,
volcanic eruptions in greater number than in the past.
God’s judgment is, likewise, evident in the revealing of
evil practices that have been hidden in the past. Nahum 3:4-7 (NKJV): “Because
of the multitude of harlotries of the seductive harlot, The mistress of
sorceries, Who sells nations through her harlotries, And families through her
sorceries. "Behold, I am against you," says the LORD of hosts; "I will lift your
skirts over your face, I will show the nations your nakedness, And the kingdoms
your shame. I will cast abominable filth upon you, Make you vile, And make you
a spectacle. It shall come to pass that all who look upon you Will flee from
you, and say, 'Nineveh is laid waste! Who will bemoan her?' Where shall I seek
comforters for you?"
The corruptions that have recently been exposed are like
an iceberg. Only about 20 percent is
seen above the surface. More revelations will be coming forth. Jesus said, “For nothing is secret that
will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and
come to light” (Luke 8:17 (NKJV). Our
prayer must be for all the hidden corruption to be revealed. The more truth we know, the more truth we can
deal with and the more freedom we will walk in.
The wickedness of ancient Nineveh is symbolic of the
wickedness in the world throughout history.
It is certainly symbolic of the wickedness in the world today. Nineveh means handsome or agreeable. The world system tends to follow those things
and people that appeal to the eye, those things that are handsome. Likewise, worldly people, those who have not
been transformed by the renewing of their minds, seek after that which agrees
with their sinful nature. A Nineveh
mindset is an "if it looks good and agrees with worldly thoughts, do
it" mindset.
Remember the thoughts of the woman as recorded in Genesis
3: 6. “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was
pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its
fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.”
God is in the process of judging that wickedness. Yet, lest we shrink in fear, we must remember
that God is merciful to the righteous. Nahum 1:15 (NKJV) “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.”
While “Judah” in the above passage refers to the Southern
Kingdom of Israel, the word “Judah” also means praise. In that definition is a powerful strategy for
overcoming in the midst of our national and world situations. We are to praise the Lord for Who He is and
for what He has done, what He is doing and what He will do.
At the birth our Lord, the heavenly host proclaimed, "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!" (Luke 2:14 (NKJV). In Jesus Christ, we can experience peace even in the midst of turmoil. We must open our hearts to the empowering of the Holy Spirit to stand for what we believe, to continue to practice those beliefs and to reach out to others with the love of the Lord. The wickedness of worldly practices will not destroy us. Jesus has established His Church and the gates of Hell will not prevail against us. (Matthew 16:18).
We must be the feet on the mountains that bring good tidings. We must be the ones to proclaim peace in Jesus Christ. We must be the ones who stand unashamedly for truth. In doing so, we will prevail in the times of judgment.
"How lovely on the mountains are the
feet of Him
Who brings good news, good news;
Announcing peace, proclaiming news of happiness:
Our God reigns, our God reigns!"
—Leonard E. Smith
No comments:
Post a Comment