THE GOODNESS AND SEVERITY OF GOD (Part 1)
NAHUM
The Book of Nahum is a divine indictment against the once - powerful Assyrian Empire,
and its capital city Nineveh. It was probably written around 664/663 B.C., or possibly around
612 B.C., when Nineveh was destroyed. The Nineveh mentioned here in (v.1) is the same
Nineveh to which Jonah was sent with a message of repentance in the first half of the
eighth century B.C. To Jonah’s dismay at that time, the people repented. But now
flushed with prosperity and power, about 100 years later (around 745 B.C.), Nineveh
and the Assyrian Empire have rejected God.
In Nahum’s message, we find both the goodness and severity of God. Goodnes toward
those (the nations) who trust Him, and severity toward those who would reject Him. As
the psalmist warns: The wicked shall be turned into hell, And all the nations that forget God. (Psalm 9:17)
In (v.1-7), the prophet reveals four characteristics of God’s nature, in relationship to
His divine goodness and severity. My hope is that these characteristics will serve as
evidence of the great assurance we have in Christ.
First characteristic: God is Jealous. (v.1, 2a). Elko was Nahum’s home town; its location
is uncertain. “For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God…” (Exodus 20:5) Exodus 34:14 declares His
name is “Jealous!” Jealousy is a sin if it means being envious of what others have. But
it’s a virtue if it means cherishing what we have and wanting to protect it. The words
“jealous” and “zealous” come from the same Hebrew root word. Notice: God is
“jealous” in regards to the Ninevites, a gentile people, and not Israel. Was there
something special about the Ninevites? No! What God is jealous over are three things:
His glory, His name (reputation), and His worship (honor due to Him alone). Nineveh
owed this to God, after He graciously forgave them in the days of Jonah.
For these same reasons, God is jealous over His church today. After 39 years of
marriage, I am jealous over my wife. She wears a wedding ring: It’s a stop sign for all
other males. Violators will be punished! In a similar sense, through faith in Christ, we
have been sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise. That seal is a stop sign for Satan and all
other violators of God’s covenant with His children. The church is the “bride of Christ”:
We bear His glory, and reputation, and owe to Him alone, worship. Thus, we must
repent of anything which diminishes His glory, is out of character with His reputation,
or robs Him of worship, lest we commit spiritual adultery against Him. God is jealous,
zealous for His church, and He will not share His bride with another god!
The second characteristic is that God is vengeful. (v.2b-3) Because “God is slow to
anger,” (v.3), the “wicked” mistakenly take His longsuffering for weakness or a
passivity. More than 100 years had gone by since Jonah’s visitation in Nineveh.
Wickedness had crept back into Nineveh’s society. Through God’s longsuffering, like
many today, Nineveh thought God could not see. In fact, economically and politically
the empire was doing great! Lesson: Worldly success is not always a sign of being
right with God! What the Assyrians failed to realize is that actions have consequences.
We are storing up for ourselves either glory or indignation! It all depends on our
response to the truth! (ttt) Romans 2:5-11. (v.2b) God “reserves” wrath for His
enemies! The good news: For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus
our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
The lesson regarding vengeance, which we should remember is it belongs to the Lord;
it’s a burden none of us can bear! Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for
it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord. (Romans 12:19) There are things which do
anger us, day-to-day things which we need to get over; but there is also justifiable
anger, righteous indignation! (Jesus in the temple). The American abolitionist and preacher Henry
Ward Beecher once said, “A person that does not know how to be angry does not know how to be good.” If we
stand by while innocent, helpless people are mistreated, then something is wrong with us. “Be
At the same time,
anger must not master us! It must be overcome with good! The reason anger often
becomes vengeance is we allow it to fester rather than casting our cares upon the
angry, and do not sin": do not let the sun go down on your wrath.” (Ephesians 4:26)
Lord. Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all
your care upon Him, for He cares for you. (1 Peter 5:6-7) Let God be your vindicator, so you can
walk in victory! He will repay! (v.3a) “He will by no means acquit the wicked.” Isis
(Islamic State of Iraq and Syria; Mosul Iraq – convert, pay poll tax or die).
The third characteristic is that God is Sovereign. In (v.3b-5), He is sovereign over all
creation. The religion of the Assyrians, much like that of the Babylonians, emphasized the worship of nature.
They believed every object of nature was possessed by a spirit. Their chief god of nature was Ashur. (Nelson's
In (v.3b), the prophet establishes the fact that it is God, not the
Assyrian gods, who is sovereign over all creation. (v.4, 5) Bashan is in northern Israel;
Mt. Carmel, the forest of Lebanon, will “wither” at His word. In (v.6); even the “rocks,”
- the hardest object in nature - will be “thrown down.” The idea being conveyed here is
that God is sovereign despite the storm, sea, river, mountain or hill we might face. No
one and no-thing can stand before His “indignation!” His will, will be done! For our God is
a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12:29) Therefore, no god or weapon formed against us, His people,
will prosper. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31)
Illustrated Bible Dictionary).
The last characteristic we find here is that God is good. (v.7) We’ve seen His severity
but now His goodness. He is “good” because He is a “stronghold,” literally: a fortified
place in the “day of trouble.” A “stronghold,” because of His strong hold on us! He
knows those who are in the grip of His grace, and those who are faking it! He comforts
His children, rather than condemn them. In fact, the name Nahum means comfort and
compassion. We’ll finish Nahum next time.
Communion reminds us of the goodness and severity of God. Severity: Yet it pleased the
Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin. (Isaiah 53:10a)
Goodness: But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement
for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5) Have you received the
goodness of God? (John 3:16).