Holman Old Testament Commentary - Nahum-Malachi

Stephen Miller, Max Anders

• Publisher: Holman Reference
• Year: 2004
• Print ISBN: 9780805494785
• eBook ISBN: 9781433674372
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Commentary

One in a series of twenty Old Testament verse-by-verse commentary books edited by Max Anders. Includes discussion starters, teaching plan, and more. Great for lay teachers and pastors alike.

Nahum 1

If God Is for Us!

I. INTRODUCTION

Life Without God

II. COMMENTARY

A verse-by-verse explanation of the chapter.

III. CONCLUSION

Will the Real God Please Stand Up!

An overview of the principles and applications from the chapter.

IV. LIFE APPLICATION

Does God Make a Difference?

Melding the chapter to life.

V. PRAYER

Tying the chapter to life with God.

VI. DEEPER DISCOVERIES

Historical, geographical, and grammatical enrich ment of the commentary.

VII. TEACHING OUTLINE

Suggested step-by-step group study of the chapter.

VIII. ISSUES FOR DISCUSSION

Zeroing the chapter in on daily life.

“Without God, mankind quickly degenerates into the subhuman.”

Paul Johnson

PROPHECY PROFILE

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• The prophecy is brief, consisting of only three chapters and forty-seven verses.
• The prophecy is severe in tone. Nahum pronounced a scathing message of judgment on the city of Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian Empire.
• The prophecy is focused. Almost every verse in the book deals in some way with the destruction of Nineveh.
• The prophecy is composed in majestic style with many beautiful poetic and stylistic devices.
• The prophecy was written to comfort God's people and assure them that their Assyrian tormentor would soon be punished.
• Theme: Nineveh will be destroyed and God's people delivered as a result of the righteous vengeance of God.
• God's truth for us is that our God reigns and will have the last word against evil.
• Two points are relevant for dating Nahum's prophecy: (1) Nahum referred to the fall of Thebes (3:8; Heb. No-Amon) before the armies of Ashurbanipal (668-627 B.C.) as a past event. This took place in 663 B.C., so the book must have been written after that time. (2) The prophet spoke of the fall of Nineveh in 612 B.C. as future but imminent. Thus the prophet delivered this message some time between 663 B.C. and 612 B.C., probably around 625 B.C.

AUTHOR PROFILE: NAHUM THE PROPHET

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• Nahum was a prophet of the Lord who preached to the Southern Kingdom (Judah).
• His name means “comforter” or “consolation.” The idea of comfort fits the theme of the book well, for Nahum comforted the people of Judah by prophesying Nineveh's downfall.
• No personal information is known about Nahum except that he was from Elkosh, a town in Judah.
• Nahum lived in the seventh century B.C. under Assyrian domination.
• Nahum was a literary genius whose work ranks as one of the literary masterpieces of the writing prophets.

READER PROFILE: THE NATION OF JUDAH

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• Nahum's letter is addressed to his countrymen, the people of Judah.
• By Nahum's day the Northern Kingdom (Israel) had fallen to Assyria (721 B.C.). Although the Southern Kingdom (Judah) survived, it remained a vassal state of the evil Assyrian Empire until the fall of Nineveh in 612 B.C.
• The nation of Judah consisted primarily of the tiny tribe of Benjamin and the much larger tribe of Judah.
• Judah had suffered under the oppressive Assyrian regime for approximately one hundred years.

In chapter 1 Nahum announces that the Lord has decreed the destruction of Nineveh, the capital of the evil Assyrian Empire. The prophet begins by setting forth the credentials of the God who has made such a bold pronouncement. The Lord is just, mighty, and will not leave the guilty unpunished. His holy nature and omnipotence ensure that Nineveh, and all evil empires, will crumble. Yet the Lord loves his people. He is good to them, protects them, and cares for them. Divine judgment on Nineveh will free God's people from oppression and will be a cause for celebration among the godly.

If God Is for Us!

I. INTRODUCTION

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Life Without God

Alexander Zaichenko grew up in Moscow, Russia, during the height of the cold war. A brilliant scholar, he became an economic adviser to the Gorbachev and Yeltsin governments. He was raised in an absolutely atheistic home and never met a Christian. Yet from a very early age, Alexander knew something was missing from his life. His parents were atheists and never talked about religion. His teachers at school only mentioned religion in the most disparaging ways. Still he wondered about the meaning of life and the purpose of human existence. Once he dared to ask his professor what our purpose for being is if we are only here for a little while and have no future. Rather than answering the question, the professor sternly rebuked Alexander for asking such a question. Yet Alexander continued to ponder the purpose of life and who God is, the One atheists kept denouncing.

He tried to find religious materials to read yet found that impossible. Finally, in 1979 he was able to purchase a Bible on the black market. Alexander took the Bible home and opened it to the Gospel of Matthew. At first, it did not seem interesting at all.

He read through the genealogy and birth of Jesus, the appearance of John the Baptist, and Jesus' early ministry. “I thought maybe the atheists were right,” he later said.

But something happened when he read chapter 5. His mind and feelings changed as he read Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. “It took my breath away, and I started reading the Bible every day,” he was quoted as saying in an article in Christian Herald magazine.

The more he read, the more he understood. The spiritual turning point came when he gave his life to the Lord Jesus Christ. “I considered myself a Christian, even though there were no Christians around me.”

Two years later he got married, and he and his wife began studying the Bible together. “We also started searching for a church,” he says. The Russian Orthodox Church's ritual wasn't satisfying, so “we decided to look for a Protestant church, which I had read about in atheist literature.”

Four years passed before he was able to find an underground church where he and his wife could attend. Alexander said he found the church in an unusual way. He called the government office and said that a foreign visitor was coming to Moscow and desired to attend a Protestant church. He asked where one might be found. When he checked the location on the map, he found that in an effort to prevent people from finding the church, the Communists had omitted the street from the map.

Alexander was a secret Christian for many years. In December 1990, while being interviewed on nationwide Russian television, the reporter shocked him by asking about rumors that he had become a Christian. At that time Communism had not fallen in Russia, and Christians were being persecuted. In spite of the danger, Zaichenko bravely disclosed to the world that he was a follower of Christ. When he went to work the next day, he really did not know what to expect. To his surprise he suffered no open persecution, and as a matter of fact, several of his colleagues privately indicated they were interested in knowing about his faith.

Zaichenko has a Ph.D. in economics and headed a government-private enterprise program on economic reform under the Russian government's cabinet of ministers. He also served as an adviser to former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev. Zaichenko emphasized that Russia's economic prosperity is linked with the moral and ethical values of free evangelical Christianity. He contended that Christian values are essential to building a free economy and a civilized state.

Incredibly, by the grace and power of God, the “iron curtain” fell. Alexander is now able to worship freely. Best of all, he has joy and fulfillment because he has found the true God. He knows how hopeless and empty life can be without him. On the other hand, life with God is filled with hope for the future and confidence and joy in this life. The prophet Nahum knew that very well.

In this first chapter of his book, Nahum pronounces judgment upon Nineveh, Assyria's leading city. Assyria had caused untold suffering for Judah and the world of that day. God had not been asleep, and the time had come for judgment to fall. Finally, justice would be carried out.

Nahum's message is also one of hope and deliverance for God's people. The Northern Kingdom (ten northern tribes) had been totally annihilated by Assyria. Over fifty thousand captives had been dragged away from their homes to other lands. Judah (the two tribes in the south) survived but had lived “under the thumb” of Assyria for a hundred years. Now God promised that soon their oppressor would be destroyed. This was cause for celebration.

Before Nahum described the destruction of Nineveh, he presented a panoramic view of the greatness and majesty of God. The Lord makes the bold assertion that Nineveh would be destroyed. For one hundred years the Assyrians had ruled the world and crushed little Judah. Could this powerful foe really be defeated? The answer was a resounding yes! It was possible because Israel's God cared about the plight of his people and had the power to carry out his threats against Nineveh. This was a great comfort to Nahum's audience. As we turn our attention to the magnificent picture of God that Nahum paints, we will appreciate more than ever our great God. We can exclaim with the apostle Paul, “What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31).

The minor prophets of the Old Testament are often overlooked or ignored, especially little books like Nahum. But this short prophecy contains a powerful message for our modern age. In its pages we find God's promise that his people will be delivered from tyranny and justice will be meted out. Read and appreciate the timeless message of this Old Testament book.

II. COMMENTARY

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If God Is for Us!

MAIN IDEA: Our omnipotent God is able to deliver his people and defeat our persecutors, no matter how powerful they appear to be.

Introducing the Prophecy of Our Great God (1:1)

SUPPORTING IDEA: God's prophet testifies about the Lord's greatness to warn the wicked to repent and to assure God's people of deliverance.

1:1. Nahum's prophecy is designated an oracle in the NIV (also NASB, NRSV) and a “burden” (heavy message) in the KJV and NKJV. “Oracle” or “burden” may stand at the head of individual prophecies (Isa. 13:1; 14:28; 15:1; 17:1; Ezek. 12:10; Zech. 9:1; 12:1) or whole books, as in the case of Nahum (Hab. 1:1; Mal. 1:1...

Table of contents

• Frontcover
• Halftitle
• Fulltitle
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Editorial Preface
• Old Testament Commentary Contributors
• New Testament Commentary Contributors
• Old Testament Commentary
• Nahum 1
• Nahum 2–3
• Habakkuk 1–2
• Habakkuk 3
• Zephaniah 1–3
• Haggai 1–2
• Zechariah 1–2
• Zechariah 3
• Zechariah 4
• Zechariah 5–6
• Zechariah 7–8
• Zechariah 9–10
• Zechariah 11
• Zechariah 12–14
• Malachi 1
• Malachi 2:1–16
• Malachi 2:17–4:6
• Glossary
• Bibliography