The Fall of Nineveh

The Fall of Nineveh

Book of Nahum Chapter 1

We have been seeing that the armies of Sennacherib, the King of Assyria had become the dominate power in the known world now until God clipped their wings.

We should understand that Nineveh was the capitol of Assyria now and God had also prophesied of the downfall of Nineveh.

This is another thing that the people of Judah should have understood.

While Isaiah was speaking to King Hezekiah of the victory to those who trusted in the Lord.

The prophet Nahum was speaking of the destruction of Nineveh.

We must also remember the Prophet Jonah had preached in Nineveh and the whole city had turn to the Lord but by this time they had reverted to their old ways and were led there by their own government.

Far too often, when people talk about God, they ignore His "justice" and His "judgment" and speak only of His love.

This is a dangerous thing to do because, God is not only a "loving" God, God is also a "just" God!

The truth is, it is God's love for all believers and those who trust in Him and His Word, that will cause the "Judgment" of God to fall on those who do not believe in His existence and who reject the Word of God.

And they seem to forget that God loves His Holy name and everything His name stands for, which is love, joy, peace, righteousness, and holiness.

God will therefore execute vengeance on all those who reject, ignore, neglect and curse His Holy Name!

As we go through this lesson, we can be sure that in "typology", Nineveh is a type of all those who rebel against Jehovah, our God.

Let's begin:

*****Nah 1:1 The burden of Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.

We know that God spoke to His prophets in many ways, to Nahum, God used visions.

That word burden in this passage means, these Scriptures are a message of doom to Nineveh and as I said this message is also intended for all those who rebel against the Lord.

Now, Nineveh was the capitol city of Assyria and remember Assyria is oppressing Judah as Nahum receives these visions from the Lord.

So, Nahum is saying, this Book of Nahum is a Book of Visions given to him by the Lord.

We already know, the words of God's prophets were as God speaking Himself!

An Elkoshite was anyone who came from Elkosh and not much is known of this place or it's true location.

So, let's witness the visions God gave to Nahum.

*****Nah 1:2 God is jealous, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies.

It is a fact that our God is a jealous God!

In our relationships with the opposite sex, we find that "jealousy" is one is one of the strongest passions of our nature!

When we see, these things written of the Lord, this word is used as an illustration, rather than expressing the emotions His divine mind.

The Lord presents Himself as the Husband of the Church and the Church as the "Bride of Christ".

We can see, it is the Lord's desire to maintain the purity of the relationship between Himself and His Church.

The emotions of "Love" can make us all selfish in keeping that one we love, for ourselves.

The "jealousy" of the Lord is in fact a Godly jealousy.

The "jealousy" of God is awakened by the long-continued injuries inflicted of the people of God!

The fact is, God is love but God is also just and those that God has already justified are His as His children and God will avenge any harm to His children!

There can be no "true love" without "justice" and God is always ready to defend His honor and His family!

We can be sure God is working behind the scenes to stop those causing harms to His people but for the most part God may withhold His hand of vengeance for a time, as He does now, until He returns to settle all things. He reserves His wrath for His enemies! Which means He is watching and waiting until He has had enough of this abuse of His children and no one else will repent of their sin.

We all know, to withhold anger will only it to grow and grow until it must be released.

We should clearly understand that the destruction of Assyria was God's doing and Assyria no longer exist as a nation.

Nineveh was established by Nimrod and then became the capitol of Assyria in the time of Sennacherib and Assyria ruled the Near East for more than 65 years until about 612 BC when until Babylon destroyed it and later the Medes and the Persians.

The Assyrians were a cruel, and oppressing and a murderous people, whose leaders were greedy and ambitious to expand their kingdom.

Countless multitudes of other evil people were slaughtered and mutilated by the Assyrians and any survivors were made slaves.

In our lesson, we will see that God had reached a point where He could no longer tolerate this evil nation, as He did the Canaanite and we should see this as an example of the return of Christ when God has had enough of this evil world.

The people of Nineveh were far beyond repentance and returning to the Lord and the Lord always know these things!

We should also see that the prophet Nahum had the message of God's last warning to these people and their last chance to repent.

Eze 18:21 But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die.

This is a great burden to the Lord God because He has no pleasure in having to do these things,

Eze 18:23 Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord GOD: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?

The jealousy of God is not built on envy, God cherishes who He is and protects His possessions as any good husband and father should do.

God demands worship, praise, and service by His people but they must willingly offer these things, not out of fear but out of love and God will not accept any rivals for this affection to Him!

Exo 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

Exo 20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:

Exo 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;

Exo 20:6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

Common sense should tell us all, that God will have to carry out His vengeance and justice to all those who reject Him!

Joh 3:36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.

God must obey all His Written Word or we would not be able to trust any of His Word and He has no problem in doing this!

Eph 5:3 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;

Eph 5:4 Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.

Eph 5:5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

Eph 5:6 Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.

God shows great patience now but that patience will come to an end one day soon and God's wrath will be seen!

*****Nah 1:3 The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.

It is a fact that God's patience is the only reason evil people and evil nations can continue in their evil ways and why is God like this?

2Pe_3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Longsuffering is the same as patience!

God delays His judgment but the truth is God will never (not at all) acquit the wicked!

Notice how God's lips move quickly when He promises but move more slowly when He is warning.

When God warns, He is very slow to sentence, allowing every possible moment for repentance.

We all know the sentence against every sinner, is death.

Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

God is slow to carry out this sentence even though sin is an abominable thing to God. God hates sin!

God is right to do anything He pleases at any time He so desires!

Remember when all those that have refused to repent and return to the Lord, stand at the White Throne of Judgment, they will be without an excuse and they can in no way blame the Lord for their demise!

The Lord has great power and this includes great power over Himself to carry out that sentence of death. It takes much power to restrain the Almighty God and only He has that power within Himself.

None of us should forget, that God has never, even one time, pardoned an unrepented sin!

The greatest exercise of God's patience is found in the death of Jesus Christ on the cross!

Notice God will warn before He strikes and He warns so that maybe He will not have to strike!

Now God does not travel around using these powerful storms as a vehicle of travel. Nor are these storms created by His presence.

BUT the earth is God's footstool to do with as He pleases. We are all in fact, God's creation!

We have a great example of these things in the time of Noah.

1Pe 3:20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.

Are the clouds the dust of God's feet?

We know that the earth is God's footstool and the Earth is made of dust, the same dust the we are made of. Scientific discovery has confirmed that the clouds owe their glory and their beauty and even their existence to the presence of dust particles in the atmosphere. The liquid vapor condenses on the particles and then become visible. So yes, the clouds are certainly the dust of God's feet!

What did Jesus Christ say?

Mat 26:64 Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.

And again, in the Book of Revelation

Rev 1:7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

Rev 1:8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

And of course, that is not all as Nahum describes the return of Christ.

*****Nah 1:4 He rebuketh the sea, and maketh it dry, and drieth up all the rivers: Bashan languisheth, and Carmel, and the flower of Lebanon languisheth.

We should clearly understand, God's power is absolute, limitless and inexhaustible and works everywhere within His created world!

No one and nothing else, will be able to stop the wrath of God, when He decides it is time!

We know of God's works in the air and now we see God's works in the sea. We can see that God says look what He has already done to the Red Sea and the River Jordan for examples.

Amo 5:8 Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD is his name:

In the time of Nahum, Bashan, Carmel, and Lebanon were the most fruitful places in all of Palestine but their growth depended entirely on the results of God's power over the rain.

We must understand, nature is alive but not by any power of its own. All the forces of nature are by the personal energies of the Lord!

And that's not all:

*****Nah 1:5 The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein.

God is not the cause when that tornado destroys your home.

God is not the cause when that earthquake destroys a city.

God is not the cause when those bad things happen in nature.

BUT, we should be aware that God has absolute control over nature and nature will be used when God brings His wrath on the disobedient of this world. To be honest, nature has no choice in this matter, "the earth will melt in the presence of God" because of His Glory.

2Pe 3:7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

2Pe 3:8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

2Pe 3:11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,

2Pe 3:12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?

2Pe 3:13 Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

So, in truth, who on this earth has the power to stop the wrath of God?

*****Nah 1:6 Who can stand before his indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? his fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him.

Those that reject God and reject the Word of God live by one option, they reject the existence of God, so they are not concerned about His return.

But those who know there is a God because the works of creation prove it, are truly foolish if they do not repent and return to the Lord.

The Word of God is the truth and God's warnings are real!

God's fury will be poured out like fire! We already have the example of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, or like the molten lava from a volcano.

Jer 7:20 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, mine anger and my fury shall be poured out upon this place, upon man, and upon beast, and upon the trees of the field, and upon the fruit of the ground; and it shall burn, and shall not be quenched.

And notice, those rocks and those mountains are thrown down by God Himself or we should say in His presence.

Assyria resisted the truth of God with a 200,000-man army and God dispatched one Angel who could have destroyed them all, but then there would have been no witnesses to tell others of the Mighty God of Israel, Jehovah God so, only 185,000 were destroyed and 15,000 witnesses to tell the truth of the Holy One of Israel!

When the Lord is our protection, we are safe and God knows all those that belong to Him and who have answered His call!

*****Nah 1:7 The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.

Repeatedly we see that the wrath of God will not fall upon those that have repented and returned to the Lord.

2Ti 2:19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

Rom 5:9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

1Th 1:10 And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.

1Th 5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,

1Th 5:10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.

1Th 5:11 Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.

There are many reasons to repent and return to the Lord better than this one, because there are too many benefits of being a child of God to mention here, but this one must be counted also.

We can draw much comfort knowing that Christians will not go through the seven years of tribulation on this earth but God will remove His Church before this period begins!

It is certain that God will offer more help to the poor and oppressed than He does the rich but rich or poor. God will only offer His shelter and protection to those that trust in His name and in His Word!

It is that same presence of God that causes utter destruction that protects those that love Him. Just as in the Jews escape from Egypt, "we are covered by the blood and not just any blood but the blood of the Lamb of God.

Exo 12:7 And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it.

Exo 12:13 And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.

Act 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

True believers walk with the Lord and just like Enoch, before the wrath of God we, in a sense, will all just walk on up to Heaven in His Glory, when God calls out His church.

1Jn 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

1Jn 3:3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.

Just after the time when God removes His Church, this world will see the wrath of God!

*****Nah 1:8 But with an overrunning flood he will make an utter end of the place thereof, and darkness shall pursue his enemies.

Nah 1:9 What do ye imagine against the LORD? he will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time.

Nah 1:10 For while they be folden together as thorns, and while they are drunken as drunkards, they shall be devoured as stubble fully dry.

As God affords His protection to the max for those who love Him, those that remain will see God's wrath to the max!

Eze 7:8 Now will I shortly pour out my fury upon thee, and accomplish mine anger upon thee: and I will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense thee for all thine abominations.

Eze 7:9 And mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: I will recompense thee according to thy ways and thine abominations that are in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I am the LORD that smiteth.

Eze 7:10 Behold the day, behold, it is come: the morning is gone forth; the rod hath blossomed, pride hath budded.

We know that God put an end to Nineveh and God will do the same to this world we live in!

God's goodness demands that He carry out a perfect "Judgment" upon those who have rejected Him!

God's people must be vindicated or God would not be the God that He claims to be!

There are great plots to destroy the message of God and the messengers of God throughout this world and even in America.

BUT, any attack of God's people is a direct attack on God Himself!

**God will put an end to all plots against Him, when the Lord Jesus returns to establish God's Kingdom!

Many Christians suffer persecution and are refused many things, while if they refuse an unbeliever, they are punished.

**God will put an end to all those who cause trouble for God's people when the Lord Jesus returns, He will rule with a rod of iron!

God will put an end to the pain God's people suffer in this world!

We may not have the thorns such as grow in Palestine but when you are walking through the brush and a thorn bush grabs your clothing it takes a few moments to get yourself free and move on.

God said His enemies will be as drunkards caught up in a thorn bush, unable to free themselves. They and the thorns are like worthless brush fit only for burning.

Mal 4:1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

Yes, it's true that great thorn hedges were planted in such a way to protect the sheep from predators and the King of Assyria felt like his great city walls offered that same protection from his enemies and Nineveh was considered impenetrable. So, the soldiers would have drunken feasts when attacks came rather than prepare for defense, since no army have ever entered Nineveh.

Babylon seized upon this foolishness and after Nineveh became Babylon, Cyrus and the Medes proved this to be the downfall of Babylon which was Nineveh. In typology, this is what the Lord is describing for those who reject His warnings and think they can protect themselves from the wrath of God!

Mat 24:38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,

Mat 24:39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

In truth God cannot build His Kingdom until all the brush has been removed!

There are always those who plot against the Lord!

*****Nah 1:11 There is one come out of thee, that imagineth evil against the LORD, a wicked counsellor.

It is probable that Nahum was referring to Sennacherib that imagined such evil against the Lord but the fact remains that whoever is considered by the prophet, is a picture of Satan.

In the end, those who have followed Satan will find Him to be a worthless counselor!

We can see an example here of how foolish it will be for anyone to enter a conflict with the Lord!

Rom_1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

The Lord put a stop to Sennacherib.

The Lord has put a stop to many wicked rulers.

The Lord will put a stop to Satan! Satan is not God's equal, he is only a tool in the hands of God!

*****Nah 1:12 Thus saith the LORD; Though they be quiet, and likewise many, yet thus shall they be cut down, when he shall pass through. Though I have afflicted thee, I will afflict thee no more.

Corrupt rulers most often bring ruin to their own nations.

In Hebrew, that word "quiet" means complete. No doubt the military of Assyria was well trained and battle hardened and they were complete in their ability for warfare. They were organized. They were disciplined. They had the proper equipment. That had many, they were an overwhelming force for any nation to overcome.

The Lord says even though this military was all these things, they would be cut down, they would be destroyed.

The Lord warns all those who rebel against Him, including all so-called powerful nations, they will cut down and destroyed when the Lord returns.

When that "one" Angel passed through the Assyrian army 185,000 were cut down.

Though the Lord had allowed these Jews to be afflicted by these Assyrians, He would not allow it to continue anymore!

*****Nah 1:13 For now will I break his yoke from off thee, and will burst thy bonds in sunder.

We should know that the affliction on God's people was due to God's discipline for rebellion!

God used this wicked king and his nation Assyria, to be the agent of this discipline.

We see this repeatedly in the Old Testament, and we can be sure God does the same today, not only to Israel but to other nations as well! "Wake up America"

Judah had paid tribute to Assyria from the time of King Ahab and sent presents to the king since the time of Kind Ahaz and were in bondage by the Assyrian army, the most powerful military of that day.

God is saying that He would remove this yoke of Assyria from Israel forever and we know that Assyria no longer exist as a nation!

In "typology" this should remind us that the Lord Jesus Christ has set each believer free from the bondage of Satan forever and after God is through using Satan for His agent of discipline, Satan will be put away, so we can consider that he will no longer exist. "This time gets closer with every passing day"!

Those Ninevite, by seeking to destroy Israel, would only cause their own destruction.

Again in "typology" we can see this happening in our world today, as the wicked followers of Satan try to destroy Christianity and Israel, they are only hastening their own destruction!

We must understand that the discipline of the Lord is used to cause rebellion to cease from His people. When we seek the Lord, we are very aware that we must put away all sin in our lives or the Lord will not hear our prayer.

Psa 66:18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

God will use whatever agent it takes to correct us and in most cases, it will be sinful people, but it can also be disease, or finances or sadly He may take away someone we love.

We can see that it is our own sin that can destroy our families and others we love!

God only disciplines us because He loves us!

Pro 3:11 My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction:

Pro 3:12 For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.

In our discipline, God is fulfilling a promise He has made to us.

The Lord has promised to deliver us from the things that bring us into bondage in this life!

These include alcohol, drugs, foul language, even gluttony, and we must include all manner of sexual sin. Not only fornication and adultery, but also homosexuality. Sin is sin and God must deal with all sin that becomes a yoke of bondage in our life!

Through Jesus Christ the power of sin can be conquered along with the power of death!

Rom 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

Rom 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

"wake up world"

What did God promise Israel?

*****Nah 1:14 And the LORD hath given a commandment concerning thee, that no more of thy name be sown: out of the house of thy gods will I cut off the graven image and the molten image: I will make thy grave; for thou art vile.

Nah 1:15 Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts, perform thy vows: for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off.

God first addresses the Assyrians:

1) The Assyrian people would become extinct and we know that this has happened.

In "typology" we must understand that one day God will remove all unbelievers from this world.

2) In the middle of his house of worship, even among all the false gods of Sennacherib, God would take his life.

We know that two of the sons of Sennacherib murdered him as he worshipped in the place of his idols.

We see that sin destroys families!

3) We see that Sennacherib was certainly a type of the Antichrist because God said he was vile.

God said this man was useless, "he was weighed in the balances and found wanting".

Dan 5:27 TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.

The truth is, all those who have rejected the Lord Jesus Christ will face the "judgment" of God and because they are "vile" their names will be removed from ever existing, their names will not appear in the Lamb's Book of life!

God guarantees the destruction of all evil in this world and none will be allowed in the New World to come!

2Pe 2:9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:

God then turns His attention to Judah.

The purpose of God's vengeance is to bring freedom and freedom of worship to His children!

God gives us the picture of a messenger racing over the hills to bring the good news that the enemy has been destroyed.

Rom 10:15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

It is time for Judah to get back to the worship of their Savior. To perform the vows, they had made to the Lord. They could enjoy the peace that the Lord had provided. They had been delivered once again!

God promises each of us peace and He will deliver!

That peace of God can come only through Jesus Christ!

When we trust the Lord Jesus Christ as our Deliverer and our Savior we are to become faithful and consistent worshippers!

When we make a vow to the Lord, God expects us to keep it!

After we all we should all have the same understanding and the same goal!

Psa 27:1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

Psa 27:2 When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.

Psa 27:3 Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident.

Psa 27:4 One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.

Questions?

Let's Pray!