CRITICAL NOTES.]
Nahum 1:9.] The city must be destroyed and its inhabitants perish. Imagine] By means of defence to ward off danger. Second] time from Assyria (cf. Isaiah 51:17-23; 2 Samuel 20:10).
Nahum 1:10. Thorns] twisted together, to appear inseparable, and present a bristling front (2 Samuel 23:6-7). Drunken] Assyrian kings proverbial for intemperance and revelry.
Nahum 1:11. One] Sennacherib. Thee] From Nineveh itself arises its own ruin. Counsellor] Lit. a counsellor of Belial, worthless and bad; designs to overthrow the kingdom of God (Isaiah 36:14-20).
HOMILETICS
RESISTANCE TO GOD POWERLESS.—Nahum 1:9-11
Nahum now turns to the invaders, boldly challenges them for their opposition to Jehovah, again describes their ruin, and for the encouragement of the Jews, adds that they should not be annoyed any more.
I. Resistance to God in its nature. “What do ye imagine against the Lord?”
1. Resistance in thought. “Imagine.” They thought that they had to do with a weak people, and would gain an easy victory. But they had to encounter God. It is vain presumption to plot against him. “There is no wisdom, nor understanding, nor counsel against the Lord.”
2. Resistance in word. Many imagined evil, but one leader was specially prominent in counsel. Sennacherib in the mouth of Rabshakeh advised worthless and wicked plans (cf. Isaiah 36:14-20). Crafty counsellors are most mischievous, and often bring ruin upon themselves and their country.
3. Resistance in act. Plots ripen into enterprises. Wicked thoughts lead to denial of God’s power and providence; to contempt of God’s people, and opposition to God’s purpose. He sent “to reproach the loving God” (2 Kings 19:16), and blasphemed “against the Holy One of Israel” (2 Kings 19:22).
II. Resistance in its method. The metaphors of Nahum 1:10 may be taken in many senses. Briars and thorns denote hostile armies (Isaiah 10:17; Isaiah 27:4).
1. Resistance combined. “Closely interwoven as thorns.” They strengthen one another, and are inveterate towards God. Like the military phalanxes of antiquity, they were armed and arranged to present a bold front. Thorns, “because they cannot be taken with hands” (2 Samuel 23:6).
2. Resistance audacious. Flushed with success, the Assyrians regarded themselves as invincible, and gave themselves to wine and revelry. Benhadad was smitten while drinking in his pavilions (1 Kings 20:16); Belshazzar was feasting when Babylon was taken (Daniel 5:1-30). Yet in this condition men have the audacity to resist God. Intoxicated with pride they are prepared for their fall.
III. Resistance in its end. Men’s devices are idle when God works.
1. The people were prepared for ruin. “They shall be devoured as stubble fully dry.” Dry stubble easily takes fire, and thorns folded together are ready for the flames. Wicked men are often compared to stubble, and God’s judgments to devouring fire. Those who defy God’s will only fit themselves for the fire that is never quenched.
2. Ruin was certain. “He makes an utter end.” The destruction is absolutely fixed and sure. No second attempt will be made. One stroke of the Angel destroyed the Assyrian armies. One blast from heaven levelled Nineveh in the dust. Now Nineveh—great Nineveh—the pride of its inhabitants, the terror of its neighbours, and the envy of the world, has fallen. Its celebrity ceased, and its site for ages remained unknown—
“Behold the pride of pomp,
The throne of nations fallen, obscured in dust,
Even yet majestical—the silent soene
Elates the soul” [Dyer].
ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 1
Nahum 1:8-12. When God shakes men as dust from under the summer thrashing-floor, the right hand of a man’s strength is as powerless as the left hand of a man’s weakness, and his wisdom is as folly. What avails the wisdom of the apple to make it cling to the bough when it is ripe in autumn time? or the wisdom of the leaf to hold it fast to the stem when the tempest calls? or the wisdom of the tree to make it stand secure when a rock from the cliff comes crashing down through its puny branches? When God sends storms upon men, they must imitate the humble grass, which saves itself by lying down. Therefore it is said, “Humble yourselves before the mighty hand of God, that in due season he may raise you up” [H. W. Beecher].
Nahum 1:14. Name. Thou mayest choose whether thou wilt be remembered to thy praise or to thy shame [Bishop Pilkington].
“He left a name, at which the world grew pale,
To point a moral, or adorn a tale.” [Samuel Johnson.]