Abandoning God’s mercy leads to disaster.
God’s wrath fell on Nineveh around 612 B.C. when a coalition of Babylonians, Scythians, and Medes breached the city’s seemingly impenetrable defenses after sudden floods eroded the walls (Nah. 2:6–8). The invaders quickly turned Nineveh—capital of Assyria and second in size only to Babylon among the cities of the region—into a mass of smoking rubble.
This event came nearly 150 years after the Lord sent Jonah to warn the Ninevites of their impending judgment (c. 759 B.C.; Jon. 3). It took a deadly storm and a journey inside the belly of a fish to persuade the reluctant prophet to preach to his enemies (1:11—2:10). But Nineveh’s residents responded to the prophet’s dire warnings with eager repentance, turning from their wickedness and idolatry with sackcloth and fasting. They cried out to God for mercy, and the Lord stayed His hand.
But this spiritual awakening was short-lived. Nineveh resumed its cruelties in war as its armies marched across the Middle East, demolishing the northern kingdom of Israel (722 B.C.; 2 Kin. 17:6) and relenting from its attack on Jerusalem only through God’s miraculous intervention (701 B.C.; 2 Kin. 19:35, 36).
The time for this unrepentant nation had run out. Possibly speaking from southern Judah, Nahum predicted the city’s downfall. To illustrate what Nineveh’s demise would be like, Nahum pointed to No Amon (Thebes) in Egypt (Nah. 3:8–10), a well-defended city destroyed by the Assyrians themselves.
Countless biblical passages teach us the advantages of accepting God’s grace. The Book of Nahum illustrates the dangers of refusing it. Choosing to live for God is the wisest decision we can ever make, but there is nothing more reckless than spurning God’s mercy.
Nahum’s prophecy was given sometime between 663 and 612 B.C. The prophet’s world was essentially the same as that of his predecessor Jonah (see the map below and the map at the introduction to Jonah).
Key Verses in Nahum
