Burunche’s Blog

“Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by iniquity! Is it not indeed from the LORD of Hosts that the labor of the people only feeds the fire, and the nations weary themselves in vain? For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors, pouring it from the wineskin until they are drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness! You will be filled with shame instead of glory. You too must drink and expose your uncircumcision! The cup in the LORD’s right hand will come around to you, and utter disgrace will cover your glory. For your violence against Lebanon will overwhelm you, and the destruction of animals will terrify you, because of your bloodshed against men and your violence against the land, the city, and all their dwellers.

What use is an idol, that a craftsman should carve it—or an image, a teacher of lies? For its maker trusts in his own creation; he makes idols that cannot speak. Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Awake!’ or to silent stone, ‘Arise!’ Can it give guidance? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, yet there is no breath in it at all. But the LORD is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him.”

Those who refuse to serve the One True Living God are bound for disaster. “Is it not indeed from the LORD of Hosts that the labor of the people only feeds the fire, and the nations weary themselves in vain? “ Psalm 2:1-5 says, “Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together, against the LORD and against His Anointed One: “Let us break Their chains and cast away Their cords.” The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord taunts them. Then He rebukes them in His anger, and terrifies them in His fury…”

When people think they are deceiving or mocking God, they are only fooling themselves. How do you deny the Creator of the universe? All creation bears witness to His glory. “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.”

“Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors, pouring it from the wineskin until they are drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness! You will be filled with shame instead of glory.” In parts of the ancient Middle East, it was customary for kings to hold drinking parties at which people were compelled to drink themselves into oblivion. In the story of Esther, one of the notable things about King Ahasuerus’ banquet was that drinking was NOT compulsory, a fact so surprising that the writer took note of it. (Esther 1:8)

“For your violence against Lebanon will overwhelm you, and the destruction of animals will terrify you, because of your bloodshed against men and your violence against the land, the city, and all their dwellers.”  Again, God is addressing the Babylonians, here referred to as the Chaldeans. Evidently, the Babylonians cut a wide swath through Lebanon, and God is now promising retribution for this wholesale slaughter.

“What use is an idol, that a craftsman should carve it—or an image, a teacher of lies? For its maker trusts in his own creation; he makes idols that cannot speak. Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Awake!’ or to silent stone, ‘Arise!’ Can it give guidance? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, yet there is no breath in it at all. But the LORD is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him.”

Finally, God is mocking Satan and his demons, who try to convince the unwary that they are God when they are not. Even if men create idols that purport to represent Bel or any other pagan deity, those idosl are worthless.

APPLICATION: Throughout the world, there are many idols, some of them enormous and some covered with gold, precious jewels, etc. Is God impressed with these things? Are you kidding? There is a story told by a pioneer missionary to northeastern Ghana. The people of a village wanted to repent, but there was one idol that they could not destroy, no matter how hard they tried. One day in dry season, the people were gathered together with the missionary outside a huge round room near the idol. The missionary was preaching against the idol. Suddenly in the west, they saw black storm clouds gathering with bolts of lightning flashing out of the clouds. In that part of the world, storms move in from the northeast, nor from the west, and this was not the time of year for a storm anyway. All the people rushed into the huge round room to take shelter. As the storm broke overhead, lightning struck the center pole of the roof, traveled down the center pole and out the door without hurting anyone. The lightning streaked straight to the idol, striking it and vaporizing it. At one blow, God graphically demonstrated His power over the demon controlling that idol, causing everyone in the village to repent and follow Jesus Christ!

If God can exert such power over an idol in an obscure African village, what might He do to the idols in our lives? “But I don’t worship idols!” you cry indignantly. Oh? What is most important to you? What do you talk about the most whenever you have time? Is it your favorite athletic team? Your family? Your hobbies? Your work? The political party you favor? Jesus told his disciples that “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Whatever absorbs your time, your energy, and your enthusiasm can readily become an idol.

Why does God hate idols? Idols take a place that rightfully belongs to God alone. Here is God’s final statement on the matter: “But the LORD is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him.”

Let us examine our hearts to make sure that nothing else is occupying the place God should have. May God be in our hearts, just as He is in His holy temple!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. Show us those things that we have unwittingly made into idols and help us to clear them out, so that You have first place in our lives and hearts. In the matchless Name of King Jesus. Amen.

The LORD Answers Again

“I will stand at my guard post and station myself on the ramparts. I will watch to see what He will say to me, and how I should answer when corrected. Then the LORD answered me: “Write down this vision and clearly inscribe it on tablets, so that a herald may run with it. For the vision awaits an appointed time; it testifies of the end, and will not lie. Though it lingers, wait for it, since it will surely come and not delay.

Look at the proud one; his soul is not upright — but the righteous will live by faith — and wealth indeed betrays him; an arrogant man is never at rest. He enlarges his appetite like Sheol, and like Death, he is never satisfied. He gathers all the nations to himself and collects all the peoples as his own.

Woe to the Chaldeans Will not all of these take up a taunt against him, speaking with mockery and derision: ‘Woe to him who amasses what is not his and makes himself rich with many loans! How long will this go on?’ Will not your creditors suddenly arise and those who disturb you awaken? Then you will become their prey.

Because you have plundered many nations, the remnant of the people will plunder you because of your bloodshed against man and your violence against the land, the city, and all their dwellers. Woe to him who builds his house by unjust gain, to place his nest on high and escape the hand of disaster! You have plotted shame for your house by cutting off many peoples and forfeiting your life. For the stones will cry out from the wall, and the rafters will echo it from the woodwork.”

Habakkuk is becoming impatient! Why isn’t God taking care of these horrible people? Has Habakkuk made a mistake; has he not heard God correctly? “Then the LORD answered me: “Write down this vision and clearly inscribe it on tablets, so that a herald may run with it. For the vision awaits an appointed time; it testifies of the end, and will not lie. Though it lingers, wait for it, since it will surely come and not delay.” No, Habakkuk, you have heard God correctly. But God’s timing and yours are different. Exercise patience, but record this vision so that it may be distributed widely at the appropriate time. Don’t give up! God will still fulfill His promises.

Now God begins calling out wrong-doers. “Look at the proud one; his soul is not upright — but the righteous will live by faith — and wealth indeed betrays him; an arrogant man is never at rest.” “Woe to him who amasses what is not his and makes himself rich with many loans! How long will this go on?’ Will not your creditors suddenly arise and those who disturb you awaken? Then you will become their prey.”  

When God gave Moses the Law for the Israelites, usury among Israelites was forbidden. Israelites were allowed to charge non-Israelites interest on loans, but not their fellow Israelites. And even if someone issuing a loan took a man’s cloak as surety, the cloak had to be returned to the owner at nightfall so the man could wrap up in it to go to sleep. Israelites were to be compassionate to foreigners, remembering that they had been slaves in Egypt and fugitives for forty years.

Leviticus 19:35-36: “You must not use dishonest measures of length, weight, or volume. You shall maintain honest scales and weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.”

Deuteronomy 24:6, 10-15:”Do not take a pair of millstones or even an upper millstone as security for a debt, because that would be taking one’s livelihood as security.”…v. 10 – 15 “When you lend anything to your neighbor, do not enter his house to collect security. You are to stand outside while the man to whom you are lending brings the security out to you. If he is a poor man, you must not go to sleep with the security in your possession; be sure to return it to him by sunset, so that he may sleep in his own cloak and bless you, and this will be credited to you as righteousness before the LORD your God.”

Do not oppress a hired hand who is poor and needy, whether he is a brother or a foreigner residing in one of your towns. You are to pay his wages each day before sunset, because he is poor and depends on them. Otherwise he may cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin.”

“Because you have plundered many nations, the remnant of the people will plunder you because of your bloodshed against man and your violence against the land, the city, and all their dwellers. Woe to him who builds his house by unjust gain, to place his nest on high and escape the hand of disaster! You have plotted shame for your house by cutting off many peoples and forfeiting your life. For the stones will cry out from the wall, and the rafters will echo it from the woodwork.” “Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by iniquity!” “Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors, pouring it from the wineskin until they are drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness!

One of the principles of God’s kingdom is that the measure you give out is the measure you will receive. Americans say, “What goes around comes around.” The Chaldeans have plundered their way across the Middle East; now the nations that are left will turn and plunder the Chaldeans. “For the stones will cry out from the wall, and the rafters will echo it from the woodwork.”  Although we might think that inanimate objects have no feelings, that is not necessarily true. God’s creation responds in ways we might not anticipate. Evil acts have repercussions.

APPLICATION: I am splitting the chapter into two parts because there is so much to consider. “For the vision awaits an appointed time; it testifies of the end, and will not lie. Though it lingers, wait for it, since it will surely come and not delay.”  Through the years, countless believers have received comfort and encouragement from these verses. Most of us share Habakkuk’s impatience, wishing God would act rapidly rather than forcing us to wait. God has used these verses to encourage us to wait for HIS timing rather than demanding He follow ours.

“Look at the proud one; his soul is not upright — but the righteous will live by faith — and wealth indeed betrays him; an arrogant man is never at rest.”  “The righteous (just) will live by faith” is another major encouragement. As I was writing this study this morning, two different television preachers from different countries used this verse as the foundation for their messages. In a world dominated by the rich, famous, noteworthy, and corrupt, we need reminding that God sees things much differently than we do.

‘Woe to him who amasses what is not his and makes himself rich with many loans! How long will this go on?’ Will not your creditors suddenly arise and those who disturb you awaken? Then you will become their prey.” God does not like cheaters, thieves, and manipulators. Hudson Taylor, the founder of the China Inland Mission, was fond of saying that “God’s work, done God’s way, will never lack God’s supply. We should view any resources we have as belonging to God; this means we should seek God’s will in allocating those resources. If we are careful to follow God’s leading, God will continue to provide.

For nearly thirty-six years, my husband and I have worked in missions. During those years, we have repeatedly seen God’s hand of provision just when we needed it. The key to receiving is giving – as long as we give out to others as God guides us, God will continue to pour resources into our hands. But we must make sure that nothing sticks to our fingers. John Wesley was fond of saying, “Earn all you can, save all you can, give all you can.” Those tenets continue to challenge us today. May we continue to look to God for His guidance as we strive to share His resources.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to trust in Your timing and Your provision, even when the vision seems to take too long for its fulfillment. Thank You for helping us to be patient. In the mighty and precious name of King Jesus. Amen.  

Habakkuk’s First Complaint (Psalm 13:1-6)

“This is the burden that Habakkuk the prophet received in a vision: How long, O LORD, must I call for help but You do not hear, or cry out to You, “Violence!” but You do not save? Why do You make me see iniquity? Why do You tolerate wrongdoing? Destruction and violence are before me. Strife is ongoing, and conflict abounds. Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth. For the wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted.”

The LORD’s Answer

“Look at the nations and observe—be utterly astounded! For I am doing a work in your days that you would never believe even if someone told you. For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans(Babylonians) — that ruthless and impetuous nation which marches through the breadth of the earth to seize dwellings not their own. They are dreaded and feared; from themselves they derive justice and sovereignty. Their horses are swifter than leopards, fiercer than wolves of the night. Their horsemen charge ahead, and their cavalry comes from afar. They fly like a vulture, swooping down to devour. All of them come bent on violence; their hordes advance like the east wind; they gather prisoners like sand. They scoff at kings and make rulers an object of scorn. They laugh at every fortress and build up siege ramps to seize it. Then they sweep by like the wind and pass on through. They are guilty; their own strength is their god.

Habakkuk’s Second Complaint (Psalm 11:1-7)

Are You not from everlasting, O LORD, my God, my Holy One? We will not die. O LORD, You have appointed them to execute judgment; O Rock, You have established them for correction. Your eyes are too pure to look upon evil, and You cannot tolerate wrongdoing. So why do You tolerate the faithless?

Why are You silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves? You have made men like the fish of the sea, like creeping things that have no ruler. The foe pulls all of them up with a hook; he catches them in his dragnet, and gathers them in his fishing net; so he rejoices gladly. Therefore he sacrifices to his dragnet and burns incense to his fishing net, for by these things his portion is sumptuous and his food is rich. Will he, therefore, empty his net and continue to slay nations without mercy?”

Talk about presumption! Habakkuk is a righteous man living in an unrighteous society. The country of Israel has already been swallowed up by the Assyrians and now the Babylonians are threatening to annihilate Judah. Things are deteriorating in Judah, and Habakkuk must acknowledge that fact. “Why do You make me see iniquity? Why do You tolerate wrongdoing? Destruction and violence are before me. Strife is ongoing, and conflict abounds. Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth. For the wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted.”

But while Habakkuk sees the problems in his own society, he is aghast at the behavior of the approaching conquerors. And God is not giving Habakkuk any comfort. ““Look at the nations and observe—be utterly astounded! For I am doing a work in your days that you would never believe even if someone told you. For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans(Babylonians) — that ruthless and impetuous nation which marches through the breadth of the earth to seize dwellings not their own. They are dreaded and feared; from themselves they derive justice and sovereignty. Their horses are swifter than leopards, fiercer than wolves of the night. Their horsemen charge ahead, and their cavalry comes from afar. They fly like a vulture, swooping down to devour. All of them come bent on violence; their hordes advance like the east wind; they gather prisoners like sand. They scoff at kings and make rulers an object of scorn. They laugh at every fortress and build up siege ramps to seize it. Then they sweep by like the wind and pass on through. They are guilty; their own strength is their god.”

God tells Habakkuk that He is using the Babylonians, even though He knows exactly how ruthlessly they behave. Habakkuk then responds by agreeing that God has appointed the Babylonians to execute judgment, BUT why is God allowing the Babylonians to murder the righteous along with the guilty?  

“Why are You silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves? You have made men like the fish of the sea, like creeping things that have no ruler. The foe pulls all of them up with a hook; he catches them in his dragnet, and gathers them in his fishing net; so he rejoices gladly. Therefore he sacrifices to his dragnet and burns incense to his fishing net, for by these things his portion is sumptuous and his food is rich. Will he, therefore, empty his net and continue to slay nations without mercy?”

Habakkuk is incensed because God is using a horde of vicious idolaters to execute judgement. How long is God going to allow this horrific situation to continue?

APPLICATION: At times, many of us have found ourselves trapped in situations from which we long to be delivered. The deterioration of mainline Protestant denominations has led to many churches withdrawing and forming new groups that hopefully will operate on scriptural grounds. The rise of the North American Lutheran Church, the Reformed Presbyterian Church and the Global Methodist Church are examples. But there are also many people whose congregations have refused to leave their original denominations. Now individuals are facing the agonizing choice of leaving groups with whom they have fellowshipped for years to join new groups who are operating on spiritually sound principles.

Habakkuk is demanding answers from God because he can’t understand why God is allowing the Babylonian juggernaut to maul the nations in its path. Surely, God must have some answers. One principle that gets relatively little attention these days is the sovereignty of God. God is the Ruler of the universe, the Creator and Sustainer. God is almighty, all powerful, all knowing, and all understanding. As human beings, we never know the end from the beginning; we only see things in little bits.

The Nazis attempted to annihilate the entire Jewish race and did everything they could to destroy Jewish culture in the countries they controlled. Six million Jews died, as did untold numbers of Jewish sympathizers. Yet, God use these appalling events to encourage those who remained to return to Israel and to build it up as a new nation. Could God have accomplished this feat in some other fashion? Certainly! But Hitler and the other Nazis exercised their free will to do these terrible deeds. In Habakkuk’s time, God used the Babylonians. Could God have struck all the wicked down with a plague? Of course. But would that have served God’s purposes as well? We cannot tell because none of us knows the human heart as God does.

As we continue through Habakkuk and look at our own struggles, let’s remember that God is still in the business of discernment. God is the only One who knows the end from the beginning, and God is the One who can make all things right, even when marauding armies are wreaking havoc.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to trust where we do not understand. Thank You that You are not threatened or dismayed when we question You. Increase our faith so that we will trust You completely. In the matchless Name of King Jesus. Amen.

(Dedicated to the late Dr. Tom Elkins, Obstetrician/Gynecologist, missionary, believer, and inspiration.) It was Dr. Elkins who first pointed me to some of the most encouraging verses in Habakkuk, verses shared with him by a missionary in Nigeria.)

We are about to study another one of the minor prophets, Habakkuk. Pastor Chuck Swindoll, Insight for Living, says this about Habakkuk:

“We know little of Habakkuk beyond the two mentions of his name in this book of prophecy. Both times, he identified himself as “Habakkuk the prophet” (Habakkuk 1:1; 3:1), a term that seems to indicate Habakkuk was a professional prophet. This could mean that Habakkuk was trained in the Law of Moses in a prophetic school, an institution for educating prophets that cropped up after the days of Samuel (1 Samuel 19:20; 2 Kings 4:38). Habakkuk also could have been a priest involved with the worship of God at the temple. This assumption is based on the book’s final, psalm-like statement: “For the choir director, on my stringed instruments” (Habakkuk 3:19).

Determining the date of the book of Habakkuk is quite a bit easier than dating most books. He spoke often of an imminent Babylonian invasion (Habakkuk 1:6; 2:1; 3:16), an event that occurred on a smaller scale in 605 BC before the total destruction of Judah’s capital city, Jerusalem, in 586 BC. The way Habakkuk described Judah indicates a low time in its history. If the dating is to remain close to the Babylonian invasion, Habakkuk likely prophesied in the first five years of Jehoiakim’s reign (609–598 BC) to a king who led his people into evil.

Habakkuk’s prophecy was directed to a world that, through the eyes of God’s people, must have seemed on the edge of disaster. Even when the northern kingdom had been destroyed in 722 BC, God’s people remained in Judah. However, with another powerful foreign army on the rampage, faithful people like Habakkuk were wondering what God was doing. Hadn’t He given the land to His people? Would He now take it away? Habakkuk’s prayer of faith for the remainder of God’s people in the face of such destruction still stands today as a remarkable witness of true faith and undying hope.

Habakkuk provides us one of the most remarkable sections in all of Scripture, as it contains an extended dialogue between Habakkuk and God (Habakkuk 1–2). The prophet initiated this conversation based on his distress about God’s “inaction” in the world. He wanted to see God do something more, particularly in the area of justice for evildoers. The book of Habakkuk pictures a frustrated prophet, much like Jonah, though Habakkuk channeled his frustration into prayers and eventually praise to God, rather than trying to run from the Lord as Jonah did.

As the prophet Habakkuk stood in Jerusalem and pondered the state of his nation, Judah, he must have been dumbfounded. So much evil thrived, completely in the open, but God remained strangely silent. Where was He? How long would He allow this mess to continue? Not long, according to the Lord (Habakkuk 2:2–3). Another nation, the Babylonians, would come and execute justice on the Lord’s behalf. The wicked in Judah, those who thought they would get away with their evil deeds forever, were soon to be punished.

The book of Habakkuk offers us a picture of a prideful people being humbled, while the righteous live by faith in God (2:4). It reminds us that while God may seem silent and uninvolved in our world, He always has a plan to deal with evil and always works out justice . . . eventually. The example of the prophet Habakkuk encourages believers to wait on the Lord, expecting that He will indeed work out all things for our good (Romans 8:28).”

APPLICATION: Habakkuk is a short book, but it’s full of good stuff. Who among us has not become disgusted with the tides of sin and filth flooding current society? Who among us has not longed for God to step in and take control, instead of allowing people to continue to mess things up? And who among us has not become impatient with God, wondering WHY isn’t He doing something RIGHT NOW?!? If you have ever treasured any of those sentiments, then Habakkuk is the book for you.

The truth is that being a firm believer has never been an easy task. As Jesus warned his disciples, there have always been “wars and rumors of wars.” These days the internet and social media have facilitated the spread of evil on a scale unmatched at any previous time in history. On the dark web, children are sold as sex slaves and weapons dealers carry on facilitating conflicts. BUT…and there is always a “but!” GOD IS STILL ON THE THRONE! GOD IS NOT ASLEEP! AND GOD’S RIGHTEOUSNESS, PEACE, AND JOY IN THE HOLY SPIRIT WILL EVENTUALLY PREVAIL!

The author Joyce Landorf has written a book entitled Balcony People, designating the saints that have gone before us as sitting in the balcony of heaven watching us. It is comforting to know that when we  pray and praise God, we are joining our prayers and praises with all the company of heaven, a vast multitude that only God can count. No matter how difficult your situation, no matter the hardship, you are never alone, for God and the saints are there as well.

1 Corinthians 10:13 tells us, “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide an escape, so that you can stand up under it.”  No matter how privileged or wealthy or gifted a person is, they will still face the same temptations as everyone else. But there will always be a God-ordained way of escape. The ultimate message of Habakkuk is that God still has us on His mind and heart and that He will see us through any difficulty, no matter how miserable and strenuous the trial.

Are you stuck in the middle of a mess? Do you feel there’s no way out? Then God’s messages to Habakkuk are meant specifically for you.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, many of us are stuck in trying situations and long for relief. Bless all who are reading these words to know Your watch care for them and to experience You in a new way. In the matchless Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Judgment on Nineveh

Woe to the city of blood, full of lies, full of plunder, never without prey. The crack of the whip, the rumble of the wheel, galloping horse and bounding chariot! Charging horseman, flashing sword, shining spear; heaps of slain, mounds of corpses, dead bodies without end—they stumble over their dead—because of the many harlotries of the harlot, the seductive mistress of sorcery, who betrays nations by her prostitution and clans by her witchcraft.

“Behold, I am against you,” declares the LORD of Hosts. “I will lift your skirts over your face. I will show your nakedness to the nations and your shame to the kingdoms. I will pelt you with filth and treat you with contempt; I will make a spectacle of you. Then all who see you will recoil from you and say, ‘Nineveh is devastated; who will grieve for her?’

Where can I find comforters for you?” Are you better than Thebes, stationed by the Nile with water around her, whose rampart was the sea, whose wall was the water? Cush and Egypt were her boundless strength; Put and Libya were her allies. Yet she became an exile; she went into captivity.

Her infants were dashed to pieces at the head of every street. They cast lots for her dignitaries, and all her nobles were bound in chains.

You too will become drunk; you will go into hiding and seek refuge from the enemy. All your fortresses are fig trees with the first ripe figs; when shaken, they fall into the mouth of the eater! Look at your troops—they are like your women! The gates of your land are wide open to your enemies; fire consumes their bars.

Draw your water for the siege; strengthen your fortresses. Work the clay and tread the mortar; repair the brick kiln! There the fire will devour you; the sword will cut you down and consume you like a young locust. Make yourself many like the young locust; make yourself many like the swarming locust! You have multiplied your merchants more than the stars of the sky. The young locust strips the land and flies away. Your guards are like the swarming locust, and your scribes like clouds of locusts that settle on the walls on a cold day.

When the sun rises, they fly away, and no one knows where. O king of Assyria, your shepherds slumber; your officers sleep. Your people are scattered on the mountains with no one to gather them. There is no healing for your injury; your wound is severe. All who hear the news of you applaud your downfall, for who has not experienced your constant cruelty?

Want to know WHY God is ready to destroy Nineveh? Just look at the charges: “Woe to the city of blood, full of lies, full of plunder, never without prey. The crack of the whip, the rumble of the wheel, galloping horse and bounding chariot! Charging horseman, flashing sword, shining spear; heaps of slain, mounds of corpses, dead bodies without end—they stumble over their dead—because of the many harlotries of the harlot, the seductive mistress of sorcery, who betrays nations by her prostitution and clans by her witchcraft.”

God is preparing to completely humiliate the Assyrians.“Behold, I am against you,” declares the LORD of Hosts. “I will lift your skirts over your face. I will show your nakedness to the nations and your shame to the kingdoms. I will pelt you with filth and treat you with contempt; I will make a spectacle of you. Then all who see you will recoil from you and say, ‘Nineveh is devastated; who will grieve for her?’

God wants Assyria to know that they are no better and no different than the Egyptians, who have been soundly defeated. Nobody will help Assyria and even those who are guarding the Assyrian boarders will fail. “When the sun rises, they fly away, and no one knows where. O king of Assyria, your shepherds slumber; your officers sleep. Your people are scattered on the mountains with no one to gather them. There is no healing for your injury; your wound is severe. All who hear the news of you applaud your downfall, for who has not experienced your constant cruelty?”

We are currently witnessing Vladimir Putin’s continued unprovoked attacks on the country of Ukraine. In many respects, the Russians have behaved as did the ancient Assyrians. There are also other groups around the world who are persecuting innocent women and children. How much longer will God allow such monstrous acts of calumny to continue? Only God knows.

What can we learn from the Book of Nahum? Remember that Nahum’s predictions came several decades before the final destruction of Nineveh. God gave the Assyrians numerous chances to repent, but when they didn’t, their society fell. May all of us look critically at the countries in which we live, and may we earnestly pray for revival, lest our nations also come to divine destruction.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to pray persistently for the nations in which we live. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.   

“He who scatters (destroys) has come up before your face. Man the fort! Watch the road! Strengthen your flanks! Fortify your power mightily. For the Lord will restore the excellence of Jacob like the excellence of Israel, for the emptiers have emptied them out and ruined their vine branches.

The shields of his mighty men are made red, the valiant men are in scarlet. The chariots come with flaming torches in the day of his preparation, and the spears are brandished.
The chariots rage in the streets, they jostle one another in the broad roads; they seem like torches, they run like lightning. He remembers his nobles; they stumble in their walk; they make haste to her walls, and the defense is prepared. The gates of the rivers are opened, and the palace is dissolved. It is decreed: She shall be led away captive, she shall be brought up; and her maidservants shall lead her as with the voice of doves, beating their breasts.

Though Nineveh of old was like a pool of water, now they flee away. “Halt! Halt!” they cry; but no one turns back.Take spoil of silver! Take spoil of gold! There is no end of treasure, or wealth of every desirable prize. She is empty, desolate, and waste! The heart melts, and the knees shake; much pain is in every side, and all their faces are drained of color.

Where is the dwelling of the lions, and the feeding place of the young lions, where the lion walked, the lioness and lion’s cub, and no one made them afraid? The lion tore in pieces enough for his cubs, killed for his lionesses, filled his caves with prey, and his dens with flesh.

“Behold, I am against you,” says the Lord of hosts, “I will burn your chariots in smoke, and the sword shall devour your young lions; I will cut off your prey from the earth, and the voice of your messengers shall be heard no more.”

 

Nahum is predicting the fall of Nineveh. What actually happens to Nineveh? Wikipedia tells us the following information:

“The Battle of Nineveh is conventionally dated between 613 and 611 BC, with 612 BC being the most supported date. Rebelling against the Assyrians, an allied army which combined the forces of Medes and the Babylonians besieged Nineveh and sacked 750 hectares of what was, at that time, one of the greatest cities in the world. The fall of Nineveh led to the destruction of the Neo-Assyrian Empire over the next three years as the dominant state in the Ancient Near East….In 612 BC, the Babylonians mustered their army again and joined with Median king Cyaxares encamping against Nineveh. They laid siege to the city for three months and, in August, finally broke through the defenses and began plundering and burning the city. The major factor in the city’s downfall was the Medes… According to tradition laid out in Diodorus, the Tigris river flooded the city. While his account is often suspect, this aspect has been given attention. The allied armies entered the area of the outer wall and fought to enter the palace. Temples were looted and the palace was burned, though this did not destroy the city, and may have aided the preservation of clay texts.”

In these few verses, Nahum accurately predicts everything that will eventually befall Nineveh. The combined armies will lay siege and gain entrance into the city, aided by flooding from the Tigris. Perhaps there are water gates that are opened, allowing the waters of the Tigris free entry, just as flooding from the Euphrates River helps to destroy Babylon in the time of Daniel.

Once more, we realize that the revival following Jonah’s preaching 100 years earlier has dissipated. For the Assyrians, it’s evil as usual. Does Nahum bring this message to the Assyrians? We don’t know. But 2 Peter 3:9 tells us, “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” Up until the invaders enter the city, the citizens of Nineveh still have the opportunity to repent. But once the invasion takes place, those opportunities are gone forever.

We do know that Nahum brings this message to the citizens of Judah during the reign of King Manasseh, the most evil king ever to rule Judah. By that point, the Assyrians have captured the Northern Kingdom and the citizens of Judah are shaking in their sandals with fear. God is using Nahum to reassure the believers left in Judah of His watch care. Archaeological evidence strongly suggests that Nahum utters these prophecies between 663-654 B. C., well before the destruction of Nineveh takes place.

APPLICATION: 2 Corinthians 6:2 says, “ For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” One generation of Ninevites repented, sparing themselves; however, they failed to teach their children and grandchildren the fear of God.

Generally, we like to identify with the prophet in this chapter- Go, God! Nail those Assyrians! Give them the punishment they so richly deserve! But wait. Are we any better than the Assyrians? One generation of Assyrians listened to Jonah and repented but failed to teach their children to fear God. When we fail to teach succeeding generations about God, His might, His power, and His love, we are dooming them to destruction unless they find God for themselves. As long as we mouth platitudes about allowing children to make their own choices when they grow up, we are leaving them open to Satanic attack.

Recently one political cartoon satirized a state governor who was trying to ensure that the children in his state learned the Ten Commandments. Considering the fact that the Ten Commandments have formed the basis for much of the law in both England and America, it only seems reasonable that children should learn these tenets as early as possible. What this cartoonist failed to consider is how the world would function or malfunction if nobody followed the Ten Commandments. But logic rarely enters into play when someone is trying to mock authority. May God help us, so that we will teach the children and young people around us to love and respect God!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to teach others the love of You and the fear and respect of You. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

God’s Mercy and Judgment

“The burden (oracle, prophecy) against Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.

God’s Wrath on His Enemies

God is jealous, and the Lord avenges; the Lord avenges and is furious. The Lord will take vengeance on His adversaries, and He reserves wrath for His enemies; the Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked. The Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet. He rebukes the sea and makes it dry, and dries up all the rivers. Bashan and Carmel wither, and the flower of Lebanon wilts. The mountains quake before Him, the hills melt, and the earth [burns]heaves at His presence, yes, the world and all who dwell in it.

Who can stand before His indignation? And who can endure the fierceness of His anger? His fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by Him.

The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knows those who trust in Him. But with an overflowing flood He will make an utter end of its place, and darkness will pursue His enemies.

What do you [devise]conspire against the Lord? He will make an utter end of it. Affliction will not rise up a second time. For while tangled like thorns, and while drunken like drunkards, they shall be devoured like stubble fully dried. From you comes forth one who plots evil against the Lord, a wicked counselor. [Lit. Counselor of Belial]

Thus says the Lord: “Though they are safe, and likewise many, yet in this manner they will be cut down
when he passes through. Though I have afflicted you, I will afflict you no more; for now I will break off his yoke from you, and burst your bonds apart.” The Lord has given a command concerning you: “Your name shall be perpetuated no longer. Out of the house of your gods I will cut off the carved image and the molded image. I will dig your grave, for you are vile.” [contemptible]

Behold, on the mountains the feet of him who brings good tidings, who proclaims peace! O Judah, keep your appointed feasts, perform your vows. For the wicked one shall no more pass through you; He is utterly cut off.”

For a century the Assyrians have been cutting a horrible swath through the nations of the Fertile Crescent. The revival resulting from Jonah’s preaching has died out. God has given the Assyrians plenty of time to repent, but they have only become progressively worse. Now God is going to bring the Assyrian Empire to an end.

“God is jealous, and the Lord avenges; the Lord avenges and is furious. The Lord will take vengeance on His adversaries, and He reserves wrath for His enemies; the Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked. The Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet. He rebukes the sea and makes it dry, and dries up all the rivers. Bashan and Carmel wither, and the flower of Lebanon wilts. The mountains quake before Him, the hills melt, and the earth [burns]heaves at His presence, yes, the world and all who dwell in it.”

God begins by reminding the nations of His greatness and power. “The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knows those who trust in Him. But with an overflowing flood He will make an utter end of its place, and darkness will pursue His enemies.” God knows the human heart better than anyone else and He knows those who are ripe for destruction.

“What do you [devise]conspire against the Lord? He will make an utter end of it. Affliction will not rise up a second time.”  God is going to completely end the Assyrian Empire. “Thus says the Lord: “Though they are safe, and likewise many, yet in this manner they will be cut down when he passes through. Though I have afflicted you, I will afflict you no more; for now I will break off his yoke from you, and burst your bonds apart.”  “Behold, on the mountains the feet of him who brings good tidings, who proclaims peace! O Judah, keep your appointed feasts, perform your vows. For the wicked one shall no more pass through you; He is utterly cut off.”

Being conquered by the Assyrians has meant untold misery. While the Babylonians seem to be relatively benign as conquerors, the Assyrians are unspeakably evil. Now God is assuring the exiles that deliverance is approaching. The nation of Judah will again keep its appointed feasts and perform religious vows in peace.

APPLICATION: What do these words written to a wicked nation and to those in exile have to do with us today? First, these verses remind us of the greatness of God, His power, His majesty, His righteousness, and His holiness. When we serve the One True Living God, we serve the greatest power in the universe. The Israelites would never have had to go into exile had they continued to serve God as He had asked them to. If we will follow God whole-heartedly, we can rest assured that He will lead us and guide us. This does not mean that everything will go smoothly or that we will not face problems, but God can either deliver us from those problems or give us the strength to go through them.

On Facebook, I follow the trials and tribulations of two families with small boys with mind-boggling medical problems. Each photo shows a little boy connected to more monitors, feeding tubes, etc., than any one person should have to endure. How are these families surviving emotionally and caring for their healthy children as well as these children with major medical problems? Only God can give them the strength to endure.

“The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knows those who trust in Him. But with an overflowing flood He will make an utter end of its place, and darkness will pursue His enemies.” How many of us find ourselves in untenable positions at work with supervisors who bully and condemn, even as they take credit for the results of our work? How many of us bear up under difficult conditions at home or in the workplace because we see no alternatives? How many of us long for deliverance?

What does it mean that “the Lord is a stronghold in the day of trouble?” A stronghold is a safe place of refuge where we can go and be confident that we are safe and that nobody can hurt us. God is omniscient, all – knowing. This means that He knows all of our problems and all of our needs. God is omnipresent-because of His divine nature, He can be every place at every time. When your boss is denying your promotions and insulting you while he/she claims credit for your accomplishments, God is right there. You don’t have to explain things to God; He already knows your problems. You can talk with God about your struggles, knowing that He knows and understands better than anybody else. God will give you the strength to endure until your situation changes and you are in a better place.

Through the years, we have seen every major mission board make terrible mistakes with dedicated workers, mistakes that have sometimes forced effective staff to leave the mission field in despair. We know other missionaries who have managed to remain but who have had to deal with very difficult colleagues. Years ago, we asked one veteran missionary couple the secret of handling fellow workers who were contentious, critical, and who caused nothing but pain wherever they went. The couple looked at each other and the husband said, “We’re still learning.” This couple had God as their stronghold. Things were not easy; however, these people were trusting God to resolve the situation. Eventually the problem worker returned to his home country, and everyone else in the mission breathed a huge sigh of relief!   

The final sentences of this chapter reassure the people of Judah that they again will have peace so that they can worship the Lord without fear of attack. We all need peace. Sometimes God gives us peace by removing the problem, but far more often God gives us peace in the midst of our problems. Either way, God is the Way Maker, the Peace Bringer. And He can become your stronghold if you will only ask.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, we need You! We need You to come be with us, to help us, to comfort us, to guide us, and to give us the strength to endure until You deliver us from our trials. Help all who read these words to trust in You, knowing that You are the One who makes all good things possible. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

The following information comes from the Amplified Version of the New King James Bible published by Zondervan.

“The name Nahum means “Consolation” or “comfort.” Nahum came from the city of Elkosh, the location of which is still uncertain. His ministry can be dated with reasonable certainty in the last half of the seventh century B.C., making him a contemporary of Zephaniah, Jeremiah, and Habakkuk. In his message he refers to the fall of No or Thebes in 663 B.C. and predicts the fall of Nineveh, the great Assyrian capital, in 612 B.C. Nahum vividly describes the ruthless tyranny of the Assyrians as they victoriously advanced and conquered nation after nation.

Such heartless brutality could not be tolerated indefinitely by a righteous and holy God. In his prediction Nahum graphically portrays the siege and fall of Nineveh, marking the end of that great and powerful kingdom of Assyria, which dominated the Fertile Crescent for over a century. In a brief admonition to Judah (1:15) Nahum advises his people to observe their religious feasts, since the Assyrians will never again threaten Jerusalem.”

We have just finished considering the short book of Jonah. God sent Jonah to preach to the Assyrians in Nineveh and miraculously they repented and were spared. But the revival only lasted as long as that ruler and his subjects were alive. Subsequent rulers reverted to torture, murder, rape, and pillage as usual. God has heard the cries of the tortured and is finally bringing an end to the evil Assyrian empire.

Why didn’t the Ninevite revival last? Revivals will only last as long as people are willing to continue to humble themselves and seek God’s face. The Ninevites of Jonah’s day saved themselves by harkening to Jonah’s simple message and repenting and fasting en masse. Perhaps those people taught their children, but within a generation or two, the Assyrians reverted to type. Traditional Assyrian values included success in warfare and glorious victories with unspeakable cruelty to the conquered. Humility played no part in traditional Assyrian beliefs. Once the fear of the Lord lifted from Nineveh, things went back to the way they had always been.

It’s possible that after the short-lived revival sparked by Jonah’ s preaching, the Assyrians actually became worse. Jesus warned his disciples that when a demon was cast out of a man, he might return bringing seven other spirits more evil than himself. If a change of heart is not completed by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the demons will certainly move in as soon as possible. One of my friends used to sing a song entitled “I’m tired of being stirred but not being changed.” The Assyrians were stirred by Jonah’s preaching, but ultimately, their society was not changed.

Throughout history there have been revivals that have radically changed nations. The Reformation started by Martin Luther and others transformed many countries, although the spin-offs created many problems. The Great Awakening in colonial America is one such example.

“The Great Awakening was a religious revival that impacted the English colonies in America during the 1730s and 1740s. The movement came at a time when the idea of secular rationalism was being emphasized, and passion for religion had grown stale. Christian leaders often traveled from town to town, preaching about the gospel, emphasizing salvation from sins and promoting enthusiasm for Christianity. The result was a renewed dedication toward religion. Many historians believe the Great Awakening had a lasting impact on various Christian denominations and American culture at large.” (https://www.history.com/topics/european-history/great-awakening)

Second Great Awakening (Wikipedia)

Main article: Second Great Awakening

The Second Great Awakening (sometimes known simply as “the Great Awakening”) was a religious revival that occurred in the United States beginning in the late eighteenth century and lasting until the middle of the nineteenth century. While it occurred in all parts of the United States, it was especially strong in the Northeast and the Midwest. This awakening was unique in that it moved beyond the educated elite of New England to those who were less wealthy and less educated. The center of revivalism was the so-called Burned-over district in western New York. Named for its overabundance of hellfire-and-damnation preaching, the region produced dozens of new denominations, communal societies, and reform.

Among these dozens of new denominations were free black churches, run independently of existing congregations that were predominantly of white attendance. During the period between the American revolution and the 1850s, black involvement in largely white churches declined in great numbers, with participation becoming almost non-existent by the 1840s–1850s; some scholars argue that this was largely due to racial discrimination within the church. This discrimination came in the form of segregated seating and the forbiddance of African Americans from voting in church matters or holding leadership positions in many white churches. Reverend Richard Allen, a central founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, was quoted describing one such incident of racial discrimination in a predominantly white church in Philadelphia, in which fellow preacher and a former slave from Delaware, Absalom Jones, was grabbed by a white church trustee in the midst of prayer and forcefully told to leave.

Closely related to the Second Great Awakening were other reform movements such as temperance, abolition, and women’s rights. The temperance movement encouraged people to abstain from consuming alcoholic drinks in order to preserve family order. The abolition movement fought to abolish slavery in the United States. The women’s rights movement grew from female abolitionists who realized that they could fight for their own political rights, too. In addition to these causes, reforms touched nearly every aspect of daily life, such as restricting the use of tobacco and dietary and dress reforms. The abolition movement emerged in the North from the wider Second Great Awakening 1800–1840.

Third Great Awakening (Wikipedia)

Main article: Third Great Awakening

The Third Great Awakening in the 1850s–1900s was characterized by new denominations, active missionary work, Chautauquas, and the Social Gospel approach to social issues. The YMCA (founded in 1844) played a major role in fostering revivals in the cities in the 1858 Awakening and after. The revival of 1858 produced the leadership, such as that of Dwight L. Moody, out of which came religious work carried on in the armies during the civil war. The Christian and Sanitary Commissions and numerous Freedmen’s Societies were also formed in the midst of the War. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Awakening#Second_Great_Awakening)

These revivals made a major impact on American society and yet, eventually, they dwindled off. The problem has remained the same: if those touched by revival fail to teach their children and grandchildren, revival dies. Revival died in Nineveh when those who had repented failed to teach their children and grandchildren the fear of God. Revival can die anywhere at any time when we choose to keep our experiences of repentance to ourselves and fail to teach those coming after us the fear of God. May God help us, so that we do not wind up like the Assyrians!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to teach those around us the fear and awe of You. Do not allow us to become the reason that revival dies. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Jonah’s Anger and God’s Kindness

“But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he became angry. So he prayed to the Lord, and said, “Ah, Lord, was not this what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live!”

Then the Lord said, “Is it right for you to be angry?”

So Jonah went out of the city and sat on the east side of the city. There he made himself a shelter and sat under it in the shade, till he might see what would become of the city. And the Lord God prepared a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be shade for his head to deliver him from his misery. So Jonah was very grateful for the plant. But as morning dawned the next day God prepared a worm, and it so damaged the plant that it withered. And it happened, when the sun arose, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat on Jonah’s head, so that he grew faint. Then he wished death for himself, and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.”

Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?” And he said, “It is right for me to be angry, even to death!” But the Lord said, “You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow, which came up in a night and perished in a night. And should I not pity Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left—and much livestock?”

God sends Jonah to Nineveh, and Jonah goes very reluctantly after a near-death experience at sea. Jonah preaches the simplest message he can get away with, “Forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown!” We don’t know if that’s all that God wants Jonah to say; however, that’s all that Jonah is willing to cry out, perhaps hoping that his token obedience will have no effect on the Ninevites.

Tough luck, Jonah! The Ninevites repent completely with sackcloth and fasting and mourning, even to the point of covering their animals with sackcloth and withholding food and water from even the animals. Jonah is enraged! How dare these people have such a change of heart?

“But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he became angry. So he prayed to the Lord, and said, “Ah, Lord, was not this what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live!”

Wooo! Talk about your hissy fits! Now we learn that Jonah has anticipated that the Ninevites would repent and that God would forgive them. But Jonah feels that he is more qualified to judge the Ninevites than God is and Jonah wants these people to SUFFER!!! Why give these people any chance at all?

“Then the Lord said, “Is it right for you to be angry?” Ouch! God gets right to the heart of the matter with this question. If the Creator of the Universe is willing to forgive the Ninevites when they repent, who is Jonah to try to block God’s mercy and grace? Obviously, Jonah isn’t about to change his heart readily, so God prepares an object lesson for Jonah.

Jonah has sulked his way out of Nineveh and is now sitting on an eastern hill overlooking the city, probably still hoping that God is going to bring disaster on Nineveh. What’s significant about this direction? Storms move in from the northeast, and Jonah is probably still hoping for a catastrophe to hit Nineveh. Jonah prepares a shelter for himself, but in addition, God has a plant with large leaves grow up right next to Jonah’s shelter, providing delightful shade and coolness. Jonah enjoys the plant for one night and then God sends a worm to damage the plant so that it withers and the sun beats down on Jonah.

“And it happened, when the sun arose, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat on Jonah’s head, so that he grew faint. Then he wished death for himself, and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.” Notice that God doesn’t’ just send a gentle breeze; God sends a scorching east wind that likely throws dust into Jonah’s face and eyes. Jonah is furious! Why is God punishing him like this? First God forces Jonah to preach to the worst people in the entire world so that they repent instead of getting the fate they so richly deserve and now God is torturing Jonah with heat. God has plucked Jonah’s last nerve! Stupid people! Why did they have to repent so completely? Of course, Jonah is conveniently ignoring the fact that if the Ninevites had failed to repent, they might have tortured and killed him.

“Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?” And he said, “It is right for me to be angry, even to death!” But the Lord said, “You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow, which came up in a night and perished in a night. And should I not pity Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left—and much livestock?”

APPLICATION: The story of Jonah is the story of most of us. We really feel we are far more qualified to judge people than God is, and we are more than willing to label anyone who disagrees with us on any issue as “woke,” “racist,” “right wing,” “left wing,” “reactionary” ….the labels are endless. Labels allow us to distance ourselves from others as we comfort ourselves with the thought that OUR position is right and just while THEIR position is despicable. Given the same call as Jonah, we would have booked passage to Tarshish as quickly as possible! Why help those people who are obviously so wrong? Too bad God doesn’t think the same way we do.

God knew every sin the Ninevites had ever committed and yet God forgave the Ninevites when they sincerely repented. But Jonah didn’t want the Ninevites to repent; he wanted them to die miserably. Are we willing to allow God to extend His mercy and grace to those with whom we disagree or do we feel they too deserve nothing but misery and death? May God break open our stony hearts and give us tender hearts that will minister mercy and grace even to those whom we think are our worst enemies!

PRAYER:  Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, we confess that we have judged others harshly, hoping they will suffer because they fail to agree with us. Lord, break away the stone around our hearts and give us Your heart of love and mercy and grace towards all those around us, especially with those with whom we violently disagree. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Jonah Preaches to the Ninevites

Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time: “Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message that I give you.” This time Jonah got up and went to Nineveh in accordance with the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, a three-day journey to cross. On the first day of his walk, Jonah set out into the city and proclaimed, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned!”

Nineveh Repents

And the Ninevites believed God. They proclaimed a fast and dressed in sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least. When word reached the king of Nineveh, he got up from his throne, took off his royal robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.

Then he issued a proclamation in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let no man or beast, herd or flock, taste anything at all. They must not eat or drink. Furthermore, let both man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and have everyone call out earnestly to God. Let each one turn from his evil ways and from the violence in his hands. Who knows? God may turn and relent; He may turn from His fierce anger, so that we will not perish.”

When God saw their actions—that they had turned from their evil ways—He relented from the disaster He had threatened to bring upon them.

AMAZING!  These wicked Assyrians who have terrorized untold surrounding nations repent when Jonah warns them that they only have forty days before they will all die. Why are these people calling out to God and mourning and fasting?

The Assyrians have been unusually cruel in an age when cruelty to enemies is the norm. Skinning alive, slaughtering all inhabitants, and ripping open the wombs of pregnant women – this is all standard stuff for the Assyrians. God is probably reminding them of the terrible things they have done to others and threatening them with the same fate. This part of the Middle East is also prone to earthquakes and sudden storms. Perhaps God shakes the earth or sends strong winds to batter Nineveh with a dust storm while Jonah is preaching. At any rate, God sends the convicting power of the Holy Spirit on the rulers of Nineveh and they proclaim a solemn fast for everybody, including the animals. All the citizens of Nineveh drape themselves and their animals in sackcloth and cry out to God. When God sees the total repentance of the entire city of Nineveh, He relents.  

How big is Nineveh in the day of Jonah? Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, is a very large city for this day. It is about 96 kilometers (60 miles) around and has a population of about 120,000. Nineveh is so large that it takes three days just to walk across it. Consider any large city you know and then try to visualize all the inhabitants kneeling outside their homes, draped in sackcloth. Children and animals are probably crying for food and water. Adults and older children are calling out to God to spare them. Those in nearby villages can probably hear the noise of the repenting Ninevites.

APPLICATION: Have you ever felt a deep conviction of sin, a conviction so strong that you have found yourself prostrated on the floor? The conviction that has seized the Ninevites is not some light emotion. Many of us feel proud if we simply confess a few things such as losing our tempers in traffic or begin exasperated with a store clerk. But such emotions are nothing compared to the anguish that has gripped the Ninevites.

God has sent His messenger, and it is God who is graphically demonstrating to the Ninevites the depth of their sin and the destruction that will overtake them if they fail to repudiate it. Notice the simplicity of Jonah’s message: “Forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” That’s it. Jonah’s preaching embodies one of the shortest sermons ever recorded, but it works.

Why is Jonah’s sermon so effective? God has sent Jonah, God has given Jonah this message, and Jonah has delivered it. Now it is God who is responsible for the results. Nobody accompanies Jonah. There is no keyboard player or worship band playing in the background to emphasize any points Jonah might make. Jonah makes no attempt to manipulate anybody; in fact, Jonah hates the Assyrians and would be delighted if God would destroy them. Few preachers in the history of the world have ever been more reluctant than Jonah, but he delivers the message anyway.

 Several years ago, my husband and I found ourselves heading the Children’s Church in our home church in America. Our calling was simple: the lady who had been handling it thrust the materials into our hands and bailed out, leaving us struggling to save the situation. (That lady bailed out of everything – Children’s Church, choir, and the church itself.) With little experience and no program, we had to develop our own teaching materials. I became fed up with people who claimed they would help if they only felt called. When someone complimented me on the lessons we were teaching, I told them that it was very simple. On Monday or Tuesday, I would begin praying for the children and when I was in tears for their salvation, God would give me lessons to teach.

The story of Jonah proves that if God gives you a message, you don’t need gimmicks; you need the convicting power of the Holy Spirit. Many times, preachers and teachers feel that if they fail to speak long enough, the congregation won’t be happy. Worship bands and keyboard players may feel impelled to accompany the preacher. But such things can be distracting when the Holy Spirit is trying to deal with someone. Either you believe in the power of the Holy Spirit to move in people’s hearts, or you feel you must make something happen yourself. The difference is simple: the Holy Spirit gets results; we don’t.

Jonah hates the Assyrians and would be thrilled were God to wipe them out entirely. But after a near-death experience in the stomach of a big fish, Jonah realizes that God is serious about giving the Ninevites the chance to repent. May God help us, so that we won’t be as reluctant to do His Will!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, give us ears to hear and tender obedient hearts to follow Your leading, even when You refuse to respect our prejudices. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.