THE BOOK OF NAHUM
(“Ripe And Ready For Harvest”)
Nahum 3:8-19 (NASU)
“All your fortifications are fig trees with ripe fruit – when shaken, they fall into the eater’s mouth. 13Behold, your people are women in your midst! The gates of your land are opened wide to your enemies; fire consumes your gate bars. 14Draw for yourself water for the siege! Strengthen your fortifications! Go into the clay and tread the mortar! Take hold of the brick mold! 15There fire will consume you, the sword will cut you down; it will consume you as the locust does …” (Nahum 3:12-15)
(A) RESETTING THE HISTORICAL SCENE
(1) The Book of Nahum is named after its author – a man about whom we know very little, except that he was an “Elkoshite” – that he received a prophetic “vision” from the Lord regarding the fall of “Nineveh” – and that he wrote the vision down in a “book” (c.f. Nahum 1:1) (which we are currently studying).
(2) Since Nahum refers to the fall of Thebes (or “No-amon”) in verse eight of tonight’s Scripture lesson (c.f. Nahum 3:8) (which took place around 663 B.C.) – and since we know Nineveh fell around 612 B.C. – it’s safe to assume the prophet wrote his God-given vision down sometime during that fifty-year window. However, other factors (which I won’t go into) suggest the window can be narrowed down even further, to a thirty-year period of time, between 660 and 630 B.C.1
(3) Assuming Nahum did receive his prophetic vision and wrote it down sometime during that thirty-year window, it means he prophesied during the peak of Nineveh’s power and glory – which took place during the reign of a king named Ashurbanipal. One historian writes: “Entering Thebes a second time, after a brief revolt by the Egyptians, the Assyrians carried away ‘booty … beyond counting’. Tyre was strangled from the mainland, and forced to surrender. To the east, Babylon was subdued, and Susa the capital of Elam was plundered about 639 B.C. Never had the Assyrian Empire looked so strong – or Assyrian might so invincible.”2
(4) Note, then, that God manifested His sovereign power and glory – not by waiting until Nineveh was already in decline before predicting her ruin, but by prophesying against the Assyrians at the precise moment in history when they were at their strongest – when the things His prophet said would happen, seemed utterly impossible – when the scene described into tonight’s text (c.f. Nahum 3:12-15), seemed as unlikely as a Flood destroying the whole earth (c.f. Genesis 6:17), or two childless old people, like Abraham and Sarah, having as many descendants “as the stars of heaven” (c.f. Genesis 18:10-14; 22:17).
Elsewhere, Scripture says: “Ah Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! NOTHING IS TOO DIFFICULT FOR YOU” (Jeremiah 32:17). What’s more – sometimes (like in the case of the Assyrians) God proves the truth of that declaration, by telling us what He’s going to do, and then doing it – by taking on the mightiest armies, the strongest nations, and the most powerful rulers the world has too offer, and subduing them, or destroying them, or even annihilating them, as seems best too Him!
(5) The rate at which nations decline and decay varies. But in Assyria’s case, it appears to have happened rather quickly – i.e. within the space of about thirty years, give or take (639-612 B.C.). The seeds of Nineveh’s demise were undoubtedly in place long before any visible signs of her decline appeared – much like a deadly disease, that goes undetected, until it’s symptoms finally become evident – at which point, it’s often too late to reverse the affects, or ward off the inevitable.
Assyria’s pride and arrogance (c.f. Nahum 1:9, 11) – her cruelty and barbarism (c.f. Nahum 3:1, 3, 10) – her “harlotries and … sorceries” (c.f. Nahum 3:4) – her idolatry and repudiation of God’s saving grace in the days of Jonah (c.f. Jonah 3:1-10) – her lust for power and insatiable thirst for wealth (c.f. Nahum 2:9) – all combined to weaken her people, leaving them vulnerable to their enemies, and ultimately to God’s judgment in the form of death and destruction.
(6) James Boice notes that, “in the final days of any declining civilization everything seems to fly apart”3 – in other words, everything seems to stop “working”. Where as, they once enjoyed success upon success, now there is only one failure after another – where there was once courage, now there is fear – where there was once strength, now there is weakness – where there used to be confidence, now there is only doubt and uncertainty.
This is essentially what happened to Nineveh during her last days – her “fortifications” (verse twelve), which were once so formidable, were now like “ripe fruit” (c.f. Nahum 3:12) – her “people” (verse thirteen), who were once stout-hearted and brave, were now like “women” (c.f. Nahum 3:13) – and their Herculean efforts (in verse fourteen) to reinforce and stabilize their city’s defenses, were ineffective and wasted (c.f. Nahum 3:14).
OF FIGS, FIRES, FEAR, FORTIFICATIONS (AND FAILURE)
(1) We start, then, with verse twelve, where Nahum compares Nineveh’s defensive walls and ramparts to ripe figs, saying: “All your fortifications are fig trees with ripe fruit – when shaken, they fall into the eater’s mouth” (c.f. Nahum 3:12).
(a) This image speaks of the ease with which the city would be captured4 – for I have read that when figs are ripe, the slightest jar (to the branches, or even to the tree itself) (sometimes just a strong breeze) sends the fruit plummeting to the ground5 – or in this case, straight into the “mouth” of the shaker and devourer (c.f. Nahum 3:12).
To successfully lay siege a city the size of Nineveh, with the kind of defenses she had, often took many months of grueling labor – in some cases as much as a year or more.6 As we noted last time, however, Nineveh fell in just three months7 – which made it a kind of “fast food” siege (if you will) in comparison to most. And if we inquire as to why this once great and well-fortified city fell so quickly (and ultimately, so easily), the primary answer is, because she was “ripe” for judgment (c.f. Nahum 3:12).
(b) The imagery of falling fruit in connection with judgment is also found in the Book of Revelation, where it’s used to describe some of the catastrophic events that will take place at the end of the age (which is yet to come). For example, a passage found in chapter six says: 12“I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. 13And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, AS A FIG TREE DROPS ITS LATE FIGS when it is shaken by a mighty wind” (c.f. Revelation 6:12-13, NKJV).
That same passage goes on to depict the kings of earth, and other great men, rich and strong, hiding in mountain caves – pleading for the rocks to fall on them, in the vain hope being crushed to death would enable them to escape the wrath of the Lamb (c.f. Revelation 6:15-17).
The point is this – just as Nineveh became ripe and ready for judgment, so too (one day) will the whole earth – and the same Lamb of God who showed compassion for sinners, by enduring the wrath of God for His people, will appear as Judge to bring retributive justice on all those who have rejected Him as Savior and Lord.5
(c) Hence, as I’ve tried to point out in various ways throughout this study, what happened to Nineveh and the Assyrian people is not only historical, it’s also a prophetic warning of the divine judgment that will one day befall the entire earth and all its inhabitants, when Christ returns to “tread the winepress of the fierce wrath of Almighty God” (c.f. Revelation 19:11-16).
(2) Moving on to verse thirteen, Nahum describes how the Assyrians’ courage would fail them when they needed it most, saying: “Behold, your people are women in your midst! The gates of your land are opened wide to your enemies; fire consumes your gate bars” (c.f. Nahum 3:13).
(a) The point of comparing Assyrian soldiers to women (as well as the entire male population of Nineveh in general), is that, when the final siege comes, they will not be able to fight like men – for they will have been drained of all their courage and strength – and therefore, unable to meet the enemy with either valor or combat skill.8
(b) Our culture often portrays women as being equal to men – both psychologically and physiologically – when it comes to the use of weapons, and the art of hand-to-hand combat. Multiple movies and television shows depict women “kicking you-know-what” right alongside men – in fact, most of the time, they’re “kicking” men (much to the delight of feminists, I’m sure).
However, in the real world it’s often a different story – as various branches of the military have found out. Women really are “the weaker vessel”, as Scripture says (c.f. I Peter 3:7, NKJV) – which simply means they generally have less physical strength then men.9
What’s more, in ancient times women were not trained to fight the kind of vicious, hand-to-hand battles armies fought in those days. Hence, Nahum’s point here in verse thirteen is that part of God’s judgment on Nineveh would be that her men would fight like weak, untrained women – rather than seasoned, battle-hardened soldiers.
(c) How did the Assyrian men lose their courage, and will to fight? What happened to the armies of Nineveh, that turned them from bold warriors into fearful combatants (c.f. Nahum 2:5, 10)? How did these soldiers, who had been so fearless in the past, become like “women” (c.f. Nahum 3:13) when it came time to defend themselves and their city against an attack by the Medes and Babylonians – both of whom they had fought and defeated on previous occasions?2
(d) I think John Calvin answered that question when we wrote: “the hearts of men are so in the hand of God, that He melts whatever courage there may be in them, whenever He pleases. God prepares men for ruin, when He debilitates their hearts, (so) that they cannot bear the sight of their enemies. God … can (and often does) leave in men their perverseness, so that they … run furiously into ruin … not be(ing) able, (even) with a courageous heart, to repel the attacks of their enemies. But He often softens their hearts (as well) and deprives them of power, that He may make more evident His judgment. God does not work (the same way in every case – sometimes He works one way – sometimes another. In the case of the Assyrians, however, He stripped them of all their courage – making them like ‘women’ [c.f. Nahum 3:13], in order to give) them over to destruction.”10
Calvin’s words remind me of an oft-quoted verse out of the Book of Proverbs that says: “The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the Lord; He turns it wherever He wishes” (c.f. Proverbs 21:1). Apparently our God can also do the same thing to entire cities, and armies, and even nations!
(e) One of the ways God may occasionally do that is by giving those bent on wickedness “over to the lusts of their hearts, and degrading passions” – like those spoken of in Romans chapter one (c.f. Romans 1:24-32). Along these lines, James Boice writes that by the time Nineveh fell, it had become “a city … noted for its homosexual effeminacy. (Hence) History reports that by the time of the assault, the Assyrian armies were unable to acquit themselves like men.”11
Feminism is a wonderful thing – in women. But, it can be a deadly thing for a nation when it’s men become effeminate in their attitudes and behavior, because of their homosexual practices, or from listening to the rhetoric of feminist leaders. As Scripture says elsewhere: 9“DO NOT BE DECEIVED; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, NOR EFFIMINATE, NOT HOMOSEXUALS, 10nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God” (c.f. I Corinthians 6:9-10).
(f) Whatever the specific contributing factors to Nineveh’s downfall may have been, as a result of her fighting men becoming like “women”, verse thirteen goes on to say that “the gates of the land would be opened wide to her enemies – and that fire would consume her gate bars” (c.f. Nahum 3:13). In other words, the defensive effort would be so anemic it would be as if the Assyrians had left the city gates wide open5 – or as if they themselves had burned the thick iron bars used to keep the gates closed from the inside, thereby making it an easy matter for their enemies to enter the city and destroy it.12
(g) From this we see how utterly helpless wicked men are in the face of divine judgment – how impossible it will be for unrepentant sinners to ward off the eternal retribution they deserve – how powerless lost people will be to defend themselves (as it were) against the sentence imposed on them by “the Judge of all the earth” (c.f. Genesis 18:25).
People living in the days of Noah couldn’t do it (c.f. II Peter 2:5 ) – the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah couldn’t do it (c.f. Isaiah 13:19) – the armies of Egypt, poised on the banks of the Red Sea, couldn’t do it (c.f. Exodus 14:27-28) – we know the Assyrians couldn’t do it (c.f. Nahum 1:8) – how much less, then, every man and woman who has “trampled under foot the Son of God”, by rejecting the sacrifice He made on the cross (c.f. Hebrews 10:29)!?
(h) Only in Christ are we able to escape the judgment we deserve – and even then, it’s not US who manages to do the escaping. Rather, it’s our Savior who graciously “pluck(s) (us) from the fire” (so to speak) (c.f. Zechariah 3:2) – otherwise, we would most certainly perish!
(3) Finally, we come to verse fourteen and the first part of verse fifteen, where the inspired prophet stresses the utter futility of all human effort2 – especially when it comes to thwarting what God has ordained to bring about – saying: 14“Draw for yourself water for the siege! Strengthen your fortifications! Go into the clay and tread the mortar! Take hold of the brick mold! 15There fire will consume you, the sword will cut you down; it will consume you as the locust does …” (c.f. Nahum 3:14-15).
(a) The tone of these verses is similar to a passage found in Psalm Two, where the inspired writer says the Lord “laughs” and “scoffs” at those who think they can break away from His rule, and frustrate His sovereign plans (c.f. Psalm 2:1-6).
Here in the last verses of tonight’s text, God’s prophet mocks11 all the efforts Assyria will make to defend herself – essentially saying it won’t do her any good. That no matter how much “water” her people store up, or how many “bricks” they make – no matter how well they “strengthen (her) fortifications” – “fire” is going to “consume” them, and “the sword” is going to “cut (them) down” (c.f. Nahum 3:14-15).
(b) In siege warfare, one of the first things attackers do is cut off their enemy’s water supply, hoping extreme thirst will force them to surrender in a short amount of time, without putting up much of a fight.
Obviously, if you are the one being attacked – and you know a siege is coming – you will do what the first part of verse fourteen says, and “draw for yourself water for the siege” (c.f. Nahum 3:14). In other words, you will store up as much water as you possibly can, inside your protective walls, so you have something to drink in the coming months.
Through His prophet, God encourages the Assyrians to do just that. BUT, at the same time, He also says it won’t do them any good – that all the water in the world won’t stave off the “fire” or “sword” of divine judgment (c.f. Nahum 3:15).
(c) Another thing that happens in siege warfare, is that attackers look for weaknesses in a city’s defensive wall, which they then try and exploit. When they find weak points, they begin battering the wall at that spot with everything they have – battering rams, catapults flinging large stones – anything that will weaken the wall further, and create an opening by which the city can be entered and taken.
Obviously, if you are the one being attacked, you are also looking for weaknesses in your defensive wall, in hopes of finding them and repairing them, before they can be used to your enemy’s advantage. Hence, the prophet tells the Assyrians (in verse fourteen): “Strengthen your fortifications! Go into the clay and tread the mortar! Take hold of the brick mold!” (c.f. Nahum 3:14). However, at the end of the day, it won’t do you any good. Even if you manage to discover all your wall’s weak points, and refortify the potential breaches, it won’t keep you from ultimately being “consumed” by “fire” and “the sword” (c.f. Nahum 3:15).
(d) Are verses fourteen and fifteen telling us all human effort is pointless?13 That nothing people do matters? That everything we work at is ultimately of no real significance? I think Scripture’s answer is, “Yes” – and “No”. I think we have to approach the answer to these questions much like we ought to approach the relationship between God’s sovereignty and human responsibility – namely, with heartfelt humility and a deep sense of awe – realizing that, in the final analysis, our finite minds can’t fully grasp everything that’s going on here (c.f. Isaiah 55:8-9).
(e) The first verse of Psalm One Hundred Twenty-Seven speaks to the futility of human effort, when it says: “UNLESS the Lord builds the house, they labor IN VAIN who build it; UNLESS the Lord guards the city, the watchman keeps awake IN VAIN” (c.f. Psalm 127:1) – as do numerous passages in the Book of Ecclesiastes, like the one where Solomon said: “Thus I considered all my activities which MY HANDS HAD DONE and the labor which I HAD EXERTED, and behold ALL WAS VANITY and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun” (c.f. Ecclesiastes 2:11).
I don’t think either of these passages (or others like them) are telling us to sit on our hands and do nothing – to stop “building houses”, or setting “guards” to watch over cities – to cease from all our labor and exertion, and to do nothing instead. Rather, I think they are reminding us that it is ultimately God who makes our efforts successful – or not. That what Jesus said really is true, no matter what part of life we are talking about – that “apart from Him, we can do nothing” (c.f. John 15:5).
(f) Obviously much more could be said – but we don’t have time tonight to say it. So, here’s what I think Nahum was telling the Assyrians (and us!) in this specific context – that all human effort to avoid the coming judgment of God is futile.13 That there really is nothing – absolutely nothing – any person (or group of people) can do to escape God’s eternal, retributive justice.
O. Palmer Robertson has expanding on this thought, saying: “People often get the wrong impression, thinking that in their lives they only strive with human forces or natural circumstances (compare Ephesians 6:12). So, they conclude that a little more effort may enable them to evade a threatening calamity. But the sinner is in error, (because) he fails to reckon with the living God. Although God is a Spirit, and invisible to human perceptions, it is He with whom we have to do (see Hebrews 4:13). It is for that reason that all human efforts at defense against the Almighty are futile … Apart from God’s blessing, (all such effort) will be to no avail.”13
(g) Thankfully, as Christians, you and I don’t have to DO anything, when it comes to escaping God’s judgment – because everything that needed to be done, has already been done for us by our Savior – whose name is Jesus.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1The English Standard Study Bible: Introduction to Nahum;
p. 1709.
2Robertson: The Books of Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah;
The New International Commentary on the Old Testament;
p. 120.
3Boice: The Minor Prophets; Vol. Two; p. 70.
4Unger’s Commentary on the Old Testament; Vol. II; p. 1892.
5Robertson: Ibid; p. 119.
6http://books.google.com/books?id=CrBerP0thW8C&pg=PA
282&lpg=PA282&dq=%22siege+lasted%22&source=web&
ots=hHd9r-WYjs&sig=BSDig5HJ5C0m50rFee9GllCza5w&
hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=10&ct=result
7Robertson: Ibid; p. 118.
8Wiersbe: Be Amazed; p. 105.
9MacArthur: The MacArthur New Testament Commentary;
I Peter; p. 182.
10Calvin’s Commentaries: Vol. XIV; The Twelve Minor
Prophets; Vol. III; Jonah, Micah, Nahum; p. 496.
11Boice: Ibid; p. 71.
12Wycliffe Bible Commentary; p. 868.
13Robertson: Ibid; p. 123.