Reading: Nahum and Habakkuk
God is jealous, and the Lord revengeth; the Lord revengeth, and is furious; the Lord will take vengeance on His adversaries, and He reserveth wrath for His enemies. The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the Lord hath His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet. He rebuketh the sea, and maketh it dry, and drieth up all the rivers: Bashan languisheth, and Carmel, and the flower of Lebanon languisheth. The mountains quake at Him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at His presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein. Who can stand before His indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness of His anger? His fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by Him. The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in Him (Nah. 1:2-7).
Nahum brought God’s warning to a nation that had heard it all before. In the time of Jonah, the citizens of Nineveh had heeded God’s admonition and been spared. So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them (Jon. 3:5). And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not (3:10). Yet despite that earlier miracle, or perhaps in part because of it, the current inhabitants of Nineveh were not disturbed by the violent nature of Nahum’s prophecy. Where their ancestors felt the conviction of God and sorrow leading to repentance (II Cor. 7:10), the new generation could not be bothered with God and believed themselves to be untouchable. Thou hast multiplied thy merchants above the stars of heaven: the cankerworm spoileth, and flieth away. Thy crowned are as the locusts, and thy captains as the great grasshoppers, which camp in the hedges in the cold day, but when the sun ariseth they flee away, and their place is not known where they are. Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria: thy nobles shall dwell in the dust: thy people is scattered upon the mountains, and no man gathereth them (Nah. 3:16-19).
Mistaking God’s compassion and mercy for tacit permission to continue to sin with impunity is the most dangerous mistake anyone could ever make. The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked . All sin has a cost, and God will never allow that cost to go unpaid. Either through Christ’s work on the cross or our spiritual death and consignment to hell, the price will be exacted in full.
The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in Him . When we place our full trust in God, we do not need to worry about inciting His wrath because He will guide us through life in such a manner that we won’t. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths (Prov. 3:6). God has infinite patience for those who are seeking to do His will. But for those who turn away from Him, flaunting their sins and reveling in the world, the day of trouble is fast approaching.
Or despisest thou the riches of His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God (Rom. 2:4-5).
Thought for Today: God does not, as many lament, let the wicked go unpunished. But the time of their punishment will be no sooner or later than He dictates.
Christ Revealed: As the One whom even the sea obeys (Nah. 1:4). Jesus rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm (Matt. 8:26).
Word Studies:Nahum 1:12 quiet = strong, safe, secure; 1:14 no more of thy name be sown = nothing of your name will remain; 2:7 tabering = beating; 3:19 bruit = report. Habakkuk 1:4 the law is slacked = the law is never enforced.
Pray for Staff: Kevin Jennings • Country: China, Mainland (1,355,692,576) Eastern Asia • Major Language: Mandarin • Renewed persecution of the Church • 18.2% Buddhist; 5.1% Christian; 1.8% Muslim; <.1%Folk Religion; <.1% Hindu; <.1% Jewish; 0.7% Other; 52.2% Unaffiliated • Prayer Suggestion: Pray at all times (Ps. 55:17).