Nahum: A Prophet of Doom (Nahum 1:4-5)

⁴ He rebukes the sea and makes it dry;

    he dries up all the rivers;

Bashan and Carmel wither;

    the bloom of Lebanon withers.

⁵ The mountains quake before him;

    the hills melt;

the earth heaves before him,

    the world and all who dwell in it.

As I write this morning, our area has been inundated with several inches of rain over a short period of time. When such events occur, we encounter episodes of flash flooding. The news today played a video of a car being swept away by the rapidly rising waters. I’m sure if there was a driver in the car at the time, they felt helpless as their vehicle drifted away. Who can stop the water at such times?

Also last week, a report was produced stating the danger of a volcanic eruption within Yellowstone Park. If this were to occur, the report indicates the damage would not be isolated to the park. Rather, the entire world would suffer the consequences of such an explosion. Who can stop the volcanoes of the world from spewing the molten rock beneath them into the atmosphere?

The prophet Nahum has made it clear that Nineveh will be judged. God has said it and that judgment is coming. The guilt of that city must be paid, and it is God who will exact the payment. Furthermore, the Sovereign Judge is fully capable of executing such judgment. In these two verses, Nahum continues his illustration of God’s power to do exactly what He says He will do.

No one on the earth can halt the seas and the rivers from their course. But God can. The flowers bloom as He commands and permits. Mountains quake (volcanoes and earthquakes) and even collapse under the pressure of His little finger. The entire world and everyone on it are shaken by His judgment.

Nineveh must understand that there is no mistake. God will judge and God has the power to punish. Nothing and no one can alter that destiny.

You and I are like those in Nineveh. God will judge our sin, that is certain. He has the power (and right) to do so, and nothing we do can alter that destiny. Sin must be paid. And, apart from a substitutionary sacrifice, that payment will be made by us: an eternal punishment for our sin committed against an eternal God.

Praise our Heavenly Father for providing us with such a substitute, namely, Jesus Christ. May each of us repent of our sin and trust Him for our deliverance!