Introduction to Nahum

Name

The name Nahum is derived from the verb meaning to be sorry or to console oneself. It therefore means "comfort" or "consolation," quite appropriate for his message--one of disaster for Assyria but comfort for Israel.

Identification

Nothing is known about Nahum except what may be deduced from his book, and that is very little. He is mentioned nowhere else in the Bible, and no one else has the name Nahum. Nahum states that he is from the city of Elkosh, but this city is mentioned nowhere else in the Bible and has not been identified with certainty.

Date

Nahum predicted the destruction of Nineveh that occurred in 612 B.C. as a future event. In 3:8 he refers to the fall of Thebes in 661 before the armies of Ashurbanipal (669-626) as a past event. In addition, no king is mentioned in 1:1; this fact points to the reign of Manasseh (686-642) rather than Josiah (640-609), who almost certainly would have been mentioned. Many conservative scholars take the date of Nahum's prophecy to be around 654 or 650. If this is correct, Nahum prophesied the fall of this proud capital during the height of its power, some 40 years in advance.

Theme

The theme of Nahum's prophecy is the fall of Nineveh. This theme involves three aspects: (1) the book is a sequel to Jonah (cf. 1:2-3 with Jonah 4:2); (2) Nahum predicts the destruction of Nineveh; and (3) his message is intended as a comfort to Israel. Gleason Archer, A Survey of Old Testament Introduction, p. 352, offers the following summary: Nahum emphasizes the holiness of God, which involves both just retribution and compassion on his own people, who are depicted as rejoicing in God's righteous vindication of his holiness in the destruction of the God-defying power of Assyria.

Points of Special Interest in Nahum

The Remarkable Prediction of Nahum 2:6

As part of a rather graphic passage in Nahum, verse 2:6 states,

"The gates of the rivers are opened,
And the palace is dissolved."

This is a remarkably accurate prediction. Subsequent history records that the heavily fortified city of Nineveh withstood the seige laid against it by the Medes and the Babylonians for about three months, but then an unusually severe flood of the Tigris River carried away part of the great wall and allowed the attackers entrance into the city.

Nahum ends with one of the most sobering statements in the Bible. Here is how all the nations of the Near East responded to the destruction of Nineveh (3:19):

"There is no relief for your breakdown,
Your wound is incurable.
All who hear about you
Will clap their hands over you,
For on whom has not your evil passed continually?"

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