Slices
Prepare
Imagine your life as a rollercoaster. Do you feel God with you in the most frightening parts of the ride? Thank him for bringing you safely through turmoil and challenges.
Bible passage
1 A prophecy concerning Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.
The Lord’s anger against Nineveh
2 The Lord is a jealous and avenging God;
the Lord takes vengeance and is filled with wrath.
The Lord takes vengeance on his foes
and vents his wrath against his enemies.
3 The Lord is slow to anger but great in power;
the Lord will not leave the guilty unpunished.
His way is in the whirlwind and the storm,
and clouds are the dust of his feet.
4 He rebukes the sea and dries it up;
he makes all the rivers run dry.
Bashan and Carmel wither
and the blossoms of Lebanon fade.
5 The mountains quake before him
and the hills melt away.
The earth trembles at his presence,
the world and all who live in it.
6 Who can withstand his indignation?
Who can endure his fierce anger?
His wrath is poured out like fire;
the rocks are shattered before him.
7 The Lord is good,
a refuge in times of trouble.
He cares for those who trust in him,
8 but with an overwhelming flood
he will make an end of Nineveh;
he will pursue his foes into the realm of darkness.
9 Whatever they plot against the Lord
he will bring to an end;
trouble will not come a second time.
10 They will be entangled among thorns
and drunk from their wine;
they will be consumed like dry stubble.
11 From you, Nineveh, has one come forth
who plots evil against the Lord
and devises wicked plans.
12 This is what the Lord says:
‘Although they have allies and are numerous,
they will be destroyed and pass away.
Although I have afflicted you, Judah,
I will afflict you no more.
13 Now I will break their yoke from your neck
and tear your shackles away.’
14 The Lord has given a command concerning you, Nineveh:
‘You will have no descendants to bear your name.
I will destroy the images and idols
that are in the temple of your gods.
I will prepare your grave,
for you are vile.’
15 Look, there on the mountains,
the feet of one who brings good news,
who proclaims peace!
Celebrate your festivals, Judah,
and fulfil your vows.
No more will the wicked invade you;
they will be completely destroyed.
Explore
I’ve never been on a rollercoaster, but this passage resonates with images I’ve seen of them. They are scary! There is rapid acceleration through the first six verses as God’s anger builds up through natural forces. The earth itself trembles (v 5). Then there is a little – but significant – pause in verse 7. An oasis in the storm. God cares for all who trust in him. Then momentum picks up again. God really is on the warpath against the warmongering, idolatrous Nineveh (of Jonah fame more than a century earlier) – and heaven help his foes (v 8)! Another pause in verse 15: peace at last.
How would we survive in life without the pauses, the times when we can be sheltered from the forces and storms around us? Would we cope without God’s care? Sometimes, it’s hard to accept our peace when we know others elsewhere are suffering.
In our rollercoaster lives we can be flung battered onto the pause. Sometimes we have to make a determined effort to breathe and take in a little piece of God’s goodness before we are off again.
Respond
Take time out today to pause and pray for someone you know who needs the promise of calm and security in their lives. Ask God to show you how you might be a place of refuge for them.
Deeper Bible study
‘The Lord is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished’.1 Reflect on how these qualities interact.
Nahum begins with a hymn describing various qualities of God (vs 2–7). This spells bad news for Nineveh, God’s enemies who ‘plot against’ him (vs 8–11); but good news for Judah, God’s people who ‘trust in him’ (vs7, 12–15). One quality burns hot and strong: words like ‘avenging’, ‘vengeance’, ‘wrath’, ‘indignation’ and ‘fierce anger’ portray a God who is clearly good and angry! This is uncomfortable reading for many of us. How do we reconcile this wrathful figure with our God of love? God’s wrath must be understood as ‘the holy revulsion of God’s being against that which is the contradiction of his holiness.’2 God’s anger isn’t opposed to his holiness but flows out of it. It is holy anger.
God’s anger comes with an unwavering commitment to justice. When Paul commands, ‘Do not take revenge’, he adds, ‘Leave room for God’s wrath’.3 We are not to take justice into our own hands but must pin our hopes on a God who will not leave the guilty unpunished. God is slow to anger and his anger isn’t manifested in an irrational or impulsive outburst. Even with his enemies and evildoers, God remains patient, ‘not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance’.4 Yet, this slowness is neither indifference nor impotence, for God is also ‘great in power’ (v 3). Lord Acton wrote, ‘Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely’.5 Paul, writing to the Ephesians, warned, ‘Be angry but do not sin’.6 Human anger does often lead us into temptation and sin, but God’s absolute power is governed by his absolute goodness: ‘The Lord is good’ (v 7). God is both angry and good!
‘Anger done right is a great good. It says, “that’s wrong” and acts to protect the innocent and helpless ... God, who is good and does good, expresses good anger for a good cause.’7
1 Num 14:18 2 J Murray, Romans, Eerdmans, 2018, p89 3 Rom 12:19 4 2 Pet 3:9 5 in a letter to Bishop Mandell Creigton, 5 April 1887 6 Eph 4:26, NRSV 7 D Powlison, Good and Angry, New Growth, 2016
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: 1 Samuel 27,28; 1 Corinthians 1
Pray for Scripture Union
Pray for the SU Board consisting of Trustees and Leadership Team as they meet today, asking for discernment and wisdom as they consider the movement plan for 2023–24 looking at the best ways to progress the Revealing Jesus strategy.
