Sunday school: God's Judgement of the Nations (Nahum)

Main Point: All who seek refuge in Jesus will be saved.

Intro Option 2:

Give each student a note card and pen

God is for you; He is not against you

In today’s session, we will be looking at the book of Nahum.

There is a group of people who God is against because they have made themselves God’s enemies

But we are not God’s enemies

God made us His children

Make a list of areas where you need to be reminded that God is for you:

Family

Schoolwork

Relationships

Etc.

When things go bad in one of these areas, we need to remember that God is always for us. Whatever He allows to happen is meant for our ultimate good, even when it involves short-term struggle.

Body:

1. The Lord will judge the guilty

Alright; let’s talk about what is going on in Nahum

The Assyrian empire was a mighty nation that conquered the ten northern tribes of Israel

Nineveh was its capital city, where God had sent Jonah with a message to turn from sin.

And you may remember that initially, they did.

But the revival didn’t last.

The evil of Nineveh grew, and God was now bringing judgement upon this violent and wicked empire.

Nahum 1:1–6 (ESV)

An oracle concerning Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum of Elkosh.

The Lord is a jealous and avenging God;

the Lord is avenging and wrathful;

the Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries

and keeps wrath for his enemies.

The Lord is slow to anger and great in power,

and the Lord will by no means clear the guilty.

His way is in whirlwind and storm,

and the clouds are the dust of his feet.

He rebukes the sea and makes it dry;

he dries up all the rivers;

Bashan and Carmel wither;

the bloom of Lebanon withers.

The mountains quake before him;

the hills melt;

the earth heaves before him,

the world and all who dwell in it.

Who can stand before his indignation?

Who can endure the heat of his anger?

His wrath is poured out like fire,

and the rocks are broken into pieces by him.

What kind of picture do these verses paint of God?

These verses depict a God of immeasurable fury and wrath.

Nothing is able to withstand His vengeance when he comes to judge-not even nature itself.

Yet, in the middle of these descriptions, we also find these words: “The Lord is slow to anger” (v. 3).

This is a quotation from Ex. 34:6

Commentary: “Nahum based his hope on the presence of God in the world.”

His judgements are fierce, but they are not knee-jerk reactions

They are the just and measured punishments for human sin.

What reason does Nahum give for why God was judging Nineveh?

The reason God was judging Nineveh was because “the Lord will never leave the guilty unpunished” (v. 3).

Commentary: “These verses remind the modern reader of the Book of Nahum that nothing can stand before the Lord.”

God is a righteous judge.

If someone commits a crime, the judge must enforce the sentence.

That doesn’t mean the judge does not love the individual.

He may love the person, but a judge must pass a just sentence.

We expect judges to be committed to what is right based on the law.

And so it is with God.

God loved the Ninevites (see Jonah 4:10-11), but he cannot let the guilty go unpunished

2. The Lord will care for the humble.

Despite the intensity of God’s judgements in the verses before, the tone shifts significantly in verse 7.

It’s not that God has somehow changed from one verse to another.

Instead, He is interacting with people who are relating to Him very differently from the previous verses.

Nahum 1:7–8 (ESV)

The Lord is good,

a stronghold in the day of trouble;

he knows those who take refuge in him.

But with an overflowing flood

he will make a complete end of the adversaries,

and will pursue his enemies into darkness.

How is God described here?

Nahum says God is good and a stronghold of protection.

“The Lord is a refuge… The Lord Himself is the fortified place where people flee in times of danger.”

If the previous verses depict God as a weapon, verse 7 speaks of Him as armor. To the wicked, God is a spear, but for the faithful, He is a shield.

What kind of person finds protection in God?

If the previous verses depict God as a weapon, verse 7 speaks of Him as armor. To the wicked, God is a spear, but for the faithful, He is a shield.

Anyone who humbles themselves and seeks the Lord will find safety.

“Yes, the same powerful God who does these things is good towards those who fear Him.”

“He cares for his people who suffer from the hands of any enemy”

“The Lord is good to all who trust in Him.”

“His trusting people need not fear when God comes in the storms and clouds to wreak his vengeance and wrath on Assyria.”

What might it look like to take refuge in the Lord?

If the Lord is a stronghold for those who seek Him and a refuge for those who look for shelter in Him, then how do we do that?

It begins with a change of attitude towards God.

We must turn from pride and rebellion and embrace humble submission.

If God will not let the guilty go unpunished, then we who have sinned must seek forgiveness through Christ.

To take refuge in the Lord is to acknowledge our own need for His salvation and to turn to Him for grace.

3. The Lord will oppose the wicked.

Nahum 3:1–7 (ESV)

Woe to the bloody city,

all full of lies and plunder—

no end to the prey!

The crack of the whip, and rumble of the wheel,

galloping horse and bounding chariot!

Horsemen charging,

flashing sword and glittering spear,

hosts of slain,

heaps of corpses,

dead bodies without end—

they stumble over the bodies!

And all for the countless whorings of the prostitute,

graceful and of deadly charms,

who betrays nations with her whorings,

and peoples with her charms.

Behold, I am against you,

declares the Lord of hosts,

and will lift up your skirts over your face;

and I will make nations look at your nakedness

and kingdoms at your shame.

I will throw filth at you

and treat you with contempt

and make you a spectacle.

And all who look at you will shrink from you and say,

“Wasted is Nineveh; who will grieve for her?”

Where shall I seek comforters for you?

What is the end result of making yourself an enemy of God?

Nahum gives a horrific explanation of what it looks like to be God’s enemy.

The Lord says in verse 5, “I am against you.”

“Like the harlot (Nah 3:4), Nineveh had seduced the nations.”

“The result would be her destruction.”

“This metaphorical depiction of God’s treatment of Nineveh graphically demonstrates the gravity of the sins of Assyria and the severity of the divine punishment.”

I’m not sure there are many more fearful sentences in the Bible.

To be opposed by God Himself is a certain doom.

The end result will never be good for someone who lives wickedly and finds themselves opposed to God.

Why won’t believers ever face the tragic reality of these verses?

Consider the contrast to Romans 8:31

Romans 8:31 ESV

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

When God is fore you, it doesn’t matter who else is against you.

But if God is against you, what good is it if the whole world is for you?

When you are in Christ, God has committed Himself to be for you forever.

As a Christian you never need to experience the terror of those words: “I am against you.”

Christ Connection:

The prophet Nahum declared that God will now allow the guilty to go unpunished, but He will be a stronghold for all who take refuge in Him.

Our sin has made us guilty before God and deserving of His punishment, but Jesus was given to be our stronghold.

All who seek refuge in Jesus will be saved.

Head: Why is it important to know God is slow to anger?

God does not overreact; He doesn’t respond in anger like we do.

We may have quick tempers, but God is unlike us.

Instead, God is patient.

Know that helps us when we approach passages like this one, where God is pouring out wrath so overwhelmingly.

His judgements are the measured response to evil-bit only once His patience has been thoroughly exhausted and rejected.

Heart: How might these kinds of passages make us more thankful for Jesus?

Passages of severe judgement give us a glimpse into what Jesus did for us.

The severity of divine wrath has poured out upon Christ so that we could receive immeasurable mercy.

Jesus deserves our full gratitude and love for the grace that He has given us through the cross.

Hands: What should we do if we know people who are currently far from God?

God is slow to anger and desires to show mercy to those who will seek refuge in Him.

We ought to be sharing that good news with as many people as possible.

Most people in the world are far from God.

All people are guilty of sin before HIm.

Jesus is the only hope for rescue; He is a refuge and stronghold

Therefore, we should be sharing Jesus with people we know who are far from God.

PRAY