Broken Threads of Power (Nahum 3:14-19

14 Draw thee water for the siege; strengthen thy fortresses; go into the clay, and tread the mortar; make strong the brickkiln.

A. Nahum warns ahead of time that the Assyrians should begin preparations for the siege even though God has decreed its destruction.  The reason for this being that it is human nature, even with the Word of God so blatantly declared, to rely on man-made solutions to spiritual problems.  If Nineveh had repented at Nahum's prophecy the way they did to Jonah's (because the declarations of Jonah were just as bleak), God surely would have turned away His wrath and give them another chance.  

15 There shall the fire devour thee; the sword shall cut thee off; it shall devour thee like the canker-worm: make thyself many as the canker-worm; make thyself many as the locust.

A.  It does not matter how many or how strong the preparations, the fire of God's wrath will tear them down with ease.  

B.  Locusts come in overwhelming numbers.  They are an unstoppable force that devastate every habitat they enter.  This is similar to the way sin works in our lives.  One or two small issues may not show up on the radar or do any real damage, but when our lives becomes plagued with them we are quickly overcome by them.

C.  Nahum yet again tells the Ninevites to prepare further by multiplying themselves like locusts.  Yet again he is pointing out that man made solutions will have no effect on the declared plans of God.  They can build stronger fortifications, and they can raise up great armies and multiply, but God's fire will still accomplish what it comes to do.

16 Thou hast multiplied thy merchants above the stars of heaven: the canker-worm ravageth, and fleeth away.

A.  Nahum is added a third thread to the supposed strength of Nineveh.  First the strength of walls, then the strength of armies, and now the strength of the massive amount of finances the lubricated the engine of war.  Every aspect of the city would be swallowed into darkness.

B.  The Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown commentary says the following, "Nineveh, by large canals, had easy access to Babylon; and it was one of the great routes for the people of the west and northwest to that city; lying on the Tigris it had access to the sea. The Phoenicians carried its wares everywhere. Hence its merchandise is so much spoken of."

17 Thy princes are as the locusts, and thy marshals as the swarms of grasshoppers, which encamp in the hedges in the cold day, but when the sun ariseth they flee away, and their place is not known where they are.

 A.  "Princes" in the Amplified Version is also frequently translated "crowned ones".  This is because during the time of Assyria it wasn't just the King or princes who wore crowns, but in fact  many governing leaders and officials wore different types of crowns to designate rank.

These crowned princes put on quite a show of strength when the nation seemed strong, but fled like locusts when the enemy came.

18 Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria; thy nobles are at rest; thy people are scattered upon the mountains, and there is none to gather them.

A.  The shepherds, those who of all the Ninevites should have known to see the times and repent to God for their sin.  The blood of that nation is on them more than anyone else.  They had the history of the days of Jonah not far behind and surely saw their nation quickly abandoning what had been instilled by the Word of God, but they chose instead of embrace Dagon their other false gods.  It was because of their heathen and selfish choices that their people were scattered on the mountains, that no one came to save them.

19 There is no assuaging of thy hurt: thy wound is grievous: all that hear the report of thee clap their hands over thee; for upon whom hath not thy wickedness passed continually?

A.  If any prophecy is true it is this one.  Nineveh was wounded and destroyed, and to this day has never been rebuilt.  It is a mere tourist attraction with no semblance of the world dominating throne it once contained.  

B.  Nineveh, as is always the case with world powers, was a source of every kind of sin.  They harlotry, thievery, lies, deception, murders, and other heinous sins they and their king taught and promoted spread like a sickness, and it cost them their nation.

This study was done using the Amplified Bible, which I don't have permission to publish, so I will replace the verses here with the American Standard Version.  Because of that some of the comments may not totally make sense because the AMP has expanded explanations.  I would highly recommend going to a site like BibleGateway.com where you can read the AMP version for free.

Ashurbanipal - Lion Slayer? (Nahum 2:6-13)

This study was done using the Amplified Bible, which I don't have permission to publish, so I will replace the verses here with the American Standard Version.  Because of that some of the comments may not totally make sense because the AMP has expanded explanations.  I would highly recommend going to a site like BibleGateway.com where you can read the AMP version for free.

6 The gates of the rivers are opened, and the palace is dissolved.

     A.  Despite the great efforts of the Ninevites to survive and fight back, God's judgement and the prophecy of Nahum was unstoppable.  According to John Gill, the rivers here are, "Of Diava and Adiava, or Lycus and Caprus, between which, according to some writers (i), Nineveh was situated; or the gates of the city, which lay nearest to the river Tigris, are meant; or that river itself, the plural for the singular, which overflowing, broke down the walls of the city for two and a half miles, and opened a way for the Medes and Chaldeans to enter in...".  It was the overflowing of the river Tigris that truly sealed the fate of the Ninevites.  They could have possibly fought for longer and held off the powerful attack the the Babylonians had it not been for the flooding that destroyed their walls.

7 And it is decreed: she is uncovered, she is carried away; and her handmaids moan as with the voice of doves, beating upon their breasts.

It is decreed.  Once God decrees something, there is nothing that can stop it.  Not the largest armies, wisest men, or thickest walls. 

Some translations have the word Huzzab instead of "She".  This is because Hebrew word "Huzzab" means "Appointed", and there has been debate as to whether Huzzab is the name of the queen, who would have very likely been taken captive as was the custom in those days, or is this referring to Nineveh itself.  This is unknown for sure, however in my opinion the fact that this passage specifically refers to "her maids" makes me lean toward Huzzab indeed being the queen.

8 But Nineveh hath been from of old like a pool of water: yet they flee away. Stand, stand, they cry; but none looketh back.

    A.  Nineveh as a standing pool is an reference to the age of the city, Nineveh was founded by Nimrod (Genesis 10:11) the great hunter before the Lord.  It had been strong for a very long time, but now, even with such deep roots the people fled in chaos.  The bravest of their champions called for them to stand their ground, but they would not listen even to them.

9 Take ye the spoil of silver, take the spoil of gold; for there is no end of the store, the glory of all goodly furniture.

   A.  It is truly incredible the accuracy of Nahum's description of what would happen. Babylonian accounts of the siege of Nineveh describe that they actually stopped their advance toward the city because the surrounding temples and villages were so full of plunder, they decided to take their times and divvy it up before making their way into the main city.

   B.  According to Gordon Franz*, "Nineveh was the Fort Knox of mid-seventh century BC Mesopotamia. On every Assyrian campaign they removed the silver, gold and precious stones and other items from the cities they sacked. When they bragged about the booty that was taken, silver and gold always topped the list. As an example, after the fall of No-Amon (Thebes), Ashurbanipal bragged that he took:

Silver, gold, precious stones, the goods of his palace, all there was, brightly colored and linen garments, great horses, the people, male and female, two tall obelisks...I removed from their positions and carried them off to Assyria. Heavy plunder, and countless, I carried away from Ni’ [Thebes] (Luckenbill 1989, 2:296,)

* Source: Associates For Biblical Research (http://www.biblearchaeology.org/), Bible and Spade Magazine.

10 She is empty, and void, and waste; and the heart melteth, and the knees smite together, and anguish is in all loins, and the faces of them all are waxed pale.

A.  There is no doubt that this is truly what became the fate of Nineveh.  Utter destruction.  To this day it is still nothing but dust and ruins.  The three Hebrew words for, "Emptiness! Desolation! Utter waste!" Are Bukah, Mebukah, Mebullakah, and are intense, definitive words meant to signify the ominous climax to the battle.

11 Where is the den of the lions, and the feeding-place of the young lions, where the lion and the lioness walked, the lion's whelp, and none made them afraid?

Nineveh was such a powerful city, the crown of a world dominating nation that it is entirely appropriate to compare it to a lion's den.  Assyrian Kings were also expected to be men of great bravery, and lion hunting is often depicted in their art.  Pictured here is an artifact from the British Museum taken from the dig of Nineveh's North Palace.  Here were see Ashurbanipal on a royal lion hunt.  

12 The lion did tear in pieces enough for his whelps, and strangled for his lionesses, and filled his caves with prey, and his dens with ravin.

A.  Nineveh, the lion was the source of power, strength, and wealth for all of Assyria.  As Gordon Franz* stated, it was the Fort Knox of the nation.  Out of it the military decisions to conquer and destroy others came, and the spoils of those conquests were then brought back to the city.

*Source: Associates For Biblical Research (http://www.biblearchaeology.org/), Bible and Spade Magazine.

13 Behold, I am against thee, saith Jehovah of hosts, and I will burn her chariots in the smoke, and the sword shall devour thy young lions; and I will cut off thy prey from the earth, and the voice of thy messengers shall no more be heard.

 God says He will burn the chariots of Nineveh in smoke.  The fires that will burn the city will be so great that the heat from just the smoke will be enough to cook the famous chariots and their riders.

John Wesley states, "Thy messengers - Ambassadors or muster - masters. Probably this refers to Rabshakeh who had blasphemed the living God. Those are not worthy to be heard again, that have once spoken reproachfully against God."