Amos - burden bearer - intro

Good morning all!  God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
   This next study is the book of Amos whose name means "burden" or "burden-bearer" and his prophecy is a great burden from Jehovah concerning the national sin of God's chosen people and their judgment lest they repent.
   Amos 1:1 "The words of Amos, who was among the herdmen of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel, two years before the earthquake."
    As most prophets, Amos gives us a minimum of details concerning himself, now wishing to obscure the message with relatively unimportant details concerning the message.
   "in the days......."  phrase gives us dates of his prophecy by telling who was reigning at that time.  Uzziah in the southern kingdom, Judah, and Jeroboam II in the northern kingdom of Israel.
  "two years before the earthquake" --Earthquakes happen, however, this one must have been severe as it is mention in Zechariah 14:4-5, two hundred years later.  The earthquake is mentioned only in showing God's awesome power over nature, everything, and a warning to the people of Israel.  The earthquake left a reminder in the minds of all the people of Israel as they remembered it 200 years later.  Something passed on generation to generation.
  2 "And he said, The LORD will roar from Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the habitations of the shepherds shall mourn, and the top of Carmel shall wither."
     Joel and Amos describe the LORD as roaring from Zion, however there is a contrast. In Joel Jehovah roars from Zion against Israel's enemies; Amos Jehovah roars from Zion against Israel herself.  Why?
   It is a simple matter of walking in step with God; or, totally out of step-a turning away from God.
     "the habitations of the shepherds shall mourn, and the top of Carmel shall wither." The roaring is associated with the mention of the earthquake and the effect it has upon the shepherd's pastures and the summit of Mount Carmel.  The shepherd's land is in the south, whereas Mount Carmel is in the north.  Mentioning both covers the entire land affected, both will dry up, and the land will be pretty much destroyed by Jehovah's roaring.
     This is an intro to Amos and tomorrow we will begin studying His, God's, judgment upon the nations. Hang it there.  It gets more interesting as we go. Thanks for reading. Love you all.
In Christ's Love and Grace
   Johnny

Who is Amos? From Encyclopaedia Britannica

Good morning all!  God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
   Who is Amos? Today, we will look at the facts around Amos before we start the study. 

Written by The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica

    Amos,  (flourished 8th century bc), the first Hebrew prophet to have a biblical book named for him. He accurately foretold the destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel (although he did not specify Assyria as the cause) and, as a prophet of doom, anticipated later Old Testament prophets.
The little that is known about Amos’ life has been gleaned from his book, which was, in all likelihood, partly or wholly compiled by other hands. A native of Tekoa (now a ruin), 12 miles (19 km) south of Jerusalem, Amos flourished during the reigns of King Uzziah (c. 783–742 bc) of Judah (the southern kingdom) and King Jeroboam II (c. 786–746 bc) of Israel. By occupation, he was a shepherd; whether he was merely that or a man of some means is not certain. He actually preached for only a short time.
Under the impact of powerful visions of divine destruction of the Hebrews in such natural disasters as a swarm of locusts and fire, Amos traveled from Judah to the neighbouring richer, more powerful kingdom of Israel, where he began to preach. The time is uncertain, but the Book of Amos puts the date as two years before an earthquake that may have occurred in 750 bc. Amos fiercely castigated corruption and social injustice among Israel’s pagan neighbours, Israel itself, and Judah; he asserted God’s absolute sovereignty over man; and he predicted the imminent destruction of Israel and Judah. After preaching at Bethel, a famous shrine under the special protection of Jeroboam II, Amos was ordered to leave the country by Jeroboam’s priest Amaziah. Thereafter his fate is unknown.
From his book, Amos emerges as a thoughtful, probably well-traveled man of fierce integrity, who possessed a poet’s gift for homely but forceful imagery and rhythmic language. So distinctive is his style of expression that in many instances the reader can distinguish those portions genuinely by Amos from parts probably invented by others, such as the concluding, optimistic section foretelling the restoration of the Davidic kingdom.
As a theologian, Amos believed that God’s absolute sovereignty over man compelled social justice for all men, rich and poor alike. Not even God’s chosen people were exempt from this fiat, and even they had to pay the penalty for breaking it; hence, Amos also believed in a moral order transcending nationalistic interests.

In Christ's Love and Grace
  Johnny
 

Where are the leaders? Where did the people go? Nahum 3:17-19

Good morning my dear friends!  God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
   We are looking at the end of Nahum.  Just a history note - what would your reaction be, or how would you feel if you were gone from your home area for a short time and when you returned -- IT WAS NO MORE!?
   1992Cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev returned to Earth from the Mir space station after a 10-month stay, during which his native country, the Soviet Union, ceased to exist.  Wow!  No more Soviet Union - how would you feel had this been you?
    This is what Nahum is telling Nineveh is going to happen - they will cease to exist.  They don't believe him.  If I told you America was going to cease to exist -- would you believe me?  Probably not!  Same type of situation and reaction.   

    ¹⁷ Thy crowned are as the locusts, and thy captains as the great grasshoppers, which camp in the hedges in the cold day, but when the sun ariseth they flee away, and their place is not known where they are.

    The leaders of the day in Nineveh were concerned only about their own wealth and not the needs of the people. Hmm - sound familiar? This is compared to locusts and grasshoppers - who ravage at night and go away in the day.  Can you spell A P A T H Y ?
   ¹⁸ Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria: thy nobles shall dwell in the dust: thy people is scattered upon the mountains, and no man gathereth them.
    This is simply saying the nobles, the officials are experiencing death and the people are fleeing to the mountains and Nineveh is captured by the invaders.  No one to stand tall and fight.  
    ¹⁹ There is no healing of thy bruise; thy wound is grievous: all that hear the bruit of thee shall clap the hands over thee: for upon whom hath not thy wickedness passed continually?
  Nineveh is receiving the death blow and no one will come to her aid. They hear the "bruit" (Heb Sheima meaning report) and all will rejoice.  Remember, Nineveh was an evil Assyrian city of 600,000+ and were cruel, even to their own people.
    If you do not take anything away from this study please remember a couple of things.  God is always faithful to His own people (today's Christians); any nation that oppresses God's people seals its own death warrant.  God promised Abraham that He would bless the one who blessed him and would curse the one who cursed him.  Nineveh was a great oppressor of God's people, judged and condemned.  Look around today -- do you see this happening not just in America, but al over the world?  IN GOD WE TRUST!!  Love you all.
In Christ's Love and Grace
    Johnny

Prepare, the enemy comes, yet it is to no avail! Nahum 3: 14-16

Good morning all!  God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
    Nahum 3:14-16 "¹⁴ Draw thee waters for the siege, fortify thy strong holds: go into clay, and tread the morter, make strong the brickkiln.
  Nahum know it is all in vain, yet he urges Nineveh to prepare for a long battle.  They will need two things to survive - water for life & bricks to repair damage to the wall to hold off the invading armies.
    ¹⁵ There shall the fire devour thee; the sword shall cut thee off, it shall eat thee up like the cankerworm: make thyself many as the cankerworm, make thyself many as the locusts.
  However, all preparations will be futile as the enemy will be victorious and will destroy the city by fire, mercilessly slaying its citizens.  The enemy will take Nineveh just as the cankerworm devours a plant.
   The population of Nineveh was about 600,000 at this time, and Nahum is comparing their vast population to the locusts - when locusts come there are many, MANY!
    ¹⁶ Thou hast multiplied thy merchants above the stars of heaven: the cankerworm spoileth, and fleeth away.
  This verse is simply saying the city has sold out to wealth, they were successful in moving from spirituality after Jonah to materialistic now.  the cankerworm, or the conquerors would take their spoil or wealth and flee away with it. 
   In saying all this, basically, Nahum was finishing up by saying, Uh, Nineveh, you are in deep trouble and you better watch out.  See any parallels with, uh, America?  Share the word of Jesus Christ with one person today and see what a difference it will make in YOU!  Love you all.
In Christ's Love and Grace
   Johnny
 

Nineveh will experience destruction, annihilation, destroyed! Nahum 3:11-13

Good morning my fellow Christians! God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!
     Do you carry the title "Christian" lightly -- oh, yes, I am a Christian.  Or do you carry it in a way pleasing to God - Yes, I AM a CHRISTIAN, I would like to invite you to church!  Hmmmm!
   Nahum 3: ¹¹ Thou also shalt be drunken: thou shalt be hid, thou also shalt seek strength because of the enemy.
 Nineveh will share in the same destruction as she delivered to No-amon (Thebes); and since Nineveh showed the same character as that of Egypt, her destruction will be equally as bad.
   Thou also shalt be drunken - could refer to the drunken orgy the nobles were having, but some authorities refer to it as the drunkenness that results from having drunk the cup of God's wrath.
   Thou shalt be hid -- from God's wrath Nineveh will go into extinction.  This is true until the 19th century archeological discoveries brought to surface some of the marvel of her past.
   Thou also shalt seek strength because of the enemy -- this is in exact opposite of Thebes that Nineveh ravaged; Nineveh will find no strength, no help, no allies.
     ¹² All thy strong holds shall be like fig trees with the firstripe figs: if they be shaken, they shall even fall into the mouth of the eater.
    This verse simply describes the ease in which the city will fall.  Just like a fig tree that, when shaken, easily gives up their rip figs.  The strongholds, or defenses of Nineveh fall into the hands of the Medo-Babylonian army.
    ¹³ Behold, thy people in the midst of thee are women: the gates of thy land shall be set wide open unto thine enemies: the fire shall devour thy bars.
    The terror brought by the hordes of the invading army caused the hearts of the men to be faint like women.  This is not derogatory toward women, but you have to remember the era of the prophet.  The women were helpless victims of warfare and this is how helpless the defenders were before the onslaught of the invaders. The result?
    The gates of they land shall be set wide open -- so the enemy had easy access through the breach in the wall (a 5 mile section) and entered easily.  The invaders destroyed by fire what the overflowing waters of the Tigris did not destroy.  Wow!  A coincidence?  I don't think so......God was angry, mad.  And if God ain't happy, ain't nobody going to be happy.  Love you all.
  In Christ's Love and Grace
     Johnny
 

How great art thou allies? Greater than God? Read on in Nahum 3:8-10

Good morning all! God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!
   Chapter 3 of Nahum is titled, in some Bibles, as Nineveh sowed, so must she reap.  Have you thought about this and your life.  If you have to reap what you have sowed, it is sweet bread and honey? Or, is it stale, rotten bread with vinegar?  Hmmm!!  Now, may you find the next 3 verses as interesting as did I.
     ⁸ Art thou better than populous No, that was situate among the rivers, that had the waters round about it, whose rampart was the sea, and her wall was from the sea?
    Okay, "No" is a city located between canals of the Nile and is the modern day city of Luxor.  "No" or "Thebes" and sometimes "No-amon" was doomed because of their evil and wickedness.  It was the capital city of Upper Egypt for the Pharaohs of the 18th, 19th, and 20th Egyptian dynasties.  It was a great city with many cultural advantages and architectural wonders.
   ⁹ Ethiopia and Egypt were her strength, and it was infinite; Put and Lubim were thy helpers.  
Thebes had one great advantage over Nineveh - allies!  Allies whom she could count on in time of trouble.  You know Ethiopia and Egypt; Lubim would be Libya and Put a country located in eastern Africa close to Ethiopia, possibly modern day Somaliland.  
   The difference here is No could call for help and it would come; Nineveh could not as she had no allies.  What is being said here is, that, in spite of the great strength of "No" and her allies the Assyrian strength was greater and God used Assyria's strength to conquer "No".
    Understand the Assyrians were barbarously cruel when conquering Thebes (No). Look at this verse and see how it makes one cringe.  ¹⁰ Yet was she carried away, she went into captivity: her young children also were dashed in pieces at the top of all the streets: and they cast lots for her honourable men, and all her great men were bound in chains.
   Children dashed to pieces in the streets, they cast lots or gambled over who would have the honorable men as their slaves, all the noble men were bound in chains bringing about indignity to them.  Wow! What God is saying is quite powerful here.
    Now matter you strength, Nineveh, Thebes with allies, when God is against you and your evil ways ----- face it ---- you are doomed.  Many people will look at the events and just relate it to mankind, nature, or coincidences of the world.  Do you really believe this?  Who is in control, really? Jehovah!
   Commercial break - want to see where America is going? Read the Bible and Harbinger (by Jonathan Cahn) and see what is happening right in front of us today and continuing. Love you all.
In Christ's Love and Grace
   Johnny

God ain't happy Nineveh, ya better watch out! Nahum 3:1-7

Good morning all!  God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
   Okay, where are we now?  Jonah went to Nineveh preaching repent; they did; they were spared; now Nahum is telling his vision; destruction; Nineveh repents not; Tigris overflows; the 60 mile wall and palace collapse; Medo-Babylonians take possession-killing, robbing, and destroying.  Read the note at the bottom. Today may be a little lengthy, but trying to finish Nahum this week.
    3 Woe to the bloody city! it is all full of lies and robbery; the prey departeth not; The citizens of Nineveh preyed upon one another and upon other nations; grabbing, grasping, never returning, unkept promises, alliances betrayed. This city was marked by greed and violence as a way of life.
² The noise of a whip, and the noise of the rattling of the wheels, and of the pransing horses, and of the jumping chariots.
³ The horseman lifteth up both the bright sword and the glittering spear: and there is a multitude of slain, and a great number of carcases; and there is none end of their corpses; they stumble upon their corpses: It is interesting here that what is described here is the way they would conquer, and now this is the way they are conquered.  Whips, chariots, horses, swords, spears, and many are slain. So many they fall over the dead.  Nineveh was estimated at 600,000 people with many many slain.  Can you even imagine?! 
⁴ Because of the multitude of the whoredoms of the wellfavoured harlot, the mistress of witchcrafts, that selleth nations through her whoredoms, and families through her witchcrafts.       
     The reason all this fell on Nineveh is because of her moral defects in not only sexual perversion, but in the worship of the occult.  With the nations Nineveh conquered her immoral practices, sexual deviation, and occult worship became the norm.   What comes next is soul shattering.
   ⁵ Behold, I am against thee, saith the Lord of hosts; and I will discover thy skirts upon thy face, and I will shew the nations thy nakedness, and the kingdoms thy shame.          This first line - "I am against thee" says who?  the LORD of hosts, God.  Guess who ain't happy at this time? Yep, they have POed God!! OOPS!!  The last part, skirts upon thy face, nakedness, shame -- meaning Nineveh will be humiliated such as keeping in accordance with her defection from God.  Everything about her will be known to the world, nothing kept secret.
   ⁶ And I will cast abominable filth upon thee, and make thee vile, and will set thee as a gazingstock.   Nineveh will be treated as an object of contempt and disgrace.
  ⁷ And it shall come to pass, that all they that look upon thee shall flee from thee, and say, Nineveh is laid waste: who will bemoan her? whence shall I seek comforters for thee?       As a result of God's judgment on Nineveh, all who look upon her will flee so they will not be part of the judgment.  No one will mourn the fall of Nineveh, come to comfort her, or console her.  Why? Nineveh was not friendly, but cruel to all; showing no mercy when they were in need--therefore, she will receive nothing in her hour of need.  Wow!!
    Okay, this is the note at the bottom.  After studying Jonah and Nahum, read the book by Jonathan Cahn -- Harbinger!  The place where Nineveh was (Iraq) and after 9/11 we sent troops to fight terrorist (which is what Nineveh was) they set up camp near two mounds of earth, in Iraq(old Nineveh) on the location where Nineveh once stood.  Interesting?  Read the book. Love you all.
In Christ's Love and Grace
   Johnny
 
  

Devoured and disappeared! Nineveh? Nahum 2:11-13

Good morning all! God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
   Well, Jonah warned Nineveh, Nahum warned Nineveh--the difference they heeded Jonah's warning; they did not heed Nahum's and now they are fleeing frightened animals in the wilderness.  Running here and there, just looking for safety, somewhere.
    Nahum 2: ¹¹ Where is the dwelling of the lions, and the feeding place of the young lions, where the lion, even the old lion, walked, and the lion's whelp, and none made them afraid?
 ¹² The lion did tear in pieces enough for his whelps, and strangled for his lionesses, and filled his holes with prey, and his dens with ravin.
  What is Nahum saying to us?  Nahum sees the prophecy of destruction as already fulfilled and is asking where the mighty power of the great Nineveh is.  The captor and all the forth coming generations will wonder this same thing.  History shows that armies marched over the site of Nineveh and never realized that area was once the mighty fortress city of Nineveh.
  The figure of the lion and lionesses providing prey for the cubs is a figurative representation of the violence that characterized Assyria's history and feat in battle.   
¹³ Behold, I am against thee, saith the Lord 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.
 Nahum explains why he can see the destruction.  It is because Jehovah is against Nineveh and He will burn her war chariots with fire and slay her people with the sword.  He will drive them into extinction.  This is true as we look at the records of history.  Assyria had dared to challenge the people of God and did experience the wrath of God in the fulfillment of God's word originally given to Abraham (Gen 12:1-3).
  In chapter 3 we will see the 3 reasons that justify the doom of Nineveh.  Hope you are gaining something from this study.  It is helping me to grow and understand more.  If you don't take time during the day for God, for prayer, you are missing a blessing. Love you all.
  In Christ's Love and Grace
   Johnny

And then came a great fall! Not Humpety-Dumptey but Nineveh Nahum 2:8-10

Good morning all!  God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
    Where is God when you need Him?   He is right where He always is; it is YOU that MOVED!  Food for thought.
   I stated last time that 1/2 mile of Nineveh's wall collapsed of which I was in error; A stadia being 400 meters and losing 20 means 5 miles of the fortified wall collapsed due to the Tigris River overflowing.
    Nahum 2: ⁸ But Nineveh is of old like a pool of water: yet they shall flee away. Stand, stand, shall they cry; but none shall look back.
   Nineveh is now overcome by water and it becomes a pool.  All the worthies, aka people or citizens can only think of escaping.  They run, they scatter, they are getting out of there.  The leaders of Nineveh urge the people to stay and fight, but nope, all they want to do is get to safety.  Each citizen now is only concerned for their own welfare.
   If you look at all Nineveh has gone through, the changes, from repenting with Jonah and being a God fearing city to a totally pagan city with evil and the turning away from God and you compare that to the U.S.A. and where we began to where we are today ---do you see a parallel?  If God is as patient with America as He was with Nineveh we have this century to get right or fall.
   Nahum 2: ⁹ Take ye the spoil of silver, take the spoil of gold: for there is none end of the store and glory out of all the pleasant furniture.
 Nahum, in his vision, is now talking to the captures.  Take it all, take everything, leave nothing behind. There is plenty for all, an abundance of treasures.
Nahum 2:¹⁰ She is empty, and void, and waste: and the heart melteth, and the knees smite together, and much pain is in all loins, and the faces of them all gather blackness.
   When the invading armies has finished their work; gorged themselves on Nineveh's treasure, the city will be left empty of treasure, being completely destroyed.  The people, the citizens are stunned and in grief; standing in shock over what has happened as they thought they were invincible.
   Arrogance, pride, treasures of the land, leniency in worship and serving pagan gods -- does this ring a familiar gong to you, my fellow Christian?  Love you all.
In Christ's Love and Grace
  Johnny
 

Get the sand bags! The wall, the palace, they are falling! Nahum 2:5-7

Good morning all!  God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
  Wow!  Already today is a wonderful day that the LORD hath made.  Let us rejoice and be glad. If you are interested in interesting facts in the Bible go to Christianity - Thoughts by Johnny and do the page before you.  Okay, now back to Nahum, Sennacherib and Nineveh.
    Okay, Sennacherib is scared, angry, and determined to defeat the attacking army. Verse ⁵ He shall recount his worthies: they shall stumble in their walk; they shall make haste to the wall thereof, and the defence shall be prepared.  
  The king's "worthies" are his nobles and military leaders and he is counting on them and what happens?  They stumbled - the ancient historian Diodorus Siculus tells us they they were involved in drunken carousings and very unprepared.  Excavations portrays them, kings, queens, court and all as reclining, relaxing, and toasting one another.
   Then, "they shall make haste to the wall thereof, and the defence shall be prepared."  In this call to arms the nobles are trying to make it to the wall, the cities primary defense.  The wall around Nineveh seemed to be something no one could break through.  It was 60 miles long and had 1500 towers which were 200 feet high.  Normally, any military could not normally penetrate such a massive wall; however, this is not a normal battle - God is involved.
   What happened next is not something anyone would even think could happen.  The Greek historian Diodorus notes an old prophecy that Nineveh would only be taken if the Tigris River became its enemy.  
⁶ The gates of the rivers shall be opened, and the palace shall be dissolved.
        Well, guess what, yep, due to divine intervention the river overflowed its banks, washed away the foundations of the palace, and washed away the wall for twenty stadia.
  What is a stadia?  The STADIA was the length of the first athletic foot race event of the Olympiads. Because the length of most all sport stadium playing fields worldwide measure at 100 yards (or about 304 feet, or 1/20th of a nautical mile), the original STADIA is probably about 100 meters -- and not the assumed measurement of about 608 feet, or 1/10th of a nautical mile, as stated in many dictionaries.   Twenty stadia is about 1/2 mile.  Now the Medo-Babylonian horde had easy access to the city.  Wow!
⁷ And Huzzab shall be led away captive, she shall be brought up, and her maids shall lead her as with the voice of doves, tabering upon their breasts.
  Huzzab some experts think is the queen of Nineveh, others believe it refers to the city of Nineveh. Her "maids" refers to the citizens of Nineveh and the beating of their chests denotes frustration, fear, anguish, and all concerned with defeat.  God warned, slow to anger -- about 300 years God dealt with this city and her iniquities.  Love you all.
In Christ's Love and Grace
   Johnny

     

Here comes the judge, and He is armed! Nahum 2: 2-4

Good morning my friend!  God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
   Nahum 2:^2" For the Lord hath turned away the excellency of Jacob, as the excellency of Israel: for the emptiers have emptied them out, and marred their vine branches."
     Assyria took Israel captive and ravaged Judah.  Now, the LORD, our GOD, is not happy and about to get its just reward to the Assyrians for what they have done.  In Genesis12:3 God gave a promise that He would bless Israel and curse them that curseth Israel.  Look out Assyria, Nineveh, Big Daddy is mad and coming your way.
  
³ The shield of his mighty men is made red, the valiant men are in scarlet: the chariots shall be with flaming torches in the day of his preparation, and the fir trees shall be terribly shaken."
   Let me put this in today's language:  the men (soldiers) are armed and ready, the tanks are fueled and full of ammo, and the shields against the enemies weapons are in place. 

⁴ The chariots shall rage in the streets, they shall justle one against another in the broad ways: they shall seem like torches, they shall run like the lightnings.
      This verse shows the ease with which they invade the city. Moving quickly about, so fast with their torches, they look like lightening to the prophet.  They move so fast and freely that they run into one another during this quest.
   Can you say, "If Daddy ain't happy, ain't nobody going to be happy!"  (like mama ain't happy).  When God has finally become angry the tide will turn, things will happen, and consequences will be dealt out justly.  Love you all.
In Christ's Love and Grace
    Johnny

Warning! Warning! An attack is coming! Nahum 1:15; 2:1

Good morning all! God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
   To many scholars chapter 1, verse 15 is actually, in Hebrew text, the beginning of Chapter 2.  This verse describes what Nineveh's doom will mean for Judah, plus the death of Sennacherib.
   It is good news of peace because their persecutor,  Sennacherib, is dead. 
"¹⁵ Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts, perform thy vows: for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off."
 Judah will now be able to perform the vows and keep the solemn feasts that it could not do under Sennacherib's reign. Nahum made this announcement concerning Nineveh, Judah, and Sennacherib in 612 B.C. and it came to pass in 701 B.C., about 90 years apart.  The evil had time to change, but chose not to.  Judah had hope, Jehovah!
   Chapter 2, verse 1 Nahum is sounding the warning bell and almost taunting the Assyrians and Nineveh in particular.  He knows their fate and the Babylonian's will overtake them, violently.
King James 2 "He that dasheth in pieces is come up before thy face: keep the munition, watch the way, make thy loins strong, fortify thy power mightily."

NIV 2 ^"An attacker advances against you, Nineveh.  Guard the fortress,  watch the road,  brace yourselves, marshal all your strength!"

  How many warnings are we, in modern world, given yet fail to heed?  Are you in sync with God right now?  This very moment?  Are you listening?  Heeding the warnings?  I pray so!! Love you all.
In Christ's Love and Grace
   Johnny

God is mad! Sennacherib is doomed! Nahum 1:14

Good morning all! God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!  May you day be blessed and safe through Jesus Christ our LORD.
   Okay, Sennacherib, here comes doom!  Nahum 1:14 NIV

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.”

   Do you think God may be upset?  Naw, he is ANGRY, really hacked off and mad.  Nahum comes back to speak to Sennacherib personally and deliver the LORD's judgment concerning him.  Concerning his dynasty, which will come to an end, and no other king will come from his lineage.

    AND, the gods that he worshiped will be cut off and Sennacherib will die.  Wow!  Now here is Nahum speaking to probably the most powerful ruler of the ancient world and telling him these words.  How can he be so bold?  Nahum walks in the safety of being obedient to God. 

    Sennacherib was slain with a sword, swung by his own son who fled to Armenia and Esarhaddon and took the throne of Assyria.   Take a moment to read the words in the King James version:
¹⁴ And the Lord hath given a commandment concerning thee, that no more of thy name be sown: out of the house of thy gods will I cut off the graven image and the molten image: I will make thy grave; for thou art vile.

    Sometimes the moment of the end comes and we, through our pride and disobedience, do not even see what is happening.  Sennacherib was quite full of himself and worshiped other gods. PRIDE! DISOBEDIENCE!  These two traits have taken down many men.  Where do you sit today?  Are you obedient and humble?  Doing what God wishes you to do?  Take time today. Just take 60 seconds each hour to remember God and say a quick praise and prayer.  See how your day goes. Love you all.

In Christ's Love and Grace

   Johnny

 

Here comes Sennacherib! Help!! Nahum 1:11-13

Good morning all!  God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!! 

   Nahum 1:11-13. Nahum 1:11 King James Version (KJV)¹¹ There is one come out of thee, that imagineth evil against the Lord, a wicked counsellor.

         Nahum 1:11 (NIV)¹¹ From you, Nineveh, has one come forth  who plots evil against the Lord and devises wicked plans.

Sennacherib is the ruler of Nineveh at this time.  Sennacherib, meaning Sin sends many brothers (ironically, Sin was the name of the pagan Assyrian moon "god"), was an Assyrian king who reigned about 705-681 BC.  Hezekiah, king of Judah, would not submit to Sennacherib's yoke.  To know more about Judah, Hezekiah and Sennacherib and their conflict please go to Isaiah 36.

   The  wicked counselor above is Sennacherib. In Senacherib's eyes he not only plundered the ten northern tribes but laid seige to Jerusalem; however, as Paul Harvey would say,  "and now for the rest of the story". (Isaiah 36)

   However his invasion of Judah and Jerasalem is destined to failure because he defied the God of Israel. Sennacherib has a  great and, it seemed, invincible force. Look at Nahum 1:

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.

Sennacherib can do all the planning, scheming, and thinking he wishes, but his plan will meet with failure.  The angel of Jehovah went into the Assyrian camp and killed 185,000 men.  This is when Sennacherib lifted the siege of Jerusalem and returned home.  In all his might, with his great armies, he was not match for Israel's God, the great Jehovah!!

  "Although I have afflicted you, Judah, I will afflict you no more" is a promise to Judah, even thought Assyria has caused suffering, it will happen no more.

 
¹³ For now will I break his yoke from off thee, and will burst thy bonds in sunder.   

All claims upon Judah will be broken, and all ties and obligations to that land will be done away. God has once again, come to Israel's defense and defeated the earthly mighty foe, who is not match for OUR HEAVENLY FATHER!  

  Wicked is all around you, put all your trust in God, Jehovah, who will deliver you. Love you all.

In Christ's Love and Grace

   Johnny

Thorns + drunkards + stubble = D E S T R U C T I O N Nahum 1:9-10

Good morning my friend!   God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
   Start today with verse 9: "⁹ What do ye imagine against the Lord? he will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time."
    Nineveh, you think that all you do is well, but you know what?  You have angered someone, a higher being that does not play.  God IS slow to anger; He hates evil, and now, Nineveh you are devising plans against Jehovah and His people (Judah) and it will end in utter failure. With Jonah God gave them a chance, they repented, and now, 150 years later they have reverted to their old sinful ways.  It is one thing to make your spouse mad, but when you anger God.......WATCH OUT!!
   
¹⁰ For while they be folden together as thorns, and while they are drunken as drunkards, they shall be devoured as stubble fully dry.
    Nahum is telling the people, probably yelling it out, that in all they do, in all their craftiness, they will be meeting Jehovah.  Thorns folden together, as near as I can study is talking about how thorns come together, become all stuck or tangled together and hard to sort out or separate.  Just a mass of thorns and they, the Ninevehites, are as drunkards, falling among this mass of thorns and cannot escape.
    This may not mean much to you, but have you ever been in a rose garden?  Try walking in among the rose bushes, specially if they are close together. You will be snagged, hooked, caught, and poked from all directions.  Verse 10 is saying the thorns are just a mass of thorns, and you, the drunk fell into them, and now you cannot seem to get out.  You are stuck.  That is only the beginning of your problem.
   The last part of verse 10 says "they shall be devoured as stubble fully dry."  Have you ever seen a stubble field after the harvest?   The stalks become dry, brittle, and easily burned.  If you set a field of stubble on fire it is not a lengthy process.  The stubble goes quickly and is devoured.  Webster says devour is: to eat hungrily, to swallow up, to take in greedily. WHOA!!
    This is what Nahum is telling Nineveh---- YOU WILL BE DEVOURED!!!
Are you stupid or what?  You are going to die!!! Who says? God says!!!  But, do they care?  Tune in for more exciting details of Nahum, the minor prophets quest.  Love you all!
In Christ's Love and Grace
   Johnny

A stronghold to run to - Jehovah: Nahum 1:7,8

Good morning all. God is good all the time, all the time God is good. TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!!
   So, how was your yesterday?  Did you think about the slow to anger of God's nature?  If you notice in the Bible, God did not just zap people; He gave warning and tolerated them a good length of time before He reacted.  God can be, and is a refuge, if we will seek Him.   

Nahum 1:7  King James Version (KJV) ⁷ The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.

These words are assurance unto us. God is good!  That is reassuring, He walks in and is the light we all seek; Christians and non-Christians all seek to walk in the light.  Some just don't realize it yet.

    A strong hold, a refuge, a place to go in the day of trouble.   You can run to God, talk to Him any time and He will listen.  The last of the sentence - "he knoweth them that trust in him".   God, Jehovah, knows you, He can call you by name, you are His child, you are part of the bride He will be returning to bring to heaven.  Isn't this awesome!!!

    However, you have to understand, that when enough is enough JEHOVAH DON'T PLAY!! 

Nahum 1:8 (KJV)⁸ But with an overrunning flood he will make an utter end of the place thereof, and darkness shall pursue his enemies.

The NIV says: ⁸     but with an overwhelming flood he will make an end of Nineveh;  he will pursue his foes into the realm of darkness.

  God has allowed these people to be evil, sent Jonah, they repented, then turned back to evil, and now - 150 years later Jehovah is sending Nahum to them, once again, to warn them.  Do they listen?  They listen just as many of your friends or family listen when you tell them about Jesus, salvation, being reborn; it just runs off their back and passes on through.

   Nahum is telling them - Hey, you better watch out, you better not sin, Jehovah knows what is going on and, "he ain't playin!"

   Look at this, an "overruning flood will END Nineveh.  The ones who escape, or think they escape---HE will pursue.  There will be no place to hide.  People who poo-poo God and do not pay any attention to God will reap the harvest of their ways.  Some do not care, but, eventually all will tremble, fall to their knees and realize the goodness, the greatness of Jehovah, God, the Great One.

    Where are you today?  Are you walking with the light or do you stumble in the darkness?  Ash Wednesday has come and gone; are you doing anything for God?  Are you giving up something of meaning in dedication to God?  Nineveh or Jehovah? Love you all.

In Christ's Love and Grace

  Johnny

 

Slow to anger, but when angry----watch out!!! Nahum 3-6

Good morning all!  God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
   Yesterday in verse 2 we know that our Living God is a jealous God and will revenge, He will take vengeance on his adversaries, and reserves wrath for His enemies.  Today let us begin at verse 3 and edge through verse 6.
   ^3" The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the Lord hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet."
    Jehovah does not have a quick trigger on His temper.  150 years ago He sent Jonah to Nineveh to tell the people repent.  They did. They were spared. They have now returned to their wicked ways, 150 years later, they have forgotten.  God does not execute His judgment right away, He actually waits another 100 years.  Nahum is there, telling of the impending danger of God's judgment.  He tells them God will not let you continue in evil, Jehovah is all powerful. 
   He controls the whirlwinds, storms, clouds; He can make the sea and rivers dry; which Israel has seen in the case of the Red Sea and the Jordan River.  Jehovah controls all, He makes the land plush in pasture, vineyards, and forests, yet he can make them barren as well.
   Nahum is telling, no, warning the people of Jehovah's power. Reminds them in verse 4 that "Bashan languisheth, and Carmel and the flower of Lebanon languisheth." BUT, he can take this all away."
  Verse 5 just His presence can cause what?  Mountain to quake; hills to melt; earth to be burned; the world and all that dwells therein to cease to exist.  Nahum is telling, pleading, pouring out the vision that Jehovah has given him.  Will anyone listen?  They listened then just as they do today; a few listen and hear yet many turn a deaf ear and choose not to hear.
   I really like the following verse. Read it carefully and think about it.
^6" Who can stand before his indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? his fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him."
    This is talking to the macho men and women of the world.  Just who do you think you are?  That you can stand before Jehovah?   That you can endure His anger?  His, Jehovah's fury will destroy you like fire; rocks are thrown down (these are not just rocks-more like boulders or possibly a volcanic eruption).  And you, a mere human, think you can with stand God's wrath?  
   I don't need to be in church to worship God!  No, but do you really demonstrate God in you?
I am a self made man and don't need help from anyone!!  Really?  You think you got here with God just sitting by and watching?  How arrogant you are!  Nahum is reaching out, just as you and I reach out to others---but are they listening?  Share! Be prayerful before your encounter and let the Spirit lead you. Love you all.  Tomorrow we will talk about a God who is a refuge to those who love him.
In Christ's Love and Grace
  Johnny

Naa-hhh-uumm! Clearing our throat for cutting words! Nahum 1:2

Good morning all. God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
    Nahum!  The name almost sounds as if you are clearing your throat -- naa-hhh-uumm.  Well, that may be my modern day way of understanding what Nahum's work for the LORD was. He was clearing his throat to tell the truth, the cutting, slicing, destroying truth from God.
   Remember, this starts out the burden of Nineveh and the vision of Nahum.  He goes right into the meat of his word.  No prelude, no build up, he is there telling everyone these words:
² God is jealous, and the Lord avenges;
The Lord avenges and is furious.
The Lord will take vengeance on His adversaries,
And He reserves wrath for His enemies;
         Let us look at this.  When this says God is jealous and the LORD avenges this is talking in a different realm than we are used to.  We may get mad because the dish washer was not started, the garbage not taken out, because something was left out.  This is the human side of us.  God gets angry for the wrong that is brought against His people.  God has a burning zeal for righteousness and justice, and if we are wronged HE will come to our defense.  This is what is happening here.
   The Assyrians have taken Israel captive and have invaded Judah, capturing its fortified cities and taking Jerusalem.
    God, Jehovah, did not take this action of aggression lightly, nor did HE (Jehovah) appreciate their (Assyrians) trespassing on God's peoples land.  Three times in verse 2 Nahum repeats the certainty of his words.  The LORD avenges and is furious.......will take vengeance on His adversaries......reserves wrath for His enemies.    Now, these are not threats---threats are challenges---these are statements of certainty meaning GOD WILL DO WHAT HE SAYS HE WILL DO!!!
   Look at the beginning of verse 3: "The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked;"
    Thank about this verse, read the rest: "the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet," and we will pick up here tomorrow.  Why so slow, I know you can read, but are you a top reader (word caller) or deep reader?  I would like for you to read deep and understand the real meanings of God's word.  See ya tomorrow. Love you all.
  In Christ's Love and Grace
     Johnny

Nahum + Vision + Nineveh = ??? What do you think?!?

Good morning all. God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED!!
   Okay, Friday I said we would begin in Nahum, a minor prophet with a vision.  Have you ever had one of these, a vision, and you failed to act on it?  What were the consequences??
   The book of Nahum begins with: "The burden of Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite."
  As you read this in the back of your mind please think of the parallel between Nineveh and the United States of America.  Nineveh, 150 years earlier had repented of her evil ways when Jonah was there.  Now, in this time (book of Nahum) she has fallen away from Jehovah.  And as Adrian Rogers says, to reject Jehovah is to accept the devil.  This is what Nineveh was doing.
    Nineveh was the greatest of the cities at this time. Great military might and they had ravaged Judah recently at this time.  Nineveh was the power of the world and struck terror in the hearts of people all over the ancient world.  At this time its latest conquest was Israel and they plundered Judah, taking control of Jerusalem.  By God's hand the siege of Jerusalem was lifted and the city was delivered.
   Nahum is crying out for all to listen that the one thing that is greater than Nineveh is the God of Judah, Jehovah.  Nahum is not crying out for repentance the same as Jonah for the city of Nineveh.  He begins by describing God in four ways.
       Just stop and think about this for a moment, Nineveh----America!  Have we, in America, turned away from God?  You may say no!  Not me!!  I am not talking about you, me, I am talking about the mindset, the liberal thinking, the unGodly thinking of the land we are so proud of----AMERICA!  Pornography, same sex marriage, living in sin, drunkenness, drugs, going about paying no attention to the consequences.  Each action we take has a consequence!  But if noone sees me or I don't get in trouble. Character is doing what is right, even if no one is around to witness.  Okay, tomorrow we will start looking at the four ways Nahum describes Jehovah, God, the Almighty One.
   Okay, have you ever had a vision?  What about your dreams that may have been telling you something? Are prophets dead?  Was this only for the ancient world?  We have the Bible, so are prophesies and prophets no longer relevant? Thoughts to ponder.  Love you all
In Christ's Love and Grace
    Johnny