The God Who Intervenes (Nahum 1:7)

It might be true to say that God seems silent today as far as his kingdom is concerned, at least within the circles and places that we are familiar with. Prior to Nahum’s prophetic announcement, the people of Israel and Judah may have thought he was silent in their time because he did not seem to be doing anything about Nineveh and its intentions. Nineveh was the capital of Assyria, an empire that seemed invincible to other countries, and which was intent on destroying God’s people as it conquered all nations that stood in its way. 

 

Of course, there are different ways of viewing Nineveh and its empire. We can see them as the tool that God used in providence to chasten the nations for their sinful behaviour, or we can see them as a tool God used to discipline his people for their unfaithfulness to him. That kind of divine response is frequent. Another way of looking at Nineveh is that about a century earlier, it had experienced a unique revival through the preaching of Jonah. The whole city, from the king downwards, had been affected and brought to repentance. Who knows how long the effects had lasted, but since four generations had passed it was easy for the current one to forget that the revival had taken place in the city. There are no secular records of the revival in Nineveh, so it looks as if it had been purged from the city archives. But God does not forget how people react to his goodness expressed to their ancestors and their forgetfulness is not regarded by him as a valid excuse for avoiding his judgement.

 

In any case, God was about to get involved (vv. 2-7), but not from a distance. He was coming personally to deal with Nineveh for its sins. We can see that his actions would not be pleasant for the people to experience. He has character as well as power, and his displays of power are according to his character. His anger had not been quickly aroused, but he was about to reveal it in a dramatic manner. According to the prophet, the arrival of God would be too difficult for the creation to cope with, never mind a city erected by humans. We can put it in a brief sentence – God came in judgement and powerful Nineveh became a ruin (vv. 8-15).

 

It can be surprising to see where well-known New Testament texts come from in the Old Testament. Paul says in Romans 10:15: ‘As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”’ Where was it written? Initially, it is found in Isaiah 52:7: ‘How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”’ That prophecy was originally against Nineveh as well, so it is not surprising that Nahum is guided to quote part of it when making another prediction against Nineveh: ‘Behold, upon the mountains, the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace!’ (v. 15).

 

The good news in both passages from the Old Testament is about restoration, and that seems to be the way Paul quotes the verse in Romans 10, saying that no matter how unlikely it seems, God can restore Israel again. So even from that point of view, the book of Nahum has something to say to us because the recovery Paul had in mind in Romans has not occurred yet. The apostle describes a future ingathering of the Jews and what happened in consequence of Nahum’s prophecy – restoration – points to a greater fulfilment when the Lord brings them back to himself.

 

Yet while it is wonderful to know that God has a plan, how are we to regard him while waiting for him to fulfil his intentions? We have the same answer as was given by Nahum to his listeners, as recorded in verse 7. He mentions the Lord’s character and the security that he provides for his people.

 

The goodness of God

The first detail that we can mention is the permanence of this attribute of God. This is seen in the tense that is used. God has been and always will be good. As far as displaying his goodness, the Bible stresses the plenitude of it – as he said to Moses, he abounds in goodness and truth. The permanence and plenitude of God’s goodness is mentioned at the close of Psalm 23 when the psalmist says that ‘goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life’. 

 

The second detail to observe is that God’s goodness can be described as functioning at two different levels. There is the manner in which the Lord reveals his goodness at a general level, as was mentioned by Paul when he told a Gentile audience that the Lord had repeatedly shown his goodness to them by sending them harvests. I suppose one way to respond to the general goodness of God is to list all the ways in which bestows it. Think of today’s experience: you had a safe night, you had a good breakfast, you live in a peaceful street, you have friendly neighbours, you travelled here in a car, you came to a suitable building, you have a comfortable seat, you meet kind friends. Tomorrow, you will engage in suitable employment, you experience warm sunshine or refreshing rain, your children are instructed in school, you have three meals a day, and so on. The fact is that God provides for you out of his goodness.

 

The other level of his goodness is at the spiritual level. Even here we can make a distinction with what he does for sinners in general and for saints in particular. As far as sinners are concerned, the Lord shows his goodness by bringing the gospel to them and offering to forgive their sins and give to them eternal life as a free gift. God makes this offer to all kinds of sinners and as far as each of them is concerned it is a genuine offer. He extends the offer of salvation to everyone who hears the gospel. He makes no distinction between them. None of them has more right to it than another. Forgiveness is offered freely and fully. None can say that God prevents them from trusting in Christ. He tells them that they are welcome to come to him as they are, without having to make any attempt to improve themselves.

 

As far as his people are concerned, his goodness is seen in his providence as he saves them from their sins. It is because of his goodness that they are pardoned, it is because of his goodness that they are preserved, and it is because of his goodness that they have the wonderful prospect of glory. Think of what salvation means – they are justified, they are adopted, they are sanctified and they will be glorified. They were invited to taste and see that God is good, and when they first tasted of his grace they had no idea of how good it would be. 

 

In addition to pardon, preservation and prospect, they also have the promises of God on which to feed their souls. God’s promises are not like those of politicians who may be well-meaning but who possess no power to guarantee what they would like to do. The bar by which to assess the promises of God is the bar of salvation, and as Paul says, since God has given his Son for sinners, how will he not with him also freely give to them everything that they need for spiritual life as far as every day in this life is concerned.

 

The security that God provides

The psalmist points out that God is a stronghold in the day of trouble. No doubt, we have seen films of ancient castles into which the surrounding villagers ran for safety when an hostile enemy attacked them. It was good for them that such refuges were available nearby, but they would also realise that the commanders of the castles would not know the name of every person who had taken refuge within them. Nor would they know if some who would like to be in the castles had failed to enter in time. Those commanders could not do multiple activities simultaneously.

 

But God knows everyone who finds refuge in him and he ensures that all who come to him for protection receive it immediately. He knows what they are feeling, what their fears might be, and how he can relieve those fears. It is important to note that God does not become a stronghold only when the attack happens – he is the stronghold whether the devil and his army attacks or not. From the moment of conversion to the end of life’s journey, the Lord is the stronghold, the only stronghold, for his people, available for their safety.

 

What is meant by saying God is a stronghold? Obviously, he is not a shape like a building that we can run into. Rather, we should hide in him, and there are at least two ways in which we can do so. One way to so is to consider his attributes. We know what they are: his omniscience, omnipresence, and omnipotence; his love, his holiness, his faithfulness, his truthfulness, his wisdom, and so on. Each of them is a wonderful and secure place for his people to find refuge when under spiritual attack. They don’t have to be considered in isolation. After all, the combination of his love, power and wisdom is one that leads to great confidence in him. And we can combine others if we wish to have a fuller sense of the safety he provides.

 

In addition to think about the attributes of God, we should think about the divine persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Each of the divine persons has the same attributes, but each reveals them in distinct ways, and those distinct ways are good strongholds for us to use. When we think of divine love, we can think about the Father’s electing love, the Son’s redeeming love, and the Spirit’s sanctifying love. Each of those aspects of the divine love is a suitable and safe refuge for believers. 

 

Or we can think of specific actions of each of the divine persons. The Father justifies those who believe in Jesus and adopts them into his family, which means that as a Father he will give them an inheritance. It also means that he will chastise them when necessary. Yet at other times, because he is the Father he will comfort his children. Jesus tells us that he is the good Shepherd who takes care of his flock. He died for them, he searched for them, he carries them and leads them after he finds them, and he will take them to the heavenly fold. The Holy Spirit convicts, enlightens, regenerates, assures and changes believers into the likeness of Jesus. So we can think of each of the divine persons as they relate to believers in this life and will relate to them in the world to come. Those aspects are good and safe and near refuges for all of God’s people to use as often as they wish and especially in their frequent times of spiritual need.

 

We can see from the last line in verse 7 that the prophet focussed on a particular aspect of God, on his knowledge: ‘he knows those who take refuge in him.’ What does he mean when he mentions the knowledge of God? Obviously, the prophet knew about the fact of God’s omniscience, that there is nothing that he does not know. The prophet, however, means more than that type of divine knowledge. Rather he has in mind the special promise of the Lord’s awareness of things because he is with his people. This is a reminder that it is a wise thing to do when we focus on one of God’s attributes.

 

The Bible often refers to this divine awareness. David, in Psalm 1, after describing his meditation on God’s Word, says that ‘the Lord knows the way of the righteous’ (Ps. 1:6). Job, in his distress, found comfort from thinking about this divine presence: ‘But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold’ (Job 23:10). This form of knowledge includes love, appreciation, persistence and faithfulness. God is present with his people as they face the various trials of life. And the fact that they are aware of this gives to them a real sense of security.

 

So we have a great stronghold for all the saints, no matter how weak they are in themselves. The God of heaven is their personal refuge, their powerful refuge and their permanent refuge. It is not difficult for him to protect his people when they go to him for protection. What often seems to be difficult of for God’s people to use him as their refuge