"Kids, be quiet! This is your LAST warning," I called up the stairs… for the third or fourth time. I know, I know… not exactly the best parenting technique. I'd like to claim it's because I'm so patient and merciful. But it's probably just because I'm lazy and don't want to get off the couch. And once again I realize, with the help of a minor prophet, just how unlike God I still am. Thank you, Nahum.
The books of Jonah and Nahum were written about a century apart and serve as a sort of "bookend pair" around God's dealings with the nation of Assyria and her capital, Nineveh. Jonah, despite his own vengeful attitude, revealed God's surprising mercy toward the Ninevites who repented en masse when warned of God's impending judgment. While genuine, their repentance was short-lived, and within a few decades they returned to their brutality and in 722 B.C. overthrew Jonah's homeland of Israel.
Nahum appeared on the scene around 650 B.C. with a message similar to Jonah's: "The LORD has given a command concerning you: 'Your name shall be perpetuated no longer… I will dig your grave, for you are vile'." (Nahum 1:14) The difference this time was that God's patience had run out. There would be no more second chances. Nineveh would be overthrown, never to rise again. And sure enough, within a few years, the Babylonians conquered the Assyrians and established a new empire to dominate the world.
As I consider Nahum against the backdrop of Jonah, I can't help but think of the potential similarities in our own great country. Dating back to the early 18th century, several periods of "Great Awakening" are easily identifiable. While none could claim a direct revelation of specific impending judgment, each revival had it's Jonahs – Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield, Dwight Moody – and resulted in significant spiritual and social reform. Yet each was also followed by a return to "normal," and we continue to see the moral fiber of our nation unravel as the decades roll by. So I wonder if God has a Nahum in store for us?
And just so I don't get all hypocritically self-righteous and need a Nahum to show up at my door, God made sure there was a cross-reference to Romans 1-3 in my Bible… So I also read, "You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. Now we know that God's judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God's judgment? Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads YOU toward repentance?" (Romans 2:1-4)
So next time I decide to yell up the stairs, "Last warning!", hopefully I'll not only balance justice & mercy in disciplining my children but also realize my own responsibilities as a Christian and a citizen to practice true, long-lasting repentance because, "The LORD is slow to anger and great in power; [but] the LORD will not leave the guilty unpunished." (Nahum 1:3)
