(18) Shepherds—i.e., chief officers, as in Micah 5:2 and passim. Their sheep are “scattered upon the mountains and none attempts to gather them.” So Micaiah announces to Ahab, “I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills as sheep that have not a shepherd” (1 Kings 22:17).Thy nobles shall dwell.—Better, thy mighty men are lying still. read more
THE SIEGE AND FALL OF NINEVEHNahum 2:1-13; Nahum 3:1-19THE scene now changes from the presence and awful arsenal of the Almighty to the historical consummation of His vengeance. Nahum foresees the siege of Nineveh. Probably the Medes have already overrun Assyria. The "Old Lion" has withdrawn to his inner den, and is making his last stand. The suburbs are full of the enemy, and the great walls which made the inner city one vast fortress are invested. Nahum describes the details of the assault.... read more
CHAPTER 3 Nineveh’s Guilt and Well-Deserved Judgment 1. The great wickedness of Nineveh (Nahum 3:1-7 ) 2. Her fate to be like the fate of No-Amon (Nahum 3:8-13 ) 3. Her well-deserved and complete judgment (Nahum 3:14-19 ) Nahum 3:1-7 . Nineveh was a bloody city, for her kings never knew peace, but were constantly at war. The Hebrew Ir-Damim means “city of blood drops.” They boasted of making the blood of their enemies run like rivers. It was a city full of lies and rapine. Her word could... read more
3:18 Thy {f} 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].(f) Your princes and counsellors. read more
NAHUM CONSOLATION FOR ISRAEL Isaiah concludes his work at about the end of Hezekiah’s reign, which synchronizes with the captivity of the ten tribes of Israel by the Assyrians. At this period of perplexity, when the overthrow of Samaria (the capital of Israel) must have suggested to Judah fears for her own safety, when Jerusalem (the capital of Judah) had been drained of its treasure by Hezekiah in the vain hope of turning the fury of the Assyrians from her, and when rumors of the conquest of... read more
The Uses of History Nahum 3:0 "Woe to the bloody city! it is all full of lies and robbery" ( Nah 3:1 ). The city was Nineveh. The city is every city under the sun. There is something in the very word "city" suggestive of this kind of prosperity. It would seem as if city-building were a practical blasphemy. We cannot account for this, but the light of history seems to direct our attention in this unhappy direction. Nineveh had repented under the preaching of Jonah; Nineveh had forgotten her... read more
I include the whole of this passage in one view for the sake of shortness, having already extended the Commentary very much beyond the original design. The whole of Nahum's prophecy, if taken literally, and with an eye to the history of Nineveh, and the Church, is interesting. But if read spiritually, as typifying in Nineveh the enemies of the Church, and the Lord's deliverance of his people, and the final destruction of their foes, in the redemption by Christ, riseth to a degree of sublimity,... read more
Slumbered. They have not guarded the flock. (Calmet) read more
8-19 Strong-holds, even the strongest, are no defence against the judgments of God. They shall be unable to do any thing for themselves. The Chaldeans and Medes would devour the land like canker-worms. The Assyrians also would be eaten up by their own numerous hired troops, which seem to be meant by the word rendered "merchants." Those that have done evil to their neighbours, will find it come home to them. Nineveh, and many other cities, states, and empires, have been ruined, and should be a... read more
Get Bible verse every day in your inbox
Read on Mobile
John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Nahum 3:1-19
The Doom of Nineveh1-7. Another threat against Nineveh, showing that disaster has come upon her on account of her sins. The keynote of the whole chapter is the fierce cry, Woe to the bloody city! it is all full of lies, etc. In ancient states the capital was virtually the kingdom, and to Nineveh are here ascribed all the characteristics of the Assyrian monarchy. The cruelties perpetrated by the Assyrians were shocking. Captive princes who had offered resistance in defence of their country were... read more