28 Sep 2015, Nahum 3 那鸿书3, The Sins of Nineveh 尼尼微的罪孽

Posted on Sep 27, 2015 in Devotions, Nahum |

Scripture Reading   : Nahum 3

Theme                    : The Sins of Nineveh

The Cruelty of Nineveh (1-4). Nineveh is infamous for its extreme cruelty. They skinned enemies alive and heaped skulls in front of gates of their cities. It is much like the cruelty of ISIS. The empire was founded upon blood and lies. They engaged in rampant lies to subdue and kill their enemies. Because of its cruelty, it will receive an equal cruel end.

The Shame of Nineveh (5-13). Nakedness in the OT is associated with shame. God will shame Nineveh for its shameful and cruel acts. Nineveh will be as weak as Thebes, capital of the Egyptian empire, which was also conquered even though it was a mighty city.

The Hopelessness of Nineveh (14-19). Nineveh expanded its empire based on self-interest and pleasure seeking. Its merchants and rulers are like locusts that only seek to strip the land for its selfish gain, but when trouble comes they will flee. The empire crumbled from within because the people were not loyal and caring. Decades of moral decay, selfishness and pleasure-seeking have produced unfaithful and weak troops to defend the empire. When the empire falls, all will rejoice because of its excessive evil.

Praying the Scripture

God will always triumph over evil. Any evil empire that oppresses God’s people will come to an end. God will always defend His people and rescue them. We can put our trust in Him to deliver us from any evil person or empire because He is stronger than the greatest evil. God has demonstrated this not only in Israel, but throughout history such as during the Roman empire and the Chinese communist government.

经文：那鸿书3

主题：尼尼微的罪孽

尼尼微的残酷性（1-4）。尼尼微人的残酷性是臭名昭著的。他们为活生生的敌人剥皮，又在各城门堆积颅骨。这与伊斯兰国的残酷行为相似。尼尼微帝国是建立在人血与谎言上的；他们利用谎言击败并杀害敌人。因着她的残酷之行，她也会遭到同样的后果。

尼尼微的羞愧（5-13）。赤体在旧约中与羞愧有关。神会因着尼尼微的可耻并残忍的行为羞辱她。尼尼微会变得像埃及帝国的首都挪亚们一样软弱；她曾经也是一个强大城市，但最终被占领了。

尼尼微的无助（14-19）。尼尼微凭着自身利益及追求享乐的心扩展帝国。她的商人和统治者都像蝻子一样，因自私利益吃尽全地，可一旦问题出现，他们便会逃之夭夭。尼尼微是从内部跨倒的，因为子民不忠诚，也不在乎国家。数十年的道德衰败、私心和追逐享乐所产生的就是不忠、懦弱的军兵，无法捍卫帝国。帝国被击倒的那瞬间，所有人都会欢欣，因为她实在是行恶多端。

用经文祷告

  1. 神必然胜过邪恶。任何欺压神子民的邪恶的王朝必然会跨倒。神必然维护祂的子民，并拯救他们。我们能信靠神救我们脱离任何邪恶的人或王朝，因为祂比最大的恶更大。神不但在以色列彰显这一点，也在历史历代，如罗马帝国及中国共产党显示这一点。