Scripture Reading : Nahum 2
Theme : Destruction of Nineveh
Destruction of Nineveh (1-13). God sees Nineveh’s vain attempt to defend itself in the future from a combination of Babylonian and Medes troops. Destruction will be on Nineveh but God will restore Judah, His people. V. 6 describes Nineveh’s river gates, which protected the city, but the river was also its downfall. Her enemies removed the dams of the river to flood Nineveh, which crumbled her walls and rendered her defenseless. Nineveh refers itself as a lion that rules supreme and crushes its preys. When God destroys this lion, it will disappear and not be found. God is a righteous God, He will definitely destroy the wicked Nineveh.
Praying the Scripture
- The certain destruction of Nineveh is a picture of the certain destruction of all rebels against God. God is a righteous God who will by no means acquit the guilty. He will judge all human beings. God’s wrath is fearsome, but He is also our only source of hope and refuge. For the proud wicked, He is to be feared, but for the humbled wicked He is to be embraced as the only source of hope and salvation.
- Nineveh trusted in their military might for their protection. The Bible tells us, such trust will corrupt people’s souls and lead people away from God and direct them to destruction. Jeremiah 17:5-8, “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land. “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.” May we only put our trust and hope in God only.
经文：那鸿书2
主题：尼尼微的毁灭
尼尼微的毁灭（1-13）。神看见尼尼微日后会尝试抵挡巴比伦与玛代军队的攻击，但终究于事无补。尼尼微将被销毁，而神会复兴祂的子民犹大。第六节形容的是保护尼尼微城的河闸，因为这条河流有害尼尼微城。敌人恰好利用这一点，将河闸打开淹没尼尼微；她的城墙倒了，无法自卫。尼尼微曾指自己是权威的狮子，能击倒所有敌人。可是，当神消灭这只狮子后，它将永远消失，不再出现。神是公义的神——祂必然消灭行恶的尼尼微。
用经文祷告
- 尼尼微必然的毁灭显示神必然消灭所有抵挡祂的人。神是公义的，万不以有罪的为无罪。祂会审判所有人类。神的愤怒很恐怖，但祂同时是我们唯一的盼望和避难所。骄傲行恶的人当惧怕神；谦卑有罪的则当拥护祂为自己唯一的盼望和救赎。
- 尼尼微相信自己的军事能力足以捍卫自己的国家。圣经告诉我们，这种信念会使人心败坏，叫他们离开神，自寻毁灭。耶利米书17:5-8说：“倚靠人血肉的膀臂，心中离弃耶和华的，那人有祸了！因他必像沙漠的杜松，不见福乐来到，却要住旷野干旱之处，无人居住的碱地。倚靠耶和华，以耶和华为可靠的，那人有福了！他必像树栽于水旁，在河边扎根。炎热来到并不惧怕，叶子仍必青翠；在干旱之年毫无挂虑，而且结果不止。”愿我们将自己的信任和盼望全投注于神。
