Nahum 2:13

Behold, I am against thee, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will burn her chariots in the smoke, and the sword shall devour thy young lions: and I will cut off thy prey from the earth, and the voice of thy messengers shall no more be heard. BEHOLD ... I WILL BURN HER CHARIOTS IN THE SMOKE - or, (so as to pass) 'into smoke' - i:e., entirely (Maurer). (; .) Calvin, like the English version, explains, 'As soon as the flame catches, and the fire smokes, by the mere smoke I will burn her chariots.' If the English version be retained, "smoke" must be put for she fire emitting smoke. For smoke cannot with any propriety be said to burn Nineveh's chariots. AND I WILL CUT OFF THY PREY FROM THE EARTH - thou shalt no more carry off prey from the nations of the earth....

To give more effect to what he says, the Prophet introduces God here as the speaker. _Behold, _he says, _I am against thee _He has been hitherto, as it were, the herald of God, and in this character gave an authoritative command to the Chaldeans to plunder Nineveh: but when God himself comes forward, and uses not the mouth of man, but declares himself his own decrees, it is much more impressive. This then is the reason why God now openly speaks: _Behold, I am, _he says, against thee. We understand the emphatical import of the demonstrative particle, _Behold; _for God, as if awakened from sleep, shows that it will be at length his work, to undertake the cause of his people, and also to punish the world for its wickedness, Behold, I am against thee, he says. We have elsewhere seen a similar mode of speaking; there is therefore no need of dwelling on it here. _I will burn, _he says, _with s...

11-13 The kings of Assyria had long been terrible and cruel to their neighbours, but the Lord would destroy their power. Many plead as an excuse for rapine and fraud, that they have families to provide for; but what is thus obtained will never do them any good. Those that fear the Lord, and get honestly what they have, shall not want for themselves and theirs. It is just with God to deprive those of children, or of comfort in them, who take sinful courses to enrich them. Those are not worthy to be heard again, that have spoken reproachfully of God. Let us then come to God upon his mercy-seat, that having peace with him through our Lord Jesus Christ, we may know that he is for us, and that all things shall work together for our everlasting good....

Verse Nahum 2:13. _BEHOLD, I_ AM _AGAINST THEE_] Assyria, and Nineveh its capital. I will deal with you as you have dealt with others. _THE VOICE OF THY MESSENGERS_] Announcing thy splendid victories, and the vast spoils taken - _shall no more be heard_ - thou and thy riches, and ill-got spoils, shall perish together....

BEHOLD I, MYSELF, AM AGAINST THEE - (Literally, “toward thee”). God, in His long-suffering, had, as it were, looked away from him; now He looked toward (as in Psalms 37:20) him, and in His sight what wicked one should stand? “Saith the Lord of hosts,” whose power is infinite and He changes not, and all the armies of heaven, the truly angels and evil spirits and men are in His Hand, whereto He directs or overrules them. “And I will burn her chariots in the smoke.” The Assyrian sculptures attest how greatly their pride and strength lay in their chariots. They exhibit the minute embellishment of the chariots and horses . Almost inconceivably light for speed, they are pictured as whirled onward by the two or, more often, three powerful steeds with eye of fire , the bodies of the slain (or, in peace, the lion ) under their feet, the mailed warriors, with bows stre

EXPOSITION NAHUM 2:1 Part II. THE EXECUTION OF THE DECREE; THE DESTRUCTION OF NINEVEH DESCRIBED. NAHUM 2:1 § 1. _Nineveh shall be besieged, because God is about to exalt his people by taking vengeance on the enemy, whose defence, howsoever formidable, is of no avail._ NAHUM 2:1 Nahum addresses Nineveh, and forewarns her of the siege she was about to undergo (see Introduction, § I.). HE THAT DASHETH IN PIECES; the disperser; qui disper

BEHOLD, I [AM] AGAINST THEE, SAITH THE LORD OF HOSTS,.... Against Nineveh, and the whole Assyrian empire, for such rapine, violence, and oppression, their kings had been guilty of; and if he, who is the Lord of hosts, of all the armies of heaven and earth, was against them, nothing but ruin must inevitably ensue: or, "I come unto thee" s; or will shortly come unto thee, and reckon with thee for all this; will visit thee in a way of wrath and vengeance. The Targum is, "behold, I will send my fury upon thee:'' AND I WILL BURN HER CHARIOTS IN THE SMOKE; either those in which the inhabitants of Nineveh rode in great splendour about the city; or those which were used in war with their enemies; and this he would do "in the smoke"; or, "unto smoke", as the Vulgate Latin version; or, "into smoke", as the Syriac t; easily, quickly, at once, suddenly, so that they should evaporate into smoke, an...

This is a prophecy of the destruction of Nineveh. Remember that Assyria had been one of the great powers that swayed the world, a cruel, tyrannical empire; and God at last determined to destroy Nineveh, which was its seat of government. In a high poetical strain, the prophet cries out, Nahum 2:11. _Where is the dwelling of the lions, and the feedingplace of the young lions, where the lion, even the old lion, walked, and the lion's whelp, and none made them afraid?_ You will remember how Mr. Layard took out of the ruins at Nineveh those immense lions that now stand in the British Museum. They were the very type of this great empire, that boasted itself in its lion-like strength and ferocity. So the prophet cries, «Where is the lair of the lion?» Nahum 2:12. The lion did tear in

CHAPTER 2 The Overthrow, Plundering and Destruction Of Nineveh _ 1. The capture of Nineveh announced and described (Nahum 2:1) _ 2. The completeness of the judgment (Nahum 2:11) Nahum 2:1. This great prophecy was literally fulfilled some ninety years after Nahum had spoken. When these words were spoken Nineveh was in the zenith of her glory. Who told Nahum the Elkoshite that the proud world city would undergo such a sack and be completely wiped out? Who moved his pen to give such a vivid description of what would take place? There is but one answer--the Spirit of God. How was the prophecy fulfilled? Cyaxares of the Medes had surrounded Nineveh in the north. Nabopolassar of Babylon entered into an allianc

NAHUM 1:11; NAHUM 1:14; NAHUM 2:1; NAHUM 2:3. THE FALL OF NINEVEH. Nahum 1:11. In days gone by there went out of Nineveh one that planned villainous devices against Yahweh and His people. Now Yahweh has given commandment that his name shall be blotted out, his grave dishonoured, and the temple of his gods robbed of its images. NAHUM 1:11. The reference is clearly to Sennacherib. BELIAL (_mg.): i.e._ malicious destruction ...