Nahum 2

Na 2:1-13.

THE

ADVANCE OF THE

DESTROYING

FORCES AGAINST

NINEVEH, AFTER

IT

WAS

USED AS

GOD'S

ROD FOR A

TIME TO

CHASTISE

HIS

PEOPLE:

THE

CAPTURE OF

THAT

LION'S

DWELLING,

ACCORDING TO THE

SURE

WORD OF

JEHOVAH.

1. He that dasheth in pieces--God's "battle axe," wherewith He "breaks

in pieces" His enemies.

Jer 51:20

applies the same Hebrew term to Nebuchadnezzar (compare

Pr 25:18;

Jer 50:23,

"the hammer of the whole earth"). Here the Medo-Babylonian army under

Cyaxares and Nabopolassar, that destroyed Nineveh, is prophetically

meant.

before thy face--before Nineveh. Openly, so that the work of God

may be manifest.

watch the way--by which the foe will attack, so as to be ready to meet

him. Ironical advice; equivalent to a prophecy, Thou shalt have need to

use all possible means of defense; but use what thou wilt, all will be

in vain.

make thy loins strong--The loins are the seat of strength; to

gird them up is to prepare all one's strength for conflict

(Job 40:7).

Also gird on thy sword

(2Sa 20:8;

2Ki 4:29).

2. For the Lord hath turned away the excellency of Jacob--that is, the

time for Nineveh's overthrow is ripe, because Jacob (Judah) and Israel

(the ten tribes) have been sufficiently chastised. The Assyrian rod of

chastisement, having done its work, is to be thrown into the fire. If

God chastised Jacob and Israel with all their "excellency" (Jerusalem

and the temple, which was their pre-eminent excellency above all nations

in God's eyes,

Ps 47:4; 87:2;

Eze 24:21;

see on

Am 6:8),

how much more will He punish fatally Nineveh, an alien to Him, and

idolatrous? MAURER, not so well, translates,

"restores," or "will restore the excellency of Jacob."

emptiers--the Assyrian spoilers.

have emptied them out--have spoiled the Israelites and Jews

(Ho 10:1).

Compare

Ps 80:8-16,

on "vine branches," as applied to Israel.

3. his mighty men--the Medo-Babylonian general's mighty

men attacking Nineveh.

made red--The ancients dyed their bull's-hide shields red, partly

to strike terror into the enemy, chiefly lest the blood from wounds

which they might receive should be perceived and give confidence to the

foe [CALVIN].

G. V. SMITH conjectures that the reference is to the red

reflection of the sun's rays from shields of bronze or copper, such as

are found among the Assyrian remains.

in scarlet--or crimson military tunics (compare

Mt 27:28).

XENOPHON mentions that the Medes were fond of this

color. The Lydians and Tyrians extracted the dye from a particular

worm.

chariots . . . with flaming torches--that is, the

chariots shall be like flaming torches, their wheels in lightning-like

rapidity of rotation flashing light and striking sparks from the stones

over which they pass (compare

Isa 5:28).

English Version supposes a transposition of the Hebrew

letters. It is better to translate the Hebrew as it is, "the

chariots (shall be furnished) with fire-flashing scythes"

(literally, "with the fire," or glitter, of iron weapons). Iron

scythes were fixed at right angles to the axles and turned down, or

parallel to it, inserted into the felly of the wheel. The Medes,

perhaps, had such chariots, though no traces of them are found in

Assyrian remains. On account of the latter fact, it may be better to

translate, "the chariots (shall come) with the glitter of steel

weapons" [MAURER and G. V. SMITH].

in the day of his preparation--JEHOVAH'S

(Isa 13:3).

Or, "Medo-Babylonian commander's day of preparation for the

attack"

(Na 2:1).

"He" confirms this, and "his" in this verse.

the fir trees--their fir-tree lances.

terribly shaken--branded so as to strike terror. Or, "shall be

tremulous with being brandished" [MAURER].

4. rage--are driven in furious haste

(Jer 46:9).

justle one against another--run to and fro [MAURER].

in the broad ways--

(2Ch 32:6).

Large open spaces in the suburbs of Nineveh.

they shall seem like torches--literally, "their (feminine in

Hebrew) appearance (is)": namely, the appearance of the broad

places is like that of torches, through the numbers of chariots in

them flashing in the sun

(Pr 8:26,

Margin).

run like the lightnings--with rapid violence

(Mt 24:27;

Lu 10:18).

5. The Assyrian preparations for defense.

He--the Assyrian king.

shall recount his worthies--

(Na 3:18).

Review, or count over in his mind, his nobles, choosing

out the bravest to hasten to the walls and repel the attack. But in

vain; for

they shall stumble in their walk--"they shall stumble in their

advance" through fear and hurry.

the defence shall be prepared--rather, the covering machine used

sudden transitions, as here from the besieged to the besiegers, are

frequent (compare

Eze 4:2),

[MAURER]. Or, used by the besieged

Assyrians [CALVIN].

6. The gates of the rivers . . . opened--The river

wall on the Tigris (the west defense of Nineveh) was 4,530 yards long.

On the north, south, and east sides, there were large moats, capable of

being easily filled with water from the Khosru. Traces of dams

("gates," or sluices) for regulating the supply are still visible, so

that the whole city could be surrounded with a water barrier

(Na 2:8).

Besides, on the east, the weakest side, it was further protected by a

lofty double rampart with a moat two hundred feet wide between its two

parts, cut in the rocky ground. The moats or canals, flooded by the

Ninevites before the siege to repel the foe, were made a dry bed to

march into the city, by the foe turning the waters into a different

channel: as Cyrus did in the siege of Babylon [MAURER]. In the earlier capture of Nineveh by Arbaces the

Mede, and Belesis the Babylonian, DIODORUS SICULUS, [1.2.80], states that there was an old prophecy

that it should not be taken till the river became its enemy; so in the

third year of the siege, the river by a flood broke down the walls

twenty furlongs, and the king thereupon burnt himself and his palace

and all his concubines and wealth together, and the enemy entered by

the breach in the wall. Fire and water were doubtless the means of the

second destruction here foretold, as of the first.

dissolved--by the inundation [HENDERSON]. Or, those in the palace

shall melt with fear, namely, the king and his nobles

[GROTIUS].

7. Huzzab--the name of the queen of Nineveh, from a Hebrew root

implying that she stood by the king

(Ps 45:9),

[VATABLUS]. Rather, Nineveh personified as a

queen. She who had long stood in the most supreme prosperity.

Similarly CALVIN. MAURER

makes it not a proper name, and translates, "It is established," or

"determined" (compare

Ge 41:32).

English Version is more supported by the parallelism.

led away captive--The Hebrew requires rather, "she is

laid bare"; brought forth from the apartments where Eastern women

remained secluded, and is stripped of her ornamental attire. Compare

Isa 47:2, 3,

where the same image of a woman with face and legs exposed is used of a

city captive and dismantled (compare

Na 3:5),

[MAURER].

brought up--Her people shall be made to go up to Babylon. Compare

the use of "go up" for moving from a place in

Jer 21:2.

her maids . . . as . . . doves--As Nineveh is compared to a queen

dethroned and dishonored, so she has here assigned to her in the image

handmaids attending her with dove-like plaints

(Isa 38:14; 59:11.

The image implies helplessness and grief suppressed, but at times

breaking out). The minor cities and dependencies of Nineveh may be

meant, or her captive women [JEROME]. GROTIUS and MAURER translate, for

"lead her," "moan," or "sigh."

tabering--beating on their breasts as on a tambourine.

8. But--rather, "Though" [G. V. SMITH].

of old--rather, "from the days that she hath been"; from the earliest

period of her existence. Alluding to Nineveh's antiquity

(Ge 10:11).

"Though Nineveh has been of old defended by water surrounding her, yet

her inhabitants shall flee away."

GROTIUS, less probably (compare

Na 3:8-12),

interprets, the "waters" of her numerous population

(Isa 8:7;

Jer 51:13;

Re 17:15).

Stand, stand, shall they cry--that is, the few patriotic citizens

shall cry to their fleeing countrymen; "but none looketh back,"

much less stops in flight, so panic-stricken are they.

9. silver . . . gold--The conquerors are summoned to plunder the city.

Nineveh's riches arose from the annual tribute paid by so many subject

states, as well as from its extensive merchandise

(Na 3:16;

Eze 27:23, 24).

store--accumulated by the plunder of subject nations. It is remarkable,

that while small articles of value (bronze inlaid with gold, gems,

seals, and alabaster vases) are found in the ruins of Nineveh, there

are is none of gold and silver. These, as here foretold, were

"taken for spoil" before the palaces were set on fire.

glory out of all the pleasant furniture--or, "there is abundance of

precious vessels of every kind" [MAURER].

10. Literally, "emptiness, and emptiedness, and devastation." The

accumulation of substantives without a verb (as in

Na 3:2),

the two first of the three being derivatives of the same root, and like

in sound, and the number of syllables in them increasing in a kind of

climax, intensify the gloomy effectiveness of the expression.

Hebrew, Bukah, Mebukah, Mebullakah (compare

Isa 24:1, 3, 4;

Zep 1:15).

faces of all gather blackness--(See on

Joe 2:6).

CALVIN translates, "withdraw (literally, 'gather

up') their glow," or flush, that is, grow pale. This is probably the

better rendering. So MAURER.

11. dwelling of . . . lions--Nineveh, the seat of

empire of the rapacious and destructive warriors of various ranks,

typified by the "lions," "young lions," "old lion" (or lioness

[MAURER]), "the lion's whelp." The image is

peculiarly appropriate, as lions of every form, winged, and sometimes

with the head of a man, are frequent in the Assyrian sepulchres. It was

as full of spoils of all nations as a lion's den is of remains of its

prey. The question, "Where," &c., implies that Jehovah "would make an

utter end of the place," so that its very site could not be

found

(Na 1:8).

It is a question expressing wonder, so incredible did it then seem.

12. prey . . . ravin--different kinds of prey. Compare

Isa 3:1,

"the stay and the staff."

13. burn . . . in the smoke--or (so as to pass) "into smoke,"

that is, "entirely" [MAURER],

(Ps 37:20; 46:9).

CALVIN, like English Version, explains, As

soon as the flame catches, and the fire smokes, by the mere smoke I

will burn her chariots.

cut off thy prey from the earth--Thou shalt no more carry off prey

from the nations of the earth.

the voice of thy messengers . . . no more . . . heard--No more shall

thy emissaries be heard throughout thy provinces conveying thy king's

commands, and exacting tribute of subject nations.