cruelty – Rev. Tim Ehrhardt

A prophecy concerning Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.

The Lord is a jealous and avenging God;
    the Lord takes vengeance and is filled with wrath.
The Lord takes vengeance on his foes
    and vents his wrath against his enemies.
The Lord is slow to anger but great in power;
    the Lord will not leave the guilty unpunished.
His way is in the whirlwind and the storm,
    and clouds are the dust of his feet.
He rebukes the sea and dries it up;
    he makes all the rivers run dry.
Bashan and Carmel wither
    and the blossoms of Lebanon fade.
The mountains quake before him
    and the hills melt away.
The earth trembles at his presence,
    the world and all who live in it.
Who can withstand his indignation?
    Who can endure his fierce anger?
His wrath is poured out like fire;
    the rocks are shattered before him.

The Lord is good,
    a refuge in times of trouble.
He cares for those who trust in him,
    but with an overwhelming flood
he will make an end of Nineveh;
    he will pursue his foes into the realm of darkness.

Whatever they plot against the Lord
    he will bring to an end;
    trouble will not come a second time.
They will be entangled among thorns
    and drunk from their wine;
    they will be consumed like dry stubble.
From you, Nineveh, has one come forth
    who plots evil against the Lord
    and devises wicked plans.

This is what the Lord says:

“Although they have allies and are numerous,
    they will be destroyed and pass away.
Although I have afflicted you, Judah,
    I will afflict you no more.
Now I will break their yoke from your neck
    and tear your shackles away.” (New International Version)

I’m willing to wager you’ve never heard a sermon on the Old Testament book of Nahum. It’s unfortunate that many Bible-readers have never read the prophecy of Nahum, let alone know that this book even exists in Holy Scripture.

Each individual book of the Bible has its own particular message that is wise for us to understand. Although Nahum’s prophecy is against the long-dead empire of Assyria, it still contains a timeless message for us.

The capital city of Assyria, Nineveh, was a large and influential city in the centuries of 600-900 B.C.E. The Assyrians were a cruel people even by ancient standards. Their army was feared, and rightly so. Army officers were experts at torture, having turned it into an art form with all kinds of different ways of killing and maiming captured people from their conquests.

The prophet Nahum focused on the sure destruction of Nineveh, and the overwhelming judgment and justice of God. And at the same time, Nahum was also attuned to the great and many sins of Israel – their predilection for idolatry and immorality, as well as their purposeful ignoring of social responsibilities.

No matter who we are, or where we are from, the Lord God, the Almighty, shows no favoritism in condemning the guilty, and upholding the innocent. Unlike us, who have a nasty tendency toward practicing cronyism, bigotry, and ethnocentrism, Yahweh extends grace, judgment, and fairness in an even-handed way.

We humans also have a bent toward emphasizing one trait of God over another. There are those who talk only of love when it comes to the Lord; and others who always speak of God’s wrath and judgment.

Yet, in truth, God is the sovereign Lord of both wrath and love, judgment and grace. And, if we are able to hear it, God’s wrath is an expression of God’s love – not willing for oppression and violence to run amok among the powerless.

What’s more, God’s love has a penetrating way of arousing the conscience and bringing deep conviction of guilt for things we have done, and have left undone. So, when we talk of God, let us keep in mind that God is the Lord of both wrath and love, judgment and grace.

Nahum described Yahweh as a powerful God who is the avenging Lord against violence, cruelty, and injustice. If this God can make mountains move, oceans froth, and the earth heave, then no one, including the mighty Assyrian warriors, can stand against Yahweh’s indignation.

It is also true that with the Lord God there is abundant goodness which provides protection for those who seek refuge in Yahweh. Throughout Holy Scripture, including the prophecy of Nahum, divine vengeance and wrath is continually set in the context of divine mercy and grace.

Because God is holy and just, sovereign and powerful, God is Judge of the nations. Mercy only really has meaning when wrath is necessary. If everything were always unicorns and bunny rabbits, there would never be a need for mercy. But we live in a terribly broken world in which oppression and cruelty too often make sinister inroads into our lives.

Although the Lord is slow to anger and God’s fuse is long, divine patience has its limits. Yahweh does not let calloused hearts and selfish minds go on with impunity. Eventually, there will be hell to pay.

God saw all the foolish destruction and misery that Assyria brought to others. And so, Nineveh would see their own terrible destruction. This is why we now talk of Assyria as a long-past ancient empire; they no longer exist in any way, shape, or form. The Lord wiped the Assyrians off of the map.

As for Judah, there would be comfort. Even though it was true that God used the Assyrians to extend judgment upon Israel, there was also merciful relief and gracious rest from Assyria for the people.

With God, relief, rest, and recovery are sure and certain. Violence and oppression shall not last. Mercy always ends up winning the day.

This is most assuredly good news for us who seek the just, the right, and the good in this fallen world. The foolish decisions of contemporary politicians shall not win the day. God will have the final word on all things.

In a time when it seems the other shoe keeps dropping, we can be a hopeful people, because there is a transcendent God in heaven who sees it all, and will have mercy upon the innocent, while judging the guilty.

Therefore, those who engage in grift, corruption, violence, and cruelty, with no concern for the weak and needy, will eventually find themselves on the side of God’s vengeful wrath.

Whereas, those who are powerless against an evil misuse of authority, eventually they will know what it is to experience hope and deliverance from that evil. They shall know safety and perfect peace.

The overarching message of Nahum is that God is sovereign over all the world and all of history. The Lord will judge and love according to God’s own sense of divine wrath and divine grace.

Since God is the ultimate champion of the frustrated and the helpless, God will by no means acquit the guilty. The universe is God’s dominion, and in this dominion, violence, corruption, and oppression will face an awesome judgment which eradicates evil.

No nation, no person, and no government can withstand the God who is over all. Every corrupt person, especially politicians who have their eye only on themselves, should be on notice.

O God, by whom the meek are guided in decision-making, and light rises up in darkness for the godly: Grant us, in all our doubts and uncertainties, the grace to ask what you would have us to do, so that the Spirit of wisdom may save us from all false choices, and that in your light we may see light, and in your straight path may not stumble; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

“Violence brings only temporary victories; violence, by creating many more social problems than it solves, never brings permanent peace”. —Martin Luther King, Jr.

AgainstViolence

Lord, you are my God.
I honor you and praise you,
because you have done amazing things.
You have always done what you said you would do;
you have done what you planned long ago.
You have made the city a pile of rocks
and have destroyed her walls.
The city our enemies built with strong walls is gone;
it will never be built again.
People from powerful nations will honor you;
cruel people from strong cities will fear you.
You protect the poor;
you protect the helpless when they are in danger.
You are like a shelter from storms,
like shade that protects them from the heat.
The cruel people attack
like a rainstorm beating against the wall,
like the heat in the desert.
But you, God, stop their violent attack.
As a cloud cools a hot day,
you silence the songs of those who have no mercy. (NCV)

These wonderful words of celebration were uttered not in a time of peace and plenty but in an era of hardship and loss. It seems the Jewish people have always faced a plethora of others who would rather see them wiped off the face of the map than existing with their own customs and religion. It was in one of those times of experiencing problems from Gentiles that this poem was crafted. It is precisely in the adverse times that we need to flee to the open arms of God and enjoy the divine embrace of security. In the sixteenth century, John Calvin reflected on these verses:

“When our minds are perplexed by a variety of uneasy thoughts on account of numerous distresses and afflictions which happen daily, we ought immediately to resort to God, and rely on his providence; for even the smallest calamities will overwhelm us, if we do not betake ourselves to him.”

God Almighty is the One who intervenes on behalf of the poor and helpless. The Lord God is the divine Protector who hears the voice of those overwhelmed with a crushing load of hard circumstances. The great “I AM” is the ultimate refuge and shelter for the vulnerable who possess no resources of their own. There is no bully, whether in the form of a person, an institution, or a government which can stand against the God who bends his ear to listen on behalf of the forgotten and the faint-hearted. Brutality and arrogance might touch our lives, yet it is the Lord to whom all those who exploit others must give an account. The violent, using cruelty and ruthlessness, shall not survive under the shadow of the Almighty God.

The poor and the needy may have no apparent chance against abusive persons and systems of the world. However, no power on earth can take on the Ruler and Sustainer of all creation and expect to have their way. God is the defender of the powerless. He specializes in tearing down the walls of oppression and lifting-up those in need of mercy.

So, then, I shall be explicit about the ancient and almighty God and our present circumstances:

Pandemic is a ruthless enemy which knows no pity from both rich and poor, the healthy and unhealthy; and, God is a merciful Deliverer who transcends all disease.
Poverty is a cruel master which is never satisfied; and, God is benevolent, bringing both spiritual and material satisfaction to life.
Patience is a virtue exemplified and amplified through the divine who desires to see all persons realize new life; and, impatience is a vice of the arrogant who demand their needs be met immediately without any regard to the common good of all.
Peace is a harmonious and wholehearted life gifted by God, even despite the surrounding storms of hardship; and, pride is the stance of the privileged who either cannot or will not see those who are underprivileged, and, so, they live in a constant state of unrest and disunity.

Wherever you find people speaking of their individual rights without emphasizing their communal responsibilities, there you will find a situation ripe for God to destroy the walls built by the selfish in order to create a safe place for the afflicted.

The Lord will silence the songs of the unmerciful; and, shall allow the shouts of the ones crying out for mercy to be heard. And he will do it in his own good time and grace.

Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you that through your death on the cross you disarmed the powers of evil. Help us, we pray you, to enter your resurrection victory and to stand in your authority against all evil. Send forth your light and your truth. Bring to light the deeds of darkness and let plans of violence be revealed. Through the power of Holy Spirit, almighty God, disarm every evil power and influence in your good world; and, bring loving connection where there is hatred and cruelty. Amen.