Pastor Barry Forder

Pastor Barry Forder

Pastor Barry Forder

Pastor Barry Forder

Pastor Barry Forder

The prophet Nahum writes somewhere between 663 B.C. and 612 B.C., prophetically detailing the downfall and destruction of Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian Empire which had dominated the world for over 300 years. Some 200 years before Nahum, God had sent Jonah on a ‘mercy mission’ to warn them to turn from their wicked ways to avert judgment (God always warns and gives ample opportunity for repentance before pouring out His wrath). Upon hearing Jonah’s message, Nineveh repented and God relented of the judgement He was going to bring. However, their repentance was short lived and they quickly reverted to their old ways. The line had now been crossed, God was jealous for Israel as a husband for a wife who had been unjustly treated at the and of another. God states that He is now ‘furious’ with Assyria and that “the Lord will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies. The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked” (Nahum 1:2-3). From what we know, Nahum was born in Capernaum in Galilee, northern Israel – Capernaum means ‘village of Nahum’. Yet, in the introduction he is referred to as ‘Nahum the Elkoshite’, which commentators think could be a reference to Aklush, a town near modern Mosul in Iraq, and in Nahum’s time, on the outskirts of Nineveh. That being the case, it is probable that Nahum was among those of the norther kingdom of Israel who had been taken captive by Assyria in 722 B.C. and had witnessed first-hand the cruelty of the oppressive Assyrian Empire. Certainly, history records that Assyria were the most feared empire the world had known, with a reputation for barbaric cruelty.

Pastor Barry Forder

Pastor Barry Forder

Pastor Barry Forder

Pastor Barry Forder