I will cast abominable filth upon thee, and make thee vile. - Nahum 3:6
Nahum for Skeptics
There's not much new in Nahum. God continues to behave in a way that would be unacceptable for any human. But God can get away with anything.
Here are a few highlights:
- Whirlwinds, tornadoes, earthquakes, and fires are caused by God and are signs of his anger. He dries up oceans and rivers, melts mountains, and throws stones. 1:3-6
- He doesn't just get even. He drowns his enemies. 1:8
- There is "much pain in all loins." 2:10
- God will "discover thy skirts upon thy face ... show the nations thy nakedness ... and will cast abominable filth upon thee." 3:4
- God punished Nineveh by enslaving the people and smashing the little children in the streets. 3:10
- "Behold, thy people in the midst of thee are women." I guess this ("You're all just a bunch of women.") was the biggest insult God could think of at the moment. 3:13
- God says that "the fire shall devour thee, the sword shall cut thee off, it shall eat thee up like the cankerworm." 3:15