Day 271

Nahum 1:1-3:19, Ephesians 6:1-24, Psalm 114:1-8

Nahum is a name that we don’t see too much. He is one of the minor prophets (12 of them) towards the end of the Old Testament. His name means ‘comforter’ and he prophesied near the downfall of the nation of Assyria, at one point they occupied much of the region including Israel. One other thing, the capital was Nineveh, as in Nineveh of Jonah and the whale fame.

What we do revisit though is the language of judgement, the bits that people always use to question what kind of god God is. Take a look at Wikipedia’s entry and their map to see what Assyria was like in terms of its size and might. When you have amassed an empire like this, there is only one language that you really understand, in fact they have probably done half of the stuff themselves Nahum is outlining while they were invading places. The language of love would probably not stop them so you need a different kind of language. But that is what God wants them to do, to stop what they are doing and turn to him, so this prophecy does not actually have to happen.

So what has changed, why has the language changed? Because our battle is no longer with the rulers of this world, but with the dark forces of the evil one – and if there is one thing that will defeat the devil, it is the language of love. Through Christ, through the Spirit, the Lord offers us the full power of love that surrounds us in the form of the armour of God. Despite the fact that God speaks through his grace and love rather than fire and brimstone, their is still a hint of war in the whole idea of armour. There is still a battle on (with the devil) yet now God is fighting for us and not against us.

When you are in the depth of despair, when you are deep in battle with the evil one (for these battles do happen) then you can be sure that God has got your back. In fact his armour is all over you and the fight is yours to be won.