The Divided Kingdom
- When
- c. 660–612 BC
- Written by
- Nahum the Elkoshite
- Chapters
- 3
The big idea
Nineveh, which once repented at Jonah’s word, has returned to cruelty. Nahum announces its fall and comforts Judah: the Lord is good, a strength in the day of trouble.
Themes
- The end of cruelty
- Justice on oppressors
- God as refuge
- Good tidings of peace
Memory verse
The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.
Key passages
- 1:2–8The Lord’s wrath and goodness
- 1:15The feet of him who brings good tidings
- 2–3The fall of Nineveh
Links to other Scripture
- Romans 10:15How beautiful are the feet
- Isaiah 52:7Good tidings to Zion
- Romans 12:19Vengeance is Mine
- Revelation 18The fall of Babylon
Read the text
Choose a chapter to read it here in the King James Version. Verses with a dotted underline have notes from Bible scholars. Tap one to open them.
Notes from
Chapters
King James text and the commentaries of Henry, Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, Gill, Clarke, Calvin, and Keil and Delitzsch are in the public domain. Tyndale Open Study Notes are used under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license, from tyndaleopenresources.com. Texts were reformatted for this site.
Journal prompts
Keep a journal or notebook for your study. Write your answers there, in your own words.
- Where do you see Christ in this book?
- Nahum says the LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble. What is your trouble today, and what would it mean to run to that stronghold?
- Nineveh repented once and then went back to cruelty. Where have you seen yourself slip back into an old habit?
- Nahum speaks of the feet of him who brings good tidings of peace. Who has brought you good news, and whom could you bring it to?
- In one sentence, this book is about…