-Nineveh: Spared Then Squashed

Nineveh, the idolatrous capital of the Assyrian empire that traces its origin back to disobedient Nimrod and the tower of Babel, is the subject of two Old Testament books — Jonah and Nahum. In both books an overthrowing is prophesied, and in both it comes about.

Nineveh: Spared Then Squashed

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Nineveh, the idolatrous capital of the Assyrian empire that traces its origin back to disobedient Nimrod and the tower of Babel, is the subject of two Old Testament books — Jonah and Nahum. In both books an overthrowing is prophesied, and in both it comes about.

Spared
In the first, Jonah prophesied that in 40 days Nineveh would be overthrown (Jon. 3:4), and, spiritually speaking, it was! When Jonah prophesied their doom, the Ninevites “believed God … declared a fast, and … put on sackcloth” (3:5 NIV). In short, they repented! God watched for forty days while they mourned and turned from their evil ways. When He saw their change of heart, He changed His mind and showered them with mercy and grace instead of doom (3:10). Who would have thought this possible?

While those who suffered under the sword of this “bloody kingdom” may have thought this impossible, Jonah knew it would happen (4:1-2), because He knew the grace of God. He knew what Peter meant when he later wrote: “The Lord … is patient … not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:9). That’s why Jonah “became angry.” He wanted to see Nineveh squashed, not spared. But God wasn’t just sparing Nineveh, He was also teaching Jonah.

Have we ever felt like Jonah – when we read that a serial killer gets saved in prison, or a rock star begins singing hymns instead of hits, or our enemy becomes our brother in Christ. If we have, let’s take heart. While God is graciously responding to their feeble acts of repentance, He is also graciously pointing out our selfishness. Why? Because He is longsuffering.

Squashed
The second overthrow is in stark contrast to the first. Nineveh was called the “queen city of the earth” because of its wealth, the “bloody city” because of how it got its wealth, and the “impregnable city” because of how it protected its wealth — with walls 100 feet high, four chariots wide and nine miles in circumference! Yet this city miraculously repented at Jonah’s preaching and was spared for 150 years!

But as time passed, the Ninevites backslid, reverting to their former heathen practices and oppressing God’s people worse than ever. In 722 B.C. they destroyed the northern kingdom of Israel, and in 701 nearly captured Jerusalem. Nahum referred to Nineveh as “the mistress of sorceries who enslaved nations by her prostitution and … witchcraft” (Nah. 3:4).

Twenty years after Nahum’s prophecy, the Babylonians and Medes surrounded Nineveh. When the flooding Tigris broke the control gates of the city’s canal system, they entered and literally leveled the city. The destruction was so extensive and complete that Alexander the Great fought a battle on its site in 331 B.C. and never even knew it! The ruins of Nineveh were not uncovered by archeologists until 1845 A.D.

An Example
Nineveh’s preservation after Jonah’s preaching is proof that “the Lord is … not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” Nineveh’s destruction after Nahum’s prophecy bears out this truth: “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction” (Gal. 6:7-8). We can learn much from Nineveh.

By Larry Ondrejack

With permission to publish by: Sam Hadley, Grace & Truth, 210 Chestnut St., Danville, IL., USA.

Website: www.gtpress.org

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