SUMMARY
No one has escaped Assyrian violence. It was so extensive that it seemed to be without end. Nahum announces its end.
ANALYSIS
Since everyone has experienced Assyrian cruelty, there will be no one to heal or soften the judgment to be visited upon Assyria. The blow will be final and deadly. Rather than mourn the fallThe fall refers specifically to the disobedience of Adam and Eve when they listened to Satan rather than adhering to God's command not to eat the fruit from the tree. When people act contrary to God's will, they are said to fall from from grace... of Nineveh, all the victimized peoples will rejoice. However, it is important not to collapse the festivals and vows that JudahJudah was the name of Jacob's fourth son and one of the 12 tribes. is to resume (1:15) with the applause envisioned at the end of the book. Canonically, the fact that the only other book to end with a question is JonahA rebellious prophet who fled from the Lord's command, only to be delivered by a big and fish and bring about the repentance of Nineveh (which narrates a different future for Nineveh) cautions the reader against a reading that would restrict God’s mercyMercy is a term used to describe leniency or compassion. God's mercy is frequently referred to or invoked in both the Old and New Testaments.. Nahum is about God’s bringing to an end the cruelty that Assyria embodied. Envisioning that end as military destruction does not limit God’s mercy in another context or at another time.
