Pretty Feet?
Today’s Passage – Nahum 1 – 3 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 10 – 12; Psalms 131 – 135; Proverbs 27)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – 1 John 4:7 & 8
Read the “0927 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Read previous posts from today’s reading in Nahum – “What Are You Thinking?” and “Whose Side Are You On?“
“Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts, perform thy vows: for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off.” (Nahum 1:15)
The Book of Nahum is a “burden” of judgment pronounced against Nineveh. In the middle of this book about Nineveh is a very interesting verse written to encourage the people of God who had experienced the oppression of the Ninevites. Nahum 1:15 is a very interesting verse. It is written to Judah, which was the southern kingdom of Israel. The northern kingdom had already been attacked and conquered by the people of Assyria who are the main subject of this little book. As God is pronouncing judgment against Nineveh (the capitol city of Assyria) for all that they did to Israel and Judah, He inserts this verse of encouragement to the people of Judah who were spared. God tells them that He has “cut off” the nation that was oppressing them. These were certainly “good tidings” (good news) to the people of God.
Portions of this verse have been quoted in others parts of the Bible:
“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!” (Isaiah 52:7)
“And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!” (Romans 10:15)
Notice that it says in all of these verses that the feet of of the people who bring good news are beautiful. I do not think that God was speaking literally about the attractiveness of a person’s feet, but I believe that He was saying that it was a pleasant sight to see the people who are the bearers of good tidings. When Paul quoted from this verse in Romans 10:15 he was referring to the man who is sent to preach the gospel, which is the “good tidings” regarding salvation. God says that it is a beautiful thing for people to bring the good news about the Lord Jesus Christ.
How beautiful are your feet? Are your feet being used of the Lord to bring the good news of salvation to your neighbors. Are feet are used to bring us to a lot of places, but the greatest service that they can render is to bring us to the place where we can introduce a lost sinner to Jesus.
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Whose Side Are You On?
Today’s Passage –Nahum 1 – 3
“God is jealous, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies.” – (Nahum 1:2)
“The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.” – (Nahum 1:7)
The Book of Nahum is all about God’s judgment against Ninevah. I have not studied this paticular minor prophet at length, so I can’t be sure about all that the book deals with; but there are some things that I do know. First off, Ninevah was the capitol city of the Assyrian Empire. The Assyrians were the world power back around 700 BC. They were the enemies of Israel, and eventually conquored all of the northern Kingdom of Israel. They also attacked the southern Kingdom of Judah, and threatened Jerusalem back in the days of King Hezekiah, but God intervened, sparing Judah. Ninevah is also the city that Jonah cried against, and God spared them at that time because they repented of their evil, and turned to Him. In Nahum, however, there does not seem to be any plea for Ninevah to repent, just a pronouncement of judgment for their rejection of God.
Notice the contrast in the two verses above that I have taken from Nahum, chapter 1. The first one demonstrates the wrath and fury of God upon those who refuse His mercy and grace; and the second one speaks of God’s protection for those that belong to Him. The interesting thing is that neither of these groups of people are any better than the other. They are both just people: sinners; and they are both deserving of the judgment that God speaks of in verse 2. However, the group in verse 7, will receive mercy because they have placed their trust in the Lord.
Whose side are you on? Which group do you belong to? Have you placed your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ? Do you belong to Him? Does He know you? Jesus gives a pretty strong rebuke in the New Testament to some people that were religious, but they were not His. He didn’t know them:
“Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” – (Matthew 7:22-23)
In order for Him to know you, you will have to first receive Him as your Saviour:
“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:” – (John 1:12)
Will you be the sinner that receives the wrath of God, like the folks in Nahum 1:2; or will you be the sinner that receives God’s mercy and grace like those in Nahum 1:7? The choice is yours. Pick a side.
For information regarding salvation read “Why Jesus?”
Posted in Thoughts from Nahum by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
What Are You Thinking?
Todays Passages – Nahum 1 – 3 ; Proverbs 27
“What do ye imagine against the LORD? he will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time.” – (Nahum 1:9)
The Book of Nahum is a unique portion of Scripture. It is written about the nation of Assyria whose capital was Ninevah. You will remember that Ninevah was the city that repented after the preaching of Jonah. Assyria was also the world empire that brought judgment to the northern kingdom of Israel in 722 B.C., taking them into captivity. Frankly, I am not sure of the exact context of the writing of Nahum, but I think it was written as a judgment against them for their treatment of Israel.
The thought that struck me from this passage this morning comes from Nahum 1:9. God asked them what they “imagined” against Him. This is an interesting phrase. It appeared that the Assyrians had a false notion about God. They didn’t have their facts straight, and it resulted in an “imagination” about God that was totally untrue. I guess they thought that the God of Israel was powerless to judge them for their rebellion against His Law. I find that this world that we live in today has a lot of false imaginations about God as well. Most of the world (and unfortunately many in the the churches) are Bible ignorant. When a person does not possess the Truth they tend to conjure up things that are false. I hear people all the time make statements about God that are totally unfounded, and even contrary to the Scriptures. They are imagining things because they do not know the Truth. The big problem with all of this ignarance is, however, that there is really no excuse for it, especially in America. We have more Bibles and churches here than anywhere else in the world. Ignorance of the Truth is a conscious choice, and is therefore inexcusable.
“And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” – (John 8:32)
“Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;” – (2 Corinthians 10:5)
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