October 18, 2020: He’s Really Nice, But. . . .– Michael Hidalgo

The story of Jonah has long captured the minds and imaginations of many. It seems to have it all, a stumbling prophet, a supernatural fish, second chances and a surprise ending: God asking Jonah a question about why God shouldn’t show mercy. As popular and enduring as that story is few people ever say, “Man, that book Nahum? It is a real page turner!” Even though one only need turn very few pages to get there from the end of Jonah. 

 

Like Jonah, Nahum too involves Nineveh, but there is no fish and no second chances. However, like Jonah, it too ends with a question. The question is not about God’s mercy, but about why God shouldn’t absolutely, utterly and without question destroy and wipe out Nineveh and pelt them with filth (see Nahum 3.6: shikkuts) as though this is a scene from Monty Python.

We start the series here because, let’s face it, when it comes to the Bible there is no shortage to the troubling pictures of God and God’s people. But then, there are no shortage of beautiful, loving, endearing pictures of God - as mother, as lover, as creator, as forgiving. So what do we do with this? Toss it? Ignore it? Defend it? Or maybe wade into the mess of things and allow this contrast to lead us into something deeper.