3. The sins of the rich and of those in authority. Ch. 3.

III. The Promised Restoration and Glory, Chs. 4-5.

1. The promised restoration of the city Zion, 4:1-5.

2. The restoration and glory of Israel, 4:6-13 (end).
3. The mighty messianic king to be given, Ch. 5.

IV. God's Controversy With Israel. Chs. 6-7.

1. God's charge and threat against them, Ch. 6.

2. In lamentation and patience the righteous must wait for a better
time, 7:1-13.

3. God will have mercy and restore, 7:14-20.

For Study and discussion. (1) The several accusations and threatenings
against Israel and Judah. (2) The different things mentioned to
describe the coming prosperity of Israel and of the Messianic period.
(3) The false authority of civil rulers, of moral leaders, of
spiritual teachers.

* * * * *

Chapter XXI.

Nahum and Habakkuk.

Nahum.

The Prophet. His name means "consolation", and he was a native of
Elkosh, a small town of Galilee. We do not know where he uttered his
prophecy, whether from Philistia or at Nineveh. It is thought that he
escaped into Judah when the Captivity of the Ten Tribe began and that
he was at Jerusalem at the time of the Assyrian invasion.

The Prophecy. The date, if the above conclusions are to be relied
upon, would be in the reign of Hezekiah, King of Judah, which would be
between 720 and 698 B. C. Others put it between the destruction of
Thebes, 664 B. C. and the fall of Nineveh, 607 B. C. claiming that it
might be either during the reign of Josiah, 640-625 B. C. or in the
reign of Manasseh, 660 B. C. The theme of the book is the approaching
fall of Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, which held sway for centuries
and has been regarded as the most brutal of the ancient heathen
nations. The purpose, in keeping with the name of the author, was to
comfort his people, so long harassed by Assyria, which was soon to
fall and trouble them no more. The style is bold and fervid and
eloquent and differs from all the prophetic books so far studied in
that it is silent concerning the sins of Judah. It is a sort of
outburst of exultation over the distress of a cruel foe, a shout of
triumph over the downfall of an enemy that has prevented the
exaltation of the people of Jehovah.

Analysis.

I. The Doom of Nineveh Pronounced, Ch. 1.

II. the Siege and Fall of Nineveh, Ch. 2.

III. The Sins Which Will Cause Nineveh's Ruin, Ch. 3.

For Study and Discussion. (1) The strikin