Where is God’s justice in today’s world? In this sermon, David Capoccia examines the first part of the book of Nahum and the book’s historical context. David Capoccia explains that, even when it looks like the wicked prosper and continually get away with doing evil, God promises to bring justice. David Capoccia explores the first of three exhortations from Nahum as to how Christians are to take comfort in God’s promise of vengeance:
- Remember God’s Characteristic Justice and Wrath
- Prepare for the Stunning Reversals of God’s Judgment
- See Through Man’s Useless Strength and Defenses
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thank you so much pastor oh it’s good to be back here at calvary thank you so much for your prayers and for your support while emma and i have been in california and at seminary we’re very very grateful the lord has provided it’s been a great uh five months or so there learning so much i’m eager to apply it and to share it with you and uh i’m looking forward to doing so with nahim do you just want to correct one thing that i i had displayed in my sunday school class this morning i said that jesus was born in a.d 6 or 4 to 6 a.d no it should be bc i said bc i think but i displayed a.d so no we’re not we don’t have a really late date for christ’s birth it should be 6 to 4 bc that’s when we most likely would say christ was born but let’s take a look at our word this morning and before we do that let’s pray god thank you so much for this opportunity thank you for this word all of your word is relevant to us the book of nahum is relevant to us we need to hear this word so i pray that you would help me god to be able to explain it and to explain it with the impact that it deserves oh spirit please work among your people today i pray that we would be changed we’d be encouraged that we’d be convicted by what you have in this book pray please work now oh spirit glorify yourself oh god in jesus name amen okay how long o lord how long have you ever said that to god this pointed phrase appears a number of times in the bible and when the phrase appears it’s usually in a context in which an oppressed righteous person asks how long until god judges evil listen to a few sample passages where we see this phrase psalm 79 psalm 79 5-7 says this how long o lord will you be angry forever will your jealousy burn like fire pour out your wrath upon the nations which do not know you and upon the kingdoms which do not call upon your name for they have devoured jacob and laid waste his habitation another one psalm 94 psalm 94 verses 1 to 3 o lord god of vengeance god of vengeance shine forth rise up o judge of the earth render recompense to the proud how long shall the wicked o lord how long shall the wicked exalt and then revelation revelation 6 10 we see this phrase again and the martyrs cried out with a loud voice saying how long o lord holy and true will you refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth god’s people have asked since since ancient days how long will you allow us to be afflicted how long will you allow evil to triumph how long until you bring justice and we can ask the same question today for do we not live in a day in which evil triumphs and oppresses in various places how long o lord will you allow islamic terrorists to continue to glory in their suicide bombings how long o lord will you allow governments and peoples around the world to shut out the gospel and to arrest and even execute your christians how long o lord will you allow sex trafficking prostitution and pornography to flourish girls and women all over the world sold and degraded because of greedy men how long o lord will you permit parents to murder their unborn children how long o lord will you overlook arrogant courts giving rulings which in the name of tolerance make it illegal to speak about or practice your good word how long o lord will businesses get away with unscrupulous practices for the sake of profit how long o lord will you allow false teachers to lead people astray and blaspheme your name and it can get personal how long o lord will you allow this certain person in my life to persecute me for doing what is right and it also embraces the spiritual realm how long o lord will satan and his demons and the wicked world system he controls succeed we could ask many similar questions and these questions are not unwarranted because god claims to be a god full of justice and zeal for what is good so god where is your justice why does evil continue to oppress and triumph will evil really go unpunished at the root of these questions is the faithfulness of god god has promised in his word to judge the wicked and vindicate the righteous so god when will we see you keep your promise god responds to such questions in his bible and we’re going to see one of those responses today in the book of nahum so open there if you haven’t done so already the book of nahum short often neglected book near the end of the old testament five books before malachi so if you just find malachi you can go back a couple pages or so it’s right after micah jonah micah nahim or in the book of nahim nahim is part of a group of books that we call the minor prophets unfortunately many today see nahim as irrelevant and even an embarrassing book such people dismiss nahim’s prophecy as a mere hymn of hate it was a hymn of hate from an ancient hebrew about an enemy that no longer exists how could such a book be applicable or appropriate for disciples of jesus on the contrary we will see as we look at the book ourselves the name has critical words to say to us regarding god’s justice and god’s faithfulness make no mistake this prophecy was written for our instruction as well that we might take comfort that we might gain confidence and that we might have a sober hope for the future we’re going to take two weeks to examine this short but powerful book this first week we’ll introduce ourselves to the historical context of the book of nahim and we’ll explore the first of the book’s three main points next week we’ll investigate the second and third points of the book before we begin looking at the message of nahim we really need to orient ourselves to the book’s historical setting indeed the historical occasion of this book is critical to our understanding and appreciation of what is declared in it so look with me just at nahum 1 1 am chapter 1 verse 1 where we read the oracle of nineveh the book of the vision of nahum the elkashite this book is an oracle or burden of prophecy given by god to the prophet nahum regarding nineveh now though the subject of this prophecy is nineveh and much of the book is addressed to nineveh and to its king the audience receiving this prophecy is not actually nineveh it’s judah this is a prophecy about nineveh given to judah now who is nahum well the bible tells us almost nothing about this man except what is revealed here in this verse nahum is a hebrew prophet his name means comfort and he comes from el kash we don’t know exactly where that is different theories have been put forward though nahim’s personal background is murky his message is not it is a burden of judgment against this city nineveh what is nineveh well nineveh was a great city in upper mesopotamia you may remember nineveh was the city that the prophet jonah reluctantly visited with a message from god back in the book of jonah which would those events would have taken place between 800 and 750 bc jonah did not want the people of nineveh to repent and be saved but the people did repent and god spared them from a coming calamity nineveh was still a great city in the days of nahim actually nineveh had become even greater the city was located in the northern part of what is today iraq it’s right across from the city of mosul that is its ruins are right across from the city of mosul nineveh was a city built between two rivers the great tigris river and the smaller coaster river along with these rivers a city featured a great aqueduct and various canals as well as a moat of water that surrounded the city’s walls indeed nineveh was a city associated with water much like venice is today i think nineveh think water messiah is making nineveh beautiful the water of nineveh made this city nearly impossible to conquer the canals and moat dramatically augmented the city’s defenses and the river passing through the city along with the aqueduct meant that trying to siege the city into submission was useless in nahum’s day nineveh was the capital of the assyrian empire one of the world’s first great empires historians call this empire the neo-assyrian empire began its rise around 900 bc and began to expand dramatically through conquest around 750 bc assyria subdued the medes and the persians in the this would be to you to the northeast the babylonians in the southeast and the hittites in the northwest so all their neighbors conquered subdued assyria then turned to syria assyria and syria are different places syria was right above israel the northern neighbor assyria conquered syria and then it attacked one of the two kingdoms of israel the divided kingdom period divided kingdom period we had the kingdom of israel samaria and the north judah to the south in 722 bc assyria conquers samaria when samaria fell whoever wasn’t massacred by the assyrians was taken in exile northern kingdom was no more in contrast to this northern kingdom though judah under king ahaz sought protection from assyria they submitted to a syria’s overlordship but this protection came at a cost judah owed ongoing tribute to assyria they had to pay money they had to pay this tribute and assyrian culture and religion began to find its way into judean society despite jonah’s beef brief ministry in nineveh syria was a proud and idolatrous nation and it enriched itself via the conquest and the domination of its neighbors syria was an incredibly effective war machine well known for its aggression brutality terror and duplicity for somewhat of a modern parallel think nazi germany just incredibly effective war machine brutal deceitful people listen to one of the boasts of an assyrian king this is found via archaeology quote i destroyed i demolished i burned i took their warriors prisoner and impaled them on stakes before their cities i flayed the nobles as many as had rebelled and spread their skins out on the piles of dead corpses many of the captives i burned in fire many i took alive from some i cut off their hands to the right from others i cut off their noses ears and fingers i put out the eyes of many of the soldiers unquote around 705 bc the righteous king hezekiah of judah rebelled against assyria threw off the assyrian yoke but assyria responded by invading and devastating judah every fortified city of judah fell until only jerusalem was left king hezekiah sought peace with assyria promising to submit again to a syrian rule and pay whatever assyria required the king of assyria imposed a huge indemnity of hundreds of tons of silver and gold and hezekiah sent the payment in order to obtain peace however the king of assyria betrayed his word and after accepting the payment he moved to besiege jerusalem anyways you may know how the rest of the story goes hezekiah turned to god in the face of this proud king of assyria who was boldly blaspheming the god of israel saying who is going to save you from me god then sent one angel and that angel killed 185 000 assyrian soldiers causing the assyrians to withdraw without even firing an arrow toward jerusalem jerusalem was saved but judean independence did not last long hezekiah’s son the wicked king manasseh also ward with assyria but manasseh was defeated he was defeated and taken prisoner to assyria he did actually repent of his evil ways and he eventually returned to israel but because of his defeat judah again came under assyria’s domination they were under the cruel yoke of assyria once again so by about 650 bc basically the whole of the middle east was under assyrian control the last serious rebellion against assyria’s domination which had arisen around the great egyptian city of thebes was crushed by syria in 663 bc by the way much of this historical information i’m giving to you is recorded in second kings 15 to 23 and second chronicles 5 28 and then 32 and 33. so the bible talks about a lot of this it is in this historical context that nahum prophesies his oracle on nineveh and consequently on assyria and its king is given sometime between 663 and 630 bc so that’s about 100 years or 150 years after jonah so assyria this wicked blasphemous treacherous nation is at the height of its power the northern kingdom of ireal israel is wiped out the southern kingdom of judah is subdued and oppressed no one is able to challenge the assyrian superpower in this situation we can understand how judah must have been asking the same questions that we mentioned earlier how long o lord why are you letting assyria prosper why does their evil continue unchecked do you not care for us we are your people but we are oppressed will you not act against evil where is your justice god had a message for judah through nahim about the situation with assyria and that message is contained in my sermon title name’s message to judah regarding assyria is essentially the same message that god gives to all christians today as they face ongoing evil what is that message it is this take comfort i will destroy evil oppressors take comfort this is the message of nahin take comfort god will destroy evil oppressors let’s now consider how god presents this message to judah and by extension to us we can divide the book of nahum into three main sections communicating three main ideas i’m going to articulate these ideas in the form of three exhortations from god as to how we ought to behave in the face of ongoing evil that is how are we to take comfort in god’s promise to judge evil oppressors here are the three points number one remember god’s characteristic justice and wrath number two prepare for the stunning reversals of god’s judgment number three see through man’s useless strength and defenses as i said earlier earlier we will only get through one point of nahim today we’ll look at the other two points in their sections next week let’s now read the text in which we find our first section and our first point so that’s going to be nahum chapter 1 verse to nahum chapter 2 verse 2. so 2-2 starting in verse 2 of chapter 1 follow along with me as i read a jealous and avenging god is the lord the lord is avenging and wrathful the lord takes vengeance on his adversaries and he reserves wrath for his enemies the lord is slow to anger and great in power and the lord will by no means leave the guilty unpunished and whirlwind and storm is his way and clouds are the dust beneath his feet he rebukes the sea and makes it dry he dries up all the rivers bashan and carmel wither the blossoms of lebanon wither mountains quake because of him and the hills dissolve indeed the earth is upheaved by his presence the world and all the inhabitants in it who can stand before his indignation who can endure the burning of his anger his wrath is poured out like fire and the rocks are broken up by him the lord is good a stronghold in the day of trouble and he knows those who take refuge in him but with an overwhelming flood or with an overflowing flood he will make a complete end of its sight and he will pursue his enemies into darkness whatever you devise against the lord he will make a complete end of it distress will not rise up twice like tangled thorns and like those who are drunken with their drink they are consumed as stubble completely withered from you has gone forth one who plotted evil against the lord a wicked counselor thus says lord though they are many though they are at full strength and likewise many even so they will be cut off and pass away though i have afflicted you i will afflict you no longer so now i will break his yoke bar from upon you and i will tear off your shackles the lord has issued a command concerning you your name will no longer be perpetuated i will cut off idol and image from the house of your gods i will prepare your grave for you are contemptible behold on the mountains the feet of him who brings good news who announces peace celebrate your feasts so judah pay your vows for never again will the wicked one pass through you he is cut off completely the one who scatters has come up against you man the fortress watch the road strengthen your back summon all your strength for the lord will restore the splendor of jacob like the splendor of israel even though devastators have devastated them and destroyed their vine branches that is our text in these verses we see our first point of comfort from god in the face of evil here’s the first point remember god’s characteristic justice and wrath remember god’s characteristic justice and wrath notice that the first place that god directs the minds of his oppressed people is god’s character god says do you wonder where just judgment is don’t forget who i am notice verses 2 and 3 god in particular tells judah to remember that god is a god of holy wrath just notice the repetition of these terms in verse 2 avenging avenging wrath vengeance wrath god has not forgotten who he is he is the holy god that unleashes overwhelming holy anger against those who do evil verse 3 further clarifies that yes god is a patient god even a god who forgives with proper atonement but god will never allow the unatoned that is the guilty to go unpunished that language by the way that phrasing is actually a an illusion allusion to something that the lord said back in the torah back in exodus 34. that’s the section where god’s glory passes by moses and god declares his long name what we call the long name of the lord here’s exodus 34 verses 5-8 you don’t have to turn there but just listen exodus 34 verses 5-8 the lord descended in the cloud and stood there with moses as moses called upon the name of the lord and the lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed the lord the lord god compassionate and gracious slow to anger about and abounding and loving kindness and truth who keeps loving kindness for thousands who forgives iniquity transgression and sin yet he will by no means leave the guilty unpunished visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations moses made haste to bow low toward the earth and worship that was the response to god revealing his character so verse three and nahim here is calling back to mind the nature of god as declared by god himself in the book of exodus notice also in the beginning of this chapter one of nahum the repetition of the name the lord remember that when you see that that term in all capital letters in your bible this is really in the hebrew yahweh the special covenant name that god gave himself to moses and to all israel that this name which translates to i am emphasizes god’s eternal nature god’s perfect self-sufficiency and his unchangeability this is the name that god revealed specially to israel it is a name that connotes god’s special covenant with the people he chose by using this name so noticeably and repeatedly here at the beginning of nahim god emphasizes i don’t change i am the same covenant-keeping god who entered into special relationship with you now as i was then i will never forget my justice nor will i forget my promises to you i am and will be faithful notice how in the middle of verse 3 down to verse 6 nahum gives us a visual illustrating god’s overwhelming and powerful wrath god is described here like a mighty storm with blistering wings and rolling clouds when god’s wrathful presence arrives the earth itself cannot help but tremble the sea flees the river dries up fertile and beautiful lands like the plain of bashan and the slopes of mount carmel and mount lebanon they immediately wither and become barren the mountain themselves they tremble and break apart the world is upheaved just at the arrival of the god of wrath and he hasn’t even done anything yet and if this is how the land and its great mountains react to god how will wicked man fare the beginning of verse 6 appropriately asks who can stand before his indignation who could possibly endure his burning anger the implied answer is no one god’s wrath goes out like fire and breaks up even the mighty rocks verse 7 pauses to remind us that god’s wrath is not sent on everyone for those who seek refuge in yahweh god’s overwhelming power is their security yahweh is good to them but notice the contrast in verse 8 not so the wicked for them god sends an overwhelming flood of judgment that pursues god’s enemies into darkness that is the realm of darkness into the land of the dead notice the phrase he will make a complete end of its sight here we have introduced for the first time in nahim since the title a particular recipient of god’s wrath there will be a particular place that will experience an overwhelming flood of god’s wrath and that flood will bring the inhabitants into darkness and we’re going to see later that this flood is not just figurative it’s not just a expression there’s a little literal aspect to it verse 8 then functions as a transition verse in this section nahim transitions transitions us from hearing about god’s judgment his characteristic judgment against enemies in pre in general to god’s wrath against one particular proud enemy verse 9 makes this shift even more explicit since we hear for the first time a you whatever you devise against the lord he will make a complete end of it verses 9 to 12 tell us that there is a people and one from among that people who make evil plans against yahweh against the great i am and notice how the verses emphasize the totally foolish nature of this venture whatever you plot against me god says i will totally overturn it i won’t need to act against you twice you will be consumed like dry brambles are consumed by fire you will stagger and become incapacitated like a drunk man even if you’re at the height of your power if you are full and many even so i will cut you off and make you pass away what is this talking about who is this well we already know from verse one this is god talking about his wrath against assyria against nineveh its capital city and against its king that he’s the wicked counselor who leads his nation to conspire against king yahweh but nineveh isn’t the only addressee here there’s a back and forth nature to these latter these latter verses in chapter one the middle of verse 12 and verse 13 switched to address one oppressed by this wicked plotting people oppressed by assyria and notice what does god promise this other people he says the affliction i brought against you will come to an end i will break his that is the king of assyrias i will break his yoke on you and tear away his shackles to whom is nahim speaking here this is judah this is the surviving kingdom of israel they are the ones who are experiencing the brutal yoke of assyria god had allowed this god actually says that he brought it about i brought this affliction on you he says nevertheless god says i’m going to judge the wicked agent of your affliction the cruel yoke will now be torn off of you judah in verse 14 yahweh turns back to address the king of assyria what does he declare here it says a command has gone out from god to cut off the king’s name and his lineage from the earth moreover god promises to cut off the king’s gods and images god will even prepare a grave for this wicked boastful king this king is going to die god declares by the way if you’re wondering how do we know it’s the king well in the hebrew there’s a little bit more information on the term u in english we use u for singular and plural masculine and feminine but in hebrew it’s more specific so you you can know in the hebrew these are talking about the king here based on those extra indicators on the word you so god says this king he’s going to be judged this king is going to die and why notice the 4 in verse 14. what’s the reason for this king being brought to the grave because you are contemptible god says you are a light thing to me you are nothing great or worthy of respect whatever you think of yourself what other whatever others think of you you ought to be despised as a worthless thing you are contemptible this section ends with god giving two sets of directions to two different peoples to judah and her people on the one hand and nineveh and her king and people on the other what is god’s direction for judah notice verse 15 celebrate god says judah celebrate look messengers have come with good news they announced peace what peace the wicked one the brutal and blasphemous king of assyria will not come through you anymore he is cut off therefore you people of god celebrate pay your vows offer sacrifices of thanks to god for he has remembered you and has recompensed the wicked you may recognize this phrase at the beginning of verse 15 about beautiful feet haven’t we seen this elsewhere in scripture actually even in sunday school we mentioned it we have it’s first used in isaiah 52 where god or where isaiah describes the coming of king yahweh to rescue and save his people here’s isaiah 52 verses 5 to isaiah 52 5-8 now therefore what do i have here declares the lord seeing that my people have been taken away without cause again the lord declares those who rule over them how and my name is continually blasphemed all day long therefore my people shall know my name therefore in that day i am the one who is speaking here i am how lovely on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news who announces peace and brings good news of happiness who announces salvation and says to zion your god reigns listen your watchmen lift up their voices they shout joyfully together for they will see with their own eyes when the lord restores zion that’s isaiah but this phrase is also used in one other place in the bible new testament in the book of romans paul uses this phrase to describe the preaching of the gospel romans 10 verses 14 to 17 romans 10 14 to 17. paul writes how then will they call on him and whom they have not believed how will they believe in him and whom they have not heard and now will they hear without a preacher how will they preach unless they are sent just as it is just as it is written how beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things however they did not all heed the good news for isaiah says lord who has believed our report so faith comes from hearing and hearing by the word of christ maybe asking yourself what do these passages all have to do with each other what do they each of the uses of this phrase about messengers and their feet have in common actually there’s a striking similarity and each situation god is announcing what he that is he by himself has done or will do for his people salvation and in each instance what does god require his people to do nothing nothing except believe and celebrate just believe and celebrate god has done it all god will do it all you don’t have to do anything just believe and rejoice over the kind faithfulness of your god this is god’s message to judah through nahim god will keep his promises to you god will stay true to his nature you will hear messengers of good news in the future detailing to you what god has done all by himself on your behalf therefore be no longer anxious be no longer troubled believe and rejoice contrast this message with what god commands assyria to do in chapter 2 verses 1 and 2.
what must assyria do not celebrate get ready for battle god declares the one who scatters is coming up against you enemy armies are preparing to besiege you so get ready battle stations send out your sentries war is coming but notice there’s a certain irony in this command because even while god commands you should get ready for battle verse 2 says or verse 2 indicates your preparations will do you no good because god has promised i will restore the splendor of israel i will restore that splendor even though devastators devastators like you assyria have come up against them even though you’ve devastated them i’m going to restore them and just as god changed the name of jacob to israel an illustration of god’s glorious abrahamic covenant so god will also transform the remnant of jacob in judah into the glorious covenant vindicated kingdom of israel assyria god declares your necessary role is to prepare for battle and fall i will glorify the people you devastated because i keep covenant with them you cannot celebrate as they do there is nothing left for you to do o nineveh except to brace for impact prepare for your doom and destruction would not all this be a great message of comfort to judah and the days of a serious unchallenged domination god tells judah remember that i have not changed my zeal for holiness and justice are as infinitely strong as ever my nature demands that i judge evil i have not forgotten you or assyria my fury will break out against nineveh and its king assyria will have to prepare for destruction while you prepare for celebration i will vindicate your trust in my justice i will vindicate your belief in my faithfulness so calvary this is also nahum’s first point to us when you face ongoing evil remember god’s characteristic justice and wrath now god has further comfort for his people god doesn’t just want to make promises based off his character god also wants to illustrate how these promises will be fulfilled what it’s going to look like and that is going to give further confidence and comfort to his people and next time we’ll see how god does that second and third points again just to kind of preview that number two prepare for the stunning reversals of god’s judgment and then number three see through man’s useless strength and defenses but from what we’ve seen thus far how can we apply this divine instruction into our lives though nahim though nahim’s prophecy primarily points us to confidence in god’s vengeance we can more generally apply nahum’s message in confidence in god’s faithfulness in every area this includes your salvation will god keep his promises to save you remember god’s character this includes your trials well god i’ll actually illustrate this many of you are facing situations in your lives in which the promises of god are being put to the test for instance you know god has promised to provide for your physical and financial needs but now you’re not seeing that provision your savings have dried up or you suddenly have some new unexpected expenses you don’t know how you’ll meet them can you still believe god can you still rejoice confidently in god’s future provision or maybe you know that god has promised to be with you and take care of you as you are faithful and obedient witness for him but telling others about jesus is costing you some of your family and friends don’t want to talk to you anymore can you still believe god can you still rejoice confidently in his future care and vindication of your faith or maybe you’re seeking to be a faithful parent to your children but despite your living a godly life before them and exercising loving and consistent discipline your children still rebel can you still believe god can you still rejoice confidently that he will perfectly provide both for you and for your children whatever the trial you are now facing or that you will face know that a proper response includes the exact same attitude that nahim is driving us toward take comfort god will keep his promises to you and how do you know that because these promises are tied to god’s character and god’s character does not change therefore remember god’s character remember god’s characteristic wisdom and faithfulness remember his essential love and compassion his unchanging strength and power he will not fail you wait for the lord’s vindication however long it takes to come it will come you will see those messengers with their beautiful feet and you will hear a glorious message of good news but more directly as we think about the different kinds of ongoing evil that exists in our world today or that we encounter or that oppresses us whether it’s personal familial national international we must remember god’s good justice and wrath as i said as we’ve said repeatedly god’s character does not change he is the same holy god of nahum chapter 1 as he is of exodus chapter 34 as the years of america 2017.
god’s wrath is still awe-inspiring and overwhelming his wrath will still be justly poured out on evil god kept his promise to judge and destroy assyria next week we will see how but know then if god kept his promise there he will keep his promises to judge today’s evil so stop despairing over evil stop being discouraged stop acting as if god might not vindicate the righteous or bring recompense to the wicked no that’s your god reigns vengeance is his vindication is his evil may triumph four times but god will triumph in the end wait for the lord’s revealed salvation good news will come believe and celebrate rejoice in the unbreakable goodness and faithfulness of god one final application remember that the comfort of nahim that we’ve just been describing is only for those who truly belong to god if you do not belong to god if you do not acknowledge him if you do not love him if you do not serve him with everything that you are if you do not submit to him in every area of your life if you persist in your own way and on your own path of sin then you are in the place of nineveh not judah you yourself despite what you present yourself or think of yourself to be on the outside you yourself are an agent of evil you are an agent of oppression you are a source of discouragement to god’s people you’re a slave of satan the new testament would or the new testament would say in in that language jesus says that if you are not with him then you are against him there is no neutral ground with god if you are not a servant of christ then you are a servant of the devil and the cries of god’s righteous for justice are also against you will god not hear his children’s cries don’t think that god doesn’t see your sin and that he doesn’t know the true affections of your heart god knows everything neither suppose that god doesn’t care about your sin remember god’s character he’s too good he’s too just to let what deserves justice to just go god is a god of fearful and holy anger anger against sin and he does not change beware the fate of nineveh and assyria if you do not repent you too will likewise perish and not just now but forever so escape while you can the wrath of god god is such a god who pardons iniquity that’s even mentioned here in nahim but he will by no means leave the guilty unpunished so come to jesus come to god’s only way of salvation while you can repent of your sin turn away from it take jesus as your only righteousness and as the sacrifice to satisfy god’s anger against you turn over your whole life to jesus make god your master because then god will be your strong tower and your place of safety when the day of judgment comes you will not be carried away in the overwhelming flood of wrath god is patient but his patient doesn’t his patience does not last forever god will act at the right time in judgment to destroy the wicked and vindicate his own to let us remember god’s character let’s remember his faithfulness let’s close in prayer god this is a great word it is a sober word it is a word that’s often not mentioned today but it is the truth god we do praise you for your justice we do praise you even for your wrath because that is that is only right how could you ever overlook evil how could you ever overlook oppression how could you just say oh that doesn’t matter to me you’re too good for that and yet god we’re so grateful we’re so grateful that you provided a way in mercy for us to be saved from your wrath even as we were talking about in sunday school today you provided a savior you provided a way for us to have peace with you thank you god for for doing that for bringing us into your strong tower but god as we think about the different sources of ongoing evil today lord we thank you for this word that shows us that we don’t need to be discouraged we don’t have to wonder will wickedness ultimately triumph we know we know what your word says we know your character you’re too just for that you’re too good so god we will wait we will wait for your vindication we will wait for your vengeance we will leave those things to you and we will rejoice until that day comes but i pray that you would do your necessary work and the people who have heard this message today build them up cause them to run after you enjoy in jesus name amen