Week 26 Nahum 1
If I owned a company that manufactured religious plaques I would Never Ever use this verse from Nahum: the Lord is a jealous God, filled with vengeance and wrath. He takes revenge on all who oppose him and furiously destroys his enemies.
I would be aiming at wall-hangings that were a little more inspirational. Like this other verse from Nahum: the Lord is good. When trouble comes, he is a strong refuge. And he knows everyone who trusts in him.
So my sign production company could use Nahum’s verse-seven (nicer & reassuring & more consolatory) but not his verse-two (somber & harder-edged & fearsome).
Of course I don’t have a religious sign business. But I still think about the different ways the Lord is described. The Wall Plaque Verses have their pluses. The Lord is softer and more pliable. Manageable. Flexible. Malleable. And there’s quite a few like that. But I need to remember that that list is an exclusory one: accurate as far as it goes…inaccurate as far as it doesn’t.
So here in Nahum I pay attention to verse-two and verse-seven. His more comprehensive list says that the Lord is good and he knows the people who trust him. And also that the Lord is jealous and he destroys his enemies.
Note: quotes from Nahum 1:2 7 (NLT). End of month reading review: June wasn’t a smooth-as-glass month for me & I lost ground. But fortunately I’m still ahead: 50% of the year gone & 52% of the bible read.