The Meaning of Nahum 1:2 Explained

Nahum 1:2

KJV: 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.

YLT: A God zealous and avenging is Jehovah, An avenger is Jehovah, and possessing fury. An avenger is Jehovah on His adversaries, And He is watching for His enemies.

Darby: A jealous and avenging God is Jehovah: an avenger is Jehovah, and full of fury: Jehovah taketh vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies.

ASV: Jehovah is a jealous God and avengeth; Jehovah avengeth and is full of wrath; Jehovah taketh vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

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. 

What does Nahum 1:2 Mean?

Study Notes

God is jealous
The great ethical lesson of Nahum is that the character of God makes Him not only "slow to anger," and "a stronghold to them that trust Him," but also one who "will not at all acquit the wicked." He can be "just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus" Romans 3:26 but only because His holy law has been vindicated in the cross.

Verse Meaning

Nahum drew a picture of Yahweh as a God who is jealous for His chosen people (cf. Exodus 20:5; Exodus 34:14; Deuteronomy 4:24; Deuteronomy 5:9). That Isaiah , He greatly desires their welfare (cf. Deuteronomy 6:15). He is also an avenging God who takes vengeance on all who violate His standards of righteousness (what is right), though not with human vindictiveness. Third, He is full of wrath against those who oppose Him and disregard His grace, those who set themselves up as His adversaries and enemies (cf. Deuteronomy 32:35; Deuteronomy 32:41). The repetition of avenging, vengeance, and wrathful in this verse creates a strong impression of an angry God. The word "wrath" (Heb. hemah) means "to be hot" and describes burning rage and intense fury. Why was God so angry? The rest of the oracle explains that it was the behavior of the Ninevites that had aroused His anger.
This is the first of several rhetorical allusions to uniquely Neo-Assyrian conquest metaphors in the book. The figure of a destroyer of mountains and seas continues through Nahum 1:6, and the figure of the self-predicating warrior extends through Nahum 1:8. Other metaphors are the raging storm and the overwhelming dust cloud in Nahum 1:3, the overwhelming flood and the uninhabitable ruin in Nahum 1:8, the sheep slaughterer in Nahum 1:12, and the Assyrian yoke in Nahum 1:12-13. The metaphor of the mighty weapon appears in Nahum 2:1 and that of the consuming locust swarm in Nahum 3:16-17. [1]
"Verse2lays a foundation for the entire prophecy: all that follows is rooted in this revelation of the justice and burning zeal of the Lord exercised on behalf of his people." [2]

Context Summary

Nahum 1:1-15 - God's Goodness And Righteous Anger
The native city of Nahum was Elkosh, near the Lake of Galilee. The name Capernaum means literally "the village of Nahum." He lived about 150 years after Jonah, who also had been especially concerned with the sins and doom of Nineveh. Though as a Jew he must have dreaded Nineveh, which had already carried Samaria into captivity and was now menacing Jerusalem, he accounted its fate a grievous burden-"the burden of Nineveh." We must never speak of the doom of the ungodly, save from a broken heart.
Nahum 1:1-8 forms a magnificent preamble combining the goodness and severity of God. His dealings with mankind are wrapped in mystery, but He is good and the stronghold of His saints. In Nahum 1:9-15 we see how mad Assyria was to enter into conflict with Jehovah. The fate of thorns in fiercely burning flame is the emblem of their doom. Compare Nahum 1:14 with Isaiah 37:38. When the hour of anguish is past, let us not forget to pay our vows. [source]

Chapter Summary: Nahum 1

1  The majesty of God in goodness to his people, and severity against his enemies

What do the individual words in Nahum 1:2 mean?

God [is] jealous and avenges Yahweh avenges Yahweh and [is] furious will take vengeance Yahweh on His adversaries and reserves [wrath] He for His enemies
אֵ֣ל קַנּ֤וֹא וְנֹקֵם֙ יְהוָ֔ה נֹקֵ֥ם יְהוָ֖ה וּבַ֣עַל חֵמָ֑ה נֹקֵ֤ם יְהוָה֙ לְצָרָ֔יו וְנוֹטֵ֥ר ה֖וּא לְאֹיְבָֽיו

אֵ֣ל  God  [is] 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֵל 
Sense: god, god-like one, mighty one.
קַנּ֤וֹא  jealous 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: קַנּׄוא  
Sense: jealous.
וְנֹקֵם֙  and  avenges 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: נָקַם  
Sense: to avenge, take vengeance, revenge, avenge oneself, be avenged, be punished.
יְהוָ֔ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: Jehovah—used primarily in the combination ‘Lord Jehovah’.
נֹקֵ֥ם  avenges 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: נָקַם  
Sense: to avenge, take vengeance, revenge, avenge oneself, be avenged, be punished.
יְהוָ֖ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: Jehovah—used primarily in the combination ‘Lord Jehovah’.
חֵמָ֑ה  [is]  furious 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: חֵמָא 
Sense: heat, rage, hot displeasure, indignation, anger, wrath, poison, bottles.
נֹקֵ֤ם  will  take  vengeance 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: נָקַם  
Sense: to avenge, take vengeance, revenge, avenge oneself, be avenged, be punished.
יְהוָה֙  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: Jehovah—used primarily in the combination ‘Lord Jehovah’.
לְצָרָ֔יו  on  His  adversaries 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: צַר 
Sense: narrow, tight.
וְנוֹטֵ֥ר  and  reserves  [wrath] 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: נָטַר 
Sense: to keep, keep guard, reserve, maintain.
לְאֹיְבָֽיו  for  His  enemies 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אֹיֵב  
Sense: (Qal) enemy.