Nahum 1:2-6, 7-10

GOD is serious business. He won’t be trifled with. He avenges his foes. He stands up against his enemies, fierce and raging. But GOD doesn’t lose his temper. He’s powerful, but it’s a patient power. Still, no one gets by with anything. Sooner or later, everyone pays. Tornadoes and hurricanes are the wake of his passage, Storm clouds are the dust he shakes off his feet. He yells at the sea: It dries up. All the rivers run dry. The Bashan and Carmel mountains shrivel, the Lebanon orchards shrivel. Mountains quake in their roots, hills dissolve into mud flats. Earth shakes in fear of GOD. The whole world’s in a panic. Who can face such towering anger? Who can stand up to this fierce rage? His anger spills out like a river of lava, his fury shatters boulders.

GOD is good, a hiding place in tough times. He recognizes and welcomes anyone looking for help, No matter how desperate the trouble. But cozy islands of escape He wipes right off the map. No one gets away from God. Why waste time conniving against GOD? He’s putting an end to all such scheming. For troublemakers, no second chances. Like a pile of dry brush, Soaked in oil, they’ll go up in flames.