When Jonah preached to the people of Nineveh, he delivered a message which moved the people to repentance (Jonah 3:10, NKJV). Unfortunately, the people of Nineveh did not allow their repentance to be long-term and they soon found themselves back to their old ways. As a result, God would not overlook their sin forever and sends them another prophet to warn them of their impending judgment.             Nahum is God’s prophet of doom for the Ninevites. The Assyrian kings in Nineveh were known for being ruthless and morally corrupt; they prided themselves in the complete devastation of their enemies.[1] They were known as “the bloody city” where “the noise of a whip and the noise of rattling wheels, of galloping horses, of clattering chariots” was commonplace (Nah. 3:1ff). The people of Nineveh were proud, believing that none could stand up against them, but they failed to account for the Almighty God – “Who can stand before His indignation? And who can endure the fierceness of His anger” (Nahum 1:6)? The actions of the Ninevites had placed them in a position where God was “against [them]” (Nahum 2:13; 3:5). As a result, Nineveh would be made “empty, desolate, and waste” (Nahum 2:10). God’s wrath was coming down on the people of Nineveh due to their own wicked actions. God would make it so that it would “come to pass that all who look upon [Nineveh] will flee …, and say, ‘Nineveh is laid waste!’” (Nahum 3:7).             While Nahum’s message focuses …

            Micha, whose name means “Who is like Yahweh,” prophesied during the same time frame as Hosea. Both of these men began their prophetic work around 760-750 B.C., and while Hosea’s work finished a few years after the Assyrians took Israel captive (722 B.C.), it is believed that Micah continued until around 700 B.C. Micah’s preaching was primarily in the southern kingdom to the people of Judah, but it was not limited to them alone.             Micah’s message was that God’s people were about to be destroyed because of the sins of Israel and Judah (Micah 1:5, NKJ). The prophet’s words are clear concerning Samaria; they would be reduced to ruins (1:6), while Jerusalem would be “plowed like a field” (3:12). The condemnation of these nations can be traced back to their corrupt leadership. Micah wrote of those in the upper class who should have provided an example of righteousness for the rest of the people, but because of their wickedness, they used their position to take what little the poor had. These people laid in their beds by night pondering their wicked deeds and executed them by day “because it is in the power of their hands” (2:1). They did it simply because they could.             Micah made it clear that such behavior was not acceptable in the sight of the Lord and that the Lord saw them as “an enemy” (2:8). Because of their taking what did not belong to them, God would bring about calamity that they …

Of all the minor prophets, Jonah is likely the most well-known. Many know the story of how Jonah was swallowed by a big fish and spit back up onto dry land. The message of Jonah, however, is more than Jonah’s encounter with the great fish. Jonah teaches us about the righteousness of God and gives us a glimpse of the sometimes complicated individuals in whom God finds value.             Jonah serves as God’s prophet not to God’s chosen people but to a foreign nation. God calls Jonah to go and “cry out against” Ninevah (Jonah 1:2, NKJV). Jonah’s message for those in Ninevah was a mere eight words: “Yet forty days, and Ninevah shall be overthrown” (Jonah 3:4). God’s message proclaimed by Jonah found good and honest hearts in the wicked city as they were moved to repentance. “God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it” (Jonah 3:10). God’s concern is with justice and righteousness, but God is also a merciful and a forgiving God. The repentance of those in Ninevah was true, and God, in His mercy, forgives those in the city of their wickedness. As a result, God’s righteousness causes Him to relent from the destruction He was going to bring upon them before their repentance.             The message of God’s righteousness is only one lesson we might learn from Jonah. Jonah himself shows …

The prophecies of Obadiah have ties back to the hostility that began with enmity between Esau and Jacob (Gen. 25:22-34; 27:1-46 NKJV). Esau was called “Edom” because of the red stew he ate (Gen. 25:30). Edom descended from Esau and was therefore related to Judah. Edom was one of Judah’s closest neighbors, but their relationship was less than friendly – stemming back to refusing Israel to pass through Edom on their way to Canaan (Num. 20:14-21). This hostility intensified in 2 Sam. 8:13-14 when David conquered Edom, and constant wars between the Edomites and the Judean kings resulted from this mutual hatred.             God is the God of all nations, and He calls each out for their unrighteousness wherever they are located. God condemned the foreign nations because of their mistreatment of His people and their failure to recognize Him as the only true God. Valuable lessons imply that no one is exempt from the judgment of God, and all will be held accountable in the judgment. No cleft will hide you nor any height where He cannot reach you (vv. 3-4). It is not to say that the Edomites were unaware of their faults, but Obadiah specifically lists their violent actions. The nation had done violence to Jacob (v10) and had stood with the oppressors in Jacob’s/Judah’s time of need (v11). Rather than showing concern, the Edomites boasted and rejoiced over the children of Judah in their day of distress (v12). It wasn’t that the Edomites were just an …

            A consistent theme that stands out to me throughout the Bible is how God takes common people and uses them for extraordinary purposes. God takes unassuming men such as Gideon and turns them into great deliverers (Judg. 6:11ff, NKJV), young shepherds such as David to become great kings (1 Samuel 16), or common fishermen such as Peter, Andrew, James, and John to become great disciples and evangelists (Matt. 4:18-22). Yet among all the common individuals whom God has used for great purposes, few stand out like Amos. Before receiving his message from God for the people of Israel, Amos was a fruit farmer and a sheep breeder (Amos 1:1; 7:14-15). He was an everyday man, yet this did not stop Amos from communicating a necessary and powerful message to God’s people. Amos’ message focuses primarily on the justice of God. Amos reveals that Israel would be punished for their sins just like any other nation if they did not repent and turn back to God (Amos 1-2). Israel was not measuring up to the straight “plumb line” of God’s standards (Amos 7:7-9), and they were ripe for ruin just like “a basket of summer fruit” (Amos 8:1ff). Israel needed to turn from their sins and “seek [God]” to avoid their impending doom (Amos 5:4). The whole of Amos’ message is summed up in the middle of the book – “Prepare to meet your God, O Israel” (Amos 4:12)! It is in this message that God’s people are called to …