Nahum 3 Chapter Introduction

Structure and Formatting

If you have decided to set the text of this book into short lines of poetry, you will want to continue to do so in this chapter.Despite being divided into three chapters, the book contains one long prophecy.

Outline of chapter 3

1. Woe to Nineveh ([3:1–3](../03/01.md))1. Nineveh the prostitute ([3:4–7](../03/04.md))1. The example of Thebes ([3:8–11](../03/08.md))1. The destruction of Nineveh is sure ([3:12–19](../03/12.md))

Religious and Cultural Concepts in This Chapter

The Locusts in [3:15–17](../03/15.md)

Locust attacks occurred often in the ancient Near East. A locust is a kind of grasshopper that would come in countless numbers. There would be so many that they would darken the sky like a black cloud that blocked the sunlight. They often came after a long period of no rain. They came down on whatever crops were surviving in the fields and stripped them bare. The locusts could not be stopped, and they caused terrible damage. For this reason, locust invasions served as a powerful image of overwhelming military attacks in the Old Testament.

Translation Issue

There is an extended metaphor in [3:4–7](../03/04.md). In this metaphor, Yahweh compares Nineveh to a prostitute who brings men under her control by charm and witchcraft. Both prostitution and witchcraft were associated with idol worship, and in the Bible, prostitution is used as a metaphor for idol worship. Just as a prostitute is not faithful to a husband, people who worship idols are not faithful to the only true God, the one who deserves worship. Nineveh was a very powerful and prosperous city, and thus, it was attractive to others to adopt Nineveh’s ways and to worship Nineveh’s gods. If this is unclear for your readers, you may want to provide an explanation in a footnote. (See: [extended metaphor](figs-exmetaphor)).