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Angel Destroys the Assyrian Army
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the power of God to save, and He had not failed them. The temple
courts resounded with songs of solemn praise.
The stouthearted were plundered;
They have sunk into their sleep;
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And none of the mighty men have found the use of their hands.
At Your rebuke, O God of Jacob,
Both the chariot and horse were cast into a dead sleep.
You, Yourself, are to be feared;
And who may stand in Your presence
When once You are angry? ...
Make vows to the Lord your God, and pay them;
Let all who are around Him bring presents to Him who ought
to be feared.
He shall cut off the spirit of princes;
He is awesome to the kings of the earth.
Psalm 76:5-12
Lessons From the Proud Assyrian Empire
Inspiration has compared Assyria at the height of her prosperity
to a noble tree in the garden of God, towering above the surrounding
trees: “In its shadow all great nations made their home.” “All the
trees of Eden envied it.”
Ezekiel 31:6, 9
.
But the rulers of Assyria, instead of using their blessings for the
benefit of the people, became the scourge of many lands. Merciless,
with no thought of God or their fellowmen, they pursued the policy
of causing all nations to acknowledge the supremacy of Nineveh’s
gods, whom they exalted above the Most High. God had sent Jonah
to them with a message of warning, and for a time they humbled
themselves before the Lord of hosts and sought forgiveness. But
soon they turned again to idol worship and to the conquest of the
world.
The prophet Nahum, in listing the sins of the evildoers in Nin-
eveh, exclaimed:
Woe to the bloody city!
It is all full of lies and robbery.