Chapter 1 of Nachum opens with the burden of Nineveh and an awe-inspiring description of the Holy One, Blessed is He, revealing Himself in His might and wrath: mountains quake, hills melt, and the earth is lifted up before Him. In the middle of this description, a verse of comfort and goodness suddenly enters, and from there the prophecy continues to the downfall of Assyria, to Sennacherib, and to the end of the king of Nineveh. The following lesson follows the Malbim (alongside Rashi, Radak, and the Midrashim) from verse 7 to the end of the chapter.
ט֣וֹב יְהֹוָ֔ה לְמָע֖וֹז בְּי֣וֹם צָרָ֑ה וְיֹדֵ֖עַ חֹ֥סֵי בֽוֹ׃ - Hashem is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knows those who take refuge in Him.
Rashi explains: Even when the Holy One, Blessed is He, exacts retribution from His enemies, He does not cease showing mercy to those who fear Him. His ways are not like mortal ways. With a human being, when one is occupied with one thing, he is not free for another. If an army mobilizes all its forces to crush the enemy, it cannot invest on the same scale in caring for the home front, in acts of kindness and rescue. With the Holy One, Blessed is He, this is not so; the two matters do not impinge upon one another. He exacts retribution from His enemies with full force, while at that very moment bestowing bounty and showing mercy to those who fear Him. Even as He is engaged with the former, He is fully available for the latter, for His power is limitless.
Through this, Rashi resolves the difficulty: How does a verse of blessing and goodness enter immediately after "mountains quaked before Him," "the hills melted," and "before His indignation who can stand?" Rather, this is the praise of the Holy One, Blessed is He. Even though He is currently in anger, fury, and distress against the enemies, this does not diminish in the slightest from the full abundance and goodness that He bestows upon those who fear Him and believe in Him. "And He knows those who take refuge in Him" - He knows the needs of those who take refuge in Him.
The Radak grapples with the same difficulty and resolves it differently: There were people of Israel who had been exiled to Assyria, and there was great concern that when the Holy One, Blessed is He, exacted retribution from Assyria, they too would be harmed. To this, the verse says: Do not worry. "Hashem is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble" - Hashem will be a stronghold for them, a place of strength, a refuge where they will be protected and preserved in the day of trouble. There will be trouble, but they will not be harmed. "And He knows those who take refuge in Him" - the Holy One, Blessed is He, knows and benevolently watches over those who take refuge in Him, and therefore they will not be harmed by the distress that will befall Assyria.
The Malbim interprets this with a different depth. After the prophet described how the earth seemingly dissolves into chaos and perishes, as though the universe has no existence, the question arises: Upon what will the inhabitants of the world stand? The earth has seemingly crumbled, the place itself is lost. To this, the verse responds: On a day of trouble, it is good to stand upon Hashem, for He is the place of the world, and upon Him the creations will stand and find strength and refuge.
And this is just as we learned at length in the Nefesh HaChaim: The Holy One, Blessed is He, is called "HaMakom" (The Place). If you ask a child where the Holy One, Blessed is He, is, he answers: Everywhere. This conception is flawed, as if there is a world and there is the Holy One, Blessed is He, and the Holy One, Blessed is He, is located inside the world. (Granted, there are two aspects to this, surrounding all worlds and filling all worlds, but this is not the place to elaborate.) In short: The Holy One, Blessed is He, is the place of the world, and therefore He is called HaMakom. The correct question is not where the Holy One, Blessed is He, is, but rather where the world is. And the answer is: The world is within the Holy One, Blessed is He, not the Holy One, Blessed is He, within the world. Everything is Godliness, and He is the place. If so, when the Holy One, Blessed is He, is the reality of the place - what is there to worry about?
"And He knows those who take refuge in Him" - the virtue of taking refuge in Hashem is greater than in any other shelter, because He is a refuge that knows what you need. During a missile attack, a person hides behind a concrete barrier, but the concrete barrier does not know him, does not know his needs, and does not know who or what he is. Hashem is a stronghold that knows those who take refuge in Him, exercising individual Divine providence to have pity and mercy on those sheltering there and to save them.
In relation to this, one can cite the verse: "It is better to take refuge in Hashem than to trust in man; it is better to take refuge in Hashem than to trust in princes." The Vilna Gaon (if I recall correctly) explains there the distinction between taking refuge (chesayah) and trusting (bitachon): When I take refuge in something, that entity promised me nothing; rather, on my own initiative I go and shelter beneath it - sheltering under a roof, sheltering under a tree. "Trusting," on the other hand, is when someone explicitly promised me: "Come, and I will protect you." And Scripture says: It is better to take refuge in Hashem, even without a prior guarantee, than to trust in a person who has made an explicit promise of protection. This is what the prophet says here: Even one who merely takes refuge, Hashem knows him. And "knows" means watching over him with full Divine providence to see all his needs.
One can also add an explanation: "Knows" is also in the sense of loving. "For I have known him, so that he may command his children and his household after him" - "I have known him" means I have loved him. Similarly, "Hashem knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish." This knowledge is an expression of connection: Hashem connects to him and loves him. Here too, one who takes refuge in Hashem merits Hashem's love, and Hashem protects him.
וּבְשֶׁ֣טֶף עֹבֵ֔ר כָּלָ֖ה יַעֲשֶׂ֣ה מְקוֹמָ֑הּ וְאֹיְבָ֖יו יְרַדֶּף־חֹֽשֶׁךְ׃ - "And with an overflowing flood He will make a full end of her place, and darkness will pursue His enemies."
Whom does "her place" refer to? There are two opinions on this. Rashi explains that "with an overflowing flood" means with sweeping wrath; "He will make a full end of her place" refers to Nineveh. The Holy One, blessed be He, will as it were wash Nineveh away and wipe it out. This connects to what we saw earlier, "and the earth is uplifted before Him," indicating that Nineveh will be swept away before Him.
The Malbim explains differently: having described that the Holy One, blessed be He, is a stronghold in time of distress, the prophet now portrays how the Holy One, blessed be He, sweeps through like a torrent of water and makes a full end of the place of the distress - not of Nineveh itself. The distress is the land of Assyria, and "His enemies" refers to the king of Assyria, the enemies of the Holy One, blessed be He, whom darkness will pursue.
And what is Scripture speaking of here? As noted in the opening, the astrologers told Sardanapalus, king of Assyria: "When you see the Tigris River swell, know that your end has come." On that very night, the Tigris swelled and rose, collapsing part of the city wall. The king then realized that his end had arrived, and he went and committed suicide. Thus you have: "with an overflowing flood" - the flood refers to the waters of the Tigris, through which "He will make a full end of her place," of the distress, which is the king of Assyria. "And darkness will pursue His enemies" - all those who were in the city fled from it, and their way was dark and slippery, with an angel of Hashem pursuing them.
מַה־תְּחַשְּׁבוּן֙ אֶל־יְהֹוָ֔ה כָּלָ֖ה ה֣וּא עֹשֶׂ֑ה לֹא־תָק֥וּם פַּעֲמַ֖יִם צָרָֽה׃ - "What do you plot against Hashem? He makes a full end; distress will not arise twice."
The Radak explains that these words are directed against the enemies, the people of Nineveh: What do you think about Hashem when He decrees evil upon you? I will tell you what crosses your mind - that the Holy One, blessed be He, lacks the ability, that He has no power to defeat you. This is the heretical thought passing through your minds. Indeed, Assyria himself said to Chizkiyahu: On whom do you rely? Who among all the gods of the nations around you, all of whom I conquered, rescued them from my hand? And why do you think your God is stronger than all of them? Just as all the gods of the nations could not rescue them from my hand and I crushed them all, so shall I do to you - "Can Hashem rescue Jerusalem from my hand?" To this the prophet responds: What do you plot against Hashem, thinking that He lacks the power to save from your hand? The answer: "He makes a full end" - Hashem will utterly destroy you. And do not imagine that He will need to strike once and strike again - "distress will not arise twice"; He will strike a single blow and not repeat it to you, one strike that will completely finish you off.
It is interesting to note that the expression "distress will not arise twice" appears today in Hebrew books as an acronym, lo takpatz (לא תקפ"צ). For example, people write "during the War of Independence, lo takpatz," or "during the period of the terrible Holocaust, lo takpatz," meaning: may such distress never come upon us again. Yet this common usage is the exact opposite of the peshat of the verse. According to Rashi, Radak, and the other literal commentators, the meaning is that the Holy One, blessed be He, does not need to bring the affliction twice; rather, once the calamity strikes, it finishes everything off - a destructive sense, whereas we use it in a protective sense of prayer.
However, the Malbim actually takes the verse in a positive direction, unlike the other commentaries. He explains: "What do you plot against Hashem?" - why does the bad thought enter your mind that when the Holy One, blessed be He, goes out and destroys, His intention is for evil? That is not the way of the Holy One, blessed be He; on the contrary, His sole desire is always to bestow good upon the world. And if you witness here a force of fury, wrath, and destruction, it is precisely as explained: the Holy One, blessed be He, makes a full end of the place of the distress. And the goal is: "distress will not arise twice." The affliction of Sennacherib once was enough for us, and so that he will never rise again, the Holy One, blessed be He, brings this catastrophe. "He makes a full end" - He eradicates the distress, which is Sennacherib, so that he will never return here a second time to oppress us. And indeed you see that this downfall came about through Nebuchadnezzar, so that when Assyria sought to rise against us a second time, it was unable to do so, because Nebuchadnezzar crushed it. If so, why would you think that Hashem does things that are not good? All of this is solely for your benefit and salvation.
כִּ֚י עַד־סִירִ֣ים סְבֻכִ֔ים וּכְסׇבְאָ֖ם סְבוּאִ֑ים אֻ֨כְּל֔וּ כְּקַ֥שׁ יָבֵ֖שׁ מָלֵֽא׃ - "For while they are entangled like thorns, and drunken as with their drink, they shall be consumed like fully dry stubble."
First, what are sirim? One should know that almost always in Tanach, sirim refers to thorns. While we do find sir in the sense of a vessel or cooking pot, ordinarily - as in "like the crackling of thorns (sirim) under the pot, so is the laughter of fools" - sirim are thorns.
The Malbim explains: Through this flood, Sardanapalus was terrified. He saw the Tigris surging, saw the wall collapsing, and remembered the astrologers' prediction that when the Tigris rose against him, his story would be over. He then arranged piles of cut thorns, set the palace ablaze, and committed suicide there - he, his concubines, his wives, his children, his entire family, and all his servants; he burned them all and burned himself as well. "Unto tangled thorns" - amid the pyre of burning thorns, he went up in flames.
Now, the king and his entire household were constantly immersed in heavy wine-drinking, and particularly at that hour, for he was confident that the Bactrians would come to his aid, and was certain that on his own he had already succeeded in crushing the rebellion. He did not know of the conspiracy forged between the rebels and those who were ostensibly coming to help, who would in fact turn against him. Therefore, he allowed himself to sit and drink. And out of drunkenness they came "unto tangled thorns" - they became deeply entangled in those burning thorns, in which he and all his men ultimately went up in flames.
"And soaked in their drink" - and even though they were intoxicated and saturated with wine, and normally fire does not catch on something that is wet, nevertheless, when they drew near to the tangled thorns, they were "consumed like fully dry stubble." Just like stubble that dries out once its growth is complete: as long as the wheat is fresh and green, it is hard for fire to catch it, but when it is "full" it dries out, and a single spark burns everything. So it was with those who were moist and saturated with wine, yet became like stubble that burns in a single moment.
מִמֵּ֣ךְ יָצָ֔א חֹשֵׁ֥ב עַל־יְהֹוָ֖ה רָעָ֑ה יֹעֵ֖ץ בְּלִיָּֽעַל׃ - From you came forth one who plots evil against Hashem, a counselor of wickedness.
The prophet addresses Nineveh: From you came forth the one who plots evil against Hashem. And who was that? Sennacherib. But seemingly, why is he described as "one who plots evil against Hashem"? Shouldn't it have said one who plots evil against Israel? Simply understood, one can answer that whoever rises against Israel rises against Hashem, for "they are the people of Hashem, and from His land they have gone out," and one who comes against the Jewish people has come against the Holy One, blessed be He.
However, Rashi cites the Midrash: "From you came forth" - this is Sennacherib, king of Assyria, who plotted evil and imagined destroying both the earthly dwelling and the heavenly dwelling. He was not satisfied with conquests down here; he also planned to destroy the heavenly dwelling above. One verse says, "and enter into its farthest lodge," while another verse says, "and enter into its highest height." "Its farthest lodge" refers to this world, the lodging place of the Holy One, blessed be He - the Beit HaMikdash. And "its highest height" - that he already had plans to wage war against Him in Heaven. He said: First I will destroy the earthly dwelling, and ultimately the heavenly dwelling, as the Gemara states in Sanhedrin, Perek Chelek (94b).
From the Ibn Ezra and other commentators, it appears that the verse refers to Ravshakeh, who came and reviled and blasphemed the ranks of the living God, saying: Why do you think you can stand against Sennacherib? It is better for you to make peace with him! And he spoke further slanderous words against Hashem, as though He were weak and unable to save and protect. And so, from you came forth this wicked man who plots evil against Hashem, denying His existence and His providence, and who therefore came to offer counsel to cast off the yoke of Heaven and submit to the yoke of Sennacherib.
The Malbim notes a precise distinction: What is the difference between "one who plots evil against Hashem" and "a counselor of wickedness (yo'etz beliya'al)"? Thought is always an intellectual matter, contemplating something, whereas counsel is already practical. "Plots evil against Hashem" - in matters of faith, his belief is corrupt and he does not believe in Hashem. And that was not enough for him, but he was also "a counselor of wickedness" - beliya'al is from the phrase beli ol (without a yoke), and always signifies evil - that he also offered wicked counsel against Hashem in action, not sufficing with lack of faith in his heart.
כֹּ֣ה ׀ אָמַ֣ר יְהֹוָ֗ה אִם־שְׁלֵמִים֙ וְכֵ֣ן רַבִּ֔ים וְכֵ֥ן נָג֖וֹזּוּ וְעָבָ֑ר וְעִ֨נִּתִ֔ךְ לֹ֥א אֲעַנֵּ֖ךְ עֽוֹד׃ - So said Hashem: Though they be complete and likewise many, even so they shall be shorn and pass away; and though I have afflicted you, I will afflict you no more.
First, a very familiar expression emerged from here: "sheleimim vekhen rabim" (complete and likewise many). You will find it frequently in the Responsa literature, when referencing a widespread practice: "and so have practiced whole [righteous] people and likewise many." One who is unfamiliar with the verse does not understand where the expression comes from, but one who knows it recognizes that it is a citation from Nachum 1:12. The meaning is: this is not merely the custom of an individual, nor is it only the practice of the common folk, but the practice of sheleimim - great, upright people - and also of the multitudes, along the lines of "go out and see what the people are doing."
As for the interpretation itself: the Malbim explains that it was decreed upon Nineveh that it would become a desolation, and consequently they were seized with tremendous dread and everyone fled, even though they had no reason to flee. For this nation was "whole and likewise many" - a numerous people from whom nothing was lacking in war, and when you are intact and numerous, you should go out and fight! Yet nonetheless, "and so they were cut down and he passed away" - they were cut off and fled from the city, just as the king who plotted evil against Hashem passed away, dying and going up in flames on the pyre.
The Malbim adds: according to the opinion that Sardanapalus is Esarhaddon son of Sennacherib (and as mentioned above, there are two views on this, one identifying him as Esarhaddon and the other as an earlier king), this refers to the one whom the historical chronicles record as having burned himself to death.
Here it is worth recalling what Chazal relate took place after Sennacherib was smitten, when one hundred and eighty-five thousand army commanders died in a single instant around Jerusalem. This story is also known to historians, who record it and say that a mysterious plague struck his troops. We know the true nature of that plague: an angel of Hashem was sent, burning the soul while leaving the body intact, as Chazal revealed to us, and as Scripture explicitly states, when people arose in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.
It is written that Sennacherib's two sons were with him, and they assassinated him. Initially, historians doubted this, but later they uncovered inscriptions confirming Chazal's account. Not that we depend on their affirmation - for us, the Torah of Hashem is perfect even if they were to discover the opposite, and we are not fazed. For many years people thought the world came into being gradually, until the penny dropped that the world was created in a single moment, that there was a "bang." There is still a debate regarding the timescale, and just as they gradually learned the truth about the beginning, so too will they learn regarding this matter. We are not troubled by hasty conclusions of scientists who attempt to draw retroactive conclusions from today's reality. They work on theories, while we rely on a tradition passed down from generation to generation, from father to son, an unbroken chain back to Adam HaRishon, person to person, who received from whom and who transmitted to whom. When you possess the truth, you know what it is.
And why did his sons assassinate him? The Midrash explains: When he saw the devastating, humiliating defeat - having arrived with an entire army and returning with only five men, while all the immense wealth looted in Egypt fell into the hands of Israel - he came to the house of Nisroch, his idol. What is Nisroch? A house of idolatry where there was a neser, a wooden plank salvaged from Noah's ark, which they turned into a god, saying: this is what saved Noah. There he began to ponder: How is it that the Jewish people experience supernatural salvation, and what is the secret of their supernatural existence? He asked this then, and people ask it to this day. Mark Twain and his contemporaries stood astounded before the inexplicable survival of the Jewish people: all other nations arose, filling the world with pomp, splendor, and grandeur, holding high the torch with pride and might, only for their torch to burn out in their own flames; yet the Jewish people saw them all and outlived them all, their strength as potent now as ever, showing no signs of decay or decline. They said to him: They had a forefather who gave his son for the Akeidah and was prepared to sacrifice him upon the altar of Hashem. He said: If so, I will sacrifice two! When the sons heard what their father was plotting, they said: Let us sacrifice him first - and they murdered him.
Accordingly, if we identify Sardanapalus with Esarhaddon, Scripture comes to describe what occurred in the wake of that downfall. The Holy One, blessed be He, says to Sennacherib: You plotted evil against Hashem, you sent Ravshakeh to blaspheme the ranks of the living God - therefore, "cut down are the whole and likewise many." Who are they? Those whom Sennacherib brought, his legions, one hundred and eighty-five thousand army commanders, who were whole and many, strong and numerous, and the angel went forth and struck them, and they were all consumed in an instant. "And he passed away" - the wicked counselor as well, Sardanapalus who is Esarhaddon, would pass through the fire. Do not think the fire was reserved only for Sennacherib's troops.
And why does the verse use the expression "and he passed away" (ve'avar) regarding fire rather than "and he burned"? The Malbim explains: because it was their practice to "pass through" the fire for Molech. Incidentally, the phrasing of "passing" through fire is not limited to Molech, as in "everything that can withstand fire, you shall pass through fire" (Bamidbar 31:23). And Sennacherib himself, as we have seen, intended to do so to his sons and sacrifice them to Nisroch, his god, which is why they slew him with the sword. This is the meaning of the verse, "For a Topheth is prepared of old; yea, for the king it is made ready" (Yeshayahu 30:33) - this death, to burn upon a pyre, was prepared for him as far back as the days of his father, who had planned to burn him. Molech is called Topheth; why? Because when they would pass a child through the fire to burn him, he would scream terribly, and to drown out the screams so they would not be heard, they would beat on drums (tupim). What your father planned for you - to pass you through the Topheth, to pass you through the fire - ultimately came to pass upon himself, when Sardanapalus burned himself in his palace along with the thorns, ascending the pyre his father had destined for him long before.
"And though I have afflicted you, I will afflict you no more" - here the prophet addresses the Jewish people: The affliction I brought upon you through Assyria, I will afflict you no more. You need not worry that these troubles will recur, as we saw: "trouble shall not rise up a second time" - this distress was a one-time event and will not repeat itself. This fits very well if we say this refers to Esarhaddon. But the Malbim notes that even if we say it occurred earlier, "I will afflict you no more" applied to that era, whereas later on, in a subsequent period, enemies came again. We find a similar expression: "And the bands of Aram came no more into the land of Israel" (Melachim II 6:23), and the commentators ask: But just two chapters later, Aram invades again! Rather, at that time, following that event, they came no more - as related there regarding their attempt to capture the prophet Elisha.
Rashi interprets this verse based on Targum Yonatan, noting that Yonatan's translation fits the text beautifully: "Though they are whole" - even if they are all united in one counsel; "and likewise many" - and even if the people of Nineveh are exceedingly numerous; "and so they are cut down and he passes away" - and even if they cross over the Tigris and the Euphrates to besiege Jerusalem, Hashem says to them: You have nothing to fear, they will not succeed, for "though I have afflicted you, I will afflict you no more" - after I afflicted you once, I will not afflict you a second time. Rashi brings another interpretation as well: If the people of Nineveh are complete in their greatness, and even if they become still more numerous and distinguished - "they are cut down and he passes away"; Hashem says: As great as they become, I will shear them away and remove them, "cut down" (nagozu) being from the root of shearing. "Though I have afflicted you, I will afflict you no more" - I will afflict you no longer, but rather I will bring a swift, decisive affliction, and I will have no need to deal with you again, in the vein of "trouble shall not rise up a second time."
Rashi notes that our Sages also expounded this verse in connection with the practice of charity in Tractate Gittin, commenting: "However, it does not follow the flow of the rest of the prophecy." Often Chazal expound verses homiletically on an isolated point, and when one attempts to fit the derashah into the broader flow of the prophecy, it becomes clear that they were not addressing the peshat.
And this is what the Gemara says in Gittin 7a: Rav Avira expounded - sometimes he stated it in the name of Rav Ami and sometimes in the name of Rav Assi - What is meant by that which is written, "Thus said Hashem: Though they be whole and likewise many, yet so shall they be cut down, and he shall pass away" (Nachum 1:12)? If a person sees that his sustenance is constricted, he should give charity from it, and all the more so when it is plentiful. And why does "whole" (sheleimim) imply constricted? Rashi explains: "Whole" means he has exactly what he needs, down to the penny. This is what people today call someone "living paycheck to paycheck": you cannot say he is doing well, Baruch Hashem, but rather that he is tight - he has precisely and entirely only what he needs, without the leeway to budge a millimeter, and if he gets a ticket, he has no way to pay it. Even so, he should give charity from what he has, and all the more so when his resources are plentiful.
And the Gemara adds: What is the meaning of "though they be sheared, they shall pass away" (vechen nagozu ve'avar)? It was taught in the school of Rabbi Yishmael: Anyone who shears from his possessions and gives them to tzedakah is saved from the judgment of Gehinnom. A parable is given of two ewes crossing through water, one shorn and one unshorn: the shorn one crossed over, and the unshorn one did not cross over. An unshorn ewe is full of wool, and when it crosses the water, the wool absorbs water, causing it to sink and drown beyond recovery. The shorn one crosses without issue, as the water is not absorbed into it. And this is "sheared, and crossed": shear from your possessions, separate what is fitting to give to tzedakah, and you will pass through Gehinnom. Otherwise, it weighs you down.
The Maharal explains the deeper meaning: shearing from one's possessions means extracting oneself from one's physical attachment (gashmiut). If a person does not separate from his physicality, that very materialism drowns him. He becomes submerged in matter and earthliness, constantly preoccupied only with his physical affairs, and this acts as a weight dragging him down to Gehinnom - just like the ewe whose wool becomes a weight dragging her into the water.
וְעַתָּ֕ה אֶשְׁבֹּ֥ר מֹטֵ֖הוּ מֵעָלָ֑יִךְ וּמוֹסְרֹתַ֖יִךְ אֲנַתֵּֽק׃ - "And now I will break his yoke from off you, and I will burst your bonds."
The Malbim explains: Hashem says to Israel, I will break the yoke and the bonds of Assyria from off you - that is the burden of tribute and servitude under which you were subjugated. "And I will burst your bonds" - the bonds by which you were bound because of the troops and armies of Assyria, these I will sever. If this event occurred later, in the days of Menasheh, then the yoke was truly broken completely, for the rule of Assyria ceased entirely when Babylon overcame it and brought it to an end, perfectly fitting "I will break his yoke from off you, and I will burst your bonds." And if it took place earlier, then it was temporary, meaning that for the time being He broke the yoke from them, whereas Sancheriv's later campaign occurred at a later time.
וְצִוָּ֤ה עָלֶ֙יךָ֙ יְהֹוָ֔ה לֹא־יִזָּרַ֥ע מִשִּׁמְךָ֖ ע֑וֹד מִבֵּ֨ית אֱלֹהֶ֜יךָ אַכְרִ֨ית פֶּ֧סֶל וּמַסֵּכָ֛ה אָשִׂ֥ים קִבְרֶ֖ךָ כִּ֥י קַלּֽוֹתָ׃ - "Hashem has commanded concerning you: No more of your name shall be sown; from the house of your gods I will cut off the carved image and the molten image; I will make your grave, for you are vile."
The Malbim explains that the prophet now directs his prophecy toward Sardanapalus: Hashem has commanded and decreed concerning you that no more shall be sown of your name. Sowing from one's name means continuing a lineage, like a tree from which a seed is taken and planted further. Here he is told that there will be no continuation of his dynasty, that he and his seed are wiped out forever - as we saw, he committed suicide along with his wives and children, and nothing remained of them. So may all Your enemies perish, Hashem.
"From the house of your gods I will cut off the carved image and the molten image" - it was the custom of kings to place their likeness in the house of idol worship, so that when the people came to perform their rituals, they would also attribute divinity to the king and bow down to him. Something very much like North Korea today: to them, he is the king, the protector, the savior. How many of them truly believe it in their hearts is hard to say, but many undoubtedly do. And that is how people believed in Stalin: there were kibbutzim here that, when he dropped dead, observed mourning and proclaimed, "The sun of the nations has set." A man credited with fifty million murders, called "the sun of the nations"! For those whose sun is such a man, one would rather sit in the rain than rely on such a sun. How utterly misguided people can be.
After the king committed suicide, they removed his statue from the house of idol worship, as he was no longer deemed worthy. Interestingly, the exact same thing happened with Stalin: at the time when people were convinced he was "the sun of the nations," his statue stood everywhere, and afterward, when the magnitude of his abominations came to light, they did not leave his statue standing anywhere. Every place that bore a mark or monument in his honor was dismantled. Quite the contrary, they even placed a statue of disgrace upon his grave to display his shame and dishonor. The Malbim notes that this appears in the historical annals of the nations, that upon the grave of this Sardanapalus, they erected a monument of disgrace.
Thus, the verse refers to two matters: "From the house of your gods I will cut off the carved image and the molten image" - the image and molten figure that you placed in your honor in the house of your gods, so that they would bow down to you as well, I will cut off. And its continuation: "I will make your grave, for you are vile" - at your grave I will place a carved image and molten figure for disgrace and humiliation, "for you are vile" (ki kalota), from the root of contempt and disgrace (nikleh).
According to Rashi, there is a description here of Sancheriv's flight: for we saw that he fled to the house of Nisroch his god, and there, when his sons heard of his plans, they assassinated him. Therefore, "from the house of your gods I will cut off the carved image and the molten image" - I will make the house of your god into your grave; there you will flee to escape, and there you will be killed, just as your father Sancheriv was killed in the house of Nisroch his god. This interpretation differs from the Malbim's explanation, according to which he burned in his palace, whereas according to this interpretation, he was killed in the house of his god. So may all Your enemies perish, Hashem.
From verse 7 onward, Nachum teaches us two complementary themes. On the one hand, even at the height of fury, the Holy One, blessed be He, never ceases to show mercy to those who fear Him. He Himself is the Place of the world and a stronghold for those who take refuge in Him - a stronghold that knows their needs and loves them, and it is better to take refuge in Him even without an explicit promise than to trust in a human being who has promised. On the other hand, Nineveh's downfall is described in detail: the flood of the Tigris, the flight of the people, the drunken king who mounted the pyre of thorns and was burned like dry stubble, the eradication of his name and descendants, and the degradation of his grave. According to the Malbim, there is no attribute of evil in this at all, but quite the opposite: "He makes a complete end" - consuming the affliction itself, so that "trouble will not rise up a second time," ensuring that the oppressor will never again distress Israel. And amidst all this, Chazal embedded their timeless teaching: one who shears his possessions to give tzedakah, even when his own livelihood is meager - crosses the water and is saved from the judgment of Gehinnom.