Today’s Reading:
Read Nahum 1; Nahum 2:2-6; Nahum 3:18-19
To understand today’s reading, we need to remember a couple of things we have read about.
First, what do you remember about the story of Jonah? Jonah was called to go to Nineveh to tell the people there about God. Eventually, after some not so great choices, Jonah made it to Nineveh and the people repented. One thing to remember about Nineveh is that it was not an Israelite city. It was the capital city of the Assyrian nation- which brings us to the second thing we need to remember!
Many years after Jonah went to Nineveh, the Assyrian nation captured the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Remember we read about King Hezekiah who was the king of the Southern Kingdom when the Northern Kingdom fell. The Southern Kingdom, Judah, was fearful of what the Assyrian nation might do to them.
Nahum was one of God’s prophets. Remember a prophet was someone who God used to speak to the people about what was going to happen. Nahum had a vision, similar to a dream, that God was going to destroy the Assyrian nation because of the evil that was happening there. Nahum reminded the people of God’s love for them. He told them to trust that God was going to destroy the Assyrian nation and that God would protect the Israelites. Nahum reminded the people that God would honor his covenant with them and that He would save them.
Read Nahum 1:7-8
“The Lord is good, a stronghold in a day of distress; he cares for those who take refuge in him. But he will completely destroy Nineveh with an overwhelming flood, and he will chase his enemies into darkness.”
Nahum offered hope to the Israelites when he prophesied that God would bring restoration to them.
Application/Prayer:
Nahum reminds us of God’s faithfulness to do what He says He will do. We can trust that God keeps His promises. The covenant God made with Abraham was made hundreds of years before the Assyrian nation became an enemy of the Israelites. God had not forgotten His promise to protect the Israelites and be a refuge for them. Thank God for his faithfulness to never forget us and to always keep His promises!
August Memory Verse:
“Listen, Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.”
Using the daily reading prompts from George H. Guthrie’s Read the Bible for Life, here’s how to use this devotional:
- Bring your Bible! Your kids need to see that everything you are reading to them or learning about comes from an actual Bible!
- Each day starts with a reading prompt. Read the selection as a family. If your kids are readers, encourage them to read along with you.
- After you’ve read the passage, read the short devotional thought that goes along with each passage.
- Prayer and application are important any time we read God’s word! After each devotional, there is a challenge to help apply what your family has read that day.
- There is a reading for six days of the week. The last reading of the week is a Gospel Conversation Prompt to help you connect the reading from the week with God’s plan for salvation.
Other Resources:
August memory verse coloring sheet
August Fill-in the blank activity