Nahum 1:3

Nahum 1:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the Lord hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.
• New International Version (NIV)The Lord is slow to anger but great in power; the Lord will not leave the guilty unpunished. His way is in the whirlwind and the storm, and clouds are the dust of his feet.
• English Standard Version (ESV)The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and the Lord will by no means clear the guilty. His way is in whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.
• New King James Version (NKJV)The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, And will not at all acquit the wicked. The Lord has His way In the whirlwind and in the storm, And the clouds are the dust of His feet.

Context of Nahum 1:3

1The oracle (a burdensome message—a pronouncement from God) concerning Nineveh [the capital city of Assyria]. The book of the vision of Nahum of Elkosh [which he saw in spirit and prophesied]. 2The Lord is a jealous and avenging God [protecting and demanding what is rightfully and uniquely His]; The Lord avenges and He is full of wrath. The Lord takes vengeance on His adversaries, And He reserves wrath for His enemies. The Lord is slow to anger and great in power And He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished. The Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, And the clouds are the dust beneath His feet. 4He rebukes the sea and dries it up; He dries up all the rivers [illustrating His judgment]. Bashan [on the east] and [Mount] Carmel [on the west] wither, And [in the north] the blossoms of Lebanon fade. 5The mountains quake before Him And the hills melt away; Indeed the earth is shaken by His presence— Yes, the world and all that dwell in it.

Nahum 1:3 word by word

יְהֹוָ֗ה אֶ֤רֶךְ אַפַּ֙יִם֙ וּגְדָל כֹּ֔חַ וְנַקֵּ֖ה לֹ֣א יְנַקֶּ֑ה יְהוָ֗ה בְּסוּפָ֤ה וּבִשְׂעָרָה֙ דַּרְכּ֔וֹ וְעָנָ֖ן אֲבַ֥ק רַגְלָֽיו׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• The Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• slowאָרֵךְ'ârêk · slowH750
• to angerאַף'aph · face: angerH639
• and greatגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
• in powerכֹּחַkôach kôach · strengthH3581
• and will not at allנָקָהnâqâh · to clearH5352
• his wayדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: journeyH1870
• in the whirlwindסוּפָהsûphâh · whirlwindH5492
• and in the stormשְׂעָרָהώe‛ârâh · stormH8183
• and the cloudsעָנָן‛ânân · cloudH6051
• the dustאָבָק'âbâq · dustH80
• of his feetרֶ֫גֶלregel · footH7272

Cross-references for Nahum 1:3

• Exodus 34:6Then the Lord passed by in front of him, and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth (faithfulness);
• Nehemiah 9:17They refused to listen and obey, And did not remember Your wondrous acts which You had performed among them; So they stiffened their necks and [in their rebellion] appointed a leader in order to return them to slavery in Egypt. But You are a God of forgiveness, Gracious and merciful and compassionate, Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness; And You did not abandon them.
• Psalms 103:8The Lord is merciful and gracious, Slow to anger and abounding in compassion and lovingkindness.
• Psalms 145:8The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness.
• Joel 2:13Rip your heart to pieces [in sorrow and contrition] and not your garments.” Now return [in repentance] to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness [faithful to His covenant with His people]; And He relents [His sentence of] evil [when His people genuinely repent].
• Jonah 4:2He prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is this not what I said when I was still in my country? That is why I ran to Tarshish, because I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and great in lovingkindness, and [when sinners turn to You] You revoke the [sentence of] disaster [against them].
• James 1:19Understand this, my beloved brothers and sisters. Let everyone be quick to hear [be a careful, thoughtful listener], slow to speak [a speaker of carefully chosen words and], slow to anger [patient, reflective, forgiving];
• Job 9:4God is wise in heart and mighty in strength; Who has [ever] defied or challenged Him and remained unharmed?
• Psalms 62:11God has spoken once, Twice I have heard this: That power belongs to God.
• Psalms 66:3Say to God, “How awesome and fearfully glorious are Your works! Because of the greatness of Your power Your enemies will pretend to be obedient to You.
• Psalms 147:5Great is our [majestic and mighty] Lord and abundant in strength; His understanding is inexhaustible [infinite, boundless].
• Ephesians 1:19and [so that you will begin to know] what the immeasurable and unlimited and surpassing greatness of His [active, spiritual] power is in us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of His mighty strength
• Numbers 14:18‘The Lord is slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness, forgiving wickedness and transgression; but He will by no means clear the guilty, visiting (avenging) the wickedness and guilt of the fathers on the children, to the third and fourth generations [that is, calling the children to account for the sins of their fathers].’
• Job 10:14If I sin, then You would take note and observe me, And You would not acquit me of my guilt.
• Exodus 19:16So it happened on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and flashes of lightning, and a thick cloud was on the mountain, and a very loud blast was sounded on a ram’s horn, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled.
• Deuteronomy 5:22“The Lord spoke these words with a great voice to all your assembly at the mountain out of the midst of the fire, the cloud, and the thick darkness, and He added no more. He wrote these commandments on two tablets of stone and gave them to me.

Commentaries on Nahum 1:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3The Lord is slow to anger - He exercises much longsuffering towards his enemies, that this may lead them to repentance. And it is because of this longsuffering that vengeance is not speedily executed on every evil work. Great in power - Able at all times to save or to destroy. The Lord hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm - These are the effects of his power; and when they appear unusual, they may be considered as the immediate effects of his…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3The Lord is slow to anger - Nahum takes up the words of Jonah Jonah 4:2 as he spoke of God‘s attributes toward Nineveh, but only to show the opposite side of them. Jonah declares how God is “slow to anger,” giving men time of repentance, and if they do repent, “repenting Him also of the evil;” Nahum, that the long-suffering of God is not “slackness,” that “He is long-suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3slow to anger: God's patience with disobedience is linked to his faithful love (Exodus 34:6; Numbers 14:18; Psalm 103:8; Joel 2:13). This trait disappointed Jonah, who wanted Nineveh destroyed immediately (Jonah 4:2). Because God is patient, he sometimes delays the deserved punishment of sinners (Nehemiah 9:29–30; Romans 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9), but those who continue to sin will ultimately face God's judgment (Exodus 34:7; Romans 14:10; 2 Corinthians 5:10…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. slow to anger, and great in power--that is, but great in power, so as to be able in a moment, if He pleases, to destroy the wicked. His long-suffering is not from want of power to punish (Ex 34:6, 7). not at all acquit--literally, "will not acquitting acquit," or treat as innocent. Lord hath his way in the whirlwind--From this to Na 1:5, inclusive, is a description of His power exhibited in the phenomena of nature, especially when He is wroth. His…Read the comment

Topics related to Nahum 1:3

• Anger
• God
• God Continued...
• Meteorology and Celestial Phenomena
• Power

In the dictionaries

• Adversary
• Lightning
• Vengeance
• Cloud
• Job, Book of
• Longsuffering
• Nahum; the Book of
• Whirlwind
• Wrath, (anger)

Commentaries on Nahum 1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings