The prophet Nahum is one of the twelve so-called Minor Prophets, ranked seventh among them in the biblical canon. He lived in the 7th century BC and worked during a fifty-year period beginning with the fall of Thebes in Egypt and ending with the fall of Nineveh in Assyria. It is not known exactly when he was active during this period. He came from Alqosh, which to this day is not known exactly where it was supposed to have been located. His short book is divided into 3 chapters or 47 masoretic verses. In them he prophesies with fervour and fiery emotion against the Nineveh and the Neo-Assyrian kingdom, predicting their downfall, which is fulfilled by the attack of the Babylonian king Nabopolassar in alliance with the Medes. The prophet was typical of the average Jew of the time. The thesis explored his attitude and the attitude of the Jews towards foreign pagan peoples or nations, especially the Assyrians, who were a political threat to them at the time. Since the words »nation« and »people« are translated into Hebrew as »goy« and »`am«, and these two words are also found in the Bible, the thesis explores Jewish attitudes towards these words, their usage, their meaning and their connotation in the Canon, especially in the Book of Nahum.
|
