fitting theological introduction to this book, which unites God’s compassion and his severity. We also know that Nahum’s life experiences included suffering under the most malicious king in Assyria’s history and the most atrocious king in the Davidic line. Unlike many Old Testament books, we can easily establish a range of possible dates for the book of Nahum. The discussion of Nahum’s date will wait until chapter 5, but the entire range of possible dates falls during the reign of Ashurbanipal (668–627