Nahum says the LORD is “slow to anger and great in power.” The same verse adds that the LORD “will by no means clear the guilty,” linking patience with certain justice (Nahum 1:3).
In Nahum 1:2–6, Yahweh is portrayed as intensely opposed to his opponents and unstoppable in power. The passage stacks repeated statements that he “avenges,” holds on to anger toward enemies, and does not let the guilty go free. These lines come near the opening of Nahum and function as a character portrait that sets up the rest of the book’s message about the downfall of Nineveh. Instead of starting with detailed events, the text first describes what Yahweh is like and what his presence does to the world.
Nahum 1:2–6 opens by describing Yahweh as an avenging judge. The repeated “avenges” language is not subtle; it presents a settled stance of opposition toward “adversaries” and “enemies,” and it pairs that with “wrath” and “anger” (verse 2).
A careful answer keeps the immediate passage, the book's argument, and the whole-Bible storyline together, so the question is answered in context instead of as a detached idea.
Start with Nahum 1:3, then read the surrounding section so the answer stays connected to the passage's flow.
3Yahweh is slow to anger, and great in power, and will by no means leave the guilty unpunished. Yahweh has his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.