Not even Thebes was invincible. Assyria had herself successfully invaded Thebes on two occasions in 670 BC and again in 663 BC.1 The people of Thebes had been exiled by the Assyrians—they were among the many nations that had experienced the Assyrians' cruelty. The question Nahum asks is therefore a stinging taunt. Nineveh had first-hand experience of how difficult it was to invade Thebes, and yet they had done it. Did Nineveh really believe they were better than Thebes? Did they really believe they could stand against the Babylonian invasion? Nineveh’s natural defences were not as strong as Thebes' had been and so they had to face the reality that the time was coming soon when Nineveh, too, would fall just like Thebes did—especially since it is the Lord who was sending the Babylonians.
8 Are you better than Thebes that sat by the Nile, with water around her, her rampart a sea, and water her wall?