“Nahum’s book is a sequel to, and a dramatic contrast with, the book of Jonah. Jonah’s mission to Nineveh was probably sometime in the first half of the eighth century B.C. (700s). To Jonah’s dismay, the Ninevites listened to his message, repented, and were spared God’s judgment. This repentance, however, did not last beyond 745 B.C., when Nineveh became the leading military power in the Near East. In 722 B.C., the Assyrians conquered the northern kingdom of Israel. Nineveh was destroyed in 612 B.C., marking the end of the Assyrian empire.”

—ESV Global Study Bible