MySpace: Nineveh as Contested Space in Nahum

This article examines the book of Nahum through the lens of critical space theory, exploring how the text constructs and deconstructs spatial hierarchies to articulate divine sovereignty over human and imperial power. Unlike other prophetic works that describe judgment abstractly, Nahum situates divine action within the physical and symbolic landscape of Nineveh, portraying gates, fortresses, and rivers, as both instruments of imperial authority and sites of vulnerability. The study demonstrates how God’s space is depicted as cosmic, unbounded, and deterritorializing, with natural and hydraulic forces responding to divine command, while Nineveh’s urban and hydraulic infrastructures are rendered fragile; its imperial centrality is displaced to the periphery, and its identity is feminized and morally stigmatized. By analyzing architectural, hydraulic, and literary features, the article argues that Nahum reorients spatial and political orders, transforming the city from a center of dominion into a backdrop for divine judgment. This spatial-theological reading illuminates the dynamic interplay between geography, ideology, and power in the Hebrew Bible, showing that ultimate authority over space resides not with empires, kings, or cities but with God alone.