(John 21:1-23) He was also present with the other apostles when they met together for prayer and on the day of Pentecost.—Acts 1:13, 14; 2:42.

NATHAN-MELECH

(Naʹthan-meʹlech) [king’s gift, or, the king has given].

A court official of Judah whose dining room was situated in the porticoes of the temple. While taking steps against false worship, King Josiah made the horses that Judean kings had given to the sun “cease from entering the house of Jehovah by the dining room of Nathan-melech.”—2 Ki. 23:11.

NATIONS

In the broad and general sense a nation is made up of people more or less related to one another by blood and having a common language. Such a national group usually occupies a defined geographical territory and is subject to some form of central governmental control. In the Scriptures the term usually refers to Gentile nations.

ORIGIN

The first notice of the forming of separate nations appears in the post-Flood period, in connection with the building of the Tower of Babel. Those sharing in this project were united in their opposition to God’s purpose. The principal factor facilitating united action was that “all the earth continued to be of one language and of one set of words.” (Gen. 11:1-4) Jehovah took notice of this and, by confusing their language, “scattered them from there over all the surface of the earth.”—Gen. 11:5-9.

Separated now by communication barriers, each linguistic group developed its own culture, art, customs, traits and religion—each its own ways of doing things. (Lev. 18:3) Alienated from God, the various peoples contrived many idols of their mythical deities.—Deut. 12:30; 2 Ki. 17:29, 33.

There were three great branches of these nations stemming from the sons and grandsons of Noah’s sons Japheth, Ham and Shem, and these were reckoned as the founding fathers of the respective nations called by their names. The listing in Genesis, chapter ten, therefore might be termed the oldest tabulation of nations, seventy in number. Fourteen were Japhetic, thirty Hamitic and twenty-six Shemitic in origin.—Gen. 10:1-8, 13-32; 1 Chron. 1:4-25; see articles on each of the seventy descendants of Noah for more information regarding these national groups.

Many changes, of course, came with the passing of time. Some nations were absorbed by their neighbors or disappeared altogether because of weakness, disease and war; others came into existence through new migrations and population increases. The spirit of nationalism at times became very strong among certain groups, and this, coupled with great military exploits, gave ambitious men the necessary thrust to build world empires at the expense of weaker nations.

A FATHER OF NATIONS

God told Abram to leave Ur and move to a land he would show him, for as He said, “I shall make a great nation out of you.” (Gen. 12:1-4) Later, God enlarged on his promise, saying, “You will certainly become a father of a crowd of nations. . . . And I will make you very, very fruitful and will make you become nations, and kings will come out of you.” (Gen. 17:1-6) This promise was fulfilled. Abraham’s son Ishmael fathered “twelve chieftains according to their clans” (Gen. 25:13-16; 17:20; 21:13, 18) and, through the six sons of Keturah, other nations traced their ancestry back to Abraham. (Gen. 25:1-4; 1 Chron. 1:28-33; Rom. 4:16-18) From Abraham’s son Isaac sprang the Israelites and Edomites. (Gen. 25:21-26) In a much larger, spiritual sense Abraham became “a father of many nations,” for persons of many national groups, including those of the Christian congregation in Rome by reason of their faith and obedience could call Abraham their father, “the father of all those having faith.”—Rom. 4:11, 16-18; see ISRAEL No. 2.

HOW GOD VIEWS THE NATIONS

As the Creator and Universal Sovereign, God is within his absolute rights in setting the nations’ territorial boundaries, if he chooses to do so and as he did in the case of Ammon, Edom and Israel. (Deut. 2:17-22; 32:8; 2 Chron. 20:6, 7; Acts 17:26) The Most High and Lofty One over all the earth is not to be compared in greatness with nations of mankind. (Jer. 10:6, 7) Actually the nations are as but a drop from the bucket in his sight. (Isa. 40:15, 17) So when such nations rage and mutter against Jehovah, as when they put Jesus to death on a torture stake, He only laughs at them in derision and confounds and destroys their presumptuous counsel against Him.—Ps. 2:1, 2, 4, 5; 33:10; 59:8; Dan. 4:32b, 34, 35; Acts 4:24-28.

Yet for all Jehovah’s superlative greatness and power no one can rightly charge him with being unjust in his treatment of national groups. It makes no difference whether God is dealing with a single man or a whole nation, he never compromises his righteous principles. (Job 34:29) If a nation is repentant, as were the people of Nineveh, he blesses them. (Jonah 3:5-10) But if they turn to doing bad, even though in a covenant with him, he destroys them. (Jer. 18:7-10) When an issue arises, Jehovah sends his prophets with a message of warning. (Jer. 1:5, 10; Ezek. 2:3; 33:7) God is not partial toward any, great or small.—Deut. 10:17; 2 Chron. 19:7; Acts 10:34, 35.

Therefore, when whole nations refuse to recognize and obey Jehovah, or they cast him out of their minds and hearts, then Jehovah executes his judgments upon them. (Ps. 79:6; 110:6; 149:7-9) He devotes them to destruction and turns them back to Sheol. (Ps. 9:17; Isa. 34:1, 2; Jer. 10:25) In descriptive language God says these wicked nations will be turned over to his Son, the one called “Faithful and True . . . The Word of God,” to be dashed to pieces.—Ps. 2:7-9; Rev. 19:11-15; compare Revelation 12:5.

THE NEW NATION OF SPIRITUAL ISRAEL

For centuries Jehovah God dealt exclusively with natural Israel, time and again sending his prophets to the nation so that the people might turn from their wayward course. Finally he sent his Son, Christ Jesus, but the majority rejected him. Therefore, Jesus said to the unbelieving chief priests and Pharisees: “The kingdom of God will be taken from you and be given to a nation producing its fruits.”—Matt. 21:33-43.

The apostle Peter clearly identified that “nation” as one composed of persons who had accepted Christ Jesus. (1 Pet. 2:4-10) In fact, Peter applied to fellow Christians the very words that had been directed to natural Israel: “You are ‘a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for special possession.’” (1 Pet. 2:9; compare Exodus 19:5, 6.) All of them recognized God as ruler and his Son as Lord and Christ. (Acts 2:34, 35; 5:32) They possessed heavenly citizenship (Phil. 3:20) and were sealed with the holy spirit, which was an advance token of their heavenly inheritance. (2 Cor. 1:22; 5:5; Eph. 1:13, 14) Whereas natural Israel was constituted a nation under the Law covenant, the “holy nation” of spirit-begotten Christians became such under the new covenant. (Ex. 19:5; Heb. 8:6-13) For these reasons it was most appropriate that they be called a “holy nation.”

When God’s spirit was first poured out upon about 120 disciples of Jesus (all natural Jews) on the day of Pentecost in the year 33 C.E., it became evident that God was dealing with a new spiritual nation. (Acts 1:4, 5, 15; 2:1-4; compare Ephesians 1:13, 14.) Later, beginning in the year 36 C.E., membership in the new nation was extended to non-Jews, who likewise received God’s spirit.—Acts 10:24-48; Eph. 2:11-20.

Regarding the preaching of the good news to all nations, see GOOD NEWS.

GOG AND MAGOG

The Bible book of Revelation (20:7, 8) states that, after Christ’s thousand-year reign, Satan “will go out to mislead those nations in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog.” Evidently such nations are the product of rebellion against Christ’s administration.—See GOG No. 3.

NATURE

[Gr., phyʹsis, nature, origin, birth; or, the regular order of law or nature; from phyʹo, to produce, to bring forth, to grow].

Translators generally render phyʹsis and phy·si·kosʹ (the adjective form) as “nature” and “natural,” respectively.

MEN AND ANIMALS

That there is a nature belonging to man different from that of wild beasts, and that even wild beasts are not all of the same nature, is shown by the statement at James 3:7: “For every species [Gr., phyʹsis, nature] of wild beast as well as bird and creeping thing and sea creature is to be tamed and has been tamed by humankind [phyʹsei tei an·thro·piʹnei, nature belonging to the man].” This difference in “nature, origin, birth” reveals the variety in God’s creation and is maintained due to the divine law that each produces according to its own kind.—Gen. 1:20-28; compare 1 Corinthians 15:39.

DIVINE NATURE

Also, there is a different nature belonging to those in heaven, spirit creatures of God. The apostle Peter speaks to his fellow Christians, spiritual brothers of Jesus Christ, of “the precious and very grand promises that through these you may become sharers in divine nature [phyʹse·os].” (2 Pet. 1:4) That this is heavenly life Peter shows in his first letter: “God . . . gave us a new birth [a·na·gen·neʹsas he·masʹ, having generated us again] to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead . . . It is reserved in the heavens for you.” (1 Pet. 1:3, 4) “Divine nature,” therefore, requires a new genesis, a new birth, a change in nature through death and resurrection, as made plain by the apostle Paul at First Corinthians chapter 15. He explains that the Christian must die (vs. 36), and must be resurrected in a different body, a spiritual one (vss. 38, 44, 49), which requires a change (vs. 51).

Since “nature” has the basic thought of that which has an origin, is born, produced or grows, the term “nature” could not be properly applied to God, who has no beginning or birth, but, rather, applies to those whom he creates in the heavens or the earth, or who are born on earth through the process God has arranged.

INHERENT NATURE

Paul speaks of his fellow countrymen the Jews, calling them “Jews by nature,” that is, born of Jewish parents, of the children of Israel or Jacob.—Gal. 2:15.

In the illustration of the olive tree he calls the fleshly Jews the natural (ka·taʹ phyʹsin, “according to nature”) branches of the garden olive. He tells the Gentile Christians: “For if you were cut out of the olive tree that is wild by nature and were grafted contrary to nature into the garden olive tree, how much rather will these who are natural free be grafted into their own olive tree!” (Rom. 11:21-24) The wild olive tree is unfruitful or produces very inferior fruit, but it is common practice in Mediterranean countries to graft branches of cultivated olive trees into the wild olive tree to produce good fruit. However, if the wild olive branch is grafted into the cultivated tree, it produces only the poor fruit of the wild olive tree. Therefore Paul calls this latter grafting “contrary to nature.” It serves to emphasize the power of God as well as his undeserved kindness to Gentiles in bringing them in to replace “natural branches.” The Jews had been ‘cultivated’ by Jehovah for centuries, but the Gentiles had been “wild,” not having the true religion, not bringing forth fruitage to God. Not naturally, but only by God’s power could they be made to bring forth fine fruit. Only Jehovah, therefore, could accomplish this ‘grafting’ successfully.

Also, in his argument to the Galatians to prevent their enslavement to Judaistic teachings, Paul said: “When you did not know God, then it was that you slaved for those who by nature are not gods.” These false gods they had worshiped were by their very origin and production not truly gods; it was impossible for them to come into such a status. Not merely did they have no authority to be gods, but they did not have such qualities in their intrinsic nature or makeup.—Gal. 4:8.

CONSCIENCE

Certain traits or qualities inhere in mankind from birth, actually having been placed in man from the beginning. The apostle Paul comments on the conscience, or at least a vestige of such, that still persists in fallen man, even though in many cases he has strayed from God and does not have his law. This explains why all nations have established many laws that are in harmony with righteousness and justice, and many individuals follow certain good principles. Paul says: “For whenever people of the nations that do not have law do by nature the things of the law, these people, although not having law, are a law to themselves. They are the very ones who demonstrate the matter of the law to be written in their hearts, while their conscience is bearing witness with them and, between their own thoughts, they are being accused or even excused.”—Rom. 2:14, 15.

In discussing the matter of headship with the Corinthian congregation, Paul called attention to the rule that a woman should wear a head covering when praying or prophesying before the congregation, as a sign of subjection. In illustration, he says: “Does not nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him; but if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her? Because her hair is given her instead of a headdress.”—1 Cor. 11:14, 15.

Bible scholar Albert Barnes comments on Paul’s use of the word “nature” in this passage: “The word nature . . . denotes evidently that sense of propriety which all men have, and which is expressed in any prevailing or universal custom. . . . It is such as is demanded by the natural sense of fitness among men. . . . The word in this place, therefore, does not mean the constitution of the sexes, . . . nor simple use and custom, . . . but it refers to a deep internal sense of what is proper and right.” (Notes on the First Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians [1851], pp. 225, 226) Dr. A. T. Robertson likewise says: “Here it means native sense of propriety (cf. Rom. 2:14) in addition to mere custom, but one that rests on the objective difference in the constitution of things.”—Word Pictures in the New Testament (1931), p. 162.

Those Christians in Corinth were aware that it was the general practice for men to clip their hair to a moderate length. This was also common with Jewish men, the long uncut hair of Nazirites marking them, for the time of their Naziriteship, as under special obligation before God. (Num. 6:5) Absalom’s hair grew more luxuriantly than normal, and he may have let it grow somewhat long out of pride of beauty or affectation. However, he had his hair cut once a year.—2 Sam. 14:25, 26; see ABSALOM.

On the other hand, Jewish women usually wore their hair quite long. (Luke 7:38; John 11:2) And in the Greek city of Corinth, shaving a woman’s head, or clipping her hair very short, was a sign of her being a slave girl or of being in disgrace for having been caught in fornication or adultery.—1 Cor. 11:6.

That Paul, in using the word “nature” (phyʹsis) in the text under consideration, did not mean mere “custom” is shown in verse 16, where he says, with regard to the woman’s wearing a head covering: