INTRODUCTION
Probably the best known yet least understood book in the Bible is the
book of Jonah. From the world's point of view, Jonah
and the whale have become a part of literature, a part of mythical
legendary history. The book is looked upon with ridicule and
disbelief, and is laughed out of the Bible as being a kind of fable.
Jonah is not taken seriously, or historically by critics of the Bible.
Because skeptics won't believe in the story the great fish swallowing a man, they can't swallow the truth that this is an actual historical book.
Jonah is sometimes called a jinx or a bad luck charm.
Jonah was actually a historical character, and he is mentioned in other places in scripture.
The book of 2 Kings 14:25, refers to him as a historical prophet, a prophet ministering to Israel in the days of Jeroboam II.
The time of Jonah would be placed at 782-753 B.C. This is just after the time of Elisha.
This would be the time right before Amos and Hosea begin their prophetic ministry.
He is referred to by the Jesus Christ as an actually a historical character.
Matt. 12:40 As Jonah was three days and three nights in
the belly of the whale, so will
the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."
With this kind of backing, there can be no doubt that the book of Jonah is historically accurate.
The true message of this story is found in the last two chapters of this little book.
Jonah was given the charge to preach by the God of heaven. The obligation and responsibility was God ordained and was non-negotiable.
The word of God came directly to Jonah. There was no pope, rabbi or any mortal man that charged Jonah with this task.
God no longer speaks to men separate and apart from his word the scriptures.
John 12:48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my sayings,
hath one that judgeth him:
the word that I spake, the same shall judge him in the last day.
John 5:39 Ye search the scriptures, because ye think
that in them ye have eternal life;
and these are they which bear witness of me;
James 1:25 But he that looketh into the perfect law, the
law of liberty, and so continueth,
being not a hearer that forgetteth but a doer that worketh, this man shall
be
blessed in his doing.
The word was to be a warning to the wicked city of Ninevah.
The book of Jonah shows that God had an interest in the Gentiles even
during the Mosaic period.
The city was under threat of destruction from God.
Jonah 3:4 And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey,
and he cried, and said,
Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.
The prophet was instructed, "to cry", against the sins of Ninevah.
Ninevah was the capitol of the Assyrian Empire. Ninevah was founded by Asshur soon after the great flood of Noah's day.
The Assyrians had a reputation for cruelty and violence. The Assyrians were fierce and without mercy in their attacks against enemies.
They were feared and hated by all other nations because of their savage behavior in war.
The people of the city of Nineveh were idolaters and given to many types
of immorality.
JONAH CHAPTER 1: JONAH RUNS FROM GOD
Jonah is called the son of Amittai.
Jonah was of Gath Hepher which was in the area of Galilee, making Jonah
a prophet of the Northern Kingdom. Nazareth was only 3 miles from Gath
Hepher making Jonah a Galilean like Jesus.
Jonah 1:1-2 Now the word of Jehovah came unto
Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,
Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness
is come up before me.
Tradition states that Jonah was the son of the widow of Zarepath which
Elijah raised from the dead. I Kngs. 17:8-24
Assyria was corrupt and in a mild decline during the time of Jonah.
The cruelty of the Assyrians was just as cruel as ever.
Ninevah and the Assyrians posed a threat to Israel in this unsettled
and wicked history of the empire of Assyria.
The sins of the city of Ninevah were not unknown, or hidden from God.
Prov. 15:3 The eyes of Jehovah are in every place, Keeping watch upon the evil and the good.
Heb. 4:13 And there is no creature that is not manifest
in his sight: but all things are naked
and laid open before the eyes of him with whom we have to do.
Matthew 9:4 And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?
Jonah 1:3 But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from
the presence of Jehovah; and he
went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the
fare
thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the
presence of Jehovah.
When you are trying to run away from God, you will be amazed how often you find a ship right there, ready at hand. There is one special thing about this man Jonah I like. He paid his fare to Tarshish. If he was going to be disobedient, at least he wanted to be honest about it!
The price of the fare was very high in its final toll.
We try to choose a Tarshish and flee from god but we can't.
Tarshish was to the East and Ninevah was to the west.
Jonah found a ship very easily. We can always find things to help us turn and disobey God.
The Devil will always provide us a vessel away from God. We can always find a boatload of excuses to shirk our christian duty.
I know I can't be faithful is a often heard excuse. I just don't know enough Bible to be right. I can't find anything but hypocrites in the church. Excuses are always easy to be found.
The price of the fare was going to be higher than Jonah wanted to pay. Sin always exacts a high price.
Rom. 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the
free gift of God is eternal life in Christ
Jesus our Lord.
Numbers 32:23 But if ye will not do so, behold, ye
have sinned against Jehovah;
and be sure your sin will find you out.
James 1:15 Then the lust, when it hath conceived, beareth
sin: and the sin, when it is fullgrown,
bringeth forth death.
From the time Jonah disobeyed God to the time he repented he was going in a downhill spiral.
He went down to Joppa. Jonah went down into the ship. The prophet was cast down into the sea. Jonah ended up down in the belly of the great fish.
When we turn from God we go downhill.
The God of the universe stirred the waters of the deep to show Jonah he was still in charge.
Jonah 1:4 But Jehovah sent out a great wind
upon the sea, and there was a mighty
tempest on the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken.
The stormy sea was frightful and the seasoned sailors trembled at the wrath of the sea.
Because of the rebellion of Jonah the ship and sailors were endangered.
Jonah 1:5 Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every
man unto his god; and
they cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten
it unto
them. But Jonah was gone down into the innermost parts of the ship; and
he lay, and was fast asleep.
Our influence can help or hinder others. Every time a Christian
apostates and becomes ungodly, the church has a greater load to bear.
Jonah is like a picture of the church. Sometimes the children
of God disobey him and then sleep in ignorance as God brings judgment.
If anyone should have been awake and praying it should have been Jonah.
It is embarrassing the work and the labors that the church does in comparison to denominations and religions of men.
Sometimes we sleep soundly and the cults are more urgent in serving their misguided beliefs than we are to the truth.
Jonah refused God and now there was great storm. People were praying but Jonah was asleep in the ship.
Jonah 1:6-10 So the shipmaster came to him, and said
unto him, What meanest thou, O
sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us,
that we
perish not. And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let
us cast lots,
that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots,
and the
lot fell upon Jonah. Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee,
for whose cause
this evil is upon us; what is thine occupation? and whence comest thou?
what is thy
country? and of what people art thou? And he said unto them, I am
a Hebrew; and
I fear Jehovah, the God of heaven, who hath made the sea and the dry land.
Then
were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him, What is this that thou
hast done?
For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of Jehovah, because
he had
told them.
The men was amazed that Jonah was unaware of their immediate danger.
After casting lots and inquiring
of Jonah they soon found out that the disobedience of Jonah was the
reason for their peril.
The statement of Jonah fearing Jehovah and worshipping this creator is in sharp contrast to the disobedience of the prophet.
Jonah 1:11-13 Then said they unto him, What shall we do
unto thee, that the sea may be calm
unto us? for the sea grew more and more tempestuous. And he said
unto them,
Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto
you: for
I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you. Nevertheless
the men
rowed hard to get them back to the land; but they could not: for the sea
grew more
and more tempestuous against them.
The men were frightened yet compassionate. Jonah instructed the men that he was the cause of their peril.
Jonah instructed them to throw him overboard. The men were brave and tried to spare Jonah and reach the shore.
The storm was relentless and finally they prayed to Jehovah and pleaded for mercy.
The sailors prayed that they would not be guilty of the blood of Jonah.
The mariners cast him into the sea, and a great fish swallowed him.
Jonah 1:14 Wherefore they cried unto Jehovah, and said,
We beseech thee, O Jehovah,
we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon
us
innocent blood; for thou, O Jehovah, hast done as it pleased thee.
So they
took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea; and the sea ceased from
its raging.
Then the men feared Jehovah exceedingly; and they offered a sacrifice unto
Jehovah,
and made vows. And Jehovah prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah;
and Jonah
was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
The events so impressed the sailors that they sacrificed to Jehovah.
Jonah had made his first converts to Jehovah!
God prepared the great fish to receive the wayward prophet. For three
days and nights Jonah would be able to think about his disobedience in
the belly of the fish.
CHAPTER TWO: JONAH REPENTS
Jonah has time to think about his disobedience to Jehovah. The prophet begins to pray in the belly of the great fish.
Jonah 2:1 Then Jonah prayed unto Jehovah his God out of the fish's belly.
Jonah is no longer rebelling but is now repenting.
Jehovah is still the God of Jonah. The prophet prays from the depths of the sea and God hears him.
When Jonah was in the boat he was sleeping, but in the sea he prays.
Many people have no thought or idea of praying until things are in turmoil around them.
Jonah cried from the affliction of sin.
Jonah 2:2 And he said, I called by reason of mine
affliction unto Jehovah, And
he answered me; Out of the belly of Sheol cried I, And thou heardest
my voice.
Sometimes we have to be punished before we begin to pray. Afflictions cause us to turn to god.
Ps. 119:71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted;
That I may learn thy statutes.
Jonah realized the creator of the universe was just a prayer away from him.
The creator of the great fish could create a way of escape.
Jonah 2:3 For thou didst cast me into the depth,
in the heart of the seas, And
the flood was round about me; All thy waves and thy billows passed
over me.
Jonah recognized God had taken matters into his own hand after his rebellion.
The prophet knew that God, not the sailors had placed him into the sea.
The ordeal of Jonah was frightful, he had been swamped and washed by
the waves.
The sea weed and debris stirred by the swirling sea pulled and grabbed
at Jonah.
The fearful waves and the great fish would accomplish repentance in Jonah.
Jonah makes his vow to Jehovah for deliverance. The prophet believes that he will be spared and go back to Jerusalem.
Jonah 2:4 And I said, I am cast out from before thine eyes; Yet
I will look again toward
thy holy temple.
Jonah failed to do what God had instructed the first time but God gives second chances. Though Jonah failed once he did not have to be a failure.
From the natural perspective Jonah seemed helpless and hopeless. From the eye of faith hope can be discerned.
Jonah 2:5-6 The waters compassed me about, even to the soul;
The deep was round about me;
The weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottoms
of the
mountains; The earth with its bars closed upon me for ever: Yet hast thou
brought
up my life from the pit, O Jehovah my God.
The man of God trusted in his deliverance and salvation. Sometimes when things are going bad in our lives we become depressed and overwhelmed because we forget with god there is hope.
Eph. 3:20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly
above all that we ask or
think, according to the power that worketh in us,
Jonah repented and promises to keep obey Jehovah.
Jonah 2:7-9 When my soul fainted within me, I remembered
Jehovah; And my prayer
came in unto thee, into thy holy temple. They that regard lying vanities
Forsake
their own mercy. But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of
thanksgiving; I
will pay that which I have vowed. Salvation is of Jehovah.
Jonah was spared and this made him renew his devotion to God.
Like the prodigal son came to himself so did Jonah.
Luke 15:17 But when he came to himself he said, How many
hired servants of my father's
have bread enough and to spare, and I perish here with hunger!
God wanted Jonah to preach his message to the people of Ninevah.
Jonah is now prepared to present the word of God to the people.
.
Jonah repented of his disobedience and vanities. The idea and
the actions of Jonah were folly without following God's word in every way.
Jonah promised he would obey and do as he was commanded.
Unlike some promises people make to God afterward Jonah kept his pledge to Jehovah.
How many people have made promises to God in crisis only to forget them after the storm passes by.
Jonah knew beyond any shadow of doubt that God was his salvation and strength.
We need to believe in God enough to obey and serve him. This belief is beyond price and a great comfort under any circumstance.
II Tim. 1:12 or which cause I suffer also these things:
yet I am not ashamed; for
I know him whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that he is able
to guard that which I have committed unto him against that day.
Jonah learned the hard way that God is our only salvation and hope.
The tragic thing today is that many will not learn from this example of Jonah.
Jehovah spoke to the fish to release Jonah.
The word of God carries complete power and is to be feared and obeyed.
Ps. 33:6-9 By the word of Jehovah were the heavens made,
And all the host
of them by the breath of his mouth. He gathereth the waters of the
sea together as a heap: He layeth up the deeps in store-houses.
Let all the earth fear Jehovah: Let all the inhabitants of
the world
stand in awe of him. For he spake, and it was done;
Heb. 11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds have been
framed by the word of God,
so that what is seen hath not been made out of things which appear.
The word of god is powerful enough to save Jonah and all men that will obey him.
James 1:21 Wherefore putting away all filthiness and overflowing
of wickedness, receive
with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
The repentance of the prophet was accepted by God.
Somebody says you can't keep a good man down, just look at the story of Jonah.
After Jonah learned his lesson the fish vomited Jonah out of his belly.
Jonah 2:10 And Jehovah spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.
Jonah was deposited on dry land.
Jonah no doubt after getting his balance was ready to hit the ground
running in doing God's commands.
CHAPTER 3: JONAH RESPONDS BY PREACHING
In Jonah chapter 1, Jonah runs away from God.
In chapter 2, Jonah returns to God through repentance.
The third chapter, finds Jonah preaching the message of God, and the response of Ninevah.
There is a note of sternness in God's command, isn't there?
God has not changed his mind about what he wants Jonah to say to Nineveh.
Jehovah has changed the attitude of Jonah who is now ready to preach.
Notice God spoke to Jonah for the second time.
Jonah 3:1-2 And the word of Jehovah came unto Jonah the
second time, saying, Arise,
go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that
I bid thee.
Jehovah is the God of the second chance.
Jer. 18:3-4 Then I went down to the potter's house,
and, behold, he was making a work
on the wheels. And when the vessel that he made of the clay was marred
in
the hand of the potter, he made it again another vessel, as seemed good
to the
potter to make it.
God gave many heroes of the faith a second chance.
David committed adultery, deceit, and murder, God forgave and restored David.
II Sam. 11-12
Peter denied Christ , but he received forgiveness and a second chance.
Matt. 26:69-75 Now Peter was sitting without
in the court: and a maid came unto him, saying,
Thou also wast with Jesus the Galilaean. But he denied before them
all, saying,
I know not what thou sayest. And when he was gone out into
the porch,
another maid saw him, and saith unto them that were there, This man also
was
with Jesus of Nazareth. And again he denied with an oath, I know
not the man.
And after a little while they that stood by came and said to Peter, Of
a truth thou
also art one of them; for thy speech maketh thee known. Then began
he to curse
and to swear, I know not the man. And straightway the cock crew.
And Peter
remembered the word which Jesus had said, Before the cock crow, thou shalt
deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.
Jonah was told to preach and what to preach.
The preaching of Jonah was to be that which God decreed and bid.
Jonah 3:2 Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.
Jonah was told to go and preach and notice this time he obeyed.
Jonah 3:3 So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according
to the word of Jehovah.
Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city, of three days' journey.
The preaching of Jonah was to proclaim punishment and destruction upon Ninevah. Notice how Ninevah is described as the great city. The city was so large that it took 3 days to travel throughout the Assyrian's capitol city.
Jonah 3:4 And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's
journey, and he cried, and said,
Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.
The great city was full of sin and wickedness. Jonah a foreigner was dispatched to proclaim their destruction.
Jonah 1:2 Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry
against it; for their
wickedness is come up before me.
The number of souls that had not reached the age of accountability was tremendous. 120,000 people.
Jonah 4:11 and should not I have regard for Nineveh, that
great city, wherein are more than
sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand
and their
left hand; and also much cattle?
The message was of condemnation and destruction. The prophet stated
that in 40 days Ninevah would be overthrown.
The faithful preacher cannot preach the rewards of heaven without preaching the hell to shun.
II Tim. 4:1-2 I charge thee in the sight of God, and of
Christ Jesus, who shall judge the living
and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word;
be urgent in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering
and teaching.
To preach the truth in love is to tell people of the penalty for sin as well as the sacrifice of the savior.
The second coming of Christ will be terrible for the lost.
II Thess. 1:7-9 and to you that are afflicted rest with
us, at the revelation of the Lord Jesus from
heaven with the angels of his power in flaming fire, rendering vengeance
to them
that know not God, and to them that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus:
who
shall suffer punishment, even eternal destruction from the face of the
Lord and from
the glory of his might,
Because the message is so urgent we must persuade and plead with men for their souls.
II Cor. 5:10-11 For we must all be made manifest before
the judgment-seat of Christ; that
each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he
hath
done, whether it be good or bad. Knowing therefore the fear of the
Lord, we
persuade men, but we are made manifest unto God; and I hope that we are
made manifest also in your consciences.
The preaching of jonah caused the people to fear and seek forgiveness.
Jonah 3:5 And the people of Nineveh believed God; and they
proclaimed a fast, and
put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
Jesus refers to the repentance of Ninevah under the preaching of jonah.
Matt. 12:41 The men of Nineveh shall stand up in
the judgment with this generation,
and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and
behold, a greater than Jonah is here.
The experience of Jonah was a sign that God meant buisness, no doubt all of Ninevah heard of Jonah and the great fish.
There are Bible scholars who feel that what happened to Jonah was that
his features were changed by his experience in the
belly of the fish.
There are some historically verified accounts of men who have been swallowed by fish.,
Harry Rimmers' book, The Harmony of Science and Scripture, tells of an English sailor, who fell overboard, and was swallowed by a fish. A day or two later the fish was spotted floating on the the water, and was taken ashore. When it was opened up, the sailors, found their shipmate alive.
The English sailor survived this experience, his skin turned a strange white fright the stomach acid. The flesh of the sailor remained like this for the rest of his life.
Dr. Rimmer talked with him and learned the details of his experience.
It was clearly verified. There have been other accounts like this.
Being swallowed by a fish has happened to others besides Jonah.
Luke 11:30 For even as Jonah became a sign unto the
Ninevites, so shall also
the Son of man be to this generation.
The common people as well as the rulers feared the message of Jonah. The king as well as his subjects repented in sack-cloth and ashes.
The power of the gospel changes people with a sincere heart. The word of God cuts coming and going.
Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living, and active,
and sharper than any two-edged sword, and
piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow,
and quick to
discern the thoughts and intents of the heart.
The King sent word to the nobles and the people to repent before Jehovah.
Jonah 3:6-7 And the tidings reached the king of Nineveh,
and he arose from his throne, and
laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
And
he made proclamation and published through Nineveh by the decree of the
king
and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste
anything;
let them not feed, nor drink water;
The Ninevites repented from the palace to the poorest home. The people turned from their evil ways.
Jonah 3:7-8 And he made proclamation and published
through Nineveh by the decree of the king
and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste
anything; let
them not feed, nor drink water; but let them be covered with sackcloth,
both man
and beast, and let them cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every
one from his
evil way, and from the violence that is in his hands.
The people and the King repented to satisfy the wrath of God against them.
The God of angry judgment is a God of loving mercy.
Jonah 3:9-10 Who knoweth whether God will not turn and
repent, and turn away from his fierce
anger, that we perish not? And God saw their works, that they turned from
their evil
way; and God repented of the evil which he said he would do unto them;
and he did
it not.
As long as the people were stubborn and sinful God was angry. Jehovah still hates evil today.
Psalms 7:11 God is a righteous judge, Yea, a God that hath
indignation every day.
The anger of God made life dangerous for the Ninevites. The repentance of the people would be their salvation.
God looked upon the people and saw their change, and heard their cries.
Jonah 3:8 but let them be covered with sackcloth, both man and
beast, and let them cry mightily
unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the
violence that is
in his hands.
Jonah 3:10 And God saw their works, that they turned from
their evil way; and God repented
of the evil which he said he would do unto them; and he did it not.
God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil which he said he would do unto them; and he did it not. Just as Jehovah saw their wickedness, he saw their repentance, and responded with forgiveness.
The people had a genuine repentance or turning from their evil works.
What had made Jonah so anxious to avoid this commission?
Why did he not want to go to Nineveh? Why did he flee from
God?
Jehovah would have destroyed the people in 40 days but spared them
when they repented.
The mercy of god pardoned their iniquities.
The goodness and mercy of god is seen in his dispatching Jonah to proclaim their destruction.
God was not obligated to warn the Nineties, but he did because of his great love for humanity.
When Nineveh responded to the message of Jonah in repentance God spared them.
We are all saved by obedience to the gospel message. The mercy of god is extended for our salvation.
Titus 3:5 not by works done in righteousness, which we
did ourselves, but according
to his mercy he saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing
of the Holy Spirit,
Psalms 136 ends every verse speaking of the mercy of god.
CHAPTER 4 JONAH
Jonah will be taught a great lesson from God in the final chapter. Jehovah will use a plant, worm and wind to instruct him.
The unusual feature of Jonah is how God deals with gentiles in mercy
and love. Most other books of the Old Testament center around Israel
and Judah but not this little book.
Jonah 4:1-2 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he
was angry. And he prayed unto
Jehovah, and said, I pray thee, O Jehovah, was not this my saying, when
I was
yet in my country? Therefore I hasted to flee unto Tarshish; for I knew
that thou
art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness,
and repentest thee of the evil.
Because Jonah knew that God was merciful, he would not go to Nineveh.
Jonah says, "I knew you God. I knew that you are the kind that repents from evil if you get a chance."
God had said to this prophet, "Now go to Nineveh and announce to them 'forty days and the city shall be overthrown.'"
And that was exactly what Jonah wanted. He wanted to see this city destroyed.
This was the great enemy of his Israel.
Maybe, Jonah had actually seen the cruel, ruthless, bloody Ninevites come down into his land and raid his kinsmen.
Maybe, Jonah had even suffered the loss of loved ones at the hands of these merciless people.
In the ancient world, the bloodiest and most vicious kind of cruelty belonged to the Ninevites.
The Assyrians found ingenious ways to be more cruel than any other nation that has ever lived.
The Assyrians were brutal and godless. Perhaps Jonah hated them for their vicious ways.
The one thing that he wanted more than anything, was to see Nineveh destroyed.
When God told Jonah to go announce to Nineveh its destruction, he said, "I know you too well, O God. If anybody, by repents, you will be merciful, you'll change your mind and won't carry out your sentence upon them." So he fled to Tarshish.
That's amazing, isn't it?
What a revelation of the knowledge of God and of the character of the God of the Old Testament!
Those who do not believe the Bible, say that the God of the Old Testament was a angry, vengeful God.
Some people picture God as throwing bolts of lightning, trying to kill people..
Jonah teaches us that God is not like this picture of man at all..
The message of this book, is not so much what happened to Jonah, but
the results in Nineveh when Jonah rose up to
preach.
The city repented down to the last man, and the judgment of God was stayed.
The city was spared, and only after more than 100 years later did God carry out his judgment on Nineveh and destroy it.
The people and city were spared for their repentance at Jonah's preaching.
Jonah was angry with God, Jonah pouted that the city was spared.
The prophet announced why he had tried to run away. Jonah was mad that Nineveh was spared.
God asks Jonah why he was acting in this way.
Jonah 4:3-4 Therefore now, O Jehovah, take, I beseech thee,
my life from me; for it is better
for me to die than to live. And Jehovah said, Doest thou well to
be angry?
Jonah did not even answer. He sat down on the rim rock above the city and waited to see what God would do. I don't know how much time had gone by, but he must have waited out there a few days. The first day,
Jonah 4:5-6 Then Jonah went out of the city, and sat on
the east side of the city, and there made
him a booth, and sat under it in the shade, till he might see what would
become of the
city. And Jehovah God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over
Jonah, that
it might be a shade over his head, to deliver him from his evil case. So
Jonah was exceeding
glad because of the gourd.
God prepared a plant, and it covered Jonah from the heat of the hot sun. The plant grew up and covered Jonah's head, making Jonah regard the plant as a treasure or something he enjoyed.
The shade provide by the plant was evidence of God's.
On the second day God prepared a worm to devour the plant that Jonah was enjoying.
Jonah 4:7-8 But God prepared a worm when the morning rose
the next day, and it smote the
gourd, that it withered. And it came to pass, when the sun arose,
that God prepared
a sultry east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted,
and
requested for himself that he might die, and said, It is better for me
to die than to live.
When the sun came up God created, an east wind that blew the heat of the desert on Jonah.
The prophet sat there sweating and suffering until he fainted and asked that he might die.
God said again to him, "Well, Jonah, are you ready to give me your answer? I asked you a question.
Jonah 4:9 And God said to Jonah, Doest thou well
to be angry for the gourd? And he
said, I do well to be angry, even unto death.
It is easy to point the finger at Jonah, but sometimes we complain
and gripe at God's goodness.
Just let one of our enemies prosper and we complain and grumble.
Jonah said he was angry enough to die over the death of the plant and the heat of the sun.
The real anger Jonah felt, was that God spared Nineveh.
Notice what God said to Jonah.
Jonah 4:10-11 And Jehovah said, Thou hast had regard for
the gourd, for which thou hast
not labored, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished
in a night: and should not I have regard for Nineveh, that great
city, wherein
are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their
right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle?
Instead of hating our enemies we must love them and do good unto them.
Matt. 5:43-44 Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt
love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy:
but I say unto you, love your enemies, and pray for them that persecute
you;
The command to forgive for the natural man is hard, but the rewards are tremendous.
Rom. 12:19-21 Avenge not yourselves, beloved, but give place
unto the wrath of God: for
it is written, Vengeance belongeth unto me; I will recompense, saith the
Lord.
But if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him to drink:
for in so doing
thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head. Be not overcome of evil,
but overcome
evil with good.
The anger and resentment Jonah felt for the Assyrians and Nineveh blinded him to the pain that would come upon the helpless and innocent people. Sometimes innocent people suffer for the sins of the evil.
A Hebrew way of describing innocent children; one hundred and twenty thousand little children. The total population of adults and children has been guessed or estimated to have been 600,000 or more people.
Jonah took pity on a plant but would not take pity upon a great city filled with children and people who didn't know their way.
Jonah was more concerned about a plant than people. We must always value human life made in the image of God.
Gen. 1:27 And God created man in his own image, in the
image of God created he him;
male and female created he them.
The divine perspective makes the repentance of Nineveh, less of a story than the attitude Jonah had toward Nineveh.
The book concludes in an abrupt and startling manner.
God loved the Ninevites, even though Jonah hated them.
God loves all people and wants them to turn to him and be blessed.
We sing of God's tender grace, his mercy, and his compassion,
Yet we hold grudges and have hatred for others.
CONCLUSION
The message of God which is the gospel must be proclaimed today. The
purpose of the Gospel is to save those who will obey.
Believe Jesus to be the son of God, John 8:24
Repent of sins, Luke 13:3-5
Confess Christ with the mouth, Romans 10:10
Be baptized for the remission of sins, Acts 2:38
Live faithful unto death, Revelation 2:10
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