Category: Jonah

What a frustrating and confusing ending to the book of Jonah! From chapter one, we understand that Jonah’s indignation is due to God not exacting justice on the Ninevites. He flees from God by boat, he flees from God by sleep, and finally he tries to flee from God by death (not knowing God would send a fish to swallow him up). He repents, but now Jonah has accomplished God’s mission and he’s livid about it. Now Jonah is so angry that he would rather die than see them worship Yahweh. And we finally can connect the dots on why he fled—he knew his God. He knew the Lord would be slow to anger and quick to forgive. Where was the justice in that?

God asks him the question, “Is it right for you to be angry?,” not because He doesn’t know the answer, but because He wants to reveal Jonah’s heart. Jonah, however, was still not ready to accept God’s decision, so in his bitterness and petulance, he sits in a shelter to the east of the city. Traditionally, judgment comes from the east, so whether literally or symbolically, we can assume Jonah is expectantly waiting (and perhaps even hoping) that God will send down His wrath and deal with these Ninevites at last. Instead, God is preparing a lesson for Jonah.

God sends a plant and this is the only time we see Jonah happy in this entire book. He isn’t pleased when the sailors repent, nor when Nineveh repents, but only when God gives him underserved grace by way of shade. How backwards for a prophet to be so disturbed by God’s mercy for pagans, that he would prefer death over life!  So, why did God reward Jonah? He already had a shelter. He wasn’t in need of the plant, and yet he is utterly thrilled when it grows overnight. While Jonah doesn’t deserve for the plant to exist, it still does. The plant exists because God, in His compassion to Jonah, gave it life, but justice comes in the form of a worm. As quickly as it rose, it withers and dies, and again we find Jonah asking for death himself. Now the question becomes, does Jonah want the Lord’s justice or compassion? Or is he wanting both, but only when it meets his needs?

So, what is the takeaway and how do we apply this to our lives? God is consistent in His compassion even when his people aren’t! He is loving and faithful, and he wants the whole earth to know Him. His message has been the same from Genesis to Jonah to the cross. God is full of mercy to everyone–especially the undeserving. Let’s be a people who can thank God for His underserved grace in our own lives, for His mighty plan to rescue all people, and for the cross. Let’s live in a way that conveys our gratitude towards Him and allows us to share compassion and love for others the way God does. 

What an incredible turn of events today! We see God’s sovereignty and mercy on display here in Jonah 3. What stands out in this short chapter are verses 9 and 10: “‘Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.’ When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.”

The primary observation here is that God relents when we repent. Psalm 51:17 prays that “My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.” We must first recognize our sin in light of a Holy God and turn from our sinful ways. The word repent, in Hebrew, means to rue or express sorrow over one’s sin. There is also an action element implied, where we turn from our sin. We recognize our need to repent and turn from sin. That recognition leads us to brokenness over our own sin––a broken and contrite heart, as the psalmist says. We can look over our time in the Bible this year and see how God has been faithful to relent on impending judgment when those who would receive the judgment are repentant. 

The word that is translated as “God” in our English translation is actually the Hebrew word “Elohim” here in chapter 3. This word is different than what was used in chapters 1 and 2, “Yahweh.” The reason for that? Jonah appeals to the Ninevites in a way that will make sense to them, as they were a pagan nation that worshiped many different gods. By using the name of “Elohim,” Jonah was able to effectively communicate to his audience the supreme might and power of his God. Jonah experienced this power first-hand, as he was swallowed by the great fish that God sent. Nothing will prevent God from carrying out his intended plan and purpose. His ways are higher than our ways (Is. 55:8). 

Repentance is a heart posture and not a formula to follow for pursuing the heart of God. Again, it is a broken and contrite heart that God honors. The Ninevites demonstrated this for us by putting on sackcloth and ashes and mourning their sin. 

In this passage, Jonah vividly describes his feelings of hopelessness as he is sinking into the sea and swallowed by a fish. What Jonah experienced is the stuff of nightmares as seen in Jonah 2:3-6 “…the flood surrounded me… water closed in over me, the deep surrounded me…weeds wrapped around my head at the roots of the mountains. I went down to the pit whose bars closed upon me forever.” Jonah is figuratively in a spiritual/emotional valley as his circumstances fight to overwhelm him with hopelessness. By paying close attention to Jonah’s description, we find that Jonah is also literally in a valley as well since he is surrounded by “mountains.” 

The fact that Jonah is literally and figuratively in a valley is likely no mere coincidence and should make us recall the literal and figurative valley depicted in Psalm 23 where David describes our Shepherd (God) leading the sheep (us) through the “valley of the shadow of death.” In both of these passages, we find David and Jonah recognizing God’s presence in the midst of their difficult times. In psalm 23:4 David writes that in the valley “I will fear no evil, for you are with me”. Likewise, in Jonah 2:2, Jonah speaks of how God “answered me” and “heard my voice” while in the belly of the fish. With this realization of God’s presence, Jonah and David were able to be comforted despite their terrible circumstances, and what a comfort that should be for us during our challenges.

The correlations between these passages continue! In Psalm 23, David discusses how the shepherd’s rod and staff “comfort me”. These were tools used to protect and guide the sheep. As described in A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23, a shepherd’s staff were used by the shepherd to “guide his sheep gently onto a new path” or “reach out and catch individual sheep … and draw them close to himself for intimate examination.” The correlation between Jonah’s whale and the Shepherd’s staff is undeniable as we see how God uses the whale to redirect Jonah’s path as well as catch Jonah and bring him close to Himself. It is encouraging to see God’s kindness and provision repeatedly displayed in these passages and stirs me to ensure that I’m part of His flock.

We are all probably familiar with the story of Jonah running from God and being swallowed up by the large fish, before being spit out in the land where God originally told him to go. We are also likely familiar with the lessons about God carrying out His purposes and fulfilling His plans despite our willingness to obey. However, another important lesson weaves its way through this book.

We see Jonah’s anger and frustration with God as a thread throughout this story. And why is Jonah mad? Because God loves those Jonah considers his enemies. Jonah is a biblical example of us on the days we ask God, “Why does it feel like the bad guys always win?” 

We are not told in this chapter why Jonah runs in the opposite direction of Nineveh, but we know that he falls asleep aboard the ship. When God sends a storm to wake Jonah up, even the pagan sailors are able to discern that this is not a normal storm. They ask Jonah to explain himself and, somewhat hypocritically, he claims to worship the God “that made the sea.” Remember, based on what we know about Jonah from 2 Kings, there should be some skepticism about Jonah’s statement. If he truly worships the God who made the sea, why is he running from that God? We also can be skeptical about Jonah’s request for the sailors to throw him overboard. While this might initially seem unselfish, it could also be another way to run from what God is telling him to do. A way to die and escape everything that Jonah feels is unjust and unfair.

But God foils his plans when the big fish enters the story. Just as Ephesians 2 tells us, God has planned in advance good works for each of us to do. Jonah was no different. We will see in the remainder of the book how Jonah’s anger at God remained, despite God’s relentless and merciful pursuit of him–the same merciful pursuit that angered Jonah when it was aimed at his enemies. 

We can read this book as a question to all of us: are we ok with God loving our enemies? As The Bible Project explains, the book of Jonah is like a mirror that allows us to see the worst parts of our character magnified. God puts up with the Jonah in all of us. The good news is that the vastness of God’s mercy is for all of us.