ABOUT JONAH

The story of Jonah the prophet has always been a popular one since the childhood days of many of us—how that God told him to preach in Nineveh and he refused and fled towards Tarshish on water. We also know that there was a storm on the way and to cut a long story short, he was thrown into the water and ended up in the belly of a big fish.

But why did he choose to disobey God's instruction? Fear? Nineveh was a great city with wickedness inscribed on her forehead. So, was he afraid of being killed? Also, this city was the capital of Israel's hated enemies, the Assyrians. Could this be the reason? Perhaps he wanted them to perish because they were the enemies of his nation.

Like I emphasized in my teaching, "The Bible and the Believer" a couple of years ago, the books of the Bible were not arranged in exactly chronological order of events. The book of James was actually the first book of the New Testament. So just because the book of Jonah is among the last books in compilation in the Old Testament does not mean his time was that close to the end of the Old Testament (the 400 silent years and the coming of John the Baptist before Jesus).

Jonah was a Hebrew prophet, the son of Amittai.

Jonah 1:1-2(KJV)

[1]Now the word of the LORD came unto JONAH THE SON OF AMITTAI, saying,

[2]Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.

His time was during the reign of Jeroboam II in Israel (786–746BC), which is closely 800 years before the birth of Jesus.

2 Kings 14:25-27(KJV)

[25]He restored the coast of Israel from the entering of Hamath unto the sea of the plain, according to the word of the LORD God of Israel, which he spake by the hand of his servant JONAH, THE SON OF AMITTAI, the prophet, which was of Gathhepher.

[26]For the LORD saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter: for there was not any shut up, nor any left, nor any helper for Israel.

[27]And the LORD said not that he would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven: but he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.

That noted, after he was vomited by the fish, he then made the 500-mile trip to Nineveh, a journey that led to a great revival in that city of over 120 thousand people.

Jonah 3:1-10(KJV)

[1]And the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time, saying,

[2]Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.

[3]So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city of three days' journey.

[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.

[5]SO THE PEOPLE OF NINEVEH BELIEVED GOD, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.

[6]For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.

[7]And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water:

[8]But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.

[9]Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?

[10]AND GOD SAW THEIR WORKS, THAT THEY TURNED FROM THEIR EVIL WAY; AND GOD REPENTED OF THE EVIL, THAT HE HAD SAID THAT HE WOULD DO UNTO THEM; AND HE DID IT NOT.

Here in the tenth verse into the last chapter, we see the reason why he was reluctant to go in the first place.

Jonah 4:1-3(KJV)

[1]But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry.

[2]And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I PRAY THEE, O LORD, WAS NOT THIS MY SAYING, WHEN I WAS YET IN MY COUNTRY? THEREFORE I FLED BEFORE UNTO TARSHISH: FOR I KNEW THAT THOU ART A GRACIOUS GOD, AND MERCIFUL, SLOW TO ANGER, AND OF GREAT KINDNESS, AND REPENTEST THEE OF THE EVIL.

[3]Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.

Jonah knew God's intention of mercy to Nineveh; if God really wanted to destroy them unconditionally, he wouldn't need to send a notice. This was also quite obvious in the fact that the message at first—of an overthrow after 40 days—remained unaltered even though he had wasted a few days already while trying to flee.

Thus, he didn't want to prophesy what would not come to pass in the end. That was why he became angry that despite being "forced" to go, his prophecy did not come to pass; he wanted God to kill him (as we can see in the few verses above).

Interestingly, he still hoped that they would be destroyed.

Jonah 4:5(KJV)

So 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 shadow, TILL HE MIGHT SEE WHAT WOULD BECOME OF THE CITY.

God then taught him a lesson through a plant that grew and withered within one day. Jonah was displeased about the fate of this plant, and God responded:

Jonah 4:10-11(KJV)

[10]Then said the LORD, Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night:

[11]And should not I spare 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?

Now, with this understanding, many of us that love to criticize Jonah for his disobedience, would you have done better if you were in his shoes?

The book of Jonah shows not only that God is merciful but that his mercy was never limited to the children of Israel alone. It also highlights how, sometimes, we could be insensitive to this concern of God. But God remains faithful evermore.

Victor Ibosiola © 2021