The book of Jonah was written anonymously, though most believe that Jonah himself was the writer. It is one book of the bible where people would easily go, "Been there, done that". We all know the story; he was a ‘chicken’ prophet who was too scared to do the will of God. God punished him by getting a fish to macerate him. He realized his mistake, repented and went back to doing what God called him to do. And we all know he was just, as most theologians would put it, a ‘minor’ prophet. But in all this, there is more to him than what meets the eye. As anyone from RZIM would say, "Let’s put this stuff into context..!", and it’s to the context where I’m going.
God called Jonah to get up on his feet and hike towards Nineveh. Nineveh was a great city, located today in modern-day Iraq; and it was the capital of the then Assyrian Empire. Now, Assyria was a cruel kingdom. They were grotesque conquerors. History tells us how the Assyrians would maim their enemies in war. They would desecrate the bodies of the people whom they had conquered; cutting off their ears, their noses, pulling out their tongues, decapitating their heads and piling up their skulls as pyramid towers. They would horribly torture everyone with no remorse, including women and children. History even tells us that when cities were surrounded by the Assyrian army, the inhabitants would all commit mass suicide rather than suffer the plight of the Assyrians.
Moving out of topic here, the Assyrians were the very same people whom we read about in the Second Book of Kings, chapters 18-20. They came like maniacs, barging towards Israel with 1,85,000 men, and crashed its gates without knowing anything about the mighty God the Israelites serve. In a nut shell, God yawned and told an angel to go for a stroll in the night. The very next morning we see the Israelites staring, jaw-dropped, at one hundred and eighty five thousand dead bodies lying outside their walls. And that’s just one angel. Fast-forward around 600 years, to the Garden of Gethsemane where Christ was about to be captured, when Peter cut off Malchus’s ear, Jesus stopped him and said, “Don’t you think I could call upon My Father and He would at once put at my disposal 12 legions of angels?”. Twelve legions! One angel took down almost two hundred thousand men! What would the measly Romans do against that one angel? Let alone twelve legions of them! What an awesome God we serve!
Coming back to Jonah, It was to these very same Assyrians that God was sending him to. Jonah was no ordinary dude; he knew exactly what God was up to. His own people were oppressed by the Assyrians, and he knew God was sending him there to preach repentance. He knew very well that God was compassionate, gracious and would ultimately, forgive them [Jonah 4:2]. Jonah did NOT want this. He did not run away from God because he was afraid to preach. He ran away because he was angry, he was stubborn and he wanted justice done to his people. He did not want to preach to the Gentiles and did not want them to be saved. So he went to Joppa to escape God’s call. It’s very interesting to see that, in this very same place; many, many years later, we find Peter sitting on a rooftop and he gets a vision that tells him to go take the Gospel to the Gentiles. Interesting to see how things seem to come back. It was to Joppa that Jonah ran to catch a ship to escape preaching to the Gentiles. It was at Joppa that the Lord called Peter to go to the Gentiles. And the door of the Gospel was opened to the Gentiles as God dealt with Peter there in Joppa. The message of the Bible is not for God’s chosen people alone but for everyone.
Now Jonah did not take a ship to just anywhere, he took a ship to Tarshish! What’s unique about Tarshish, you ask? Well, it was the last outpost of the then known world, the final frontier. It was the furthest anyone dared to go, beyond which there was nothing. No ship ever came back after leaving Tarshish and that’s exactly where Jonah was heading, trying to get as far away from the Lord as possible. What a stiff-necked fellow!
Even when he was on the boat that was in raging waters, did you ever wonder why Jonah did not himself jump overboard? He asked his shipmates to throw him overboard instead! He really did not want to face God about this matter. After he was thrown overboard and swallowed by a fish, this stubborn little dude waited three whole days to offer a prayer. Imagine that! Three whole days in the belly of a fish! The stink and the stench, the gastric juices, the oozy green bile, the bones and other dead creatures! [For those wondering whether there ever was a fish, know that Jonah was the only minor prophet mentioned by Christ and the only one whom He likened Himself to; and Christ did say something about a ‘big fish’ being in the picture. It’s up to you to choose whom to believe…]
You know, our life is much like Jonah in the belly of the fish. If you’re following after a lie, you’re making it hard on yourself. It is a lie if you think you can find happiness apart from God. It is a lie if you think you can run away from God’s call. Because once He sets His finger on you, it is unmovable; no matter what you do. And you will bleed through your nose trying to go against it, running away would just bring misery and despair. It’s like being in a canoe with no oars and heading straight for a huge waterfall. And if by any chance you think doing God’s will is going to bring you deprivation and desperation, you are wrong. Yes, there will be difficulties but He knows what’s best for you and will show His glory through it all. Also realize that salvation does not lay in your hands, its God’s. No matter what you do, you cannot save yourself. So might go up and down in life, face all the failures and all the successes in trying to do well and arguing whether the glass is half full or half empty. You can do all the good and continue arguing all you want, but you’re still on that canoe, with no oars and heading for that waterfall; and this time it’s closer than before. Learn to rest your salvation with God. And if you are doing God’s will, He will back you up. I always find a plan with a backup more suitable than one without...
Now Jonah was still angry, he still wanted justice done to his people. So he went out of the city, perched his bottom under a shelter and hoped God would rain destruction on the Ninevites. And then God comes up with this amazing illustration to show Jonah how much He loved the people He created. [Jonah 4]. He provided a vine for Jonah’s comfort, a worm to eat away the vine, and then a scorching wind. Jonah became tired and very faint. And God asked Jonah, “Do you have any right to be angry about the vine?” and he replied that he was angry enough to die. And God proceeded to explain the situation to him, "The vine was something short-lived, came up one night and perished another night. You did not do anything to make it grow. And yet when it died you felt sorry, you felt angry, and that too enough to die. But look at the people of Nineveh, I created them, they are eternal souls and not random plants. I have every right to be concerned about them as you were with this simple vine..."
And so the book of Jonah ends abruptly with nothing more being said of what became of Jonah. Whether he survived and went back home or perished, we do not know. But the book does end with a wonderful insight into a God who is gracious and compassionate; who is merciful and slow to anger; whose love is abounding and has great interest in the children He has created…
References:
Through the Bible C-2000 Series, Bible Commentary, Pr. Chuck Smith [Audio]
Lenoy,this is brilliant stuff!Fresh insight.God bless you and hey,dont stop,keep it coming! :D
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