Jonah

Overview

Jonah stands apart from the other prophets: it is almost entirely a story about the prophet himself rather than a collection of his oracles. God commands Jonah to go and preach against Nineveh, the great city of Israel's brutal enemy, Assyria. Instead of obeying, Jonah flees in the opposite direction by ship, trying to run from the presence of the LORD. The drama that follows exposes the heart of a man, and the heart of God.

A violent storm threatens the ship, and the pagan sailors, more reverent than the prophet, cry out for help. Jonah admits the storm is his fault and is thrown overboard, where God appoints a great fish to swallow him. From the belly of the fish Jonah prays a psalm of distress and deliverance, ending with the confession that 'Salvation belongs to the LORD.' The fish spits him onto dry land, and God's call comes a second time.

This time Jonah obeys, walking through Nineveh with a stark message of impending judgment. Astonishingly, the whole city repents, from the king to the animals, and God relents from the disaster he had threatened. The great enemy is spared. Where we might expect rejoicing, Jonah is furious, angry that God has been gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love toward people he despises.

The book ends with God's gentle but pointed question. Jonah grieves over a withered plant that gave him shade, while caring nothing for a city of more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who do not know their right hand from their left. God asks, 'Should I not pity Nineveh?' The story closes on that question, inviting every reader to examine the smallness of their own compassion against the vastness of God's.

Context at a Glance

Author

Traditionally Jonah, son of Amittai; written about him

Written

Jonah ministered in the 8th century BC; book composed thereafter

Genre

Prophetic narrative

Audience

Israel, and all who would limit God's mercy

Central theme

God's sovereign compassion for all people, even enemies

Key Verse

Jonah 4:2 (WEB)

He prayed to Yahweh, and said, “Please, Yahweh, wasn’t this what I said when I was still in my own country? Therefore I hurried to flee to Tarshish, for I knew that you are a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness, and you relent of doing harm.

Jonah's complaint reveals the book's center: he fled because he knew God to be gracious, merciful, and slow to anger even toward enemies.

The Big Movements

• Jonah flees from God (ch. 1) — Called to Nineveh, Jonah runs the other way and a great storm overtakes the ship.
• Jonah's prayer in the fish (ch. 2) — From the belly of the fish Jonah cries out and confesses that salvation belongs to the LORD.
• Nineveh repents (ch. 3) — Jonah preaches, the city turns from its evil, and God relents from judgment.
• God's mercy and Jonah's anger (ch. 4) — Jonah resents God's compassion, and God confronts him with a searching question.

Key Figures

• The LORD — The sovereign, merciful God who pursues both a wayward prophet and a wicked city with grace.
• Jonah — The reluctant prophet who flees God's call and struggles with God's mercy toward enemies.
• The sailors — Pagan mariners who come to fear and worship the LORD amid the storm.
• The Ninevites — The people of Israel's enemy who repent at Jonah's preaching and are spared.
• The king of Nineveh — The ruler who humbles himself, leading the city in fasting and repentance.

Pointing to Christ

Jesus pointed to Jonah's three days in the fish as a sign of his own death and resurrection. Like Jonah, Christ was 'cast into the deep' on our behalf, but unlike Jonah he willingly gave himself to bring mercy to the nations. Jonah's story foreshadows the gospel going out to all peoples, including those we might consider beyond grace.

Big Lessons

• We cannot outrun God's call or his presence.
• God's mercy extends even to people we consider enemies.
• Repentance, even from the most unlikely, moves the heart of God.
• God is gracious, merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in love.
• Our compassion is often far narrower than God's.
• God patiently confronts our resentment to enlarge our hearts.