Jonah 1-4
A Tale
to Wail
0 MIN READ
Psalm 110:1-7 Messianic Reign
God's Faithful Messiah
1The LORD says to my Lord:
“Sit at my right hand,
until I make your enemies your footstool.”
2 The LORD sends forth from Zion
your mighty scepter.
Rule in the midst of your enemies! 3 Your people will offer themselves freely
on the day of your power,
in holy garments;
from the womb of the morning,
the dew of your youth will be yours. 4 The LORD has sworn
and will not change his mind,
“You are a priest forever
after the order of Melchizedek.”
5 The Lord is at your right hand;
he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath. 6 He will execute judgment among the nations,
filling them with corpses;
he will shatter chiefs
over the wide earth. 7 He will drink from the brook by the way;
therefore he will lift up his head.
Application
God will one day fulfill all His promises, to judge and bless, so we need to live in light of that reality.
Prayer
Lord, thanks that You will bring about a perfect victorious rulership over the earth in the Messiah; I'm glad I'm on Your side. Amen.
Proverbs 25:8-10 Avoiding Shame
for what will you do in the end,
when your neighbor puts you to shame? 9 Argue your case with your neighbor himself,
and do not reveal another's secret, 10 lest he who hears you bring shame upon you,
and your ill repute have no end.
Application
Never act hastily out of anger, and always try to resolve things at the lowest possible volume.
Prayer
God set a guard over my heart and lips so I don't respond emotionally in situations where I'm wronged, and thus diminish my influence for You. Amen.
Jonah 1-4 A Tale to Wail
God has a love and concern for the world (Gen 12:3; Isa 49:1-3; Jn 3:16) that extends beyond Israel, but He uses Israel as the vehicle of His grace. Jonah, like Israel didn't want to cooperate, either in obeying nor in caring. Those who care about pleasing God, care about what God cares about. Assyria, whose capital was Nineveh, had put Israel under tribute in the days of Jehu (about 75 years earlier); Hosea 11:5 and Amos 5:27 indicated that God would use Assyria to judge Israel, so Jonah's reluctance to see Nineveh spared is understandable, but not excusable. God uses extraordinary measures to prepare His prophet to proclaim His message, and the Gentiles put Israel to shame by their receptivity and repentance.
Jonah 1 Proud Prophet, God-fearing Pagans
Jonah Flees from the LORD
1 Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD.The Great Storm
4 But the LORD hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up. 5 Then the mariners were afraid, and each cried out to his god. And they hurled the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone down into the inner part of the ship and had lain down and was fast asleep. 6 So the captain came and said to him, “What do you mean, you sleeper? Arise, call out to your god! Perhaps the god will give a thought to us, that we may not perish.” 7 And they said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, that we may know on whose account this evil has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 Then they said to him, “Tell us on whose account this evil has come upon us. What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?” 9 And he said to them, “I am a Hebrew, and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 10 Then the men were exceedingly afraid and said to him, “What is this that you have done!” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.Jonah Cast into the Sea
11 Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you, that the sea may quiet down for us?” For the sea grew more and more tempestuous. 12 He said to them, “Pick me up and hurl me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you, for I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you.” 13 Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to dry land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them. 14 Therefore they called out to the LORD, “O LORD, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not on us innocent blood, for you, O LORD, have done as it pleased you.” 15 So they picked up Jonah and hurled him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging. 16 Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows. 17 And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.Application
Prayer
Mighty God, nothing is too difficult for You, except perhaps to get us to submit our will to Yours; guide me in doing Your will so You will be glorified by my life. Amen.
Jonah 2 Psalm of Deliverance from the Depths
Jonah’s Prayer
1 Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the belly of the fish, 2 saying,“I called out to the LORD, out of my distress,
and he answered me;
out of the belly of Sheol I cried,
and you heard my voice. 3 For you cast me into the deep,
into the heart of the seas,
and the flood surrounded me;
all your waves and your billows
passed over me. 4 Then I said, ‘I am driven away
from your sight;
yet I shall again look
upon your holy temple.’ 5 The waters closed in over me to take my life;
the deep surrounded me;
weeds were wrapped about my head 6 at the roots of the mountains.
I went down to the land
whose bars closed upon me forever;
yet you brought up my life from the pit,
O LORD my God. 7 When my life was fainting away,
I remembered the LORD,
and my prayer came to you,
into your holy temple. 8 Those who pay regard to vain idols
forsake their hope of steadfast love. 9 But I with the voice of thanksgiving
will sacrifice to you;
what I have vowed I will pay.
Salvation belongs to the LORD!”
10 And the LORD spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land.
Application
We can never be in such deep trouble that God can't hear us and deliver us if we call out to Him in faith based upon His revelation.
Prayer
Jonah 3 When Men Repent, God Relents
The Ninevites Repent
1 Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.” 3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, three days' journey in breadth. 4 Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's journey. And he called out, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” 5 And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them. 6 The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7 And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, 8 but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9 Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.” 10 When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.Application
When we repent, God relents of the judgment He had planned, because we now qualify for mercy rather than pain.
Prayer
Merciful God, please point out any sin in my life that is setting me up for judgment, and give me the grace to repent wholeheartedly. Thanks. Amen.
Jonah 4 Pouting Prophet Learns about Repentance
Jonah’s Anger at the LORD’s Compassion
1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. 2 And he prayed to the LORD and said, “O LORD, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. 3 Therefore now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.” 4 And the LORD said, “Do you do well to be angry?” 5 Jonah went out of the city and sat to the east of the city and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city. 6 Now the LORD God appointed a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort. So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. 7 But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered. 8 When the sun rose, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint. And he asked that he might die and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.” 9 But God said to Jonah, “Do you do well to be angry for the plant?” And he said, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.” 10 And the LORD said, “You pity the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow, which came into being in a night and perished in a night. 11 And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle?”Application
Those who care about pleasing God care about what God cares about, which is primarily the spiritual welfare of people.
Prayer
Digging Deeper
Us in a nutshell: We can be recipients of grace, and yet not gracious toward others. We can know God but not embrace His objectives. Pagans can put God's people to shame by responding better to Him than they do. When we call to God according to His promises, He relents when we repent.
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