What lessons can we learn from Jonah?
Introduction. When we hear the word “Jonah”, the first thing that comes to mind is his encounter with the great fish. This is the one big event in his life and is one of the better known Bible Stories. We focus on this event because it is what Jesus used to describe his death, burial, and resurrection. “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Mt 12:40). Yet the fish actually played a minor role in the book that bears his name. Of its forty-eight verses, only eleven describe the events of the fish. If that’s all we know about him, we are missing some very comforting and amazing passages.
Jonah’s life is a snapshot of the vastness of God’s mercy and patience. God’s responses to his weakness help us better understand how “the LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness.” (Ps 103:8) Jonah gives color and texture to how God “has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities.” (Ps 103:10) Finally, it is the perfect story to show us how “as a father pities his children, so the LORD pities those who fear Him.” (Ps 103:13) That great fish is an amazing example of God’s pity and mercy!
Jonah’s Sinful Behavior. The book opens with God’s command to go to Nineveh and preach against their wickedness. Jonah’s response was different from other prophets. He ran away! He sought a place where God’s would be unable to force him to fulfill this command. He traveled to the seaport of Joppa and paid for passage to Tarshish which is on the coast of Spain at the opposite end of the Mediterranean Sea.
What should God do with such a disobedient servant? It is not difficult to imagine God severely punishing him, and at first it appeared this was exactly what God intended to do. He “sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship was about to be broken up” (1:4). Surely this would lead the prophet to his knees in repentance. Instead, Jonah “had gone down into the lowest parts of the ship, had lain down, and was fast asleep” (1:5). Not exactly the care and concern we expect from a faithful servant living in rebellion. So it appears Jonah’s fate is sealed. The mariners cast lots and Jonah is taken. When asked what to do, Jonah replied “throw me into the sea; then the sea will become calm for you. For I know that this great tempest is because of me” (1:12). The men tried everything else first, but were forced to conclude that was the only way to save the ship. So “they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging” (1:15).
The Lesson of the Great Fish. And so ended the life of a wicked and rebellious servant. But no! God had prepared that great fish and Jonah did not die. So the great fish was an act of salvation, manifesting both the mercy and the pity of God.
Yet three days in the belly of a great fish with no promise of returning to land would be an agonizing punishment. Like Saul, who was “three days without sight, and did neither eat nor drink” (Acts 9:9), Jonah was in darkness with no food, no water and no promises. Jonah then “prayed to the LORD his God from the fish's belly” (2:1) What a terrible experience Jonah endured. He gives some details: “all your waves and your billows passed over me.” “The waters closed in over me to take my life, weeds were wrapped about my head,” and the “bars closed upon me forever” (2:3-7).
So instead of death, Jonah became a refreshing example of how God is “longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Pet 3:9). After genuine repentance and a vow to fulfill God’s command, God “spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land” (2:10).
Once on dry land, “the word of Jehovah came unto Jonah the second time, saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee. So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of Jehovah.” Jonah clearly manifested the fruits of repentance so necessary to a relationship with God.
Jonah’s Sinful Attitude. His message was one of doom: “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown” (3:4)! So was this why Jonah ran away? Was he afraid of the persecution and anger of the Assyrians? No, his was a very different fear - a fear unimaginable to those who truly love their neighbor. Jonah was afraid God would show Nineveh mercy! It was his knowledge of God’s love and forgiveness that led to his rebellion: “Ah, LORD, was not this what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm” (4:2).
So we see a second terrible flaw in Jonah’s character. He is unforgiving and unmerciful. He wanted Nineveh to be overthrown. In his own words, this is why he fled to Tarshish. One would think his own experience with God’s mercy might have changed his heart and led him to desire the same mercy for others he had received. But as the unmerciful servant (Mt 18:15-35), he could not see his own hypocrisy. He did not want to be the instrument that brought salvation to Nineveh. Yet God continued to patiently teach him. We see in God the patient and loving father of the parable of the prodigal son.
Jonah’s anger carried him so far he requested that God take his life. “Therefore now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live” (4:3)! Isn’t this far enough? Hasn’t Jonah now exhausted the mercy and pity of God? Isn’t it time for God to give up and leave him to his fate or even strike him dead for his terrible attitude? But instead of responding in anger, God’s love and mercy shine through again in the question: “Are you right to be angry?” (4:4).
The Lesson of the Plant. The book of Jonah closes with one final event - perhaps one we should remember as well as we do the fish. We could call it “Jonah and the plant.” For Jonah decided to remain near Nineveh to see if God would destroy it. He set up a small shelter to protect him from the sun, and God prepared a plant to grow up over Jonah, blessing him with a shade much more beneficial than his own. Jonah was very happy and grateful for that plant. But the next day God prepared a worm that ate the plant and it withered and died.
This created a new ugly outburst of anger and a terrible wish for death. How dare he speak to God in this manner: “Then God said to Jonah, ‘Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?’ And he said, ‘It is right for me to be angry, even to death’” (4:9)! So has God finally had enough of this insolence? Will God grant him his wish? No! He used the plant as an opportunity to teach Jonah (and us) something very important. Jonah was angry because: “You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow” (4:10). Jonah’s interest in the vine had nothing to do with the labor and effort he had put into it, but only in the pleasure it had given him for one night.
In contrast, the pity God felt toward Nineveh was much deeper. “And should I not pity Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left-- and much livestock?” (4:11)? God spoke of the innocent infants who have not yet learned right from left. God pitied them and as well as the livestock who were also innocent, but who would suffer greatly in Nineveh’s judgment. This is God’s attitude toward children who die as a result of his judgment upon the wicked. They form a portion of that ten righteous Abraham pleaded for in Sodom (Gen 18:32). They are the undeserving victims of the wickedness of their parents. God is fully aware of them and pities them. Like David’s child, God will protect them from their parent’s sin. Remember David’s words “I shall go to him, but he will not return to me” (2Sam 12:23).
Conclusion. So Jonah and the fish as well as Jonah and the plant are great epics about the love, mercy and compassion of our God.
Jonah’s life is a snapshot of the vastness of God’s mercy and patience. God’s responses to his weakness help us better understand how “the LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness.” (Ps 103:8) Jonah gives color and texture to how God “has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities.” (Ps 103:10) Finally, it is the perfect story to show us how “as a father pities his children, so the LORD pities those who fear Him.” (Ps 103:13) That great fish is an amazing example of God’s pity and mercy!
Jonah’s Sinful Behavior. The book opens with God’s command to go to Nineveh and preach against their wickedness. Jonah’s response was different from other prophets. He ran away! He sought a place where God’s would be unable to force him to fulfill this command. He traveled to the seaport of Joppa and paid for passage to Tarshish which is on the coast of Spain at the opposite end of the Mediterranean Sea.
What should God do with such a disobedient servant? It is not difficult to imagine God severely punishing him, and at first it appeared this was exactly what God intended to do. He “sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship was about to be broken up” (1:4). Surely this would lead the prophet to his knees in repentance. Instead, Jonah “had gone down into the lowest parts of the ship, had lain down, and was fast asleep” (1:5). Not exactly the care and concern we expect from a faithful servant living in rebellion. So it appears Jonah’s fate is sealed. The mariners cast lots and Jonah is taken. When asked what to do, Jonah replied “throw me into the sea; then the sea will become calm for you. For I know that this great tempest is because of me” (1:12). The men tried everything else first, but were forced to conclude that was the only way to save the ship. So “they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging” (1:15).
The Lesson of the Great Fish. And so ended the life of a wicked and rebellious servant. But no! God had prepared that great fish and Jonah did not die. So the great fish was an act of salvation, manifesting both the mercy and the pity of God.
Yet three days in the belly of a great fish with no promise of returning to land would be an agonizing punishment. Like Saul, who was “three days without sight, and did neither eat nor drink” (Acts 9:9), Jonah was in darkness with no food, no water and no promises. Jonah then “prayed to the LORD his God from the fish's belly” (2:1) What a terrible experience Jonah endured. He gives some details: “all your waves and your billows passed over me.” “The waters closed in over me to take my life, weeds were wrapped about my head,” and the “bars closed upon me forever” (2:3-7).
So instead of death, Jonah became a refreshing example of how God is “longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Pet 3:9). After genuine repentance and a vow to fulfill God’s command, God “spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land” (2:10).
Once on dry land, “the word of Jehovah came unto Jonah the second time, saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee. So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of Jehovah.” Jonah clearly manifested the fruits of repentance so necessary to a relationship with God.
Jonah’s Sinful Attitude. His message was one of doom: “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown” (3:4)! So was this why Jonah ran away? Was he afraid of the persecution and anger of the Assyrians? No, his was a very different fear - a fear unimaginable to those who truly love their neighbor. Jonah was afraid God would show Nineveh mercy! It was his knowledge of God’s love and forgiveness that led to his rebellion: “Ah, LORD, was not this what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm” (4:2).
So we see a second terrible flaw in Jonah’s character. He is unforgiving and unmerciful. He wanted Nineveh to be overthrown. In his own words, this is why he fled to Tarshish. One would think his own experience with God’s mercy might have changed his heart and led him to desire the same mercy for others he had received. But as the unmerciful servant (Mt 18:15-35), he could not see his own hypocrisy. He did not want to be the instrument that brought salvation to Nineveh. Yet God continued to patiently teach him. We see in God the patient and loving father of the parable of the prodigal son.
Jonah’s anger carried him so far he requested that God take his life. “Therefore now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live” (4:3)! Isn’t this far enough? Hasn’t Jonah now exhausted the mercy and pity of God? Isn’t it time for God to give up and leave him to his fate or even strike him dead for his terrible attitude? But instead of responding in anger, God’s love and mercy shine through again in the question: “Are you right to be angry?” (4:4).
The Lesson of the Plant. The book of Jonah closes with one final event - perhaps one we should remember as well as we do the fish. We could call it “Jonah and the plant.” For Jonah decided to remain near Nineveh to see if God would destroy it. He set up a small shelter to protect him from the sun, and God prepared a plant to grow up over Jonah, blessing him with a shade much more beneficial than his own. Jonah was very happy and grateful for that plant. But the next day God prepared a worm that ate the plant and it withered and died.
This created a new ugly outburst of anger and a terrible wish for death. How dare he speak to God in this manner: “Then God said to Jonah, ‘Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?’ And he said, ‘It is right for me to be angry, even to death’” (4:9)! So has God finally had enough of this insolence? Will God grant him his wish? No! He used the plant as an opportunity to teach Jonah (and us) something very important. Jonah was angry because: “You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow” (4:10). Jonah’s interest in the vine had nothing to do with the labor and effort he had put into it, but only in the pleasure it had given him for one night.
In contrast, the pity God felt toward Nineveh was much deeper. “And should I not pity Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left-- and much livestock?” (4:11)? God spoke of the innocent infants who have not yet learned right from left. God pitied them and as well as the livestock who were also innocent, but who would suffer greatly in Nineveh’s judgment. This is God’s attitude toward children who die as a result of his judgment upon the wicked. They form a portion of that ten righteous Abraham pleaded for in Sodom (Gen 18:32). They are the undeserving victims of the wickedness of their parents. God is fully aware of them and pities them. Like David’s child, God will protect them from their parent’s sin. Remember David’s words “I shall go to him, but he will not return to me” (2Sam 12:23).
Conclusion. So Jonah and the fish as well as Jonah and the plant are great epics about the love, mercy and compassion of our God.