Jonah

"Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me."  Jonah 1:2

With these dramatic words we are introduced to the Book of Jonah. And the outcome? Jonah fled. He turned his back and fled in the opposite direction. This prophet of God arose and fled to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.

Going in the opposite direction

Our first reaction to his action may be to consider him foolish, and he was. If we stop to consider our own lives, we must admit that there are times when we find ourselves going in the opposite direction. We are fully aware of the commandments of God, yet we still disobey, and go in the opposite direction.

How very typical of human nature was Jonah's action. So often the human race is found going in the opposite direction to the will of God. Something we have inherited from our first parents. From the moment the serpent spoke to Eve, the human race has had a preference to believe a lie rather than believe God's word. Rebellion against God seems to be a second nature to us

God's will among the nations

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

When Nineveh's wickedness overstepped the bounds that God had marked out, God determined the time had come for Him to act.

Here is declared the supremacy of God. He can do as He wills amongst the nations of this earth:- and He does. None can say unto Him, "What doest Thou?" This was the lesson Jonah had to learn.

We have seen His mighty hand at work amongst the nations, even in our own day, and our faith is strengthened. But He does it all in His own good time, according to His own purpose.

When this present world reaches the stage that God has pre-determined, He will intervene in world affairs once more. He will exercise His authority over the nations and reveal once again His great power and authority, as He brings them into submission, through the future work of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. At the same time, He will reveal His mercy to those who have been faithful down through the ages.

Jonah runs away from duty

Jonah did not relish the task to which he had been appointed, and sought to get as far away from Nineveh as possible.

"But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD."  Jonah 1:3

God can hide His face from men in the sense of rejecting them, but none can hide from His all-seeing eye.

Adam and Eve could not hide themselves from the presence of God amongst the trees of the garden. It was not long before the voice of the angel called them out from amongst the trees in: "Where art thou?"

After Cain slew Abel, his blood cried out from the ground to God, and He asked Cain, "Where is Abel thy brother?"

Psalm 139:7 summarizes the matter for us. Jonah could not hide from God, and nor can we. It is in keeping with His great majesty that it should be so. And like Cain, we cannot hide our sins from Him. We need to confess them before Him. David writes:

"Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me."  Psa 139:7-10

A mission to perform

We must not shirk our duty, like Jonah tried, but preach the gospel fearlessly, not being disheartened by the response, but sowing the seed as we are given opportunity. It is God who will bring the increase, amongst those whom He is calling.

The storm - fear grips the sailors

"But the LORD sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken."  Jonah 1:4

The sailors cast lots to find whose god was causing the trouble and the lot fell upon Jonah. He told them to pick him up and cast him into the sea, and it would be calm for them.

These superstitious sailors were afraid because of what Jonah had told them about his God. What did they do?

"Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not: for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them." Jonah 1:13

In our own strength

They tried to fix things in their own strength with their own idols. It was God that they were working against. He was the cause of the great wind and the mighty tempest in the sea. He was the cause of their distress and fear. God was shaping events to witness against the Ninevites, and in the fulness of time, against the Pharisees of Jesus day, and eventually to those of our day

We have storms and tempests in our own lives. God uses them to shape our own character and to correct us.

"And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye illegitimate, and not sons."  Heb 12:5-8

How often is God trying to teach us a lesson, but we insist upon trying to row the boat against the storm all by ourselves, using the idols of the twentieth century. None can fight against God, or thwart his purpose. The sooner we surrender to God and ask for help, the sooner we will know peace and calm. Sometimes the storm may continue to lash us for some time. It is so much easier when God is on our side. It may be some time before we realize just what it was that God was trying to teach us.

Jonah thrown overboard

When they came to their senses, the mariners realized that their own gods were of no use, and turned to Yahweh.

"Wherefore they cried unto the LORD, and said, We beseech thee, O LORD, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O LORD, hast done as it pleased thee."  Jonah 1:14

It is marvellous what obedience to God's word can do. They took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging. They could not save themselves by their own powers. It was only by throwing Jonah overboard and sacrificing him that they were saved from certain death. Thus the sailors were converted and saved.

"Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the LORD, and made vows." Jonah 1:16

The Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour

In the same way that Jonah became the saviour of the mariners, saving them from certain death, so the Lord Jesus Christ is the saviour of those who turn to Him in obedience, saving them from eternal death. Therefore we can see that Jonah foreshadows the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. In this way he was a sign.

"Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." Isa 53:4-6

The great fish: the belly of the grave

Jonah was not only swallowed by the waves, but also by a great fish. It appeared this was the end of Jonah and his witnessing. But God's ways are not man's ways. They are past finding out until He is pleased to make them known.

"I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O LORD my God." Jonah 2:6

The earth was so shut and locked, so barred and bolted, against him, that he was quite cut off from any hope of ever returning to it. So close about him was it that it was likely to be about him for ever. Yet he expresses the belief that he would not see corruption in this grave.

Then Jonah prayed; when he was in trouble. He prayed from the belly of hell - a concealed place where all go at death. He saw the folly of his ways. . His heart had been humbled, and in his affliction he turned to God. From the bottom of the sea, out of the depths he cried to God; as Paul and Silas prayed in the prison, in the stocks.

Too often, when we are in the depths of our troubles, we do not remember our God. We forget to turn to Him for help and sustenance. There is a saying that is worth remembering: "Nothing improves prayer life than big trouble!"

Jonah has faith

Having confessed his sins, Jonah knew that he had been forgiven. His faith is strengthened, and he knew that he would worship God at "thy holy temple" in Jerusalem.

"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:8-9

Faith corrected and controlled Jonah's fear and distrust. By his faith he was able to say, Yet I will look again towards thy holy temple.

Though we bring our afflictions upon ourselves by our sins, yet, if we pray in humility and godly sincerity, confessing our faults, God will hear our prayer, as He did Jonah.

Not leave my soul in hell

The scriptures make clear that it was not God's purpose for Jesus to remain in the grave and see corruption. Therefore in this type, He was not going to allow Jonah to remain in this grave. So we read in v 6:

"I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O LORD my God." Jonah 2:6

Here we have the figurative resurrection of Jonah from hell, a wonderful sign of the resurrection of Jesus.

Much about Jesus is foreshadowed in the Psalms, including Gods purpose not to allow Him to see corruption in the grave:

"For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption." Psa 16:10

Three days and three nights

Speaking of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, Paul says in his letter to the Corinthians:

"For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:" 1 Cor 15:3-4

He is obviously quoting from the Old Testament. However, the only verses in the best cross references direct us to the Book of Jonah, verse 17:

A sign to the Ninevites

Not only was Jonah a sign to the Pharisees of Jesus' day, and likewise to our own, but we are told by Jesus that he was also a sign to the Ninevites.

"For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation." Luke 11:30

For a large fish to vomit Jonah out on dry land, would require the fish to strand itself upon dry land. Thus it would lose its own life. As the large fish thrashed about in the shallow waters, it would become a spectacle, and draw large crowds, who witnessed these extra-ordinary events. Word would spread rapidly, reaching to Nineveh long before Jonah. Thus the way was prepared for him in Nineveh, and as Jesus indicated, he was a sign to the Ninevites. Jonah, approved of God by these signs, proclaimed the Word of God to the Ninevites. They listened, believed and repented. Doom was averted for the time being, and they were saved.

Jesus proclaimed the Word of God to his generation, a man approved of God ... by miracles and wonders and signs, but the Jews largely rejected his message and brought swift destruction on themselves.

Jonah's commission is renewed and readily obeyed

"And the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time, saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee." Jonah 3:1-2

This time Jonah needed no prompting. The burden of his message was: "4Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown." tell the men of Nineveh that their wickedness has come up to God, and God's vengeance is coming down upon them.

God did not alter the message, to gratify him. He must now preach the very same message he had refused. The word of God is an unalterable thing. We must comply with its truths and laws. We must stand fast and not go along with others who want to modify the Truth, no matter what the cost. Jonah faithfully and boldly delivered his errand.

Nineveh repentant

At the end of his preaching the city was stirred to its depths. As the prophet preached doom, the people changed. Earlier Jonah had repented, and now these Gentiles repented. As outward symbols of inward contrition and humiliation they fasted Even the king was moved. He removed his clothes, dressed in sack-cloth, along with all his subjects, and sat in ashes. The wearing of sackcloth, especially to those who were used to fine linen, was a very uneasy thing, and they would not have done it if they had not had a deep sense of their sin and their danger by reason of sin.

"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: 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." Jonah 3:7-8

Here we see a wonder of God's grace in the repentance and reformation of Nineveh, upon the warning given them of their approaching destruction. God stands by the promise he made in Jeremiah:

"If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them." Jer 18:8

God kept his promise. This no doubt was the cause of Jonah's later dissatisfaction.

Nineveh an example

Jesus uses the people of Nineveh as an example to the people of Jerusalem in His own day:

"The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here." Mat 12:4

Nineveh repented in sackcloth and ashes at the preaching of Jonah, and were saved. Israel remained stubborn and defiant at the preaching of Jesus, and brought swift judgement upon their heads.

Jonah a prophet of God

After much patience on the part of God, Jonah learns the error of his ways. God may suffer his saints to fall into sin, yet he will not suffer them to lie still in it. Jonah suffered much in learning what God required of Him, but at length he did learn the lesson.

We read of Jonah in 2 Kings 14 in the days of Jeroboam II, where his prophecy that Jeroboam would save Israel came true. Here we see that Jonah is now referred to as the prophet of God:

"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." 2 Ki 14:25

Likewise in Matthew 12:38 we have noted that Jesus also acknowledged him as a prophet of God:

"Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee. But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:" Mat 12:38-39

It would be wonderful to think that we could learn from Jonah not to try the patience of our God, but to learn the lessons of obedience quickly, to the end that we may develop that character that is pleasing in God's sight, that we might bring honour and glory to His name, both now, and in the kingdom age to come.

Conclusion

As we come now to remember the Lord Jesus Christ, we need to bear in mind this sign of Jonah. Just as Jonah allowed the mariners to sacrifice him to the waves, in order that their lives might be saved, so the Lord Jesus Christ submitted Himself to a most cruel and painful death on our behalf. He accepted the vilest accusations, taunts and jeers without rebuke. He suffered the cruel scourging and the crown of thorns without protest. Finally He died and excruciatingly painful death on the cross. He paid this terrible price in order that we might have that most wonderful hope: having our sins forgiven

Further, just as Jonah spent three days and three night inside the belly of hell of that great fish and did not see corruption, so the Lord Jesus Christ lay for three days and three nights in the grave without seeing corruption.

As the great fish vomited Jonah out on the dry ground on the third day, so God raised the Lord Jesus Christ from the grave on the third day. He has conquered death and now lives for ever, the firstfruits of them that slept. He has opened that way for all who would be faithful and obedient to follow after Him.

"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming." 1 Cor 15:22-23

Finally, we must always remember there is a price for us to pay. We too must take up that cross daily, no matter what our circumstances, and follow Him.

J.R..O.