Title: Jonah
1Jonah
- The prophet that hated his message
2Chronology
Judah Prophets Israel
931 BC Rehoboam Jeroboam
Abijah Nadab
900 BC Asa Baasha
850 BC Jehoshaphat Elijah Zimri, Omri, Ahab, Ahaziah, Joram
800 BC Jehoram, Ahaziah, Queen Athaliah, Joash Elisha Jonah Amos Johoahaz, Johoash, Jeroboam II
750 BC Amaziah, Uzziah, Ahaz Hosea Micah Isaiah Zechariah, Shallum, Menahem, Pekahiah
722 BC Hezekiah Isaiah Pekah, Hoshea
3Jonah
- Prophet to the enemy
- Go to Nineveh, that great city, and speak out
against it I am aware of how wicked its people
are. Jonah, however, set out in the opposite
direction in order to get away from the LORD.
(Jonah 12,3)
4(No Transcript)
5- But the LORD sent a strong wind on the sea, and
the storm was so violent that the ship was in
danger of breaking up. The sailors were terrified
and cried out for help, each one to his own god.
Then, in order to lessen the danger, they threw
the cargo overboard. Meanwhile, Jonah had gone
below and was lying in the ship's hold, sound
asleep. The captain found him there and said to
him, What are you doing asleep? Get up and pray
to your god for help. Maybe he will feel sorry
for us and spare our lives. The sailors said to
each other, Let's draw lots and find out who is
to blame for getting us into this danger. They
did so, and Jonah's name was drawn. So they said
to him, Now, then, tell us! Who is to blame for
this? What are you doing here? What country do
you come from? What is your nationality? (Jonah
14-8)
6- I am a Hebrew, Jonah answered. I worship the
LORD, the God of heaven, who made land and sea.
Jonah went on to tell them that he was running
away from the LORD. The sailors were terrified,
and said to him, That was an awful thing to do!
The storm was getting worse all the time, so the
sailors asked him, What should we do to you to
stop the storm? Jonah answered, Throw me into
the sea, and it will calm down. I know it is my
fault that you are caught in this violent
storm. (Jonah 19-12)
7- At the LORDs command a large fish swallowed
Jonah, and he was inside the fish for three days
and three nights. (Jonah 117) - In the same way that Jonah spent three days and
nights in the big fish, so will the Son of Man
spend three days and nights in the depths of the
earth. (Matthew 1240)
8Inclusive Reckoning of Time
- Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah (A.D. 100) "A day and
a night are an Onah a portion of time and the
portion of an Onah is as the whole of it." - Jesus answered them, Go and tell that fox 'I
am driving out demons and performing cures today
and tomorrow, and on the third day I shall finish
my work. (Luke 1332)
9- Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and
hold a fast on my behalf, and neither eat nor
drink for three days, night or day. I and my
maids will also fast as you do. Then I will go to
the King (Esther 416) - Esther went before the king "on the third day"
(Esther 51)
10Dagon
11- What better heralding, as a divinely sent
messenger to Nineveh, could Jonah have had, than
to be thrown up out of the mouth of a great fish,
in the presence of witnesses, and on the coast of
Phoenicia, where the fish-god was a favorite
object of worship? (H. Clay Trumbull, Jonah in
Nineveh. Journal of Biblical Literature. Vol. 2,
No. 1, 1892, p. 56)
12- Such an incident would have inevitably aroused
the mercurial nature of Oriental observers, so
that a multitude would be ready to follow the
seemingly new avatar of the fish-god, proclaiming
the story of his uprising from the sea, as he
went on his mission to the city where the
fish-god had its very centre of worship. (H.
Clay Trumbull, Jonah in Nineveh. Journal of
Biblical Literature, Vol. 2, No.1, 1892, p. 56)
13The Sign of Jonah
- Then some teachers of the Law and some Pharisees
spoke up. "Teacher," they said, "we want to see
you perform a miracle." "How evil and godless are
the people of this day!" Jesus exclaimed. "You
ask me for a miracle? No! The only miracle you
will be given is the miracle of the prophet
Jonah. In the same way that Jonah spent three
days and nights in the big fish, so will the Son
of Man spend three days and nights in the depths
of the earth. On the Judgment Day the people of
Nineveh will stand up and accuse you, because
they turned from their sins when they heard Jonah
preach and I tell you that there is something
here greater than Jonah! (Matthew 1238-41)
14- As the people crowded around Jesus, he went on to
say, "How evil are the people of this day! They
ask for a miracle, but none will be given them
except the miracle of Jonah. In the same way that
the prophet Jonah was a sign for the people of
Nineveh, so the Son of Man will be a sign for the
people of this day. (Luke 1129-30 GNB)
15Similarities between Jesus and Jonah
- Voluntarily entered the depths of the sea/grave
in order to save others - 3 days and 3 nights in the sea/grave
16Similarities between Jesus and Jonah
- From deep inside the fish Jonah prayed to the
LORD his God "In my distress, O LORD, I called
to you, and you answered me. From deep in the
world of the dead (the belly of Sheol, hell) I
cried for help, and you heard me. You threw me
down into the depths, to the very bottom of the
sea, where the waters were all around me, and all
your mighty waves rolled over me. I thought I had
been banished from your presence and would never
see your holy Temple again. (Jonah 21-4)
17Similarities between Jesus and Jonah
- Resurrection from the sea/grave led to a great
revival - Jonah In forty days, Nineveh will be destroyed
- Jesus During the forty days after His
crucifixion, He appeared to the apostles from
time to time, and He proved to them in many ways
that He was actually alive. And He talked to them
about the Kingdom of God. (Acts 13)
18- Then the LORD ordered the fish to spit Jonah up
on the beach, and it did. (Jonah 210) - Once again the LORD spoke to Jonah. He said, Go
to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to the
people the message I have given you. So Jonah
obeyed the LORD and went to Nineveh, a city so
large that it took three days to walk through it.
Jonah started through the city, and after walking
a whole day, he proclaimed, In forty days
Nineveh will be destroyed! The people of Nineveh
believed Gods message. So they decided that
everyone should fast, and all the people, from
the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth to
show that they had repented. (Jonah 31-4)
19- When the king of Nineveh heard about it, he got
up from his throne, took off his robe, put on
sackcloth, and sat down in ashes. He sent out a
proclamation to the people of Nineveh This is
an order from the king and his officials No one
is to eat anything all persons, cattle, and
sheep are forbidden to eat or drink. All persons
and animals must wear sackcloth. Everyone must
pray earnestly to God and must give up their
wicked behavior and their evil actions. Perhaps
God will change his mind perhaps he will stop
being angry, and we will not die! God saw what
they did he saw that they had given up their
wicked behavior. So he changed his mind and did
not punish them as he had said he would. (Jonah
36-10)
20God changes his mind?
- God is not like people, who lie He is not a
human who changes his mind. Whatever he promises,
he does He speaks, and it is done. (Numbers
2319 GN) - Israels majestic God does not lie or change
his mind. He is not a human being---he does not
change his mind. (1 Samuel 1529 GN) - Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and
forever (Hebrews 138 GN) - All generous giving and every perfect gift is
from above, coming down from the Father of
lights, with whom there is no variation or the
slightest hint of change. (James 117 NET) - For I am the LORD, I change not (Malachi 36
KJV)
21God changes his mind?
- Expressions to be taken literally?
- Adam and Eve where are you?
- The rainbow when the rainbow appears, I will
remember - Tower of Babel But the LORD came down to look
at the city and the tower the people were
building. (Genesis 115)
22- Then the LORD said to Abraham, "There are
terrible accusations against Sodom and Gomorrah,
and their sin is very great. I must go down to
find out whether or not the accusations which I
have heard are true." (Genesis 1820-21)
23- In Hinnom Valley they have built an altar called
Topheth, so that they can sacrifice their sons
and daughters in the fire. I did not command them
to do this---it did not even enter my mind.
(Jeremiah 731)
24- He changes his mind?
- Worship of the golden calf So the LORD changed
his mind and did not bring on his people the
disaster he had threatened (Exodus 3214)
25- The Lord replied, Did I not rescue you from the
Egyptians, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the
Philistines, the Sidonians, the Amalekites, and
the Maonites? When they oppressed you, you cried
out to me, and I rescued you. Yet you have
abandoned me and served other gods. So I will not
rescue you anymore. Go and cry out to the gods
you have chosen! Let them rescue you in your hour
of distress! - But the Israelites pleaded with the Lord and
said, We have sinned. Punish us as you see fit,
only rescue us today from our enemies. Then the
Israelites put aside their foreign gods and
served the Lord. And he was grieved by their
misery (Judges 106-16 NLT)
26God changes his mind?
- Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and
forever (Hebrews 138 GN) - All generous giving and every perfect gift is
from above, coming down from the Father of
lights, with whom there is no variation or the
slightest hint of change. (James 117 NET) - For I am the LORD, I change not (Malachi 36
KJV) - Gods character is a constant that never changes
27God changes his mind?
- Adam and Eve where are you?
- The rainbow
- Sodom and Gomorrah
- Worship of the golden calf So the LORD changed
his mind and did not bring on his people the
disaster he had threatened (Exodus 3214 GN) - Child sacrifice it did not even enter my mind
(Jeremiah 731 GN) - Jonah So he changed his mind
28- Jonah was furious. He lost his temper. He yelled
at God, God! I knew itwhen I was back home, I
knew this was going to happen! Thats why I ran
off to Tarshish! I knew you were sheer grace and
mercy, not easily angered, rich in love, and
ready at the drop of a hat to turn your plans of
punishment into a program of forgiveness! So,
God, if you wont kill them, kill me! Im better
off dead! (Jonah 41-3 The Message)
29- The LORD answered, What right do you have to be
angry? Jonah went out east of the city and sat
down. He made a shelter for himself and sat in
its shade, waiting to see what would happen to
Nineveh. Then the LORD God made a plant grow up
over Jonah to give him some shade, so that he
would be more comfortable. Jonah was extremely
pleased with the plant. But at dawn the next day,
at Gods command, a worm attacked the plant, and
it died. After the sun had risen, God sent a hot
east wind, and Jonah was about to faint from the
heat of the sun beating down on his head. So he
wished he were dead. I am better off dead than
alive, he said.
30- But God said to him, What right do you have to
be angry about the plant? Jonah replied, I have
every right to be angry---angry enough to die!
The LORD said to him, This plant grew up in one
night and disappeared the next you didnt do
anything for it and you didnt make it grow---yet
you feel sorry for it! How much more, then,
should I have pity on Nineveh, that great city.
After all, it has more than 120,000 innocent
children in it, as well as many animals! (Jonah
44-11 GN)
31- So, why can't I likewise change what I feel
about Nineveh from anger to pleasure, this big
city of more than a hundred and twenty thousand
childlike people who don't yet know right from
wrong, to say nothing of all the innocent
animals? (Jonah 411 The Message)
32Jonah
- Large city, 120,000 children, animals
- had it been destroyed
- Great happiness for Jonah
- Small shade plant
- It was destroyed
- Great anger and depression for Jonah
33Differences between Jonah and Jesus
- Jonah desired for the destruction of his enemies
- Jesus desired the redemption of his enemies
34- You are a kind and merciful God, and you are
very patient. You always show love, and you dont
like to punish anyone, not even foreigners.
(Jonah 4.2)
35- "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an
eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' But now I tell
you do not take revenge on someone who wrongs
you. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, let
him slap your left cheek too. And if someone
takes you to court to sue you for your shirt, let
him have your coat as well. And if one of the
occupation troops forces you to carry his pack
one mile, carry it two miles. When someone asks
you for something, give it to him when someone
wants to borrow something, lend it to him. "You
have heard that it was said, 'Love your friends,
hate your enemies.'
36- But now I tell you love your enemies and pray
for those who persecute you, so that you may
become the children of your Father in heaven. For
he makes his sun to shine on bad and good people
alike, and gives rain to those who do good and to
those who do evil. Why should God reward you if
you love only the people who love you? Even the
tax collectors do that! And if you speak only to
your friends, have you done anything out of the
ordinary? Even the pagans do that! You must be
perfect---just as your Father in heaven is
perfect. (Matthew 538-48)