Jonah 4

The Explanation

Jonah has just done something huge. He walked through Nineveh, a giant city full of Israel's enemies, and shouted that God would destroy the city in forty days. And then something incredible happens: the people believe God. From the king down to the poorest person, they stop doing evil. God sees it and does not destroy the city.

You would expect Jonah to throw a party. His preaching worked! But chapter 4 opens with a shock: "It displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry." Jonah is furious. And then he prays a strange prayer. He says to God, in effect: "See, this is exactly why I ran away to Tarshish in the first place. I knew You would do this. I knew You are a gracious God, merciful, slow to anger, abundant in loving kindness, and one who relents from doing harm." Jonah quotes something Israel has known about God for a long time. And he hates that it is true for Nineveh too. He would rather die than live in a world where God forgives his enemies.

Jonah walks out of the city and builds himself a little shelter. He sits down and waits, maybe hoping God will still destroy Nineveh. Then God makes a plant grow up over him, big leafy shade in the hot sun. Jonah is thrilled about the plant. But the next morning God sends a worm that eats the plant, and a scorching east wind, and the sun beats down on Jonah's head. Again he says he wants to die.

Then God asks a question, and it is the question the whole book has been building toward. "You have been concerned for the vine, for which you have not labored, neither made it grow, which came up in a night, and perished in a night. Shouldn't I be concerned for Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred twenty thousand persons who can't discern between their right hand and their left hand, and also many animals?"

And there the book ends. With a question. God does not force Jonah to answer.

What Does This Mean?

The book of Jonah is not really about a big fish. It is about a big God and a small heart. Jonah knows all the right things about God, that He is merciful and patient, but he does not want God to be that way toward people he hates. Jonah cries over a dead plant but not over a whole city.

God is teaching Jonah, and us, that His love is wider than we are comfortable with. God cares about Nineveh. He counts the people. He even mentions the animals. Nobody is outside His attention.

The Common Thread

Jonah spent three days in the belly of a fish and then came out to preach to people who deserved judgment. Jesus said that Jonah was a sign pointing to Him (Matthew 12). Jesus also spent three days in the darkness of death, and then rose again, and after that His message went out to the whole world, including people who once were enemies of God.

The difference is this: Jonah went to Nineveh angry. Jesus went to the cross willingly. Jonah wanted his enemies destroyed. Jesus prayed for His enemies to be forgiven. Jonah's story ends with a question God asks him. Jesus is God's answer.

For You

Is there someone you secretly hope God will not bless? A kid at school who is mean to you, a family member who hurt you, a whole group of people you have decided are "the bad ones"? Jonah's story is uncomfortable because most of us have a Nineveh somewhere.

You do not have to pretend you feel warm feelings about people who wronged you. Jonah did not pretend either, and God still talked with him. But you can ask God to make your heart bigger. You can ask Him to help you see people the way He sees them: not as enemies to defeat, but as people who do not know their right hand from their left.

Talk About It

Why do you think the book of Jonah ends with a question instead of an answer? What would you say to God if you were Jonah?

Who might be in your "Nineveh"? What would it look like to pray for them?

Praying Together

Father, thank You that You are merciful, slow to anger, and full of loving kindness. Thank You that Your love reaches further than we expect. Make our hearts bigger. Help us to see people the way You see them. And when we are like Jonah, keep talking to us anyway. In Jesus' name, amen.