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.
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.”
(ESV)
STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?
- What is the writer saying?
- How do I apply this to my life?
God commanded Jonah to go to the city of Nineveh and preach against it. Nineveh was the capital city of Assyria. God had sent both Amos and Hosea to prophesy against Israel because of their disobedience and stubbornness. Hosea specifically named Assyria as the Gentile nation that would bring God’s judgement (Hos 11:5). This might explain why Jonah’s response was not immediate obedience but rather to flee. Instead of going to Nineveh, Jonah headed in the opposite direction. He headed down to Joppa and boarded a ship bound for Tarshish. God commanded Jonah to go to Nineveh to preach against them because of their persistent evil.
But this book is not really about Jonah, it is primarily about God. God commanded Jonah to go to Nineveh and God was not going to let him get away with shirking his responsibility. God would control events to bring about His will. He sent a storm against the boat that was so severe that the ship threatened to break up. The sailors all cried to their gods and threw all the cargo overboard in a desperate attempt to save the ship. But Jonah was so complacent that he went below deck and fell asleep. The captain went down and called on Jonah to call out with them to his god hoping that perhaps his god would hear and relent.
It seems crazy that a prophet could not only ignore God but do exactly the opposite of what God commanded him to do. Yet in our own lives, we can do the same thing. There are things in Scripture that God has told us to do and we blatantly ignore them or disregard them because they don’t suit us or how we want to live. When God used a storm to get Jonah’s attention, he fell asleep and it took a Gentile to call him to prayer. Is there something God is trying to get your attention about? What is it going to take for you to come to Him in prayer?
Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan
Cain and Abel: Genesis 4