Jonah: Man on the Run

Walls of almost 8 miles long surrounded the inner city. The rest of the city occupied an area with a 60 mile circumference, with a population of around 600,000.

Joppa was an ancient Israeli port city. At this time, it was the most important port on Israel’s coast.

Tarshish: The exact location is unknown, but it was probably located on the southern coast of Spain…the exact opposite direction of Ninevah.

vv. 1-2:

The call:

The Lord spoke to Jonah, and gave him a very clear mission.

He informed Jonah of the wickedness of Ninevah, and told Jonah to go there and speak out against it.

While other prophets prophesied against gentile nations, this is the only example of a prophet being sent into a foreign nation to deliver God’s message to them.

in the 8th century BC, Ninevah had a reputation for wickedness and cruelty. It was not a nice place

The people worshipped the fish goddess Nanshe, and the half man - half fish god Dagon.

However, there is even more to this story.

We need to understand that Jonah really did not like these people. Ninevah was the capital of Assyria, and Assyria was Israel’s mortal enemy. They were a real thorn in Israel’s side.

To say there was a lot of bad blood between the two is putting it mildly.

So, with this in mind, I’m quite sure Jonah had no problem pointing out all the faults of the people of Ninevah, but he certainly didn’t want to give them any opportunity to repent.

v. 3:

Now Jonah wasn’t really any different than us. Upon hearing God’s call, he did what most of us would do…he ran!

He received his draft notice and he ran.

Seriously, we do that all the time.

It’s one thing when we are called to do something that we want to do, something we enjoy and are comfortable with. It’s quite another thing when we are called to a task that we aren’t comfortable with, especially one that disgusts us. When that happens, we tend to resist...even run.

As much as we’d like to say we wouldn’t do that, if we are honest with ourselves, we do.

How often do you feel a leading to talk to someone about Christ, but you pass them by instead?

Maybe it’s because they look sketchy. Maybe they’re dirty, smelly or homeless. Maybe it’s someone you know, but you just don’t like them. For whatever reason, you pass them by.

When we do this, we are saying that our own personal preferences and desires are worth more then that person’s soul.

Jonah hated these people so much, that he wanted to see them rot in hell. He didn’t think them worthy of receiving God’s word.

v. 4:

Running from God never works, he will always make you miserable. What’s worse, is that those around you will often end up suffering as well.

In this case, an entire ship full of people were in danger because of Jonah’s disobedience.

The Lord was sending this storm, and as much as Jonah wanted to hide from Him, God was making it clear that there was nowhere that Jonah could flee from His presence.

You cannot run from God

Psalm 33:13

Psalm 33:13 NKJV

The Lord looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men.

Psalm 139:7-10

Psalm 139:7–10 NKJV

Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me.

v. 5:

The sailors were understandably terrified. They began to pray to their gods, which of course, didn’t work.

Jonah; however, was asleep. The pagan sailors were praying, while Jonah was asleep.

The nature of the storm was such that even these pagan sailors knew it was a judgement from God, but Jonah was fast asleep, not even recognizing God’s presence.

Sometimes, we can get so outside of God’s will, that we no longer recognize His presence.

v. 6:

It’s rather ironic that a pagan had to tell God’s prophet to pray.

If Jonah did indeed pray, it had no effect. Jonah was actively involved in sin and unrepentant, so his prayer would not be heard.

God does not hear the unrepentant

Psalm 66:18

Psalm 66:18 NKJV

If I regard iniquity in my heart, The Lord will not hear.

This loss of the power of prayer is a good indication that we are outside of God’s will.

vv. 7-8:

The casting of lots was was very very common. In this case the casting of lots worked, because God intervened to let Jonah know he couldn’t run away.

Until the lot fell on Jonah, he had no intention of saying a word.

v. 9:

At the very least, Jonah did reveal the true God to the sailors, and this worked to plant a seed.

He rightfully revealed God as the creator, which is very often a good starting point.

v. 10:

Jonah had become a curse rather than a blessing.

God called the Israelites to be a blessing to all nations.

Genesis 12:1-3

Sadly, whenever the Jews strayed for God, they brought a curse rather then blessing.

Two times Abraham brought trouble to others by lying:

Straying from God brings trouble rather than blessing

Genesis 12:10-20

Genesis 20:1-18

Your disobedience never affects just yourself.

In the end, when you run from God, you will always sink.

v. 11:

Things weren’t getting any better. Jonah had not confessed his sins and had not repented. Therefore, God was still after him, and tings would continue to intensify until Jonah relented.

v. 12:

Notice Jonah’s response. His hatred if the Ninevites was so strong that he was still unwilling to go to them. Instead, he chose to die.

v. 13:

It’s very interesting that the Pagan sailors showed more concern and compassion for Jonah then Jonah showed for the people of Ninevah.

They were unwilling to send Jonah to his death, and tried with all of their strength to prevent it.

But however strong they might have been, they were not stronger then God. There was simply no way to prevail against Him.

v. 14:

The sailors, realizing the futility of their efforts, began to pray again. Only this time it was different...They were praying to the true God!

v. 15:

Whether or not these men were truly converted, I can’t say for sure. But it appears they may have been.

However, isn’t it telling that as soon as the disobedient person was cast from their midst, peace resumed.

Charles Spurgeon said that God never allows His children to sin successfully, and Jonah can certainly testify to that.

God will chasten and correct His children

Hebrews 12:6

Hebrews 12:6 NKJV

For whom the Lord loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives.”

v.16:

The ship’s crew began to worship God because they saw that the storm had stopped. God is able to use even our mistakes to help others come to know him.

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