Jonah - By Laura

I feel like I got gypped out of the REAL story of Jonah during my years of attending Sunday School as a child.  I knew all about the whale and the fact that Jonah decided not to obey God, which was the move that landed him in the belly of said whale.  But there are a few plot points I believe are worth noting, that didn't make it onto the flannel board.

1. Jonah didn't run from God simply because he didn't want to serve God or "do mission work." He didn't disobey because he wanted to stay home. No, Jonah heads off to Tarshish, wherever that is, because, as he says, "I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity."  Jonah knows God.

2. Just because Jonah knows God, his character, and what he's likely to do in a given situation, doesn't mean Jonah likes it!  He has a reason to dislike the Assyrian's, whose capital city is Ninevah.  The Assyrians violently destroyed the Kingdom of Israel in 720 BC and deported many of it's people.  Jonah's life is dated around the 8th century BC, just in time to put him in the middle of that mess.  He's bitter, he's scarred, and he's holding out for godly retribution.

3. Jonah is not a liar; he tells the men on the ship exactly where he's going and why.  He's not trying to hide anything.  He knows God has tabs on him.  He's not spineless either.  He's dead asleep in the hold of a ship in the middle of a raging storm.  And, he seems fine with being tossed overboard in order to save the ship.  However, getting swallowed by a whale seems to be too much for him.

4. Jonah prays.  He believes in God and knows Him intimately.  He is learning lessons about grace.

5. God screws around with Jonah, provoking his already angry, fed-up heart with His little vine stunt.  I would be pissed off too.  Sometimes, obeying God looks like trekking through the desert to preach good news to your worst enemies...and God has mercy on whom he will have mercy.  Fortunately, God seems to have mercy on Jonah, taking time to explain His motives and give Jonah a little bit of perspective.  "Ninevah has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well.  Should I not be concerned about that great city?" (Jonah 4:11)
6. Jonah gets used as an example by Jesus, or rather, the faith of the Assyrians of Ninevah is contrasted with the unbelief of the Israelites of Jesus' day.  Read Matthew 12: 38-45 for some hard words Jesus spoke to hard hearts.  


Having taken a closer look at the story of Jonah, I realize that I'm a fan.  He has guts and he knows God.  Apparently, agreeing with God about all the fine print isn't a prerequisite to being used by Him to fulfill his purposes...thanks be to God for that!!!