STUDIES IN THE BOOK OF JONAH – part 9

                                         9/7/03

 

Chapter 3, verses 1-2- now for a second time Jonah is sent to the city of Nineveh.  This commission remains unchanged from the first (1:2) and exhibits God’s unchanging purpose with Nineveh.  God desires that Nineveh be warned of His impending judgment and such a warning is consistent with God’s principle of mercy preceding judgment.

  Further, it has already been observed that book of Jonah is about Jonah.  And God is not finished with him.  So, Jonah is again appointed to take this message to Nineveh.   Jonah illustrates the truth of Matt. 21:28-31. He is to “preach” =qara- meaning- to encounter, cry- see 1:2 “cry”.  Jesus would liken this form of evangelism with sowing of seed in Luke 8:4-15.  In this manner, God’s truth is made known to the public with a variety of individual responses.

  Nineveh is called a “great” city –its size was about 60 miles in circumference

with more than 600,000 residents. 

 

Chapter 3, verse 3- “Jonah arose…went…according to the word of the LORD”.

Here we witness Jonah’s obedience in contrast with 1:3.  He is now a submissive

and obedient servant of God acting in compliance with divine directives.

  The writer comments that Nineveh is a “exceeding great city”—some footnotes

have “a city great for God”—not indicating their moral hunger for righteousness, but their importance to the Lord.  One of the lessons of this book is that Gentiles, though not part of the covenant family of Israel, are nevertheless a

people of value to the Lord.  This is a counter-balance to Israel’s sense of superiority over the Gentiles (Romans 2:17-20).

    “three days’ journey” – is not entirely clear, but seems to suggest that the city was of sufficient size & population as to require 3 days to explore.   This would include the villages surrounding the city itself.

 

Chapter 3, verse 4- Jonah began to enter the city preaching the impending judgment of God.  There can be little doubt that Jonah has by now physically

and emotionally recovered from the chastening by the Lord in the matter of

the great fish.  His life is one that is “back from the dead” and would move him to a passionate cry of the truth of God.  Nothing is as effective as a man or woman motivated by God’s mercy to proclaim God’s truth.  It is convincing or convicting to those who hear!

  “Yet 40 days and Nineveh shall be overthrown”- is the basic message of warning.  However, in the fashion of the other prophets in the OT, it is likely that Jonah also declared the Justice of God and the injustice of man that deserved divine wrath.  Actually, little in the Major or Minor prophets emphasizes the choice of heaven or hell;  rather it focuses on God’s integrity and man’s failure

toward God and his fellow man.

 

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  We must distinguish between God’s wrath upon man with respect to temporal

issues and with respect to eternal issues. 

 

Temporal issues and judgment:

    See Micah 6:8  which is spoken to Israel and deals with God’s requirement of man with respect to his treatment of other humans.  This requirement supercedes even sacrificial worship as in Micah 6:6, 7.  For Gentiles this requirement is unique in the treatment of Israel- see Obadiah 10-15.  As a result of disobedience, God’s wrath will be experienced in this life- see Romans 1:18-32.  Sodom & Gomorrah illustrate this principle.  The correct response to avoid temporal judgment is repentance; a change of mind leading to a change of behavior.

    The passage in II Chron.7:14, which is often quoted concerning national repentance, refers to temporal judgment.

 

Eternal issues and judgment:

  This issue is individual and personal , rather than collective as often is the case in temporal wrath.  The requirement here is personal faith in the

true God- Daniel 4:34- Nebuchadnezzar.  This is the basis of a secure relationship with God in either testament- Romans 4:1-5- Abraham believes God and it is accounted for righteousness.  The content of the message in Old Test.

is different than that of the New Test. but the object of faith is the same; that is,

the Lord.  Faith (with elements of submission & trust) is a non-meritorious and positive response to God’s revelation (truth)- see Prov. 1:24, 29, 30.  God gives eternal life to those who have this “faith”- Romans 2:7.  Those without faith experience God’s eternal judgment- Romans 2:8-9.

 

  These issues of temporal and eternal wrath by God have often been unnecessarily mixed with a result of confusion and misapplication of scripture.

Temporal wrath brings suffering, grief and physical death.  Eternal wrath

brings separation from God in the Lake of Fire with horrible suffering to the human soul.  Both believers and unbelievers may experience temporal wrath, but only unbelievers experience eternal wrath.