Rebellious Jonah

Now the Word of the LORD came. Notice that the Almighty God spoke to a creature, to a man, to a fallen sinner. The Holy One did not want to be silent but was seeking communication although He could have remained silent. However, God spoke, and He still speaks. His Word comes to us. It came unto Jonah; the word had an address. It was meant for this man only; it was spoken at a certain time and place. Let us find and observe some details.

Jonah was a child of God, and he had previously been called to be a prophet of the Lord. It was not the first time that the Lord had spoken unto him. We know that Jonah also had prophesied very positive and welcome prophecies during the time of Jeroboam (2 Kings 14:25).

The LORD spoke again. (Note that LORD is in four capital letters which points to God’s almighty power.) All of us agree, the Lord spoke in all seriousness, not casually, not in a false way, but genuinely and uprightly. The Lord meant what He said, for the Lord is Truth Himself; with Him there is no shadow of turning. It is possible that we may not trust what people say, but we should trust the Lord’s words; there is no hidden agenda with Him, no small print.

Arise, go to Nineveh. Jonah received another call, not a call from a congregation, not a call from men, but a call from GOD, an order to stand up, to get ready, to prepare and immediately go. Jonah is supposed to depart from Israel, to travel abroad and to become a kind of temporary missionary. Nineveh is the place to which he is called. Jonah is required to travel northeast to what today is known as Iraq, to the hub of the world, to the center of civilization of the Eastern world. There was no city like it. Nineveh was huge, the largest, the most influential, the richest, the most powerful city, the capital of Assyria. Nineveh! Why did the Lord send Jonah to this wicked place?

Nineveh was a most worldly city, the Hollywood of the olden days, even more than Babylon. People lived for fun, to play, to waste their time, to live for themselves; they did what they loved to do, and the sky was the limit. Let us not underestimate the technology, the sophistication of their culture. God would have done no injustice by leaving the inhabitants to perish and delivering them to condemnation on account of their sins (Canons of Dort I,1). Jonah needed to go to that great city, a great city, not a rural area. We read in chapter 3 verse 3 that Nineveh was even an exceeding great city, and it took three days to walk around it. I understand that this meant the greater Nineveh, as we speak about a city when we say the greater metropolitan area.

Cry against it, for their wickedness is come before Me, said the Lord. The Almighty One, the all-knowing One had noticed, of course, for the Lord sees all things: “For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and He pondereth all his goings” (Proverbs 5:21); and, “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good” (Proverbs 15:3).

Do we still believe that; do we even want to realize it? I would say, remind yourself, remind your children, that all wickedness comes before God. Let us be afraid of sin and be aware that no sin is a secret sin. Wherever we go, the Lord is present. In Nineveh sin had been building up. The amount of sin was increasing. Sinning did not stop; Nineveh continued day in and day out provoking God, knowingly or unknowingly.

“Cry against her, Jonah; confront her with her wickedness; let her know that I have seen it and that the measure is full. It is enough. Cry against her! Jonah, call against her! For I am against her, and have much against her. I am not in favour of her.” Let us think about that word against, how serious and solemn it is; however, it is a blessing if we may hear it. Jonah had to preach that something was wrong and that the people had sinned against the LORD. Although they did not know God and they had their own idols, they had grieved their Creator and provoked Him to anger. The Holy One must come against the city, against young and old. God is about to deal with the city according to their sins.

Oh, God has made us perfect; He has created us in His image and must have His image restored; God desires to have it reflected in our lives. God is infinitely just and has the full right to demand complete dedication, full obedience. He deserves perfection and must blame us for every minute we lose focus. Be ye perfect, even as I am perfect. We consider ourselves morally good; however, in God’s eyes we are vile, by nature, and this must be revealed to us.

Against! What a serious word. Is the Lord still against us, does His wrath abide on us? Or is God for us and nothing can be against us? It is the one or the other. Perhaps you do not feel this truth, yet it is true. God against us! Maybe you feel it in your very heart, for it is so necessary that we are found in Christ Jesus.

The prophet has been called to be blunt and open, not to simply speak of God’s love and how wonderful grace is. As you know, many preachers today begin differently and smooth over sin. They do not speak so much of God’s anger. “Cry against her.” That is how mission work starts. God begins at the very beginning.

Having said this, the Lord had something in mind for Nineveh. The Lord could have ignored and simply overturned Nineveh, but the very fact that the Lord sent one of His prophets opened a door, created hope, even when He cried out against her. Jonah knew that in his heart. See chapter 4:2: “O LORD, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that Thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest Thee of the evil.” Jonah knew it. Although the message was not what the people wanted to hear, it was what they needed to hear.

You may have the feeling that God is against you, but always keep in mind that the Lord has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. The Lord is still gracious, merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness. “Cry against her.” The Lord commanded Jonah to preach.

Although you are not called to Nineveh, you have a different calling, as I had in coming to Chilliwack. Consider, though, your different individual callings. We can sometimes be confused by them. Some are as clear as Jonah’s, as sincere and serious. When called to follow, choose the Lord’s ways, for example, in relation to marriage. The Lord’s Word also comes individually and unfeignedly in the gospel.

Oh, what a wonder, for now the word of the Lord comes to you. Consider for yourself Proverbs 8:1-4: “Doth not wisdom cry? and understanding put forth her voice? She standeth in the top of high places, by the way in the places of the paths. She crieth at the gates, at the entry of the city, at the coming in at the doors. Unto you, O men, I call; and my voice is to the sons of man.” Wisdom calls us.

The sincere genuine calling comes to all hearers of the Word, as well meant as Jonah’s call. Do you not agree? Have you ever come to the realization that the Lord calls you, yet you did not hear? Has it ever become a wonder that the Lord even considers speaking to us? For example, Noah was called to build an ark, Abraham was called to sacrifice his son, and Solomon was called to build a temple. The Lord also calls us in the law and the gospel. Do we hear His voice? Today, harden not your heart.

“But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.” Jonah fled. The emphasis is on speed. Jonah means dove, but he was rebellious and left; he hurried west. He fled. Intentionally, purposely he fled from God’s presence, which is repeated in verse 3.

Now, of course, Jonah knew that he could never hide from the Lord (Psalm 139:7-10). The point is that Jonah disliked his calling and flatly refused to travel to that great city. He did not argue with the Lord but sped in the opposite direction. He traveled to Joppa, went to the harbour, and decided to go to Spain, to the end of the world—not to Alexandria, not to Rome, not to Athens, not to Tarsus, but to Tarshish. The city then known as Tartessos does not exist anymore. Jonah was leaving God’s country, God’s people, and God’s house. He rebelled against his Maker. Instead of longing for God’s presence and favour, he decided against the Lord’s will. Oh, what a serious choice. Of course, Jonah did not want to go to Tarshish for just a few weeks. He was going indefinitely; maybe he would immigrate and see what type of job he could get. Jonah was moving to a place where there was no faith, no truth, and no true worshipping.

Why did Jonah flee? It does not matter because there are no excuses, but you might be curious. Was it dangerous to publicly cry against the people of Nineveh? That is probably true, and Jonah may have feared for his life. Faith was not in exercise as we read in Romans 14:8, “For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.”

Why did he refuse to go? Possibly because he was all by himself or because of the language barrier, the climate, the iences. Nineveh was a worldly culture, or other inconveniences. Nineveh was a worldly city where he would never feel at home. However, that was true for Tarshish as well.

The main reason that Jonah refused to go is that he favoured his own people. He was afraid that the Jews would not be number one anymore. Jonah was convinced that Nineveh would compete with Israel, and he did not like that at all. This servant of God was not very mission minded, not very generous, and he looked down on the people of Nineveh just as today some are prejudiced against Native Americans, Africans, Chinese, drug addicts, and those with sexual lifestyles which are not according to God’s Word. We have no right to feel superior or to shun them.

Who does Jonah think he is, who do you think you are? Spoiled Jonah, spoiled people, unwilling to sacrifice. Jonah did not understand that people from Nineveh could repent and become his best friends, so he pays the fare to leave; even though it could cost him a fortune, money will not deter him. Jonah goes down to his cabin and falls asleep. Oh, yes, he can sleep, no problem at all. No, he does not turn from one side to the other. His conscience does not keep him awake, and he is fine. Is Jonah hardening his heart?

What do we learn from this? How does this relate to today? It is still possible to be a Jonah. I think of a minister, missionary, or evangelist who refuses to sacrifice, who would rather pay to go somewhere else. I think of someone who leaves the congregation for whatever reason. He or she has had enough of it. I think of someone who walks away from his problems by immigrating to Canada, Australia, South Africa—someone who is trying to escape, having it his own way—someone who is trying to flee the truth, parting from parents because the truth annoyed him or her. Even God’s children can become deserters. Although Jonah was a child of God, yet we read, “But Jonah....”

I think of all of us and quote the following: “Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out My hand, and no man regarded” (Proverbs 1:2); “And now, because ye have done all these works, saith the LORD, and I spake unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not” (Jeremiah 7:13); “But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear” (Zechariah 7:11); “He came unto His own, and His own received Him not” (John 1:11).

Jonah reminds me of Adam who ate from the forbidden tree. Although a child of God and a truly called prophet of the Lord, he was a fool, a beloved fool. Jonah was rude, contending with God, and who are we? Are we obedient children or prodigal sons and daughters traveling to a far country, to a place where the Lord has not called us?

Remember those who were called to the great supper and all the excuses they made. Are we still proud of being sound in doctrine, not deceiving ourselves, viewing ourselves as being more willing than God? Luke 11:32 reads, “The men of Nineve shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.”

Compare Jonah’s rebellion to Christ’s obedience

This entire world is a Nineveh, holding no attraction to the Son of God. He knew what the future would bring Him, yet the anointed One, God’s servant, was most willing to sacrifice, to suffer, to die, and even to be crucified. He was willing to be sacrificed; He did not flee from God’s presence, yet He was banned from it and forsaken. He has paid the price to bring Jonahs back. More than Jonah is here. Compare that foolish, sleeping Jonah with the suffering and bleeding Saviour. Oh, listen to these words: “Wherefore He saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light” (Ephesians 5:14). And you dear children of the Lord, we read in Mark 14:37, “And He cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour?”

The word also comes to you—repent ye. The Lord still finds sinners and turns them unto Him, and also for God’s people He can do wondrous things. May the Lord give you grace to follow Him. p

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