Jonah 1 - Going Down
- Alan Salwei
- 3 hours ago
- 4 min read
Don't push back against the LORD - He has a powerful sense of humor!
Jonah 1 (NASB95)
1 The word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai saying,
2 “Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and cry against it, for their wickedness has come up before Me.”
3 But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. So he went down to Joppa, found a ship which was going to Tarshish, paid the fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
4 The LORD hurled a great wind on the sea and there was a great storm on the sea so that the ship was about to break up.
5 Then the sailors became afraid and every man cried to his god, and they threw the cargo which was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone below into the hold of the ship, lain down and fallen sound asleep.
6 So the captain approached him and said, “How is it that you are sleeping? Get up, call on your god. Perhaps your god will be concerned about us so that we will not perish.”
7 Each man said to his mate, “Come, let us cast lots so we may learn on whose account this calamity has struck us.” So they cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.
8 Then they said to him, “Tell us, now! On whose account has this calamity struck us? What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?”
9 He said to them, “I am a Hebrew, and I fear the LORD God of heaven who made the sea and the dry land.”
10 Then the men became extremely frightened and they said to him, “How could you do this?” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.
11 So they said to him, “What should we do to you that the sea may become calm for us?”—for the sea was becoming increasingly stormy.
12 He said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea. Then the sea will become calm for you, for I know that on account of me this great storm has come upon you.”
13 However, the men rowed desperately to return to land but they could not, for the sea was becoming even stormier against them.
14 Then they called on the LORD and said, “We earnestly pray, O LORD, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life and do not put innocent blood on us; for You, O Lord, have done as You have pleased.”
15 So they picked up Jonah, threw him into the sea, and the sea stopped its raging.
16 Then the men feared the LORD greatly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows.
17 And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights.
Canons of Dordt
Point I, Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel
In order that people may be brought to faith, God mercifully sends proclaimers of this very joyful message to the people he wishes and at the time he wishes. By this ministry people are called to repentance and faith in Christ crucified.
For “how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without someone preaching? And how shall they preach unless they have been sent?” (Rom. 10:14-15).
Summary
Jonah was called to be a prophet of God, a person who delivers a message on behalf of God. The Book of Jonah opens with God instructing Jonah to go to the great city of Ninevah and speak out against their evil ways.
What we remember Jonah for was how he fled from God. Jonah was disobedient to God’s command to go to Ninevah, instead fleeing from the Lord’s presence by sailing on a ship headed towards Tarshish.
God had directed Jonah to go to Nineveh, which resided on the east side of the Tigris River. Instead, Jonah hopped on a boat going to Tarshish, which is believed to have been in southern Spain. Jonah was fleeing from God by going the opposite direction from where he was commanded to go.
In response to Jonah’s disobedience, God’s judgment was cast upon him. A great storm endangered the ship he was on the point that the crew feared for their lives. After casting lots, it was determined that Jonah was the cause of the storm. He was cast into the sea and the storm calmed.
Yet this was not the end of Jonah’s story, for amongst God’s judgment was also God’s grace. A great fish swallowed up Jonah, saving him from drowning in the sea and carrying him to the place of God’s choosing.
Dig Deeper
Jonah is remembered in children’s stories as a prophet who survived several days in the belly of a whale. The focus of the Book of Jonah is not the whale or great fish. Jonah is about a prophet who tried and failed to run away from God’s command.
What has God called you to do? In which ways are you, like Jonah, running away from God’s command?
Jonah ran in the opposite way that God commanded and God’s judgment fell upon him. An obstacle was placed in Jonah’s way in the form of a great big storm that threatened to sink the ship he was on.
When you flee from God, He might place obstacles in your way. Annoying as they may be, these obstacles might be a warning sign. Jonah needed to be cast into the sea and swallowed by a great fish for him to finally start heading towards Ninevah.
What obstacles are in your way? How is God currently trying to get your attention?
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who sovereignly rules all things - even the great fish;
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will know and follow God's will rather than push against it;
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
