The book of Jonah contains one of the more widely known stories of the Bible, and addresses topics such as obedience, mercy, repentance, regard for others, and the fear of the Lord.
There are many lessons that can be learned from Jonah, the people of Nineveh, and the experiences and events recorded through the book. This is the first of several blog posts taking readers through a study of the story of Jonah, and hopefully providing areas for thought and application as we dive into the word of the Lord!
Jonah was a prophet of the northern kingdom of Israel in the days of King Jeroboam II, as indicated in 2 Kings 14:25. He is introduced in Jonah 1:1 as the son of Amittai, who is only mentioned in these two verses. It is likely that the story of the book of Jonah takes place from 786-740 B.C. based on what is known about King Jeroboam II’s reign and other historical context clues.
Nineveh, the intended destination for Jonah, was the capital city of the Assyrian empire, which was thriving during this time, but was known as a wicked and cruel city, “full of lies and plunder” (Nahum 3:1). However, the Lord has a plan to reveal himself to these unrepentant people as a just and merciful God, which Jonah is to carry out in accordance with His call to him, to save this city and turn them to the Lord.
(vv1-3) The Lord calls to Jonah and tells him to “arise” and go to Nineveh. The Hebrew word for “arise” here is qûm, which indicates a definite action to stand, establish, and go forth with confidence (Strong’s Jonah instead runs the opposite way to Tarshish, often thought to be modern-day Spain, and disobeys the Lord. He is well aware that he cannot hide from the Lord, but seeks to hide away and not take upon him the calling that the Lord gave him. Jonah knows the Lord has knowledge of everything, and sees his inner thoughts, but lets his own self-will and fear take control of his life, rather than trust in the Lord. He even states in verse 3 that he was trying to get “away from the presence of the Lord,” something that is impossible, as Psalm 139:7-10 states.
(vv4-6) On the boat to Tarshish, the Lord sends a mighty storm, highlighting His power and authority over creation, which Jonah acknowledges a few verses later. Each of the mariners call out to their gods, yet none of their gods will answer. Meanwhile, Jonah is in a deep sleep inside the deepest part of the boat, further establishing the depths he has gone to hide himself away as a disobedient servant of God and an unwillingness to own up to what part he had to play in this destructive storm. He is drawn out of his sleep by the captain of the ship, who pleads for Jonah to pray to his own God.
The importance of the fear of the Lord is greatly emphasized in this part of chapter 1. While Jonah fears the Lord, he does not fear Him in a way that He wishes people to. Jonah’s actions express the fact that he is afraid of the Lord, rather than rooting his “fear” in reverence and pure awe of the glory of the Lord and His power and authority over all. The fear of the Lord is what we are expected to have, but God loves us and wishes us to have a personal relationship with Him as well, and we are to praise Him for His goodness, love, mercy, justice, and for many more aspects of His character.
(vv7-16) Those on the ship draw lots and soon discover that Jonah is the reason for the storm, and they are terrified to learn of what he has done. Here, Jonah declares the God whom he worships, stating, “I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” He praises and acknowledges God as the creator, yet does not repent of his disobedience. Instead, he has himself thrown into the sea to end the storm and save the crew on the ship, and then, the storm subsides and those aboard the ship begin to fear the Lord as well and offer sacrifices.
What is quite interesting here is that both Jonah and the sailors are described as fearing the Lord–but who is truly fearing the Lord in this chapter? The fear of the sailors is full of reverence and worship to God, while Jonah does not at all demonstrate his fear towards the Lord through his actions. He claims to fear the Lord in verse 10, but is stubborn and does not display this. This stubbornness of Jonah is a theme seen throughout the rest of the chapters of the book of Jonah, as well.
(v17) Through Jonah’s stubbornness, disobedience, and pride, the Lord is still near, watching as Jonah is hurled into the sea, and demonstrates to Jonah His steadfast love and kindness. He saves him from drowning in the waters by sending a great fish to swallow Jonah up, in which he stays for three days and three nights.
Some additional references include: blueletterbible.org; Then and Now Bible Maps; ESV Global Study Bible; Easton’s Bible Dictionary; Strong’s Concordance; The Outline of Biblical Usage.
Written by NBB Alumna: Emma Fernandez
