Character of god in the book of jonah

Jonah, gods objectionable mercy, and the way of wisdom. Book of jonah overview insight for living ministries. The story, about a prophet named jonah, was written to criticize and rebuke the narrow spirit of nationalism that jonah observed among so many of the jewish people. An overview of the book of jonah leads one to determine two prominent sections, namely, jonahs abortive voyage to tarshish jon 12 and jonahs journey to nineveh. Although it is a great thing to see yourself through jonahs eyes, we must never forget that jonahs struggles are not the point of the book. After having dealt with the entire human race for 2,000 years, god established a new program with abraham, known as the abrahamic covenant. Jonah is a book which shows the reader how god is deeply. Three characteristics of jonah sermon by tom shepard. This little book therefore contains very practical lessons for every reader. As the reader focuses in on gods attributes in the book of jonah, the short narrative is seen for what it truly is. The book of jonah, written primarily in the third person, does not explicitly name the prophet as the author of his own account, but we have no reason to doubt either the inspiration or the historical veracity of the book.

Jonah with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. Jonah is the central character in the book of jonah, in which god commands him to go to the city of nineveh to prophesy against it for their great wickedness is come up before me, but jonah instead attempts to flee from the presence of the lord by going to jaffa and sailing to tarshish. Other than his book and those opening lines, we do not know that much about the man. The book of jonah is a book of the neviim prophets in the hebrew bible. Jonah is not the main character of the book of jonah. No word is said of his state of mind, his sense of sin, his repentance, his return to the attitude of submission and prompt obedience to the divine. The book is named after its principal character, whose name means dove. But maybe the point is precisely that this is a term that does not have the resonances of association with the character of god that mark the other terms. Sep 05, 2014 jonah would know that if nineveh repented, the lord would not destroy it, and it would remain a threat to israel. Intro to jonah biblica the international bible society. Biblical jonah visits nineveh the evil city ancient pages.

Nov 09, 2018 throughout its over 3,000 year history, nineveh was not known to be kind and gentle. God had sent the wind and waves jonah slept through it. The first character mentioned, in fact, is god himself. Although often classified with the prophets, the book of jonah is not a prophetic book. He was disobedient and actually attempted the foolhardy escapade of running away from god 1. Jonahs great mission to nineveh has revealed him to us. When god called jonah to go and warn the violent and godless ninevites of their impending doom, all his pride in being a hebrewand therefore uniquely favored by the almighty so he thought, no doubt along with many others of his nationrose up in rebellion. Three characteristics of jonah sermon by tom shepard, jonah 1. What jonah can teach us about gods sovereignty in missions most everyone is familiar with the book of jonah. From what little we know about the life of jonah in the short book that carries his name, all indications are that he fell short in his. Navigating a godcentered life kindle edition by smith, colin s download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. While jonah eventually did what he was asked to do, the book closes with showing jonah as a bitter man. One of the most remarkable facts about the book of jonah is, that while he himself is so prominent in it, yet there is not a word from beginning to end of comment upon his character and conduct. While in the belly of the big fish whale, jonah prayed to god for help, repented, and praised god.

Jonahs story is told in the short just 48 verses but powerful book of jonah. Whereas if they did not repent, then the lord would destroy them, and they would no longer be a danger to israel. The story of a fish swallowing a man and the man living sounds impossible, and since most liberal scholars deny the possibility of the supernatural, they reject the book of jonah as anything but a fairy tale. Now the word of the lord came to jonah the son of amittai, saying. Certainly, god desired jonah to proclaim a message to nineveh in the hopes that they would turn from their wicked ways.

God does not desire that any should perish, but that all should come to. Ask almost any sunday school student and theyll tell you jonah is about a big fish, or a worm, or a reluctant missionary, or the bad people of nineveh. The supposed legendary character of some of the events e. Jonah is the central character in the book of jonah, in which god commands him to go to the city of nineveh to prophesy against it for their great wickedness is come up before me, but jonah instead attempts to flee from the presence of the lord by going to jaffa sometimes transliterated as joppa or joppe, and sailing to tarshish. Thus, maybe jonahs preaching after god gave him the second chance may have softened the blow to the israelites who were taken into captivity by the assyrians who were known for their barbaric behavior. May 24, 20 recently i had the opportunity to teach on jonah and nahum, two minor prophets with powerful messages about gods character. Even the truth of god pleases the human heart often only as long as the own importance can be stressed by it.

The book of jonah communicates a beautiful aspect of gods character. A major literary debut, an epic tale of love, failure, and unexpected faith set in new york, amsterdam, and las vegas. It merely begins with an instruction from god to go to nineveh and prophesy to its inhabitants. The next day he sent in a worm which destroyed the gourd leaving jonah open to the elements. While the book is named after the israelite prophet jonah, it is god who is proven to be the central character of the text. What does jonah teach us about the character of god.

The book of jonah is a remarkable story perhaps best known for the stubbornness of a prophet, the great fish that swallows and then regurgitates jonah, the conversion of the whole city of nineveh, and the rapid growth and death of a gourd. Secondly, although the book repeatedly portrays gods sovereignty over sea, fish, plant, worm, wind, a sovereignty that can engender responsiveness among sailors and ninevites and accommodate it accordingly, there is no exercise of this sovereignty upon jonah in such a way as to compel his response. Listen to chuck swindoll s overview of jonah in his audio message from the classic series gods masterwork. To calm a storm, the crew throws jonah into the sea, where he is swallowed by a great fish god. When we left jonah at the end of chapter three he had just witnessed what could well be the greatest revival recorded in the bible. Jonah is the story of a prophet who runs away from gods instruction. He would also know that if he disobeyed the commands of the lord, he would bring down the wrath of god on himself. Despite brevity, it is a powerful story of gods grace to gentiles and a reflective study into gods character and mercy.

Here are some of the lords attributes there is not space for all of them that this fascinating book reveals. Jonah is the central character in the book of jonah, in which god commands him to. When jonah adds that to his list of complaints the lord uses it as a teaching moment. T he book of jonah is an old testament story which tells about how the prophet jonah refused to follow the lord. During his journey, jonah finds the integrity, honesty, and courage necessary to obediently follow god s direction.

His disobedience leads to several challenges, including being swallowed by a whale. It tells of a hebrew prophet named jonah son of amittai who is sent by god to. Jonah, ruth, and esther cliffsnotes study guides book. As such, it can be divided into four sections, roughly divided by each chapter. Key themes the primary theme in jonah is that gods compassion is boundless, not limited just to us but also.

It concerns a disobedient prophet who rejected his divine commission, was cast overboard in a storm and swallowed by a great fish, rescued in a marvelous manner, and returned to his starting point. Jun 02, 2017 what does jonah teach us about the character of god. The depth of gods character is a central issue to the story of jonah, the narrative ending on the question should i god not have compassion. What jonah can teach us about gods sovereignty in missions. The lord provided a gourd or plant that protected jonah. The weaknesses, the secrete of character, as well as the possibilities of a man are discovered in lifes crises. The modernday jonah at the center of joshua max feldmans brilliantly conceived retelling of the book of jonah is a young manhattan lawyer named jonah jacobstein. Main characters the main characters of the book of jonah are god, jonah, the sailors, the great fish, and the peopleking of nineveh.

Instead the book candidly portrays jonahs character, including his abundant weaknesses. When we think of jonah, the first thing that comes to most peoples minds is jonah and the whale. Instead the book candidly portrays jonah s character, including his abundant weaknesses. The book of jonah gives no indication of his prophetic activity in the land of israel. What lesson did god want to teach jonah in the story of. Although the prophets brief declaration to nineveh was one of judgment, nonetheless, jonah was aware of the fact that jehovah is a gracious god, and merciful.

With this as a base, several writers see in jonah an emphasis upon the universal character of gods love. This inquisitive conclusion throws out any thought of gods character as being presented in a flat way. Due to jonah shirking his divine mission, god sends. This thesis examines the god characters claim to benevolence in those two passages and claims that, based upon the literary data of those primary texts within the broader context of the hebrew bible, the actions and words of the god character are demonstrably benevolent toward the other characters present. Divine incongruities in the book of jonah in god in the fray see n. Jan 02, 2020 jonahs story is told in the short just 48 verses but powerful book of jonah. God sent a big fish, some call it a whale, to swallow jonah and to save him from drowning. Although the book of jonah is not about world missions, the theme of gods mission to the world is definitely present in the book. In the book of jonah, god sends an israelite prophet to a sinful, gentile city, but he doesnt want to go. Jonah had a problem with this because the recipients of gods mercy were the people his nation hated. In the belly of the fish for three days, jonah cries out to god, repents. While jonahs time in the great fish may be the most famous part of the book.

Jonah, gods objectionable mercy, and the way of wisdom the. The fact that god would forgive the ninevites of all the atrocities they had committed, tells us that he is willing to forgive us of every sin in our life. Recently i had the opportunity to teach on jonah and nahum, two minor prophets with powerful messages about gods character. Through some supernatural events, god convinced him to obey and carry out the lord s plan. The book of jonah is primarily a story about the character of god, even his compassion. The captain of the ship wakes up jonah and yells at him and tells him to pray. Jonah s great mission to nineveh has revealed him to us. No place in chapter one does it say that jonah prayed.

T he book of jonah is short, compassing four brief chapters of 48 verses. Thus, maybe jonah s preaching after god gave him the second chance may have softened the blow to the israelites who were taken into captivity by the assyrians who were known for their barbaric behavior. The book of jonah gods character and human response. This story tells us a lot about the character of god. Apr 04, 2020 an overview of the book of jonah leads one to determine two prominent sections, namely, jonahs abortive voyage to tarshish jon 12 and jonahs journey to nineveh. This summary of the book of jonah provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of jonah. Biblestudytools video what does jonah teach us about the character of god. Jonah is the story of a prophet who runs away from god s instruction. Jonah and the whale stories of god i animated childrens. Main characters the main characters of the book of jonah. The lords states that jonah mourns the loss of the. Outline of the book of jonah jonah doesnt like his duty, so he tries to flee from god on a ship. Major argument the book of jonah displays yhwhs desire to show his mercy and compassion, through the act of salvation, to those who repent and turn from their sins. What lesson did god want to teach jonah in the story of the.

Jonah was a prophet of god and in his book and the first chapter we read that the command of god came to jonah to go preach to the city of nineveh. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading jonah. During his journey, jonah finds the integrity, honesty, and courage necessary to obediently follow gods direction. The book of jonah is an old testament story which tells about how the prophet jonah refused to follow the lord. Main characters the main characters of the book of jonah are god. Its amazing, how our lord jesus leaned on the story of jonah in explaining how god works and how mankind ought to respond. Jonah is mad at the lord, so the lord tried to teach him. The book is named after the main character, but i think the author was a sage at the royal court in israel who heard jonah give an account of the mission to king jeroboam ii and realized the theological implications. In this way, the book of jonah reveals the attributes of god as the lord brings his salvation to a sinful and rebellious people. Through some supernatural events, god convinced him to obey and carry out the lords plan. Introduction jonah is one of the most ridiculed books by liberal scholars.