4 The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! 5 We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost--also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. 6 But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!” 7 The manna was like coriander seed and looked like resin. 8 The people went around gathering it, and then ground it in a handmill or crushed it in a mortar. They cooked it in a pot or made it into cakes. And it tasted like something made with olive oil. 9 When the dew settled on the camp at night, the manna also came down. 10 Moses heard the people of every family wailing, each at the entrance to his tent. The LORD became exceedingly angry, and Moses was troubled. Numbers 11:4-10 (NIV)
9 We should not test the Lord, as some of them did--and were killed by snakes. 10 And do not grumble, as some of them did--and were killed by the destroying angel. 11 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. 12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! 13 No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. 1 Corinthians 10:9-13 (NIV)
14 Do everything without complaining or arguing, 15 so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe 16 as you hold out the word of life--in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing. Philippians 2:14-16 (NIV)
7 Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. 8 You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. 9 Don’t grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door! James 5:7-9 (NIV)
1 But Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry. 2 He prayed to the LORD, “O LORD, is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. 3 Now, O LORD, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.” Jonah 4:1-3 (NIV)
How do we behave when we don’t get our way? Does our flesh boil and our blood pressure rise? Do we pout and complain, grumble and become angry, scream or sulk? Do we seek to be likeminded with God or are we displeased over what pleases Him and, like the Prophet Jonah, simply sick and done with it all? Once we lose sight of God and His ways we begin to be reckless – with our words and our actions, our time and our resources. That is precisely what happened to our Protagonist. We begin to act on our own initiative and cease having God’s vision and His disposition to ever show mercy. Remember everything belongs to Him and we are held accountable for all that has been placed in our hands and our very lives as well.
In our verses for today we discover Jonah’s clearly transparent feelings. How like God to place our Protagonist into a situation that reveals the true character of his heart! How often does He do this to us as well! Not a pretty sight to say the least! We are so prone to delude ourselves are we not? It is far to uber easy to be sickeningly self-righteous in our own eyes! Or we can often become “drunk on our own potential” as well as some sage has put it. God desires for us to guard our hearts, meaning to protect, keep, obey, observe, behold and inspect. We are to be the “Watchmen” of our own hearts. Proverbs 4:23 tells us:
23 Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. Proverbs 4:23 (NIV)
In the Bible, the whole spectrum of human emotions is attributed to the heart and it is also the seat of the will. Wisdom and understanding also reside in the heart and in Scripture “heart” can also signify the mind, discernment and good sense. The heart can be deceived, and it is the point of origin of all moral evil. So how very important it is for us to guard it!
The Prophet Jeremiah writes in Jeremiah 17:9-10:
9 The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? 10 “I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.” Jeremiah 17:9-10 (NIV)
If the Book of Jonah had ended at the last verse of Chapter Three, history would have portrayed Jonah as the greatest of the prophets. After all, preaching one message that motivated thousands of people to repent and turn to God was no small accomplishment. But the Lord does not look on the outward things, rather God looks at and examines the heart. What is the motivation behind the action? Remember, our motivation is always, always important in the eyes of God. Unlike man, God looks inward not outward. And sadly, we can’t photo shop our hearts no matter how hard we may try! Scripture states in 1 Samuel 16:7:
7 But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7 (NIV)
God also weighs the motives of a man’s heart. We find in 1 Corinthians 4:5:
5 Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God. 1 Corinthians 4:4-5 (NIV)
And again in 1 Chronicles 28:9:
9 “And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.” 1 Chronicles 28:9 (NIV)
Chapter four clearly reveals the thoughts and intents of the Prophet Jonah’s heart and exposes his sins. Indeed, the wording itself indicates evil. We find in Verse One That Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry. The word translated “displeased” comes from two Hebrew words meaning: “To do evil, harm, be wicked; be angry or envious; denotes any activity which is contrary to God’s will and indicates an attitude which rejects God’s authority; those who are characterized by such an attitude lack understanding and deliberately plan to hurt others, even habitually; God will discipline such people. The word translated “angry” in the Hebrew means to burn, be kindled; to be angry, be incensed, grow indignant; it points to the fire and heat of anger just after it has been ignited. Surely not a very good attitude to hold against the God of all creation…seriously Jonah, what were you thinking?????? Seriously Beth, what am I thinking when I grumble and kick against God’s best for my life.
Certainly it appears that Jonah failed to recognize his privilege of being an instrument of God in a miraculous situation. He did not seem to care of the lost souls of Nineveh. Indeed, he appears furious with God for staying His hand and saving them. Failing to embrace God’s sovereign plan, he missed the joy and blessing of the situation and sank into a sinful and selfish state of mind. If in Chapter One Jonah is like the Prodigal Son, insisting on doing his own thing and going his own way, then in Chapter Four, he is like the Prodigal’s elder brother – critical, selfish, sullen, angry, and unhappy with what is taking place. We find the story in Luke 15:11-32:
11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. 13 Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. 17 When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. 21 The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate. 25 Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ 28 The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I've been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’ 31 ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’” Luke 15:11-32 (NIV)
It isn’t enough for God’s servants simply to do the Master’s will like the elder son; God desires for us to do “the will of God from the heart”. Ephesians 6:6-8 tells us:
6 Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free. Ephesians 6:6-8 (NIV)
Paul writes in Colossians 3:22-25 as well:
22 Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. 23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. 25 Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism. Colossians 3:22-25 (NIV)
When we serve others in Jesus’ Name it is as serving Christ. To be sure, He is not looking for slavish duty. He has thousands and thousands of angels doing His bidding. Rather, God delights in our doing His will out of love and trust for Him. I believe it is in our choice that He delights and is glorified. Further, there is blessing in our obedience. As we have discussed before, obedience is always for us not against us. Never forget that! We are the losers and sorely miss out when we are prone to wander.
Back to our story, Jonah had a problem with the heart. Remember, the heart of every problem is the problem of the heart, Amen? And that is exactly where Jonah’s problems were to be found. It was a heart issue. God’s actions displeased him, and he was angry – fit to be tied and burning with anger – would perhaps be a better description of our Protagonist! Joy is certainly hard to come by when one’s heart beats differently from God’s, when we are all about our own agendas rather than His. We must learn, and unfortunately so often the hard way, that joy must not be dependent upon our circumstances rather God intends for our joy to be experienced in His children despite our circumstances. Joy comes when we fall more and more in love with the One Who loves us the most. Which begs these questions: Do we know how very much we are loved by Him? Do we love Him wholeheartedly and willingly? Do we believe He always has our best interest at heart?
“If you dwell on your own feelings about things rather than dwelling on the faithfulness, the love, and the mercy of God, then you're likely to have a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Our feelings are very fleeting and ephemeral or transient, aren’t they? We can't depend on them for five minutes at a time. But dwelling on the love, faithfulness, and mercy of God is always safe.” Elisabeth Elliot
Explain the towing of a boat example and compare that to our emotions being the caboose of a train. If the boats starts swerving while being towed it can flip the truck towing it as well as well as the boat. Same thing for the train as our emotions are to be the caboose.
Along with God’s abiding joy, always comes the tranquility of His peace that passes our understanding. To will what God wills brings peace. Always. We must learn to embrace each circumstance He allows with joy. Always knowing He has our best interest at heart. He is using the hard to refine us. With all that He allows in our lives, He is transforming us into the image of His Son – burning off the dross so that the gold will shine forth. Is this hard, yes - would be the answer to that question. Often extraordinarily. But is always purposeful and it is always for our best interest whether we are readily discerners of that or not. And it clearly will result in glory for every heir of mercy as well as peace and righteousness.
Hebrews 12:11-13 states:
11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. 12 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13 “Make level paths for your feet,” so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed. Hebrews 12:11-13 (NIV)
The writer of Hebrews sensed the tendency to spiritual weakness in his readers, and in the light of the truths he had expounded, he encouraged them to renew their strength. If they would do this and would pursue the level paths which real righteousness entails, the weakest among them – which are the lame he refers to - would not be further disabled, but rather healed. Their own strength would benefit weaker Christians.
“Teach me to treat all that comes to me throughout the day with peace of soul and with firm conviction that Your will governs all. Nothing that comes to me is devoid of divine purpose. In seeking to see the whole with God’s eyes, we can find the peace which human events so often destroy. I rest, dear Lord, in the knowledge that You are the Blessed Controller of all things.” Elisabeth Elliot
“God is God. Because He is God, He is worthy of my trust and obedience. I will find rest nowhere but in His holy will, a will that is unspeakably beyond my largest notions of what He is up to.” Elisabeth Elliot
Also, BTW, our Jesus has already clearly warned us not to be surprised when troubles and/or disappointments hit like a hard blow. We discover in John 16:33:
33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 (NIV)
“But the question to precede all others, which finally determines the course of our lives is, ‘What do I really want?’ Was it to love what God commands, in the words of the collect, and to desire what He promises? Did I want what I wanted, or did I want what He wanted, no matter what it might cost?” Elisabeth Elliot
All the while, God was seeking to speak life into the Prophet Jonah’s dead places, arousing him from his sin and breathing new life into his sin sick soul.
Jonah’s divided heart kept him from enjoying the fruits of his labor. It robbed him of joy. He would have been wise to pray like King David prayed for his son Solomon:
9 “And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. 10 Consider now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a temple as a sanctuary. Be strong and do the work.” 1 Chronicles 28:9-10 (NIV)
Interestingly, this is a call for us all. We are to serve the Lord wholeheartedly and with a willing mind – for our own good, BTW - each building our own temples (bodies) as a sanctuary. Pray this over yourself and your families – it is a prayer that God delights to answer.
The very remarkable thing here is that God tenderly dealt with His sulking servant, as the father did to his older son in the story of the Prodigal Son, and sought to bring him back to the place of joy and fellowship. How deep is the Father’s love for us, how vast beyond all measure!
Sadly, Jonah had blatantly rejected and repudiated the goodness of God towards the Ninevites. In that attitude he symbolized the nation of Israel. Jonah’s self-interests were a reminder to Israel of her lack of concern for the ways and mercies of God. The word “But” at the beginning of Verse One points us to the contrast between God’s compassion and Jonah’s displeasure, and between God’s turning from His anger and Jonah’s turning to anger. Jonah’s anger at God for sparing Nineveh more than likely stemmed from his unbalanced patriotic fervor. Our Protagonist probably knew from Amos and Hosea that Assyria would be Israel’s destroyer. Jonah’s fickle attitude toward God’s dealings with him are both remarkably abrupt and variegated: Disobedience in Chapter One; Thanksgiving in Chapter Two; Obedience in Chapter Three; and Displeasure in Chapter Four.
We discover in Verse Two for the second time in our story, Jonah prayed, but his second prayer was much different in content and intent than his first. Interestingly, He prayed his best prayer in the worst place – the fish’s belly, and he prayed his worst prayer in the best place – at Nineveh where God was miraculously working. His first prayer came from a broken heart, but his second prayer came from an angry heart. In his first prayer, he asked God to save him, but in his second prayer, he rebukes God and asks Him to take his life! Once again, amazingly, Jonah would rather die than not to have his own way.
“I realized that the deepest spiritual lessons are not learned by His letting us have our way in the end, but by His making us wait, bearing with us in love and patience until we are able honestly to pray what He taught His disciples to pray: Thy will be done.” Elisabeth Elliot
“Here lies the tremendous mystery – that God should be all-powerful, yet refuses to coerce us. He summons us to cooperation. We are honored in being given the opportunity to participate in His good deeds.” Elisabeth Elliot
This petulant prayer let’s us in on the secret of why Jonah tried to run away in the first place. Being a good theologian, Jonah knew the attributes of God, that He was “a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity.” Confident of this, Jonah was certain that if he announced judgment to the Ninevites and they repented, God would forgive them and not send His judgment and he did not want them to be saved from the impending doom. He wanted to be delivered from calamity, but he did not want the Ninevites to be kept from disaster.
Amazingly, out of anger and disgust the prophet rebuked his Lord, saying in essence: “I know that You are forgiving and now look what has happened!” Jonah admitted that he fled toward Tarshish because he did not want the Ninevites to be saved from judgment. The Ninevites were more ready to accept God’s grace than Jonah was. Jonah, an object of God’s compassion, had no compassion for Nineveh’s people. The Prophet failed to recognize his privilege of being an instrument of God in a miraculous situation. Failing to recognize God’s sovereign plan, he missed the joy of the situation and sank into a selfish state of mind.
Our Protagonist knew God was willing to forgive but he did not want his enemies to know it. Their threat of doom could be diverted if his hearers turned to his forgiving God. The prophet certainly had a clear grasp of God’s character, as reflected in his near-quotation of Exodus 34:6 which states:
6 And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.” Exodus 34:6 (NIV)
In fact Jonah’s words about God are almost identical with other passages of Scripture’s description of Him as well. We find in Joel, Nehemiah and the Psalms the following:
13 Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. 14 Who knows? He may turn and have pity and leave behind a blessing-- grain offerings and drink offerings for the LORD your God. Joel 2:13-14 (NIV)
17 They refused to listen and failed to remember the miracles you performed among them. They became stiff-necked and in their rebellion appointed a leader in order to return to their slavery. But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Therefore you did not desert them. Nehemiah 9:17 (NIV)
8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.
9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever. Psalms 103:8-9 (NIV)
8 The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love.
9 The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made. Psalms 145:8-9 (NIV)
From these verses, it is certainly obvious that God is gracious, meaning He longs for and favors others and He is compassionate, meaning He is tender in His affections. He is also slow to anger as He does not delight in punishing the wicked. Indeed, we find in Ezekiel 18:23 God asking a rhetorical question:
23 Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign LORD. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live? Ezekiel 18:23 (NIV)
Peter also writes in 2 Peter 3:9:
9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 (NIV)
God is also abounding in love. The psalmists often spoke of God being “gracious” and “compassionate,” though sometimes in reverse order:
15 But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. Psalms 86:15 (NIV)
8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. 9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever. Psalms 103:8-9 (NIV)
4 He has caused his wonders to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and compassionate. Psalms 111:4 (NIV)
Indeed, His grace, compassion, love and faithfulness both stay His mighty hand and move His mighty hand.
Realizing all this, Jonah also said He knew God often relents from sending calamity. The prophet feared that all these attributes of God would be extended toward the despicable, cruel Ninevites—and it happened just as he thought! Never did it seem to cross his mind that it was because of the Lord’s great love that he wasn’t himself consumed. We so quickly see the dreaded faults in others but so very often we neglect to see how full of evil our own hearts are. We are forever screaming to the Lord for justice against our enemies but mercy towards us – and we are so dull we don’t seem to see the problem with that!
The following analogy will perhaps enable us to better understand Jonah’s reaction to God relenting His judgment. It is similar to a child who has been told all of his life that he is special and the most perfect being in the world, well deserving of all good things. This child will most likely become a spoiled child filled with disregard for others and expecting others to treat him with deference. Israel expected God and other nations to treat them as special. They were special but not for who or what they were as Deuteronomy 7:7 states:
7 The LORD did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. 8 But it was because the LORD loved you and kept the oath he swore to your forefathers that he brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the land of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Deuteronomy 7:7-8 (NIV)
God’s election of Israel was never to become a source of pride for the nation. For God did not find any intrinsic merit in her which motivated Him to choose her. In fact her small size originally would have served as a hindrance to her election. But they were special because God loved them first. Yet we humans tend to be possessive; we pretend to own those who love us, and we love. The Israelites pretended to possess and deserve God’s love. They claimed exclusivity over God’s attention and regard. But God is clear that is not the case.
Jonah was concerned over his reputation, not only before the Ninevites, but also before the Jews back home. Like Jonah, his Jewish friends would have wanted to see all of the Assyrians destroyed, not just the people of Nineveh. When Jonah’s friends found out that he had been the means of saving Nineveh from God’s wrath, they would have considered him a traitor or at the very least he would not have been lauded and praised as he had been before! They could have been like Jonah as well, who was a narrow-minded patriot and who saw Assyria only as a dangerous enemy to destroy, not as a company of repentant sinners to be brought to the Lord. When reputation gets in the way of our character and pleasing ourselves and our friends is more important than pleasing God, we are in danger of becoming like Jonah and living to defend our prejudices instead of fulfilling our spiritual responsibilities. Jonah certainly had good theology, but it stayed in his head and never got to his heart and hands. Indeed, he was so distraught over God’s forgiveness to Israel’s enemy, he simply wanted to die! It is certainly sad when a prophet of the Lord does not celebrate and appreciate God’s mercy, grace and compassion. Because God relented of His wrath and did not destroy the city, Jonah was so emotionally disappointed that he lost all reason for living.
“Let's never forget that some of God's greatest mercies are His refusals.” Elisabeth Elliot
“When ours are interrupted, his are not. His plans are proceeding exactly as scheduled, moving us always (including those minutes or hours or years which seem most useless or wasted or unendurable).” Elisabeth Elliot
These are Beth’s personal notes, due to this fact sources are not often stated.
