Jonah Study Notes: Chapter 1
Intro:Fact or Fiction?
Can we really believe the story of Jonah?
Is Jonah himself historical? Yes!!! 2 Kings 14:25: "He restored the border of Israel from the entrance of Hamath as far as the Sea of the according to the word of the LORD, the God of Israel, which He spoke through His servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was of Gath-hepher. Arabah," Is the narrative historical? Yes!!!
Matt 12:39-41: "But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as JONAH WAS THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS IN THE BELLY OF THE SEA MONSTER, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. The book of Jonah is not about Jonah & the whale or Great Fish. The book of Jonah is about Jonah & God. This book is about God Himself.
1. The Causes of Jonah’s rebellion Jonah 1:1-2: "The word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai saying, "Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and cry against it, for their wickedness has come up before Me." God wanted Jonah to go cry against Nineveh. Nineveh was the capital of the Assyrian empire.
Not everything God asks us to do is easy. Nor is it always what we want to do.To do something like this would take the help of God. But when God does call us to do something for Him He always gives us the help we need to do it. Just think of men like Moses, David, Zerubbabel, & Joshua. Jonah 1:3: "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. Jonah did not want to go to Nineveh at all so he disobeys the Lord & tries to flee from His presence.Why did Jonah rebel against the Lord here? What was the cause or causes of his rebellion? 1. A heart of hatred, bitterness, & unforgiveness. We know from chapter four that first & foremost Jonah did not wanted the Assyrians to be forgiven.
2. It was too hard Jonah may have felt that what the Lord was calling him to do was way too hard so why even try.
3. It was asking too much of him Jonah may have felt God was asking too much from him. After all Nineveh was over 500 miles away by foot.
Notice that even though Jonah was in rebellion & disobedience against God things seem to be going well for him.
Things going well do not always mean that you are in God’s will.
2. The course of Jonah’s Rebellion Jonah’s rebellion, disobedience, & backsliding came at a cost to him.
3. The consequences of Jonah’s rebellion Jonah 1:4: "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. 1. God’s hand of discipline God loved Jonah too much to let him go to Tarshish and ruin his life. Jonah was on a downward path and God was going to put a stop to that. Hebrews 12:6: "For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines..." God could have gotten a hold of someone else for the job, but He was concerned about Jonah & wanted to see Jonah learn & grow.So God intervenes by causing this great storm to come upon the sea & ensnare the ship.
God here is using a storm as a means of bringing His rebellious child to repentance. Storms in your lives do not always mean we are in sin like Jonah.
2. Jonah’s sin affected the people around him Jonah 1:5: "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." The sailors found themselves being affected by Jonah’s sin.
3. Jonah became dead to the voice of God Jonah 1:5: "But Jonah had gone below into the hold of the ship, lain down and fallen sound asleep." Jonah’s rebellion led to him becoming dead to the voice of God. God was speaking to him through the storm & Jonah is asleep. The longer we remain in rebellion against God the more we become dead to the voice of God. We become like Jonah & we can no long hear when God is speaking to us. 4. Jonah lost his prayer life Jonah 1:6: "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." Not only did Jonah no longer hear what God was trying to say to him he no longer said anything to God. His prayer life was gone. 5. Jonah lost his witness for the Lord Jonah 1:7-8: "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. 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?" Jonah also lost his witness. He was meant to go to Nineveh to be a witness for God, but because of his rebellion against God he ceased to be a witness of God. Jonah 1:9-10: "He said to them, "I am a Hebrew, and I fear the LORD God of heaven who made the sea and the dry land." 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." It was not that Jonah just ceased to be a witness for God. He became a bad witness for God. The sailors asked,
Jonah 1:11: "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." Once the sailors learned their true situation they wanted to know what they must do to be saved.
Jonah 1:12: "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." Jonah told them that there had to be a sacrifice for the sin in the ship. Jonah 1:13: "However, the men rowed desperately to return to land but they could not, for the sea was becoming even stormier against them. Let's give the sailors some credit that they did not just want to kill Jonah to save their own lives even when he was to blame for the mess they found themselves in. But Jonah had told them that to save themselves they had to sacrifice him because it was his sin that had brought this storm to the ship. It was no good for them to try to save themselves. Jonah 1:14: "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." The sailors finally gave up trying to save themselves and called out to the Lord. They came to an end of themselves & turned to God for help & salvation.
Jonah 1:15-16: "So they picked up Jonah, threw him into the sea, and the sea stopped its raging. Then the men feared the LORD greatly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows. I believe these saved were not just saved from the storm here but saved spiritually as well. Giving up their false gods to worship the true God that Jonah told them about. Jonah 1:17: "And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights." God was not done with his rebellious prophet.
Closing: God is a God of loving patience:
|