Peter
Fisherman for Jesus
Devotions on the Life of Peter
Louis Nel
Cover: Designed by ChatGPT
May 2025
Preface
Jonah is one of the "controversial" books of the Bible. People often struggle with the idea that Jonah was swallowed by a fish and survived in its belly for a full three days. Surely, such a miracle is impossible?
Then there's the challenge of placing the story within a historical context. There are just so many things that don't seem to make sense!
This raises the question, in light of the above, whether this is even a true story. Could it not simply be just a tale?
Personally, I believe that the story is true. But that's not what the book of Jonah is about. In fact, just like with many other books of the Bible, it's not about the historical details but rather the message that the Holy Spirit wants to convey to us as believers through this story.
And the message in Jonah is clear and unmistakable! So, let's read this short book with an open mind and extract from it the wonderful message that is highly relevant for every believer today.
Louis Nel
Obedience and Grace
Introduction to Jonah
In Matthew 28, we read about Jesus standing on the mountain, giving His disciples one final command before He ascends into heaven: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations..." According to Acts 1:8, they would receive all the necessary power for that command when the Holy Spirit came upon them and they would be His witnesses throughout the world. As we know, the Holy Spirit was indeed poured out on Pentecost and today, He still fills every believer with His power so that we too can carry out His great commission. This command applies to believers throughout the ages, leaving us no excuse for disobedience.
Indeed, the specific command the Lord gives each of us personally may vary and the Holy Spirit equips us in different ways to fulfill our tasks. All He asks of us is obedience.
A long time ago, there was a man named Jonah. He also received a command from the Lord. He had all the necessary tools to carry out that command because he was a trained prophet with all the required knowledge for his task. However, there was a slight problem - he was to deliver the Lord's message to his enemies! For Jonah, this challenging command was perhaps a bit too much to swallow!
In my childhood, the story of Jonah captivated my imagination! Today, it certainly still has the same effect on children and even for most adults, it remains a fascinating tale! But perhaps we often read the story with the wrong perspective. You see, it’s not about the man swallowed by the fish, but rather about Jonah's disobedience which almost led to a great disaster for the inhabitants of an entire city. To top it off, it nearly caused a ship to be sent into the dark depths with its entire crew!
God's great love, patience and grace however, were much greater than Jonah's disobedience - not only towards the godless city that He wanted to lead to repentance but also towards a reluctant, disobedient prophet trying to run away!
It’s very easy for us today to point fingers at Jonah and label him as the prophet who tried to run away from God. But perhaps you and I need to listen carefully to see if we aren't also being a Jonah - someone running away from God's commands. Furthermore, we might also need to answer God's question at the end of the book, along with Jonah, whether we are trying to limit God within the boundaries of our own interests or thoughts?
Today, there are many perplexing questions about the book of Jonah. Historically, Jonah doesn’t make much sense. When we look at linguistic and other aspects, it almost seems as if the book was written long after the destruction of the city of Nineveh. In 2 Kings 14:25, there is indeed a reference to Jonah during the reign of Jeroboam II, but at that time Nineveh was still relatively small and in the book of Jonah, it is referred to as a very large city. At that time, Nineveh was also not the capital of Assyria and the king mentioned here could not have been a real king. There are certainly questions about the historical facts.
But that's not all - many people have problems with the miracles mentioned in the book. There has been much debate about the fish that swallowed Jonah. "That's totally impossible, isn’t it?" And what about the miraculous plant that grew overnight?
The question then is whether the book of Jonah is a true story, a parable or perhaps just a tale? I certainly won’t venture to provide an answer, simply because we do not have the answer! This is one of the many mysteries in the Bible. However, the fact is that it doesn’t matter! You and I don’t need to rack our brains over it because the message that the Holy Spirit wants to convey to us through this book is absolutely precious! If we manage to look past the problems and "contradictions" in the Bible and instead see the true message of the Bible, we are on the right path. If you get caught up in the "contradictions" in the Bible, you’re missing the entire message of the Bible!
In the book of Jonah, we learn that God provides. Jonah is the story of a prophet who tried to limit God to fit his own ideas, just as we often do today. In contrast to Jonah, we see the pagans who acknowledge God's sovereignty and do what He asks of them. Isn’t that ironic? God also shows Jonah that He has control over everything - even a fish and a miraculous plant! God is in control of everything and everyone, including nature.
The great truth that stands out in the story however, is God's love and infinite grace and the fact that absolutely no one is excluded from His grace. We must not selfishly claim God's grace only for ourselves as believers. God wants His grace and love to spread over the entire world, including unbelievers. But He wants to use ordinary people to achieve that goal - people who are willing to listen and carry out God's commands. He seeks people like you and me and if we are willing, He gives us His Holy Spirit to carry out His task!
Prayer:
Lord, please make me willing to carry out the commands You give me. Please stop me if I try to run away!
A Nightmare Command
Jonah 1:1-2
The prophet smiles through his lush beard. He is overjoyed, for what could be more delightful on earth than being a prophet in Israel, the promised land that Almighty God gave to him and his forefathers? He thoroughly enjoys his work as a prophet and nothing brings him as much pleasure as teaching people about the great deeds of God. Today, a group of young men listened very attentively as he told them about the great hero of faith, Abraham. When the Lord commanded him to pack up and leave for an unknown land, Abraham left everything behind and, with his wife Sarah, ventured into the unknown. Now that’s faith! And obedience!
Jonah hums softly a hymn written by the great King David and joy bubbles up from his heart. He is content because he has successfully carried out God's command to act as a prophet. Then, Jonah suddenly becomes aware of a voice deep within his being: “Jonah, son of Amittai, I have a great task for you.”
Jonah begins to tremble with excitement. “God has a special task for me, Jonah!” he exclaims inwardly.
“Jonah, I am sending you to the great city of Nineveh to preach to its inhabitants. I want you to address the people, for I know how wicked the city is.”
Jonah’s knees go weak - did he hear correctly? “Am I to preach to those godless heathens, Lord? You surely can't be serious! They aren't children of Abraham, are they? They aren't part of the people of God!”
Drenched in sweat from fear and tension, Jonah tosses and turns in his bed that night - sleep eludes him and he is utterly exhausted deep within his soul. “Oh, if only this were a terrible dream, a dreadful nightmare…” he wishes. He stares at the ceiling with wide, unblinking eyes that feel as if they are coated with sand. “How can God ask this of me?” he wonders, indignant. “It’s so terribly unfair!”
“Lord, I am an Israelite, Lord!” he whimpers and warm tears begin to well up and stream down his cheeks. “I am an Israelite who strictly follows all the commandments and purity laws - how can You expect me to go preach to a bunch of filthy, unclean heathens? And what should I say to them? No one will listen to me! They will only mock me! Besides, they are the ones who have so oppressed our little nation! They are our enemies, Lord! Isn’t there someone else who can go preach to them?”
The joy Jonah experienced the previous day has vanished like mist before the sun. In its place, there is bitterness and resentment toward God who now wants to send him on an “impossible” mission.
Over the next few weeks, Jonah spends a lot of time in his inner room, but it isn’t with praise and a search for God’s will that he occupies himself. Instead, he spends the time trying to reason with God. “Lord, You Yourself said that these people are utterly wicked. Why can’t You deal with them like Sodom and Gomorrah?” Jonah is bitter: “The only thing that is good enough for those heathens is God’s judgment!” he tells himself. “On top of that, they’ll surely stone me if I pronounce God’s judgment upon them! This is dangerous work!”
And then Jonah makes a decision: “I simply cannot carry out this command! God is unfair… I’ll go somewhere where God has no claim on my life.”
I have also received commands from the Lord where I felt like doing what Jonah did, because it seemed as though a solid wall stood before me. I thought I would never be able to accomplish it. There had to be someone else who could do it better than I could?
So, a few years ago, I received the task of delivering a message to a group of Zulu domestic workers on Saturdays. My knowledge of the Zulu language is poor and although my English isn’t too bad, preaching and praying in English is something entirely different.
I began desperately searching for someone else! But those who had the necessary skills were already occupied elsewhere. And so, I was once again thrown into the deep end, with others shouting: “Swim, Johnny, swim!”
However, I hadn’t accounted for the Holy Spirit and the moment I made myself willing to do the work, He provided me with all the strength, wisdom and English words I needed. On top of that, the Lord made it an absolute delight for me, for the people listen to me wery attentively and they thirst for every bit of the Gospel that I share with them. Their faces glow, they sing from their hearts and their enthusiasm is something to behold! And it makes me give my all!
Today, I can’t wait for Saturday to come so we can gather with the Zulu believers. It is one of the great highlights of every week!
This morning, I want to encourage you: do not hesitate when the Lord gives you a command, even if it seems impossible. If you are willing, He will surely provide for everything.
Prayer:
Lord, please make me willing to carry out the commands You give me with a joyful heart and strengthen my trust in You, the Almighty!
Wrong Decisions
Jonah 1:3
Unnoticed, Jonah begins to shut the Lord out of his nightly conversations, until eventually he is speaking only to himself. Sleep is out of the question, for this matter of Nineveh not only dominates his thoughts but his entire life. He gets cold shivers at the mere thought of the name of that dreadful city. And so it goes on night after night...
Nineveh lies at the ends of the earth - nearly seven hundred kilometres from his home. It is the capital of the mighty Assyrian Empire which currently dominates the whole world and it’s a full month’s journey on foot! Moreover, it’s a dangerous country, and he doesn’t want to risk his life and his career as a prophet, and that just for a bunch of heathens!
Jonah finally falls asleep out of sheer exhaustion, but nightmares plague him. He dreams of unclean heathens laughing at him as he tries to preach. He dreams of millions upon millions of people refusing to listen to his earnest message, making a mockery of him! He wakes with his heart threatening to leap out of his chest. Then suddenly he knows what he is going to do!
Jonah hurriedly packs his essential belongings into a bag and heads down to the port city of Joppa. “I’ll find a ship there that will take me far, far away!” he mutters as he trudges down the dusty road towards the sea.
When he arrives at the harbour, there is already a ship almost ready to set sail. “Where are you headed?” he asks.
“Tarshus,” a gruffly sailor replies. Jonah shudders at the sight of the filthy man, but he turns a blind eye.
“Where is this Tarsus?” The sailor isn’t in the mood for conversation and gestures westward. Jonah gathers that it must be very far away, easily three times as far as Nineveh is in the opposite direction.
“That’ll suit me perfectly!” Jonah thinks aloud. He pays his fare and makes himself comfortable down in the ship’s hold among a bunch of sacks of grain where no one will notice him - especially not God! When the ship leaves the harbour at dawn the next morning, a great peace descends upon Jonah. “Free, I’m free!” His heart leaps with sheer excitement!
Jonah’s actions are incomprehensible: He, the respected prophet who serves the Almighty God, thinks he can run away from God! Unbelievable! Today, we want to laugh at Jonah because we know you can’t run away from God. But perhaps we’ll understand his actions better if we consider the general belief about gods in that time. Every country or region had its own god or gods, and that god was bound to that specific region. So, if you left that area, the god had no hold over you because he remained behind! Perhaps Jonah thought the same of the Lord? We’ll never know, but we can only speculate.
In truth, though, it’s not such an unusual phenomenon today either. Isn’t this often what you and I try to do as well? We profess all sorts of beautiful things about God, such as that His love and grace are immeasurably great over us. Furthermore, we profess His omnipotence and that He reigns over everything, even over the godless. And we profess God’s omnipresence, that He is absolutely everywhere at once, even within us as believers through the Holy Spirit!
Unfortunately, however, we act as if these things aren’t true. We say one thing but live another. This makes us untrustworthy and Jonah becomes the symbol of our own shortcomings.
We often find ourselves in places where we don’t want to have God with us, places like gambling dens, drinking establishments or perhaps even worse. How often do we grieve the Holy Spirit when we enjoy “socialising” with people who don’t know God? In itself, there’s nothing wrong with it - Jesus did it too. It only becomes a problem when we allow ourselves to be drawn into conversations that don’t respect the values given to us in the Bible as guidelines. Do we ever consider, even for a single moment, that we have the Holy Spirit within us and that we involve Him in these conversations too?
God created a wonderful opportunity for Jonah to go and glorify the Lord’s wonderful Name in that godless foreign land. But for Jonah, this very opportunity now becomes an embarrassment. Similarly, God often creates wonderful opportunities for us, but our excuses and disobedience often turn these opportunities into embarrassments for us. When will we learn to take God at His Word? When will we one day learn to fully trust God? Even in things that seem like a Mount Everest to us?
Remember, we cannot run away or hide from God. We see this from the time of Adam when he tried to hide from God in the garden.
Prayer:
Lord, please make me aware of Your holy presence every moment of the day!
The Storm
Jonah 1:4-16
If Jonah thought that the command the Lord gave him - to go preach to Nineveh - was difficult, then he hadn't experienced anything yet. What lies ahead on his journey to Tarsus is a true nightmare that will make his mission seem like a mere trifle. But fortunately, Jonah knows nothing of this.
As a prophet, Jonah is always in the spotlight because his work involves daily communication with people. But now that he has boarded this ship that will take him away from God, he withdraws completely from all people and goes to sleep in the ship’s hold, where no one will find him. No one will bother him here!
Jonah’s heart beats excitedly when he realizes that the ship is setting sail. There’s a strong breeze from behind - the sooner they get away, the better! However, the sailors are not very happy; something unsettling is bothering them. There is something very strange about the wind, something they just can’t put their finger on. A day passes and the captain is pleased that they are making good progress. But then the wind begins to grow stronger and stronger and the ship is tossed around by waves that come crashing in, growing higher and higher. It isn’t long before it becomes a full-blown storm! These men are used to storms at sea, but this one is very different from anything they’ve ever experienced. There is something deeply ominous in the air. Fear grips their hearts and they begin to panic. Soon, they start to realize that this is no ordinary storm - there is definitely something supernatural involved! “It’s the gods who are tormenting us!” one sailor ventures. Everyone becomes terrified: “Yes, it’s nothing else!” they all agree. “Let’s pray to our gods!” someone suggests and with great wailing and lamentation they fall down as one man to pray, all while clutching for dear life so as not to be swept off the deck by the raging waves!
The captain orders that the cargo be thrown overboard to lighten the ship, perhaps to save them from a certain watery grave. Tons of valuable supplies are thrown into the sea but in vain - nothing helps! With every enormous wave that strikes the ship, it groans and creaks as if it’s about to shatter into a thousand splinters. Desperate, the captain descends into the hold to escape the chaos for a moment. He can’t believe his eyes when, in the dark hold, he finds a man sleeping soundly through this destructive storm. “What’s wrong with you, that you’re sleeping?!” he shouts at Jonah. “Get up and pray to your God! We’re about to perish!”
Groggy from sleep, Jonah stumbles up to the deck. What he finds there sends chills down his spine. Immediately, Jonah realizes that this is God’s doing and that he, Jonah, is the cause. When the men cast lots to determine who is responsible for the storm, it is no surprise to Jonah that the lot falls on him.
All eyes are on him and Jonah has to swallow hard to confess that this storm has come because of him, Jonah the Hebrew. And then he spills the whole story, telling of his mission and how he tried to flee from God. “Throw me into the sea!” Jonah concludes, “and the storm will calm!”
However the men decide they would rather try to row to safety. Everything is in vain and finally, they grab Jonah and throw him into the violent waves.
Immediately there is a calm and the raging sea subsides. Fear grips the men’s hearts, for they have never experienced anything like this before! “We must offer sacrifices to Jonah’s God!” one man dares to suggest. They quickly put their words into action. “This God is almighty and so different from all the other gods!”
Jonah achieved something, even in his disobedience, that no one else could. His foolish actions led a bunch of cursing, wild sailors to God. The wonder is that he didn’t even preach a single word to them!
We are often under the misconception that the only way to lead someone to Jesus is to preach to them and then our throats close up, our hearts pound wildly and we run away. You often preach much louder to people through what you do and how you live. Years ago, the company I worked for planned a wild office party. The invitation was extremely vulgar and tasteless. I didn’t say anything but my face must have spoken volumes. Later, one of the directors (himself a wild man!) came and apologised profusely for the note. My life as a dedicated young Christian conveyed the message that made him feel guilty without me having to say a word. Not long after that, that same director came to faith and became a devoted believer.
“Actions speak louder than words,” the old saying goes and it is so true. Jonah almost threw even that small piece of his testimony overboard, but God intervened. Don’t let your testimony be thrown to the fishes (figuratively speaking). Live out your testimony every day because your life speaks much, much louder than your words!
Prayer:
Lord, please help me to live every day in such a way that others can see Jesus in me. Please make my life a sermon to the glory of Your wonderful Name!
Thát Fish
Jonah 2:1-10
"It's the end!" Jonah thinks despairingly as the sailors hurl him into the fury of the raging waves. "But at least now I'm free from that dreadful command from God!" With a jolt that shakes his entire body, he hits the icy water. Trying to keep his head above water in this chaos is a futile task and Jonah fights desperately against the onslaught of the ravenous sea. But it’s of no use, especially since he never learned to swim! Wave after wave crashes over him until, exhausted, he sinks like a stone into the ominous dark depths of the watery grave. He shudders as he feels himself becoming ensnared by seaweed. It wraps around his body, his arms, his head and he becomes hopelessly entangled in this mess. Jonah's lungs feel like they’re going to burst. There's simply no more breath in him! "Lord, please save me; I can't go on!" he prays frantically as he tries to free himself from the tentacles of the seaweed, but it’s hopeless. Now he has truly descended into the underworld where the evil forces dwell! Everything is over, finished...
Suddenly, a massive mouth opens before him. Jonah feels the creature swallow him whole! Then he feels himself being tossed around inside a soft, slimy cavity. The water is gone and Jonah, gasping and coughing, fills his lungs with air.
Aaaair!
What a wonderful gift! Something smells terrible, like... fish? With a shock, Jonah realises that he has been "caught" by a giant fish. It's pitch-dark in here. Jonah feels around him. The space is very small, and somewhere he feels the sharp teeth of the fish. He shudders. "How did I end up in this mess?" Jonah wonders. "All I can do now is wait for death. Am I not already dead? After all, I’ve descended into the underworld!" The stench of fish is unbearable, but slowly, Jonah grows accustomed to it.
Minutes pass and minutes become hours - hours of waiting and wondering. "It’s through my own doing that I ended up here," Jonah says out loud. "How could I have thought for even a moment that I could run away from God, the almighty, omnipresent God?"
Then Jonah remembers that when he was helplessly tangled in the seaweed gasping for air, he prayed to God and God saved him at the right moment. "In my distress, I called to God," Jonah begins to sing softly, "and He heard my prayer." The words and melody of this brand-new psalm spontaneously flow from the lips of a grateful Jonah. "Deep in the realm of the dead, I cried for help and You, Lord, heard me!" It feels as if a huge weight lifts from Jonah's shoulders as the bubbling song flows from his lips.
The hours become a day and the day becomes two days - a long time during which Jonah can do nothing but think. In his mind's eye he sees himself sinking again into the dark depths of the "primordial flood," down to the underworld - to that immense mass of water upon which the earth floats. The only stability that can be found in this "primordial flood" are the foundations of the mountains, which grow like a tree's roots through the earth's crust to the very bottom of the "primordial flood." Jonah shudders: "I was there! Lord my God," Jonah murmurs sincerely, "forgive me, I was so terribly wrong! I have sinned so greatly against You. I so long to return to Your holy temple and offer a sacrifice to You, Lord. I promise that I will fulfil my vow to You! Only You can help me."
The third day dawns and the song of praise that Jonah began composing two days ago now becomes bubbling sounds that Jonah sings out with all his heart: "Lord, my God, You have saved me from death!" Jonah exclaims with genuine joy, "While I sing a song of praise, I will bring You a sacrifice; what I have promised, I will do. Salvation comes only from the Lord!"
The next moment, Jonah sees light. The fish’s mouth opens like a massive gate and it spits Jonah out into the waves. Jonah is washed ashore on the beach - onto soft, white sand. Out of sheer joy he weeps, unable to hide his delight. "I'm saved, I'm saved!" Over and over, the exclamations of joy bubble from his lips.
I think each of us has been in a Jonah situation where we felt as if there was no way out! Have you ever felt as though your world was coming to an end? Then you sit hopelessly in a heap, feeling sorry for yourself. Or you might desperately try to extricate yourself from the mess, but the harder you try, the more entangled you become!
Let’s learn from Jonah this morning, who got himself into a mess. Only when he was forced to stop did Jonah realise that God had been there all along, even when he tried to run away from God! Things began to turn around for Jonah when he tore down the wall he tried to build between himself and God and started singing songs of praise. Give your problems to the Lord - He can handle them. Sing songs of praise to honour Him - rejoice in the Lord. Do as Habakkuk did (Hab. 3:17-19) and say: "Though everything in life goes wrong - yet I will rejoice in the Lord!" It is the most wonderful therapy! Complaining and lamenting only worsen your situation, but rejoicing despite your problems lifts your spirits and soul and, at the same time, draws you closer to God.
Prayer:
Lord, this morning I rejoice and exult in You, my Saviour and Redeemer. I place all my problems in Your hands!
A Second Chance
Jonah 3:1-4
Have you ever received a second chance in life after making a mess of things? Of course! I’ve had several! And what about Jonah?
When Jonah was washed up on the shore, he was a very grateful man. He too had been given a second chance at life. In truth, he should have been dead but through a great miracle, God spared his life. God still had a task for Jonah.
In the Bible story the details are omitted because it’s not important how Jonah got back home. But if I use my imagination I see a bedraggled man with torn clothes that smell of fish, standing on a beach somewhere along the coast of North Africa. He starts walking along the shore in the general direction of Joppa. His mind races with the events of the past few days. He cannot comprehend why God had still been gracious to him after everything. "What did I do to deserve this? Why did He save me? I am not worthy!"
Finally, after many days of walking during which he had plenty of time to wrestle with God, talk to Him and weep in repentance, Jonah arrived home.
In Jonah 3:1-2, we read these few words: "The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: ‘Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.’"
Jonah lay on his bed that night and he heard the voice of the Lord very clearly, just as he had before when he tried to flee. He had sort of expected it but in truth, he didn’t really think that the Lord would trust him again with such a task!
This time, however, Jonah was obedient. Not very willing, but at least he did what God asked.
Jonah began to pack his things half-heartedly. He had to scrape together what he could because everything he had taken on his previous journey had been lost in the storm. "Lord, I still don’t think I’m the right person for this task," Jonah protested. "I’m doing this whole thing under protest!"
And so, with a long face, Jonah set off on the road, heading northeast towards the great city of Nineveh, the capital of wickedness. With every few laboured steps Jonah took, he sighed deeply......
"Lord, You are being unfair!" Jonah complained.
"Did I not save you from the clutches of death, Jonah?"
"Yes, Lord, but…"
"Jonah, are you not grateful for your salvation?"
"Yes, Lord, of course, I am grateful…"
"Then is it too much to ask of you to do a simple task for Me? By doing so, you’re essentially saying thank you to Me."
"But Lord, I’m going, just as You asked."
"Yes, Jonah, but why so half-heartedly, so begrudgingly?"
This might have been the conversation between Jonah and the Lord on the way to Nineveh. We don’t know what was said, but I can only guess.
The Lord has already given each one of us, just like Jonah, a second or third or perhaps hundredth chance. The question is: what are we doing with it?
Let’s start at the beginning. You and I were already granted a second chance at life the day the Lord entered our lives. When I, after countless invitations from Jesus to become part of God’s family, finally accepted the invitation, He saved me from certain death. And not just any ordinary death but eternal destruction along with the devil and all his gruesome cohorts!
As we all know, this second chance did not come cheap. Jesus paid a very high price for it. From the very first day, He had to endure humiliation upon humiliation. It cost Him, the Most Holy, the King of the Universe, to lower Himself to the level of sinful man and be born in a filthy stable because no one had room for Him. After thirty years of life during which He was rejected, insulted and even compared to the devil numerous times, He had to endure the gruesome death on the cross. It was accompanied by inhuman physical and spiritual torment!
If someone saved you at such a high cost, wouldn’t you say thank you?
A life of gratitude involves much more than just a praise song during a worship service. It involves much more than just reading the Bible, attending church, belonging to a small group, and praying. A life of gratitude means obedience to God – unconditional obedience!
But obedience with a heavy sigh and a long face is not really worth much. True obedience means doing what the Lord asks of me with great enthusiasm and alongside that, with joy. Habakkuk said: "...yet I will rejoice in the Lord!" (even if things are going terribly). And Paul emphasises overflowing joy throughout all your hardships in his letter to the Philippians.
Prayer:
Lord, teach me true obedience and along with it, an overflowing joy in You, my Lord and Saviour!
The Long Road to Nineveh
Jonah 3:1-4
It is a very, very long and exhausting journey to Nineveh. Hours become days and days become weeks, eventually becoming a full month through the desert. A month in which Jonah is alone with the Lord, with nothing and no one to distract him. But Jonah does not make use of this wonderful opportunity as he is doing this only out of a sense of duty.
Finally, Jonah sees the city walls dancing on the horizon in the heat waves. It is probably the most beautiful picture the exhausted Jonah has ever seen – truly an oasis in the barren desert! Slowly and painfully the city draws closer and closer but the nearer he gets, the more Jonah’s nerves begin to unravel. “What am I going to say to the people? How does one preach to godless heathens anyway?” Jonah’s stomach knots painfully at the very thought!
Then Jonah hears that now-familiar voice within him again: “Jonah, I told you that I will give you the words Myself.” Jonah’s stomach flips over. His nerves are frayed. The imposing walls of Nineveh loom before him. In his mind, he already envisions the godless heathens, wallowing in drunkenness, debauchery and immoral excess. Jonah shudders at the mere thought!
Jonah trembles with fear as he takes the last few hundred steps towards the dizzying stone walls that seem to reach the very edge of the heavens. He expects to be halted by impenetrable city gates, but to his great surprise, the gates stand wide open. What’s more, friendly people even invite him in to be a part of their wonderful city.
Very cautiously, Jonah slips into Nineveh. He constantly glances over his shoulder to ensure that no one is following him. Behind every pillar, he expects to find an assassin or a robber. But everywhere he looks, there are stalls and shops with merchants pleading for him to come and view their goods. Gold and silver gleam on every table and the most exquisite jewellery is on display. Jonah pretends not to see them and continues walking. He is amazed by everything. Amidst all the beauty, he notices small golden idols and this jolts him back to reality. It reminds him why he is truly there. He is to pronounce God’s judgement over the city!
It is getting late, and Jonah looks for a place to sleep. He peeks into an inn. Inside, there is raucous laughter and merriment and in the midst of it all, he notices a few scantily clad girls entertaining the guests with their writhing bodies. The heavy stench of alcohol in the inn makes Jonah feel nauseous. He is repulsed by the godlessness and hurriedly turns around. “I can’t possibly sleep in this den of tonight!”
Jonah hastily turns and flees from the place. He cannot reach the city gates quickly enough and only when the city is a few hundred paces behind him already does Jonah stop and look back at Nineveh, shaking his head. Far outside the city walls, Jonah finds himself a spot to sleep against a rough tree trunk, while the glowing sun sets behind the horizon.
The night casts its dark blanket over Nineveh. Jonah marvels at the millions of stars twinkling in the heavens. He has seen it so many times before, but each time it fills him with awe. Unconsciously, Jonah begins to hum the beautiful psalm of the great King David: “When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars which You have set in place – what is man that You are mindful of him, the son of man that You care for him?”
“Yes, Jonah,” he mutters to himself, “as many stars as you see tonight, surely there are that many people in this great city!” His eyes wander across the plains. Everywhere he looks, he sees the flickering lights of fires and lamps in the small villages of the people living across the wide area outside the city. These people are, of course, all part of Nineveh.
Jonah begins to do some calculations about how large this city really is. “It will take at least three days to walk through this enormous city!” He shudders. “And what will I say to them?” In his mind’s eye, he already sees the people laughing at him, mocking him, jeering at him! That night, Jonah does not sleep a wink. He tosses and turns, sick with worry about his sermon. “No one will ever listen to me! No one will pay attention to my preaching!”
This has happened to me so many times, where I worry myself sick about what I’m going to say at some event or another. And when the moment of truth arrives, I am astonished as the words flow from my lips. And when you expect the most resistance from someone, they are actually an open book to you and totally receptive!
The great secret is not to worry or try to do it yourself but to leave it to the Holy Spirit. If the Lord sends me to someone, He will speak through me. I just need to be willing, that’s all He asks. It all comes down to complete trust in Him.
Prayer:
Lord, please teach me to trust You completely in everything, also when You send me and to leave it all solely to You!
Jonah’s Sermon of Repentance
Jonah 3:1-4
It was a bitterly long night. Jonah barely got any sleep. All night long, he lay tossing and turning, worrying himself sick about his sermon for the next morning. A stone had persistently been poking him in the side and he simply couldn’t get rid of it.
He could preach very well to his fellow-countrymen because, after all, they had been drilled in the truths of Scripture since childhood. For them, you merely weave a sermon around the things they already know. But for heathens? They don’t even know who God is! What do you say to them? How do you explain Abraham, Moses and the wonders of the Exodus? Jonah had no idea where to begin preparing his sermon!
When the sun finally crept over the dusty plains of Nineveh, Jonah prayed desperately: “Lord, I truly don’t know what to preach to these heathens!”
“Why do you worry, Jonah?” the troubled prophet once again heard that soft whisper within him. “I told you I would give you the message.”
“Yes, Lord, but what must I say to them?”
“Tell them: In forty days I will destroy Nineveh because of the people’s wickedness! That’s all you need to say, Jonah! Is that so difficult?”
The sun had barely risen when Jonah, with trembling knees, entered the city. He didn’t look left or right but walked straight to the marketplace where he knew he would find a crowd. There a bustling and chattering chaos greeted him! Every vendor was advertising their wares, each one shouting louder than the next, so much so that Jonah could barely hear his own voice!
Then he squeezed his eyes tightly shut and shouted at the top of his lungs: “In forty days, Nineveh will be destroyed!”
He braced himself for the roaring laughter and ridicule that would follow. But it didn’t happen. Instead, a deadly silence settled around him. Jonah got goosebumps! Half disoriented, Jonah repeated the message, just in case someone hadn’t heard it: “The Almighty God said: In forty days, Nineveh will be destroyed!”
One by on, the people silently disappeared from the marketplace.
Jonah couldn’t believe his eyes! He walked further and then noticed a group of men sitting together, cheerfully chatting in the early morning sun. Jonah stopped by them and their eyes turned questioningly toward the stranger. “I have a message for you from the God of the Hebrews: In forty days, Nineveh will be destroyed!”
The men turned pale with fright. One by one they stood up and disappeared in silence.
He came across a group of women with water jars on their heads, on their way to the well, chatting and joking as only women can. “Dare I give the message to women?” Jonah wondered. On the spur of the moment, he stepped right in their path and announced: “The Almighty God has said: In forty days, Nineveh will be destroyed!”
The terrified women scattered and disappeared into the narrow alleyways!
At every market, tavern and gathering Jonah went to, he preached his simple, one-sentence sermon and the reaction was always the same. Jonah simply could not understand it. What was going on here? Finally he stumbled, exhausted, out of the city gates at dusk. He found a few young shepherds and preached his final sermon of the day to them: “In forty days, Nineveh will be destroyed!” The boys ran home, crying, to tell their fathers the terrible news. Worn out, Jonah sat down against his rough tree trunk and immediately fell asleep.
The Lord didn’t ask for great wisdom, impressive words or complicated reasoning when He sent Jonah. The overly simple message Jonah delivered had astounding results. You see, it wasn’t Jonah’s words but the Holy Spirit working in people’s hearts!
When the Lord sends you and me, He doesn’t ask for our eloquent arguments but simply that we listen to Him and deliver His straightforward message. The message Jonah had to give was short and powerful. The message you and I have for the world out there is just as short and powerful: The world is perishing in sin. Faith in Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation. That’s how simple the message is. The problem is that we want to make the message too complicated and think we can improve on God’s master plan. Everything just sounds too simple! We try to add all sorts of embellishments so that our message at least sounds believable. That’s when we mess everything up!
Stick to God’s "game plan" - He will handle the rest Himself. At the right time, in the right place and in the right way, He will work through the Holy Spirit in people’s hearts and convince them.
Prayer:
Lord, teach me to obey Your commands and to carry them out exactly as You instruct!
Nineveh Repents
Jonah 3:5-10
For an entire day, Jonah had walked the streets of Nineveh, preaching tirelessly. That night, he slept like a rock and before the sparrows had even begun to stir on the dusty plains, Jonah was already up, ready to continue preaching. He was beginning to enjoy it! Not only was he fulfilling God’s command, but never in all his years of ministry had he had such an easy sermon to preach! What’s more, the people were listening to him! It even seemed to him that there was a positive response! This was fantastic! Not a single person had even brushed him off! On top of that, it wasn’t like back in his own country where the scribes constantly tried to catch him out with complicated arguments, questioning every little thing he said. Sometimes, those learned men wore him down with their unnecessary quibbling over simple matters in the Word. But these heathens were different! They were so simple and uncomplicated; he was almost starting to like them!
With a spring in his step, Jonah entered the city. He headed straight to the market, but it was empty - not a soul in sight! The streets were deserted. The few people he did come across looked as if they were facing judgment day, all dressed in sackcloth. Could it be that someone important had died? Maybe the king? “What’s going on?” he wanted to ask one of the inhabitants, but then he reconsidered because he suddenly remembered that he was an Israelite and they were unclean heathens. Yet, through snippets of conversation Jonah learned that the entire city was in turmoil over the judgment God had pronounced on them. Someone said to Jonah, “Go and see for yourself - even the king is sitting on the ash-heap, lamenting!”
Jonah couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Was this the result of his simple sermon? Someone asked Jonah, “Why aren’t you wearing sackcloth? Don’t you know about the king’s decree? Everyone must mourn for their sins, and no one is allowed to eat - not even the animals! And what’s more, everyone must earnestly pray to God and ask Him to reconsider this judgment!”
Jonah was stunned: “But these people are heathens! Héá-thens!! Heathens can’t worship God! Who knows, maybe they’ll even truly repent! That would be a disaster!”
Suddenly, Jonah lost all desire to preach. On top of that, he felt tired and worn out and it seemed to him that he was a total failure. He trudged out of the city without even looking back, wandering into the open field. A little way out, he noticed a rocky hill and, aimlessly, he climbed among the rocks until he reached the top. He decided to sit there and wait for God’s judgment to fall on the city. From the hill, he had a good view of the city below and he could watch everything unfold. “How long can this so-called piety last anyway? Something must happen eventually!” But in the city, nothing stirred. Not a soul was in sight. Everyone was mourning.
And Jonah waited...
Then, deep within his heart he heard that familiar whisper: “Jonah, I have decided to withhold My judgment from this city.”
Jonah nearly fell off his rock! He gasped: “But Lord, You can’t! Did I undertake this terrible journey for nothing, only to hear that You’re not going to destroy the city? Did I preach my heart out for a whole day, only to announce the judgment in vain? Lord, You must know that I worked very hard and You can’t just abandon me like this! How could You do this to me, Lord? These people are heathens! Lord, they are not children of Abraham! They don’t deserve to live! They are not Your people!”
We must always remember that God’s forgiveness and grace are not limited to “good” people. His grace is for everyone, especially those who are completely lost. Today, we might laugh at Jonah and wonder how he could be so foolish as to refuse to accept the Lord’s decision. Couldn’t he see that even heathens could come to a different understanding and that they too could be under God’s grace?
Yes, but we often forget that we do exactly what Jonah did. How often are you and I just as sceptical when someone we didn’t expect turns to repentance? I’ve heard wonderful stories of hardened criminals, even merciless murderers who have had a change of heart in prison after encountering Jesus. Though when you hear that such a person has turned his life around, you strongly doubt whether it’s genuine and the stigma of their crime clings to them. The worst part though is that you can’t forgive the man for the terrible thing he did. Aren’t we just like Jonah? Or maybe even worse?
Jesus said we must forgive seventy times seven. He also said that we should not only love our fellow-believers but also our enemies. It’s not easy! You and I fall far short of truly living out God’s love. Pray to the Holy Spirit to give you true love in your heart.
Prayer:
Lord, I so easily accuse Jonah but I am worse than he is. Forgive me Lord and fill me with Your wonderful love!
In Conversation with God
Jonah 4:1-11
Jonah is deeply bitter. He’s angry at God. He’s angry at the Ninevites. He’s angry at himself. He’ll just sit on that hill and wait! God’s judgment múst fall upon that godless city. Look at how sinful they’ve been - after all, he saw it with his own two eyes! “I’ve lived my entire life clean and pure, except maybe for that one time I stumbled and tried to hide from the Lord. I’m actually the one suffering here! Just look at all the hardships I’ve had to endure for this brood of vipers! And what do I get in return? No, I’ll just wait!”
And Jonah waits!
The desert sun beats mercilessly down on Jonah as he sits on his hill, thinking. “Yes, God knows everything! God must have known the city would repent. Why did He send me here in the first place? It was unnecessary! I knew it from the start, that’s why I wanted to flee to Tarshish!”
And Jonah waits...
The scorching sun becomes unbearable. He builds himself a little shelter out of schrubs and dry branches, but it doesn’t help much. “Oh, I wish I could just die! I have no reason to live anymore!” Jonah sighs heavily in deep sorrow.
Thankfully, night comes.
The next morning when Jonah wakes up, he notices something very strange. During the night a vine has sprouted next to his makeshift shelter. “How is this possible?” To his great surprise Jonah watches as the plant grows before his very eyes. It twines and twines until it covers his entire shelter. Jonah has néver seen anything like it in his life!
As the sun scorches everything around him that day, Jonah sits blissfully happy in his cool shelter, complete with natural air conditioning! Any moment now judgment must fall upon the city! But still, nothing happens and when the sun sets, Nineveh remains intact, standing in all its glory!
The next morning disaster strikes Jonah. When he notices the small green worm, it’s already too late. The green creature has been gnawing at his lush vine! At a critical spot, just above the ground it chews right through the stem. Barely had the day broken and his miracle plant is already wilting.
To make matters worse a scorching east wind picks up. Before long the vine is history - only a few withered, dry leaves remain. The wind grows stronger and hotter and Jonah gasps for air. “Lord, how could You do this to me? Why did You kill my vine? I’d rather die!”
Then God speaks plainly and directly to Jonah: “You’re only concerned about that simple vine. Jonah, you’re angry that I killed it but you feel nothing for the one hundred and twenty thousand innocent people in this city! Did you really want Me to destroy them?”
And there, on that dramatic note the story of Jonah in the Bible ends with an unanswered question hanging in the air......
Did Jonah ever change his mind? We don’t know. But his story is recorded so that you and I can hear it today and learn from it. As clearly and forcefully as God spoke to Jonah that day, so too does He speak to you and me today.
In Jonah’s conversation with God, it became very clear why he was really angry: he didn’t want the heathen nation to be saved. Jonah conveniently forgot that God had forgiven his disobedience and sin and had given him a second chance. To us, it seems logical that he would be happy that Nineveh also got a second chance. But Jonah was very narrow in his view on this matter because he was an Israelite, part of God’s chosen people who had claimed God solely for themselves. Jonah cared more about his own reputation than about God’s!
The question is, don’t we often find ourselves in exactly the same situation? God’s harsh words to Jonah speak loudly to us today as well. They are aimed at our selfishness and our attempts to claim God’s power only for ourselves. We quickly forget God’s great grace toward us and how we were undeservedly saved from damnation. The fact is that nó person and nó church has an exclusive right to God. No denomination has preference over another. God’s kingdom stretches far, far beyond our little world, even over those who differ from Him hate Him, and are His enemies.
The end of the book of Jonah is open-ended! It’s as if the story invites every reader to find their own story within it and to provide their own answer. Each one of us can be a Jonah - someone hiding behind their own views, traditions, prejudices and exclusive religious outlook. The question is: how do you and I respond?
Prayer:
Lord, at the end of the book of Jonah I stand guilty before You because, like Jonah I often want to be selfish in my state of mind about You. Please free me from that and give me an open way of thinking!