In recent weeks we have watched with dismay as David, King of Israel, fell deeply into sin  and gave ‘great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme’. David committed adultery with Bathsheba, a local girl, betrayed and murdered her husband, Uriah, and along with him caused the death of several other soldiers caught up in the king’s devious scheme. It has been painful to witness David’s shame and be reminded that the best of men are but sinful men at their best.

It is hard to fathom this man Jonah. God had seen the repentance of the Ninevites and had, in turn, ‘repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them’. However, the lifting of judgment greatly displeased the prophet. The appointed forty days had not yet expired so Jonah decided to wait to see what would become of Nineveh. He left the city and settled some distance away under a makeshift shelter to watch what might unfold. A bruised prophet There seems to have been no need for Jonah to depart from the city and likely the inhabitants of the place would have been happy to care for such a spokesman from the Lord. Jonah, however, appears to have retained his…

What a strange reaction Jonah exhibits to the repenting of the Ninevites and the mercy shown to them by God. The language of the opening verse is intense. Jonah was not simply displeased but ‘exceedingly’ displeased. His displeasure turned to anger and he was ‘very angry’. It is not easy to account for Jonah’s fiery response. After all, his preaching had been gladly received and heartily believed. A vast number of souls had been delivered from destruction and saved by the grace of God. Surely a minister of God would delight in such an outcome?

The Apostle Paul tells us, ‘faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God’. Accordingly, because it was God’s gracious purpose to grant faith to the people of Nineveh, the word of God came to the king of Nineveh by the preaching of Jonah. The obedient prophet declared the message God had given to him. The testimony of Jonah, being attended by the Spirit of conviction and conversion, instigated first a transformation of heart, then a reformation of conduct in this heathen ruler and the lives of his people.

The city of Nineveh is very ancient being first mentioned in the Bible in Genesis 10 where it is said to have been built by ‘Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD’. While Nimrod may have hunted animals he likely hunted men, too. He is closely connected in scripture to Babylon and Assyria, two warring dynasties used by God to scourge Israel. Nineveh was the capital of the Assyrian empire. For power, population and size it was for many years the largest and most important city in the world. It was located on the eastern bank of the Tigris river close to modern-day Mosul in northern Iraq.

Jonah’s experience, in the belly of the fish, was documented for the benefit and instruction of the after-church of Jesus Christ. The prophet recorded how he felt, thought and cried in the throes of his affliction and how the Lord heard him. Jonah also reveals ‘my soul fainted within me’. This is strange language to the ears of many of us. What does it mean when a man’s soul faints within him? Would you know what to do if it happened to you?