July 29, 2024 | Be God's Light
Jonah Flees God and is Swallowed by a Fish
Scripture: Jonah 1-2(NIV)
1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”
3 But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.
4 Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. 5 All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship.
But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. 6 The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.”
7 Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?”
9 He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”
10 This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)
11 The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”
12 “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.”
13 Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. 14 Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.” 15 Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. 16 At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him.
17 Now the Lord provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. 1 From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God. 2 He said:
“In my distress I called to the Lord,
and he answered me.
From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help,
and you listened to my cry.
3 You hurled me into the depths,
into the very heart of the seas,
and the currents swirled about me;
all your waves and breakers
swept over me.
4 I said, ‘I have been banished
from your sight;
yet I will look again
toward your holy temple.’
5 The engulfing waters threatened me,
the deep surrounded me;
seaweed was wrapped around my head.
6 To the roots of the mountains I sank down;
the earth beneath barred me in forever.
But you, Lord my God,
brought my life up from the pit.
7 “When my life was ebbing away,
I remembered you, Lord,
and my prayer rose to you,
to your holy temple.
8 “Those who cling to worthless idols
turn away from God’s love for them.
9 But I, with shouts of grateful praise,
will sacrifice to you.
What I have vowed I will make good.
I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’”
10 And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
Devotional
Jonah was a prophet in the northern kingdom of Israel during the reign of Jeroboam II, who was a spiritually evil but politically powerful king. Jeroboam II expanded the territory of Israel to their original borders, just as Jonah himself had prophesied (2 Kings 14:25).
But farther northeast was the city of Ninevah, the heart of the Assyrian nation. Assyria was going through a period of challenging times, stalling their expansion as a world empire. However, they were a continual menace to Israel. Jonah saw them as a real threat to one day conquer and destroy Israel.
So, when God called Jonah to go northeast and preach to Ninevah, he got on a ship headed due west. Running from God is never a good idea. How did God use a storm, some sailors, and a huge fish to redeem Jonah from his own disobedience? How did God use those three days and nights to change Jonah’s heart?
In Mattew 12:39-40, Jesus said, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”
After Jonah emerged from the fish, he went to Ninevah and led them to repentance. After Jesus came forth from the tomb, He commissioned His followers to make disciples. What other similarities do you see between Jonah and Jesus?
The final words of Jonah’s prayer inside the fish are worth reflecting on. Make them your prayer today:
“Those who cling to worthless idols
turn away from God’s love for them.
But I, with shouts of grateful praise,
will sacrifice to you.
What I have vowed I will make good.
I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’”
Poem
The Runaway Prophet Proverbs
The runaway prophet escaping from God
Will soon realize his folly
The runaway prophet speaking more than he’s told
Will one day be silenced by God
The runaway prophet extolling himself
Will, by God, be kicked in the knee
The runaway prophet out to curse those God loves
Will be swallowed by fish or kicked by an ass
