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Lesson 1 Jonah 1:1-3
Here we have a most tremendous factual account of the servant of the Lord and the Lord Himself. The book begins abruptly with Vv.1. We have here the commission (to be sent) and the message (words of life). Vv.1—“The word of the Lord came unto Jonah…” The word of the Lord always comes down to a person. A person never goes to the Lord’s Word first. He always comes to you first (Jn.4:44). The Lord draws people unto Himself. Jesus Christ, the Son of God came down from Heaven to this earth (Jn.3:1,2) ‘Come from God’. (Jn.1:14) ‘The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.’ God always makes the ‘first move’. And it has to be that way, for the lost would never turn unto the Lord. We didn’t dwell with the Word. The Word didn’t behold our glory. Jonah wouldn’t have gone unto Nineveh voluntarily (he didn’t even go the 1st time God sent him). He must call them unto Him and He does so by His Word. That was why the Word of the Lord was sent unto Jonah to be taken unto Nineveh. Jonah: was a prophet of the Lord. He was a servant of the Holy One of Israel. But not only the Holy one of Israel, He was Jehovah-Heleyon (the Lord Most High) He was the God of Heaven and earth and should be followed and obeyed by all, especially His stewards. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if all of God’s people would listen to Him the first time HE spoke? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if God didn’t have to repeat Himself to His people? I pray that I would not cause God to be repetitive in His will for me. Jonah seems to be a very lazy servant of God and yet we must not judge Jonah, but learn from him. Let us not be so callous with our stewardship as he was. But let us be ready to serve our Lord, crying out, “Lord, here am I; send me” (Isa.6:8). Jonah was given a Divine Order. We are not told how it came whether it was a dream, a vision, an audible voice; we do not know. What we do know is that the Lord called unto Him with a righteous and sovereign call; and Jonah was expected to obey the voice of the Lord. God calls unto His people with a righteous and sovereign call today. And it is not heeded to either. No wonder the world is in such a terrible condition; God’s people aren’t doing their work. They aren’t taking His Word to the lost; the Word to ”repent or perish”. Jonah: A 3 fold type of the Lord Jesus Christ: 1.) The name means “Dove”. Dove is a symbol of peace, mildness, & harmlessness. The dove brought the good news of deliverance from the flood of waters (Gen.8:8-11). The good news is the Gospel: the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. This was the good news that Jonah was to take unto the citizens of Nineveh; that is if the repent they will be saved; if not they shall perish. 2.) Dove Used in Service of God: The dove was also used in the offerings of Israel. God made provision for all people. The dove was the cheapest and most commonest of all the animals and He allowed those who were of the poorer sort to use them in the sacrifices (Lev.5:7). It all speaks of the One of whom Jonah was a type. Jesus came to preach deliverance to the captives and the gospel to the poor. He was born in poverty for when His mother Mary brought her sacrifice for Him, she brought the “poor man’s offering” (Lk.2:22-24). The very name Jonah gives us the key to the book. It is the picture of the lowly Jesus who for our sakes became poor, that we through His poverty might be rich. 3.) Amittai: Jonah’s dad. His name means ‘Truth’. Jonah was the son of truth. He prophesized of the One whom is called Truth Himself. (Jn.14:6). So we have here that the Word of the Lord came unto Jonah. Now what did it say? Vv.2—‘Arise’ “Attention, or awake, behold, I have a task for you”, says the Lord. Now there is nothing wrong with God’s people waiting for Him to send you, but we must do the work of the Lord while we wait. Jonah was sitting there while the unregenerate died in their sins. Let us not stand by and watch the lost continue down the path of sin, but let us show unto them their need of a Saviour (Eph.5:14-17; Rom.13:11,12). Suppose that Jesus had been asleep and had not gone to the cross to pay for our sins. We would still be in the bondage of sin this day. And there would be a lot of angry people. We ought not to sleep for the Lord has given us a job to do. The Lord is NOT pleased with His people who won’t work for Him. Vv.2-“Arise, go to Nineveh,” God commissions, charges, entrusts a mission unto Jonah. He tells Him to go unto them and tell them of their doom. The Lord Jesus Christ, has entrusted us on a mission as well. (Jn.20:21). We ought not to strive against the Lord by not following what He has called us to do, but we ought to heed unto His will for our lives. Let us not go unto Tarshish to flee from the presence of God, but let us go w/ God speed unto Nineveh and preach repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Vv.2-“Nineveh, that great city,” Nineveh: that great city. It was situated on the Tigris River. Had an ancient history. Many thousands of citizens; had magnitude of population, splendor, power, but all that was undone by its forget fullness of God. While many basked at the greatness the glory of Nineveh (this was a city 60 miles in circumference, walls 100ft. high & wide enough to draw 3 chariots abreast on top, many distinguished people there.) But the thing that distinguished it in God’s eyes was its terrible sin; God noticed its sin. Their wickedness was a foul stench unto the Lord. 100ft. walls couldn’t hide the repugnance of sin. A vile odor came up from the city into the nostrils of God. Acts.10:1-4à quite the difference in what a devout man, one that feared God sends unto the Lord. The leaders weren’t concerned with the spiritual condition of Nineveh. They were only concerned with its prosperity in carnal things. They had forgotten or left off God. Let it be known that God knows who it is that has forgotten Him, whether it is a nation or an individual; God knows. How can a city sin? The whole of Sodom and Gomorrah was given over to adultery and fornication. Do not we read how that the whole of Israel sinned against the Lord in the book of Judges? This is the problem today. That men in offices do not care about what God says. We put people in office who are not listening to God. We must pray for our leaders that God would use them as He sees fit and turn their hearts as rivers of water (Prov.21:1). There may not be many who are running for office that are godly men, but we can pray, and must pray that God will save them and use them as He sees fit (1Tim.2:1-4). It is a scary thought to think of having a leader who knows not the Lord nor listens to Him. But thanks be to God that the Lord is the King of His Kingdom. The Message: The Lord told Jonah to cry against it [Nineveh]. Jonah.1:2; 3:2,4. “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.” This was the word that the Lord sent Jonah to preach. The Lord Jesus has called us to preach unto the world as well. (Matt.28:18-20). Let us preach and pray that their would be acceptance of the Word of God; giving thanks and praise unto the Lord for it. Vv.3-“But Jonah” Jonah arose, but not to obey the Lord. I wish that God’s people would obey Him just as quickly as we disobey Him. Jonah sought to flee from the presence of the Lord. This is an impossibility (Psa.139:7-16). Jonah was backslidden. He was blinded by sin. This caused him to think that He could hide from the All-Seeing God. Jonah did act like a sinner who thinks that he has hidden his wicked ways from the Lord. His disobedience unto the Lord twisted his judgment and blinded his eyes into imagining that he could get away with it. However, for every but (Jonah’s will) that man has God has an even greater one of His own. “And went DOWN to Joppa” The path of disobedience always goes down. Judg.14:1-3. There is no standing still in the path of disobedience. You either stop and return to the Lord or go down and down. This is what Jonah did. Jonah goes even ‘deeper’ in disobedience, apathy, & in-difference to the Word of the Lord. Joppa: was a very large port. There he finds a ship to go to Tarshish. Isn’t it amazing that the path to disobedience is so easily found? So simply provided for by the Devil. Satan says, why do the rough work of the Lord, when you can travel on “easy street”? Notice how that Jonah had enough money to pay for the trip to Tarshish. Every thing was supplied for him to disobey God. And that is true today. We need to resist the simple sinful way and follow after the Lord. After all, “For my yoke is easy, and my burden light” Matt.11:30. “From the presence of the Lord” Jonah knew where he was going and where he wasn’t going. The Lord was leading to Nineveh. Jehovah-Rohi (The Lord is my Shepherd) was leading to Nineveh. Jehovah-Jireh (God will provide) was providing Jonah a passage to Nineveh Jehovah-Shammah (The Lord is there) was in Nineveh. God wasn’t going to Tarshish. Not one time did the Lord tell Jonah to go to Tarshish. And Jonah was NOT taking the scenic view, or the long way. He was blatantly fleeing from the Lord and the duty of his calling. When God wants you to contact some soul, make some call, do some service for Him, how easy it is for us to excuse ourselves. The devil always makes it easy for us to excuse ourselves. But there is no excuse for disobeying the Lord; Jonah had an excuse (Jonah.4:2). His excuse was that He knew God was a gracious God and one that would forgive those who repent of their sins. Thank God that He is that kind of God. Jonah who had been touched by the merciful hand of God was now repining and complaining at it. There is to be rejoicing when true repentance is made toward God, not complaining. This was Jonah’s excuse. There is no excuse for disobeying God; whether it is a sin of omission or a sin of commission; a sin is a sin. What a price Jonah paid for his sin against God: 1) He refused to do what he knew to be the will of God. 2) He dishonored his own high calling. He was God’s prophet and was to speak for him, not for self. 3) Jonah stood in the way of God’s mercy toward sinners and saving a city. 4) He made a spectacle of himself before the world. 5) Brought himself and others into great danger. 6) He gave way to a bad temper and willful disposition. 7) Found nothing good, noble or worthy in rebelling. 8) He missed all the joy of knowing that he was doing God’s will. 9) He placed a blemish on his own good name forever (Eccl.7:1). Satan himself sees that the way opposite from God is an easy way. He provides ‘ships to Tarshish’ in our lives. Let us follow the Lord where He leads, not where we decide to go. Ezek.3:17-21—God calls us to do something. Let us do it and please Him. Let us publish the word of God throughout this community and the communities in which we live as God has called us and saved us to do. “Work for the night is coming, when man’s work is done.”
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