“I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land.”

Jonah 1:9 (KJV)

The story

The book opens with a commission and an immediate refusal. Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me. But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He is a prophet, so he is not confused about what he was told. He went down to Joppa, found a ship, paid the fare thereof, and went down into it. The direction of travel is stated three times as downward, and the destination is named twice as away from the presence of the LORD. Jonah 1:1-3

But the LORD sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken. The disobedience does not stay private. The mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea. These pagan sailors are praying and sacrificing their livelihood while the prophet is gone down into the sides of the ship, and lay, and was fast asleep. The shipmaster has to rebuke him: What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not. Jonah 1:4-6

They cast lots to know for whose cause this evil is upon us, and the lot fell upon Jonah. Under questioning about his occupation, country, and people, Jonah gives an answer that is entirely orthodox and completely at odds with his behaviour: I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land. He confesses God as maker of the very sea he is trying to use as an escape route. The men were exceedingly afraid, and asked, Why hast thou done this? because he had already told them he fled from the presence of the LORD. Jonah 1:7-10

Jonah's solution is honest and bleak: Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you. He would rather drown than preach to Nineveh. The sailors refuse to take him at his word and row hard to bring the ship to land, but they could not: for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them. Only then do they cry unto the LORD, We beseech thee, O LORD, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood, before casting him out. The sea ceased from her raging, and the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the LORD, and made vows. Jonah 1:11-16

Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. The fish is rescue, not punishment: it arrives after the water closes over a man who chose the sea over obedience. Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights, and there he prayed. His prayer describes drowning in vivid terms, the floods compassed me about, the weeds were wrapped about my head, I went down to the bottoms of the mountains, and turns on a memory: When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD. He ends with a confession that is the theme of the whole book, Salvation is of the LORD. And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land. Jonah 1:17-2:10

Quiz

1. What was Jonah commissioned to do?

   • To go to Nineveh and cry against it
   • To warn Israel of famine
   • To anoint a king
   • To rebuild the temple

2. What phrase describes what Jonah was fleeing from?

   • The word of the prophets
   • The presence of the LORD
   • The armies of Assyria
   • The famine in the land

3. What did the mariners do that Jonah did not?

   • Slept below deck
   • Steered for Tarshish
   • Cried every man unto his god
   • Cast lots twice

4. What did the shipmaster call Jonah when he found him?

   • O sleeper
   • O traitor
   • O Hebrew
   • O coward

5. What was the purpose of casting lots?

   • To choose a new captain
   • To know for whose cause this evil was upon them
   • To divide the cargo
   • To decide the course

6. What is striking about Jonah's confession in verse 9?

   • He denies being a prophet
   • He claims a different God
   • He confesses the LORD as maker of the very sea he is fleeing across
   • He refuses to answer

7. What did Jonah tell the sailors to do, and why?

   • Cast him into the sea, for the tempest was for his sake
   • Sail on to Tarshish
   • Return to Joppa
   • Wait for the storm to pass

8. What did the sailors attempt before obeying Jonah's instruction?

   • They threw the mast overboard
   • They rowed hard to bring the ship to land
   • They bound Jonah
   • They cast lots again

9. How did the mariners respond after the sea was calm?

   • They resumed the voyage at once
   • They mourned Jonah
   • They feared the LORD exceedingly, sacrificed, and made vows
   • They returned home

10. What does the text say the LORD had prepared?

    • A great fish to swallow up Jonah
    • A ship to carry him back
    • A wind to drive the ship
    • A place on the shore

11. What does Jonah say happened when his soul fainted within him?

    • He despaired
    • He remembered the LORD
    • He slept
    • He cursed the day

12. How does Jonah's prayer conclude?

    • Let me see the temple again
    • Deliver me from the deep
    • Salvation is of the LORD
    • I have sinned greatly

Discussion

1. Jonah's theology is flawless and his obedience is absent. He confesses God as maker of the sea while using that sea to escape him. Where is the gap widest between what you would say you believe and what your decisions actually assume?
2. Pagan sailors pray, sacrifice, and try to spare a man's life while the prophet sleeps through the storm he caused. What does it mean when people outside the faith behave better than those inside it, and how should that land rather than being explained away?
3. The great fish is not the punishment; the sea was. Jonah asked to be thrown overboard and God sent rescue into the consequence rather than removing it. Where might God be meeting you inside a consequence rather than lifting you out of it?
4. Jonah remembered the LORD only when his soul fainted within him. Is there a way to build remembering into ordinary life so that it is not reserved for the bottom of the sea?