Christian Counseling Service -- Devotions

Jonah in the belly

Wednesday, February 20, 2002

Genesis 2:7-9, 3:1-7
Then 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 obeyed the word of the LORD and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very important city--a visit required three days.
On the first day, Jonah started into the city. He proclaimed: "Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned." The Ninevites believed God. They declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.
When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.
Then he issued a proclamation in Nineveh:

"By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let any man or beast, herd or flock, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish."

When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened.

Jonah's story is one of the very best ever told. The four chapters of this short book cut and weave through the relationship God builds with Jonah, highlighting Jonah's stubbornness, his high morality, his anger with God, especially his relationship with God. The thousands in Nineveh are, in a sense, merely foils for the story of Jonah's awakening recognition that God is bigger than, well...bigger than the belly of a whale. Certainly bigger than Jonah, or Jonah's perspective, or Jonah's attitude, or Jonah's beliefs, or Jonah's goals.

On the other hand, Jonah's presence and his words carried some heavy weight. When he spoke before the city council, hot light of publicity on his face, the people listened. Having breakfast with my friend Roy this morning in downtown Urbana, it was impossible to imagine Jonah's unconditional acceptance in our town hall by our city council, by our mayor.

What made Jonah's words so strong? He had just been spit out of the mouth of a great fish. God took him through an adventure that scared him, nearly killed him, sharpened his awareness of his own rebellious spirit. He had absolutely nothing to lose as he walked at high noon into the sin city.

Something about Jonah gave the Ninevites a clear impression that God was speaking. It was God whom they believed, God for whom they declared a fast, God for whom they put on sackcloth and challenged their addiction to sex, violence and adrenalin. Jonah spoke, but his words flowed out of the mouth of God.

In chapter four Jonah continues his joust with God. And the story ends with him (God) getting the last word. However, his last word is a question. And I have the feeling that Jonah, fresh from the ocean, fresh from the city council, will find an answer. I get the feeling that Jonah kind of enjoys these discussions with his Father, alone together out there in the desert sun.

God, there is nothing predictable about you. Not for me. You will put me where you want me when you want to. I can say no to your requests, and it will be very interesting to see what happens next. I'm just glad you're my father and my friend, and not my enemy.

P.S. Apropos of nothing, tonight at halftime of the Illinois-Penn State game, at 8:02 pm, the time and date, put as it would be put in the European military, was

20:02, 20 02, 2002.

That kind of palindromic symmetry has only occurred once before, at

10:10 am on October 10, 1001.

And it will never happen again.

Thanks to Terri Ayers for this fascinating fact.

Devotions Archive

Jonah in the belly

Wednesday, February 20, 2002