• Session 6: About Face (3:5–10)

    •

    • Opening Prayer

    Father, Son and Holy Spirit, like Jonah and the Ninevites our lives are marred by sin and there is so much to lament. We have not loved you with our whole heart as evidenced by our lack of zeal to study your Word. We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves as evidenced by our greed and lack of concern for the lost. As we read about the remarkable repentance of the Ninevites lead us not only to confess our sin but to change our rebellious ways and so live more fully in accord with your holy will. We pray through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

    Synopsis of Theme

    Repentance doesn’t mean saying sorry and continuing down the same path. It involves a total “about face” where there is not only sorrow over sin but a change in attitude, priorities, and lifestyle. We see this sort of about-face change when Jonah confronts the Ninevites with God’s word. They recognize their evil, repent, and believe. This “about-face” is nothing less than miraculous for with God all things are possible (Mt 19:26; Mk 10:27)!

    Topic for Sharing/Ice Breaker

    Has anything dramatic happened to you that changed your life?

    Questions: Text

    Read Jonah 3:5–10

    How did the Ninevites respond to Jonah’s preaching? How did the king respond?

  • v Jonah 3:5 states they “believed in God”, a statement that was also made of Abraham (Gen 15:6) and the Israelites after they crossed the Red Sea (Ex 14:31). Jonah’s preaching brought the Ninevites to saving faith in Yahweh (cf. Mt 12:41), just as Jonah’s confession of Yahweh in 1:9 was embraced by sailors for their salvation (see 1:16). The king also responds in faith and issues a royal decree reinforcing the people’s repentance (3:7–9). The contrast with Jonah’s reply to Yahweh’s call couldn’t be stronger. The Israelite fled and then drug his feet to Nineveh, but the Gentiles immediately repent!

    • Why is it significant that the Ninevites called for a fast?

  • v The voluntary fasting began before the king commands it (3:5, 7); it shows the genuineness of their repentance. The garments used indicate humiliation, mourning, and repentance (cf. 2 Sam 3:31; Neh 9:1; Ps 30:11). In addition to their outward acts of repentance (fasting and sackcloth), they are also commanded to engage in an inward response of vigorous prayer (3:8).

    What is remarkable about the fasting of the Ninevites?

    Not only the king, but all the people and even their livestock put on sackcloth and fast (3:5–8). This repentance exceeds any recorded for Israel. Luther writes, “I am tempted to say that no apostle or prophet, not even Christ Himself, performed and accomplished with a single sermon the great things Jonah did. His conversion of the city of Nineveh with one sermon is surely as great a miracle as his rescue from the belly of the whale, if not an even greater one” (AE 19:37).

    •

    How did the Ninevites expect God to respond to their repentance?

  • v The king’s question, “who knows?” (3:9) expresses his humility over whether their repentance will move God to turn away from his righteous judgment. The ship’s captain in Jonah 1:6 expresses this same meekness. Contrast these submissive Gentiles with Jonah’s pouting pride that accompanies him throughout the book!

    • Questions: Context

    How do kings in the Old Testament typically respond to Israelite prophets? Consider the following examples.

    Jer 36:23–24

  • v These verses demonstrate the typical response of kings to prophets who are often passively indifference or openly hostile.
    •

    Is 10:5–34; 36:1–20

  • v The Assyrian kings are arrogant, boasting monarchs who not only defy Yahweh and threaten Jerusalem but also argue that their power is greater than Yahweh’s because they have been able to defeat the gods of other nations.
    •

    Heb 11:37

  • v This is a summary statement of the treatment of Israelite prophets at the hands of kings.
    •

    How does the response of Nineveh’s king to Jonah’s preaching compare/contrast with Jonah’s response to Yahweh’s Word (cf. 1:2–3;4:1-3; 4:8)?

  • v Jonah’s response to Yahweh’s word was to arise and flee in the other direction (1:2-3). But when the word came to the king, he responded faithfully: he arose and commanded that the people call to God in fervent prayer. These two actions (“arise” and “call”) are precisely what the ship’s captain unsuccessfully attempted to persuade Jonah to do in 1:6: “Arise, call to your God.” The Israelite prophet rebels, but pagan sailors and Ninevites repent, believe in Yahweh, and are saved. This contrast between the “outsiders” and “insiders” is a prominent theme that acts as a unifying thread knitting together the four chapters in the Book of Jonah. The elder brother in Luke 15:11–32 reflects the prophet’s same attitude. Jesus’ parable of the workers in the vineyard hammers home this truth. The generous owner asks the workers who are growling at grace bestowed on others: “Is your eye evil because I am good?”—“Do you begrudge my generosity?” (Mt 20:15). Likewise the “unmerciful servant” portrays the heart of Jonah. Having been forgiven a great debt, he cannot forgive his servant a lesser debt (Mt 18:23–35). In the parable of the Pharisee and tax collector at prayer the Pharisee is acutely aware of his own spiritual stature but is dismissive of the tax collector’s humble penitence (Lk 18:9–14). In the Book of Jonah, as well as in several passages in the New Testament, outsiders become insiders while insiders become outsiders! Jesus puts it this way: “the first will be last and the last first” (e.g., Mk 10:31).

    • Where in Jonah and elsewhere in the Bible do we see evidence of God’s care for animals?

  • Yahweh assigned a fish a great responsibility in 1:17, 2:10. Jonah 4:11 also states his care for animals. God’s creation of animals in Genesis 1–2 indicates his compassion for them. This is further demonstration in his preservation of animals from the flood by means of the ark (Gen 6:18–20) and his covenant with Noah that included all living creatures (Gen 9:8–17). Similar care is expressed in Deut 22:6–7. Is 11:6–8 and 65:25 include animals in visions of the restored creation.
    •

    Questions: Discussion/Application

    Why do some respond to the Word of God in faith and are saved while others who may hear the same Word disbelieve and perish eternally?

  • This is the mystery of election. If we believe it is by God’s grace (Eph 2:9); if we do not believe we can only blame ourselves, not God. Jesus’ atoning sacrifice was for all people (2 Cor 5:19; Heb 2:9; 1 Jn 2:2). What is certain is that it is God who moves people to repentance and faith, and he does this through his Holy Spirit, who works through his Word (1 Cor 12:3). Jonah’s preaching moved the Ninevites to believe in God. However rudimentary their faith may have been, they were saved by the power of the Gospel which comes in the word “forty” in Jonah’s sermon (3:4). “Forty” almost always indicates a new beginning (e.g., Gen 8:6; Ex 34:28; Deut 8:2; 1 Ki 19:8; Mt 4:2; Acts 1:3).

    • What is the source of God’s forgiveness? It is our repentance?

  • The forgiveness of sins is not grounded in human repentance but rather in God’s attributes of mercy and compassion (Jonah 4:2). These are ultimately rooted in the atonement of Jesus Christ. “He himself will save his people from their sins” (Mt 1:21). Christ is the source of the grace shown to Old Testament believers just as surely as he is the fount of grace for New Testament believers.
    •

    Jonah 3:10 states that God “changed his mind” concerning Nineveh. Does God change in an unpredictable and capricious manner?

  • · Yahweh is consistent, not capricious, but neither is he static or an impersonal force. Because he is in a living and dynamic relationship with people, he often acts in response to human action. This is one reason prayers are effective. They do not fall on the ears of a deity who has already made up his mind (cf. Is 38:1–5). His mercy may give way to judgment because of human sin (see Gen 6:5–7), but he may also change from judgment to grace when his people repent, as he does in Jonah 3:10. There are certain decisions that God will never revoke (Num 23:19, 1 Sam 15:29), which concern his unconditional promises to Abraham and David and serve as the foundation for the New Testament proclamation of Jesus (Lk 1:54–55; 2:4; Gal 3:29). God’s attributes are unchanging (love, omniscience, omnipresence, eternal nature, and the life), yet in response to our actions and needs, he may change his course.

    • Closing Prayer

    Heavenly Father, despite our tendency to be just like Jonah, you show us the same compassion extended to the pagan sailors, Nineveh, and even to your prodigal prophet. Help us to be more like the sailors and Ninevites who responded in humble faith to your Word, that we would not merely be those who hear your Word, but those who put our faith into action. Use the truth and wisdom you have given us in this book to all-the-more joyfully point people to the one who is greater than Jonah, Jesus Christ our Lord. In his name we pray. Amen.