Jonah 4

 

Jonah 4 

Jonah angrily leaves the city and sits outside of the city at a distance, waiting on its fate.  Nineveh was an evil city filled with evil people. When we think someone deserves the fierce anger of God because of valid reasoning, we subtly anticipate destruction upon them.  For example, if a woman has been abused by her husband, and he faces trauma in his life, you may think it is the result of his previous abusive behavior.  God does not condone this thought process. We are all guilty of the wrath of God.  Yes, you would like the person who caused you harm to stop and learn from his bad behavior, but to wait for someone to die because of the wrong they've done is evil.   Any sin deserves death.

Jonah told God that it would be better if he were dead than to see him let Nineveh get away with the evil they were known for.

God asked Jonah, do you have the right to feel this way?

 As I said previously, Jonah then left the city and went outside of the city.  While waiting on what he'd hoped to be Nineveh's destruction, God allowed shade from a plant to cool Jonah off while he sat in a booth he made for himself.  Jonah felt the grace of God and loved how God paid attention to his desire.  Jonah may have thought he and God were so close that he deserved a favor like this, all while he waited to see the doom of Nineveh.  Jonah fell asleep, and God allowed a worm to eat the plant that made Jonah cool.

Jonah became extremely angry. This made Jonah angry at the worm because he destroyed the favor of God that covered him from the heat. Jonah was not aware it was God who allowed both things to occur to teach Jonah about his own behavior.  When we see the good nuggets from God, we feel special; but when God has a checkpoint for us to examine ourselves,  He will remove what we enjoy to get our attention.

Jonah left the city to wait for its destruction.  His thoughts were evil, but he thought he was secure.  God told Jonah to preach, and Jonah did that.  But, he did not expect Nineveh to change.  He judged Nineveh by thinking they were too far evil to change.  Nineveh changed, and it pleased God enough to forgive that city.

God explained the lesson behind the plant and worm.  He explained to Jonah that he cared more about a worm eating a plant than he did for 120 thousand people who repented.

I ask myself, am I so engulfed with the cares of this life that I put things above the people God has allowed me to speak to?