While there are many important lessons we can learn from this book, the truth that has impacted me the most in recent days is. Lessons from the book of jonah by bob mendelsohn given at lcje 9 august 2012 how many of you would vote for jonah to remain in the bible. The book of jonah started out entertaining, quickly became disturbing, then got even darker, became kind of boring, and wound up to be quite moving. Being a hebrew was a unique thing in the world, for it was at once a nationality, an ethnicity, a religion, and for the true hebrew it also indicated that he was. Here he stands on dry land, a churned up robe, whitewashed from the acid reflux of the. 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 you cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the floods surrounded me. These lessons learned from the book of jonah need to be taught to children of. May 03, 2009 jonah was given the task to work and teach among them. Jonah was the son of amittai, who came from gathhepher in zebulun called gittahhepher in joshua 19. There is also no known author for the book of jonah. It may have been a while since you read the book, but lets remember that a prophet of god should be a man who hears god. He was gods instrument to carry out gods will on earth.
Through some supernatural events, god convinced him to obey and carry out the lords plan. To the contrary, it is an agent of gd, a representative of gds will charged with imbuing sanctity into the mundane and perfecting an imperfect world. Full text in english of the book of jonah my jewish. May 14, 2016 jonah has only four chapters, which makes it easy to outline the book chapterbychapter. Ac 1188 2 but then we find a startling, thoughtprovoking passage in the work called spiritual. The 60 years of micahs prophetic activity lie between those of obadiah and jonah, stretching from 777 b. Jonah went at once to nineveh in accordance with the lords command. Tolkien as the author of the hobbit and the lord of the rings. God directs jonah, jonah disobeys jon 1 god has compassion on jonah jonah 2 jonah preaches to nineveh, nineveh repents jonah 3 god has compassion on nineveh, but jonah does not jonah 4 but it gets more interesting if we look beyond the chapter layer.
A book for jonah alvin independent school district. In a book completed over two centuries earlier, the prophet jonah candidly relates what he personally experienced in connection with his missionary assignment. The book of jonah was written in the fifth century during the postexilic era. Jonah stays 3 days inside the whale and jonah cried out to god. Jonahs story is told in the short just 48 verses but powerful book of jonah. Lessons we can learn from the life of jonah pacific church of. Jonah, however, started out to flee to tarshish from the lords service. What is the lesson to be learned from the story of jonah. Then some of the pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you. Although the book is written in the third person, the traditional view is that jonah is the author of the book, and there is no persuasive reason to theorize about an unknown author. While jonah eventually did what he was asked to do, the book closes with showing jonah as a bitter man. Concern for the salvation of all people, including ones enemies, is the proper attitude for people of god.
To save jonah from death, the lord prepared and sent a great fish to swallow the prophet 1. Jonahs desperation was met with gods answer, and what he prayed evidently made the whale sick, and vomited jonah to dry land. Highlights from the books of obadiah, jonah, and micah. The book of jonah quizzes online, trivia, questions. Listen to chuck swindolls overview of jonah in his audio message from the classic series gods masterwork. The book of jonah is a book of the neviim prophets in the hebrew bible. God used the bottlegourd plant to teach jonah a lesson in mercy 20 god reasoned with jonah, saying that the prophet was feeling sorry over the death of a mere plant that had sprung up overnight, one that jonah neither planted nor caused to grow. It tells of a hebrew prophet named jonah son of amittai who is sent by god to prophesy the destruction of nineveh but tries to escape the divine mission. But he could not understand how god could love even foreign nations who did bad things.
The lord later commanded the fish to vomit the prophet out on dry ground 2. This summary of the book of jonah provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of jonah. Jonah 1 ampc now the word of the lord came to jonah. Jonah, the book of definition and meaning bible dictionary. Im sure youre familiar with the story of jonah and the whale big fish. Jonah, that prophet that tried to run away from god, continues to bring us lessons on obedience, running away from gods commands, a hatred that stops one from sharing the gospel, and many more. Most have never heard about tolkiens academic works and so many people were very surprised to see that the latest new tolkien book was called the legend of sigurd and gudrun and was tolkiens version of the old norse myths. Go at once to nineveh, that great city, and proclaim judgment upon it. The vast majority of commentators and students of the book of jonah still adhere to one of the first three readings or some combination thereof see david kimhi on 1. This little roll of four short chapters has given rise to almost as much discussion and difference of opinion as the first four chapters of genesis. One of the most important lesson from jonah on gods mercy has to do with gods character. Our interpretation, however, explains the plot, the characters, and the dialogue as embodying the primordial struggle between justice and mercy. The book is named after its principal character, whose name means dove.
I have appreciated our recent study in the book of jonah, both in our adult bible fellowships as well as in our childrens sunday school classes. The title of the studysalvation belongs to the lordcomes directly from jonah 2. Jonah 1 ampc now the word of the lord came to jonah bible. The book of jonah is more than just a delightful story for children. H people were curious about dylans favorite activities. The rest, fresh water to your soul, truth preached and disclosed from the most misinterpreted book from the minor prophets. Jonahs preservation in the belly of the fish for 3 days and nights can only be explained as a supernatural miracle. Jonah learned a lesson in mercy at nineveh true faith. The word of the lord came to jonahbecause god had something to say.
Verses 12 this book is a story about god and jonah. It is said to be about the prophet jonah of gathhepher in zebulon, who lived in the eight century during the reign of israels king jeroboam ii. He was the earliest of the prophets and close behind elisha in his place in the old testament. Use a book for jonah and fruit for all to answer questions 2730. The book of jonah is different from other prophetic books, as many have noted. Book of jonah overview insight for living ministries. The purpose of the book of jonah is to show gods people that his plan is exceedingly compassionate god is gracious and exceedingly certain god is sovereign. You will also remember how god provided jonah with a living submarine to get him back where he belonged. Jan 02, 2020 jonah was the son of amittai, who came from gathhepher in zebulun called gittahhepher in joshua 19. The book of jonah preface those of you who are familiar with the story of jonah and the whale know that jonah hopped a ship heading in the opposite direction when god commanded him to go preach to the ninevites. The book of jonah, written primarily in the third person, does not explicitly name the prophet as the author of his own account, but we have no reason to doubt either the inspiration or the historical veracity of the book.
I cried out to the lord because of my affliction, and he answered me. God arranged it that the fish should be there when jonah was cast into the sea. The book of jonah in the old testament is a short book with just four chapters. If i had to mentioned something negative is allocating the footnotes at the end of the chapter, which forces you to go back and forth all the time. To explore the relationship between mercy and justice category three has been, by far, the most popular option among interpreters of the book, and. The lord prepared a great fish to swallow jonah as soon as he plunged beneath the sea.
Let me share with you seven great lessons from the book of jonah. The others are about what god taught the people through the prophet and jonah is more about what the prophet himself is being taught. Apocalypse explained ae 538 11 particulars in the book of jonah are historical, and yet prophetical, involving and representing such arcana, as do all the other historicals of the word. When we practice true faith, we display gods character for everyone. Jonah started out and made his way into the city the distance of one days walk, and proclaimed. Unlike other old testament prophetic books, jonah is not a collection of the prophets oracles but primarily a narrative about the man. Our online the book of jonah trivia quizzes can be adapted to suit your requirements for taking some of the top the book of jonah quizzes.
But jonah rose up to flee unto tarshish from the presence of the lord, and went down to joppa. Jesus declared that the men of nineveh repented at the preaching of jonah mt. What is the lesson to be learned from the story of jonah and. It is an important book to both religious traditions christianity and jewish. The rest, fresh water to your soul, truth preached and disclosed from the. He went down to joppa and found a ship going to tarshish. Instead of making excuses, use your talents to fulfill gods mission. I am drawn to the book of jonah not only because i.
Nineveh was an enormously large city a three days walk across. Like jonah, we take this perceived distance as an indication that we have somehow been dismissed from our mission. Lessons learned from the prophet jonah sermon by danny moss. The holy bible book 44 acts kjv dramatized audio duration. In this final study of the book of jonah, you will learn what the book of jonah is all about. Set in the reign of jeroboam ii 786746 bc, it was probably written in the postexilic period, some time between the late 5th to early 4th century bc. God has something to say to you, but you have to make yourself available to receive it. The short book of jonah tells the story of the prophet jonah who refused to. Book of jonah, the fifth of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, embraced in a single book, the twelve, in the jewish canon.
Ac 1188 2 but then we find a startling, thoughtprovoking passage in. Jonah 1 kjv now the word of the lord came unto bible. It is less known that tolkien was actually an oxford professor and a philologist. It would be presumptuous to think that one could, in a brief article, speak the final word on the questions in debate. Full text in english of the book of jonah my jewish learning. The book of jonah was likely written between 793 and 758 b. Jan 01, 2005 this book is austin for all believers. The issue is complicated somewhat by the use of the. The book of jonah emphasizes gods control over nature as well.
When the walled city was first excavated, it was found to be less than nine miles in. Thus, repentance is not, as some allege, a mere sorrow for sin. Jonah is identified as a prophet and servant of god during the reign of king jeroboam ii of israel 2 kings 14. T he book of jonah is an old testament story which tells about how the prophet jonah refused to follow the lord. Jonah was already a successful prophet when the events of this book took place ii kings 14. A lesson from jonah that we can all learn new life. Too, somehow or another the citizens of nineveh had learned of the prophets. Jonah has only four chapters, which makes it easy to outline the book chapterbychapter. Out of the belly of sheol i cried, and you heard my voice. A comprehensive database of the book of jonah quizzes online, test your knowledge with the book of jonah quiz questions.
Here are 10 valuable lessons gleaned from jonahs encounter with the great fish and the. If you have ten or fifteen minutes, stop and read it through. It is believed to be reflective of the yahwist or jahwist tradition. It is the story of a man who throws everything away because of visions he develops, and a woman who has everything taken from. Lessons learned from the prophet jonah sermon by danny. And, after we come to god in faith, he is not finished with us. Jonah, that prophet that tried to run away from god, continues to bring us lessons on obedience, running away from gods commands, a hatred that stops one from sharing the. I dont know about you, but when i read a book in the bible, study a book or study a specific chapter of one of the books, the first question i ask is. Being a hebrew was a unique thing in the world, for it was at once a nationality, an ethnicity, a religion, and for the true hebrew it also indicated that he was a child of god rom. I have learned 5 keys from the life of jonah that i want to share with you. All of nature obeys god in this book but a prophet of god does not. Jonah understands the lords character, his merciful history. Although the author of jonah is never identified in the book itself, jonah himself has traditionally been identified as the author. The book begins with god telling jonah to go to the great city of nineveh.
Gods ministry to jonah chapter 4 the bible exposition commentary, cook communications, colorado springs, 2002, p. A storm is an opportunity to witness about gods love. When the men threw jonah overboard, the lord sent the calm 1. It is one of trei asar the twelve prophets in the tanakh, and in christian tradition as oi dodeka prophetai or ton dodekapropheton, greek for the twelve prophets. When god calls abraham to offer his son isaac as a sacrifice, abraham gets up early in the morning and goes, but when god calls jonah, jonah runs away. He knows the lord has been faithful to the israelites and to him as an individual. The soul does not escape gd by coming down to this earth. God thought otherwise and even showed, via big fish, the entrance to gehennah temporary place to purge oneself of you missing the mark before you can go further spiritually. The book of jonah is the fifth book in the christian canons and the jewish tanakh. It is the story of a man who throws everything away because of visions he develops, and a woman who has everything taken from her, turning her into a shell of a person.
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