Hear Yahweh’s Call to Just Say the Word :: Jonah 3

Then the Word of Yahweh came to Jonah a second time, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, the city, the great one, and call out the proclamation that I speak to you (v 2).

Jonah tried to go it alone. He tried to go his own way. He tried to silence God’s calling. He tried to pursue life apart from God. He tried to give up. He tried to die. He seemingly tried everything to avoid doing what he was called to do. As unwilling as he was ... as unwilling as any of us can be to proclaim the Word of Yahweh that we are called to proclaim ... God Almighty wins the day ... with just five Words ... eight if you want them in English. 

Proclaim the word I give to you, Yahweh is saying.

Don’t be anxious. Proclaim the Word. Have Faith. Proclaim the Word ... in season and out of season. Reprove, rebuke, exhort. Proclaim the word! It will achieve my purpose. 

NOW WON’T YOU JUST PROCLAIM THE WORD, TOO?

I.

Jonah, the son of Amittai, had been commissioned by God to Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it (1:2). Instead, Jonah arose and ran away ... as far away as he could. Tarshish ... any one?

I suppose you can’t blame him. Pick someone who really deserves to get what’s coming to him ... pick people who not only are unrepentant but are proud of their immorality ... rebellion ... perversity ... then, multiply all the people of Saint Clair County by 12 ... and there you have Nineveh. 

So Yahweh Elohim called Jonah. Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me (1:2). 

I suppose you can sympathize with Jonah for not wanting to go the first time ... for returning the call. The Mediterranean sounds pretty posh this time of year. 

How can I preach to those people in Nineveh, we ask? 

How can I preach to people who embrace transgenderism? They don’t deserve God’s gifts.

Why should I serve abortionists? 

There are greener pastures, aren’t there? 

II.

You know the narrative. Jonah bought his ticket for Tarshish and set sail away from God, on the sea. In short order, a fierce storm swelled up around him, and the sailors of his ship thought they were goners. They cried out to their own gods to no avail. And then they confronted the one who had been called and ordained by the true God. 

As one of my pastors once told me in my preparation for seminary, you will either embrace this life or run away screaming. Jonah wanted to run away screaming. He wanted to die. 

Just throw me into the sea, he said. So the sailors finally did, and the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah. Then after writing his great hymn of praise and being vomited out onto dry land, Jonah arose with new life ... an image of baptism? ... and he went to Nineveh resolving himself to declare what God had told him to say. 

The rest is magnificent history. This is where our reading picks up.

So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the Word of Yahweh. Now Nineveh was a great city for God, a three-day walk. And Jonah began to go a day’s journey in the city. And he called out, Yet forty days, and Nineveh will be overturned (vv 3-4). 

There’s the eight words, five if you count them in Hebrew. It is true that this verb נֶהְפָּֽכֶת (neh.pa.ket) could mean overthrown ... as if Jonah is declaring only judgment. Jonah may very well have relished that idea as he indicates in chapter 4 ... but the verb הְפָּֽכֶת (neh.pa.ket) also describes God’s actions in turning ... changing ... the hearts of men ... to bring about his will. 

Just say the word.

Are you a prodigal son, too ... who had your heart changed to sing ... Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me? 

Are you like Andrew and Simon, James and John ... who at the simple word of Christ immediately dropped their nets, left their families, and were led into changing their way of life for the good of God’s people? 

Brothers, sometimes God’s love for the loveless is nothing short of shocking. Sometimes he uses men who feel unworthy and unprepared … pastors anyone? … to call the most vile, reprehensible people … and yes, even the everyday sinner alike who misses the mark … to repentance. Just say the word.

And the people of Nineveh believed in “The God” ... that is, The One True God ... The Only God ... the one Jonah was preaching. And God saved them that day ... if only for one hundred years ... so that the Assyrians could do the work God had prepared beforehand for them.

When Jonah just said the Word, an entire city immediately repented as “The God” ... literally ... of heaven and earth drew near. They heard the Word of Yahweh. And they believed. And they repented. And they were saved.

As Paul so often reminds us, God desires all men to be saved. We don’t always understand how, or why, or when, or where. But when they heard the Law, they recognized their sin and their need for a savior. They were cut to the heart for all the evil they were doing. And when they heard the Gospel, they began trusting in Yahweh. 

Then the people of Nineveh called a fast and clothed themselves in sackcloth, from the greatest to the least. The Word touched the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne and he passed by his robe, and covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes (vv 5b-6). And he issued a proclamation. 

They didn’t necessarily understand how, or when, or where, or why. Who knows, the king said. But when God saw how they turned from their evil way, he relented (3:10). 

III.

This is the message of Jonah. The one true God longs to save. 

Brothers, we are surrounded by stubborn, rebellious people. So say the Word. They need to hear the Word of Christ crucified, buried, and risen. The spiritual but not religious crowd is now the largest denomination in our own backyard. They outnumber the Catholics. The nones are among your family and neighbors. Their numbers are growing at an alarming rate because they have stopped hearing the Gospel. How much longer will it be before the Way of the Circuit Rider returns to Missouri? 

It can be discouraging. It is amazing how powerful God’s Word truly is. 

As God spared Nineveh when they all turned in repentance, so he is ready and eager to show mercy to all who lay aside their obstinate, rebellious nature on account of Jesus Christ and him crucified, buried, and risen. For sinners who repent ... that is who mourn their sin and trust in our savior ... God’s verdict of condemnation changes from judgment to salvation. 

On the cross Jesus suffered the entirety of God’s wrath for sin. On the cross Jesus shed his blood. On the cross Jesus died. There is no forgiveness without the shedding of blood. But thanks be to God, Jesus ... who was born without sin, and lived without sin ... did exactly that ... He died on a cross for your sin. Thus, the wrath of God has been averted once again from all hear and believe this Word of Yahweh. 

God has changed his verdict for all in Christ ... so that we will not perish (v 9). And because he is just and the justifier of those who have faith in Jesus ... God has raised Jesus from the dead. And that he is risen! He is risen indeed! Hallelujah! 

Brothers, you know this word. It is near you ... in your mouth and in your heart, that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim. As we heard in our epistle reading from 2 Peter 1, His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world.

It is a beautiful Gospel. So arise and just say the Word God has given you! 

You will not be put to shame (Rom 10:11) ... in Jesus’ name.