Jonah 1

 

Devotional Commentary on Jonah 1

 

Jo-Ann Davidson wrote the Sabbath School Quarterly on Jonah in 2003. She actually spelled out something in detail in the final chapter that she did not say in the beginning. It is no error to her great work. She said about the content of the book: “In contrast, most of the book of Jonah deals with him, personally, while the message itself consists of less than ten words” (Davidson 2003: 7). Actually, her last chapter should color this statement of hers: Most of the book of Jonah deals with God. It is not Jonah that we get to know only, it is God. Why was Jonah then written? “How great though art”. Pastor Brooks already said in 1978 [see online sermons at Youtube “Christ the Open Way” that the Book of Jonah has the wrong name. It is about God not about Jonah. Jonah is in the foreground but God is in the background in heaven. Although the camera is on God, Jonah kept coming in the way. Ever had that problem with a family picture and a dog keep coming in the way?

Anyone that wants to understand Jonah better need to download this file of Davidson:

file:///D:/Jonah%20by%20J%20Davidson%202003%20%20%20SS20031001-04.pdf

There is one thing the reader should not miss, Pastor Charles D. Brooks did not miss it: the increasing decadence of Jonah. He is increasingly going down and down.

In verse 3 “he went down to Joppa”; “he went down into it” [the ship to Tarshish] (verse 3); “Jonah had gone below into the hold of the ship” (verse 5) and “lain down” (verse 5). He then requested them to “throw me into the sea” (verse 12) which is a further level of descend.

Anyone who is not spiritually right with God but trying to find excuses to run away from spiritual obligation, will face this same decadence.

Jonah verbalized his running way from the Lord with the men of the boat (verse 10). It is not just a secret and no one knows why he is going. He told them in detail.

The people on the ship made a prayer to the Lord for safety of their own lives (verse 14). They pray for forgiveness before they threw him over.

Through all this God was in supreme control. The fish was waiting for Jonah.

Someone studied the various aspects of Jonah and concluded that Jonah means dove so that there is a “flight of the dove”; “a passive dove” = sleeping; saving the dove; punishing the dove; descent of the dove. This is all in chapter one.

 

Dear God

When you approach us with obligations, You have a wider perspective in mind and already have agents from heaven ready to assists us. Keep our eyes focused on You ascending spiritually rather than descending and decay. In Jesus Name. Amen.