God Relents

Read Jonah 3 and mark every occurrence of "relent" and/or "relented."
When the king of Nineveh uses "relent" the first time, what other two actions are associated with it?
And according to the king of Nineveh, if God were to relent, what would not happen to the Ninevites?
According to verse 10, what was it that caused God to withdraw His burning anger? Was it their pleading, wearing of sackcloth, fasting, and sitting on ashes, or was it something else?
And what happened to the calamity that God had declared He would bring upon them?
From reading your Nineveh information, you probably picked up on the fact that eventually, not too many decades from this time, Nineveh was destroyed, and you can read about that destruction in the book of Nahum. However, the calamity was delayed because of the repentance of this particular generation of Ninevites, who chose to believe God and turn from their wicked ways.
If the Ninevites hadn't turned from their wicked ways, what would have happened?
Who changed direction--the Ninevites or God?
Although Jonah's proclamation, as we read it in the Bible, doesn't mention a choice, the Ninevites obviously realized that, perhaps, they did have a choice in their destiny and they decided to act as if they did have a choice, and as we learn in Jonah 3, they made a wise choice.

Read Matthew 12:38-41. Jesus is speaking to a group of scribes and Pharisees.
What character traits does Jesus attribute to his generation in Israel?
What sign does He say shall be given to this generation?
Who is compared with Whom in verse 40? What miracle is compared to what other miracle?
At the time of the judgment who does Jesus say will stand up with this generation now alive in Israel?
What did the Ninevites do when they heard Jonah's preaching?
Why will that make them able to condemn the generation to whom Jesus is speaking?
Who preached to the generation to whom Jesus is speaking?
And what was their response? Did they make a wise choice? Did they respond as the Ninevites did?
Imagine how this comparison must have struck those to whom Jesus was speaking! Here He is--holding up the former enemies of His people as an example. He's saying that this former enemy will be able to condemn God's people on the day of judgment.

So, if God warns us that we're off the path of righteousness and heading toward destruction, is it better to continue heading the wrong way or to do as the Ninevites did?
God sent Amos the prophet to the Israelites at around the same time as He sent Jonah to the Ninevites. Did the Israelites respond in the same way as the Ninevites? Did they change their wicked ways? Did they repent? What happened to Israel in 722 BC? (You can find out by looking at your "Times of the Prophets" sheet. "The Divided Kingdom" sheet recounts what happened in the third paragraph on the right side.)
In 586 BC, Judah fell to the Babylonians after repeated warnings by God that they needed to turn back to Him, or else . . .
After 70 years in exile, a remnant returned, as Isaiah and Jeremiah had prophesied. They rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem and rebuilt the temple. They had children, and their population grew. They endured the Greek occupation, and fought for their independence under the Maccabees. Their country came under Roman control, and it was into this scene that God sent His Son Jesus as a baby, the Savior of the world. Did this new generation of Jewish people change their ways as that generation of Ninevites did in the days of Jonah? No, and in AD 70 Titus demolished the temple in Jerusalem and drove the Jews from their land, dispersing them far and wide.

So, what have we learned?

Ninevites Repent

How did the Ninevites respond to God's message that Jonah proclaimed to them?
Jonah 3:5 tells us that they believed, called a fast, and put on sackcloth.
Why would they call a fast and put on sackcloth?
Let's take a closer look at wearing sackcloth. What does it indicate about the person doing it?

How many times is sackcloth mentioned in Jonah 3? List the verses and note what is done along with wearing the sackcloth.

If you looked up "sackcloth" in the Holman Bible Dictionary, you would find this definition: A garment of coarse material fashioned from goat or camel hair worn as a sign of mourning or anguish, also marked by fasting and sitting on an ash heap.

To learn more about this practice of wearing sackcloth, you could find "sackcloth" in the concordance at the front of Strong's, find other verses that use this word, and look them up. The first mention of sackcloth in the Bible is in Genesis 37:34. What did Jacob do besides wear sackcloth when his other sons told him that Joseph had been killed by a wild animal?
The second time this word is used is in 2 Samuel 3:31. What does David tell the people to do when Abner is killed?
Read Esther 4:1-3. The Jews have just learned that they are to be exterminated in Persia. How do they respond?
What else do people do besides wear sackcloth?
Why did people lay on ashes or put ashes on themselves? What did ashes symbolize?
Read 2 Peter 2:6. What were the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah reduced to? Who reduced them? For whom were they to be an example?
Read Ezekiel 28:18. God is condemning Tyre. What does God say He has done to them? Why did He do it? What have they been turned to?
Read Malachi 4:3. What are the wicked going to be?
So, what do you think ashes might represent?
Complete destruction, God's wrath, and death might be a few words that come to mind. Ashes are a symbol of human mortality and of the humility needed by humans as they approach God, the One who created them and will judge them.
Read Job 42:6. What do dust and ashes symbolize in this passage?
Read Matthew 11:21. What does Jesus say that the people of Tyre and Sidon would have done in sackcloth and ashes?

So when people tore their clothes, put on sackcloth, heaped ashes on themselves or lay on ashes, wailed, wept, fasted, lamented and mourned, what were they doing before God? What was their visible behavior evidence of?
In Jonah 3:5 and 6, we see that along with wearing sackcloth, the Ninevites also fasted and sat on ashes. But most importantly, what did they do in verse 8?
How do these actions remind you of what Jonah did in chapter two?
How did God respond to Jonah's action in chapter two?
How did God respond to the Ninevite's actions in chapter three?
What does this teach us about God?

Where in Jonah 3

Where does chapter 3 take place?
Mark all the references to Nineveh in the same way as you did in chapter one.
What did we learn about Nineveh in chapter one?
What additional information do we learn in chapter 3?
Now would be a good time to do some outside research on Nineveh. See if you can find the answers to these questions, either in resources you discover on your own, or in the information I'll provide after the questions.

• Of what empire was Nineveh the capital?
• About how big was the main walled city?
• About how big was the city and its surrounding urban area?
• For what reasons might the Ninevites have been ready to repent and believe when Jonah delivered God's message?
• What would you see if you went to the site of Nineveh today?
• Is Jonah of continuing importance to the people of that region?

Check out these websites:

http://www.crystalinks.com/nineveh.html

http://www.bibleandkoran.net/verhaal/php?1IntEntityId=12

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosques_and_shrines_of_Mosul

http://www.blackfive.net/main/2008/12/mission-restore.html?cid=142216682

Excerpt from Holman Bible Dictionary, pg. 1024 NINEVEH The greatest of the capitals of the ancient Assyrian Empire, which flourished from about 800 to 612 BC It was located on the left bank of the Tigris river in northeastern Mesopotamia (Iraq today). Its remains are represented by two mounds named Quyundjiq "Many Sheep" and Nebi Yunus "The Prophet Jonah."

Excerpt from The New Unger's Bible Handbook, pg. 322 Recent discoveries have added credence to the historicity of the book. Excavations have revealed that 'greater' Nineveh was a district 30-60 miles across, agreeing well with the text of Jonah. pg. 324 Under Adad-nirari III (810-782 BC) there was an approach to monotheism in the worship of the god Nabu (Nebo). Either in the closing years of this reign or early in that of Ashur-dan III (772-755 BC) Jonah appeared in Nineveh. Whether the total eclipse in 763 BC, regarded as a divine portent, or the plagues of 765 or 759 BC, recorded in Assyrian history, prepared the Ninevites for their repentance cannot be known.

What surprised you the most?

Time in Jonah 3

Mark the references to time in Jonah 3 in the same way as you did for the previous two chapters.

When did the word of the Lord come to Jonah again? What had just happened at the end of the second chapter?
How many times had the word of the Lord come to Jonah?
Back then, how long would it take to walk through Nineveh?
When did Jonah first proclaim the message God had given him?
How long did Nineveh have before it would be overthrown?
When did the people of Nineveh believe in God?
When did the king of Nineveh cover himself with sackcloth?
When did God relent concerning the calamity which He had declared upon Nineveh?

What do we learn about God by marking these references to time?

More Whos in Jonah Chapter 3

Read through Jonah 3.
What whos do you see other than the Lord and Jonah?
I noticed the people of Nineveh, the king and his nobles.
On your key card, write king and Ninevites. Decide how you'll mark each one. Since the nobles could be counted as Ninevites, that's how you could mark them. If you'd like to mark them separately, go ahead.
Read through Jonah 3, marking every reference to the king and the Ninevites.
List what you learn about the Ninevites.
List what you learn about the king of Nineveh.
Who believed in God after Jonah made his proclamation?
What did they do after they believed?
How many of them did those things?
What did the king of Nineveh do when he heard what was going on?
What did the king cover himself with? What did he sit on? Why did he do those things?
What did the king's proclamation state?
Whom did he tell the Ninevites to call upon?
Why were they to earnestly call upon God?
What were they to turn from?
What was the king hoping would happen if they did that?
And what happened when the Ninevites followed the king's proclamation?

To consider: Do you think this is what Jonah was hoping would happen? What do you think he was expecting?

The Whos in Jonah Chapter Three

The Whos down in Whoville liked Christmas a lot . . . Whoa! Just being silly. After writing that blog title, that first line from Dr. Seuss' famous Grinch story simply slid out. Sorry about that.

On a more serious note, we've reached the third chapter of Jonah, and if we continue to observe it in a way consistent with how we've studied the first two chapters, we'll begin by reading it and looking for who is mentioned.
Read the chapter. Who is mentioned?
In the same way as you did for the first two chapters, mark the Lord and Jonah.
Add what you learn about the Lord to your list.
Add what you learn about Jonah to your list.

What comes to Jonah a second time? What does that show you about God?
Whose proclamation will be proclaimed to Nineveh?
Who will proclaim it?
Who went to Nineveh? Why did he go there?
Who told Nineveh that their city would be overthrown in forty days?
After hearing that message in whom did the Ninevites believe?
Whom were the Ninevites encouraged to call upon?
Why were they encouraged to do that?
What did they hope God would do?
Who saw that they turned from their wicked ways?
Who didn't bring upon them the calamity that Jonah had proclaimed?

Something to think about: Read Matthew 12:38-41. Ponder what Jesus said in relation to chapter three of Jonah. What is Jesus trying to tell the scribes and Pharisees of His day? Does what Jesus told them apply to us and our time?

There are other whos in this chapter whom we'll look at more closely in the next blog.

Jonah's Prayer

Read Jonah 2:1 and 10.
These two verses provide a good summary of what happened.
Why do you think God wanted us to hear what Jonah prayed?

Read all of Jonah 2.
According to 2:2, where was Jonah when he cried out?
What was Jonah's assessment of his condition?
Why did he think he was in that predicament?
Jonah had willfully disobeyed God.
Did he have any right to pray?
Had he been so bad that he shouldn't bother praying?
What do we learn from this text?
What do learn about God from the way He answered Jonah's prayer?
Have you ever chosen not to pray because you thought it wouldn't do any good?
What have you learned from Jonah 2 that would challenge that way of thinking?