OVERVIEW:
Jonah’s call and rebellion (chapter 1); Jonah’s chastening and repentance (chapter 2); Jonah’s second call and obedience (chapter 3); Jonah’s rebellion and rebuking (chapter 4).
HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:
There is perhaps no prophetic book of the Old Testament more important than the little book of Jonah. It is this book that prophesies and teaches us about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In fact, Jesus Himself said, “An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas (Jonah): For AS Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; SO shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” (Matthew 12:39–40) It is for that reason, as you can well imagine, that the book of Jonah has been more “SPOKEN AGAINST” (see Luke 2:34!) than any other Old Testament book.
The attacks come in many different forms. One of the most popular attacks from the unsaved world is that the events in this book are actually just fiction. That’s why the devil has handed down several similar stories in mythology: Andromeda, Orion, and not the least of which, Hercules, who was supposedly in the belly of a sea creature for three days and three nights! The devil always has a counterfeit, and he would love for the events in the book of Jonah to be viewed as fiction right along with all of his fictitious stories in mythology. Obviously, the devil’s attack isn’t against Jonah and his being spit out on dry land after three days and three nights in the belly of the whale; his attack is against Christ and His death, burial, and resurrection! Remember, Jesus said, “AS was Jonah, SO was the Son of Man!” (Matthew 12:39–40) If Jonah was fictitious, so was Christ’s death, burial and resurrection! We could put it another way: if the book of Jonah is a LIE, then Jesus was a LIAR!
Another key attack on the book of Jonah is the attack that comes from “scholars” in the “saved” world. They believe that the events all happened; they just don’t believe that Jonah was dead in the belly of that “great fish” (Jonah’s words in Jonah 1:17) or “whale” (Jesus’ word in Matthew 12:40). Again, the point is, “AS was Jonah, SO was Jesus!” If Jonah didn’t actually die and resurrect from the belly of the whale, then Jesus didn’t actually die (enter the “swoon theory”) and resurrect from the heart (belly) of the earth!
Jesus was the one that said that Jonah was going to be the only sign given of the resurrection! (Matthew 12:39) It doesn’t matter that we can’t figure it out physiologically, scientifically, practically, or any other way. If Jesus said Jonah was a picture of the resurrection, then Jonah had to die, and that’s where we resign ourselves to Romans 3:4: “Let God be true, but every man a liar.”
Interestingly enough, the book of Jonah begins, “Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying…” (1:1a) The name Jonah means “the dove”, and the name Amittai means “truth” or “truth telling”. A dove is a biblical type of the Holy Spirit (see Matthew 3:16), and truth is specifically defined in Scripture as Jesus (John 14:6), and as the Word of God! (John 17:17) We could say, therefore, that the book of Jonah is the book written by the Spirit of God (2nd Peter 1:21) to give us the truth about Jesus; and we’ll leave it at that!
Historically, Jonah was a prominent prophet in the northern kingdom of Israel during the reign of Jeroboam (793– 753 B.C.), with the specific events described in this book taking place around 760 B.C. The real purpose of his ministry, as revealed in these four chapters, is to preach to Gentiles, who DO respond to his message with repentance, making it the record of the greatest revival in the history of mankind! Note that Nineveh was a city of almost a million people (120,000 preschoolers alone – verse 4:11) and thus, the continued reference to it being a “great city!” (1:2; 2:2; 3:3; 4:11) Note also, that every single person in the city responded to the call to repent! Wow! (3:5)
From a doctrinal or prophetic standpoint, Jonah is a type of the 144,000 in the Tribulation Period who preach to Gentiles when the world experiences the greatest revival in the history of mankind! (Revelation 7:4–9) Note the following things that may prove helpful in understanding both the importance of the book of Jonah and its placement in the canon of Scripture, and that can, hopefully, help us to see the big picture:
As we read this incredible book today, we would do well to ask ourselves: “Do I care more about myself than I do God’s will or the lost? To what is my life more consumed than it is the lost people on this planet?”
CHRIST IS REVEALED:
As the ONE WHO WOULD DIE, BE BURIED, AND RISE FROM THE DEAD AFTER THREE DAYS — Jonah 1:7–2:10 (Matthew 12:39–41)