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The Aftermath

The Aftermath. Jonah 4. ‘I told you so!’.

alexander-martin
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The Aftermath

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  1. The Aftermath Jonah 4

  2. ‘I told you so!’ • “He prayed to the LORD, ‘O LORD, is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity” (4.2). • (Ex 34.6; Num 14.18; Neh 9.17b; Pss 86.15, 103.8, 145.8; Joel 2.13).

  3. Jonah’s Shelter • “refers to the temporary shelters made of the branches of ‘olive, wild olive, myrtle, palm, and other leafy trees’ (Neh. 8:15) and stationed at various places during the Feast of Booths (sukkôt). The purpose was—and remains for Jews today—to provide a dramatic illustration of the way the people of Israel had lived during the time of the wilderness wandering (Lev. 23:42-43; Neh. 8:14-18; cf. also Deut. 16:13, 16; Zech. 14:16, 18, 19)” (Limburg 1993: 95).

  4. A Death Wish • Jonah • To God: “take now my life from me, for better is my death than my life” (4.3); • “He asked his soul to die saying, ‘better is my death than my life’” (4.9b). • Captain • So that “‘we will not perish’” (1.6). • King • So that “‘we will not perish’” (3.9).

  5. The Vine • Jonah acquires a satisfying response to his complaint. This plant, marvelously rising above his head, is a sign of a new equilibrium between him and God, a new understanding between the two. …From Jonah’s perspective, the story can end now on this happy note: Nineveh and its fate are no longer central to Jonah; his difference with God is now resolved. From God’s standpoint, however, there is still the matter of educating a prophet on divine mercy (Sasson 1990: 298).

  6. The worm and the wind • “God appointed a worm to climb, on the next morning, and it attacked [√nkh] the plant with the result that it withered. • Then, as the sun rose, God appointed a sultry east wind, and the sun attacked [√nkh] upon Jonah’s head with the result that he swooned away” (4.7-8a).

  7. The worm and the wind • “This wind may have been that sort called elsewhere the scirocco [sic], i.e., constant hot air so full of positive ions that it affects the levels of serotonin and other brain neurotransmitters, causing exhaustion, depression, feelings of unreality, and, occasionally, bizarre behavior” (Stuart 1987: 505). • “Earlier, Jonah was indignant because Yahweh took pity on Nineveh. Now it is self-pity that incites his indignation. By showing Jonas as ready to die because there is no more shade, the satirist exposes the fact that his first expression of unwillingness was also deeply rooted in self-pity, not in genuine concern about the validity of God’s word and his justice” (Wolff 1986: 172).

  8. The Providence of God • “Then the LORD God provided a vine…” (4.6) • “…God provided a worm…” (4.7) • “…God provided a scorching east wind…” (4.7) • “But the LORD provided a great fish…” (1.17 [2.1])

  9. The Purpose of Providence • Great fish and Plant • “deliverance is the Lord’s” (2.9 [10]) • “deliver[ed] him from his misery” (4.6) • Worm and Wind • “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion” (Ex 33.19b)

  10. Projecting into the New Testament

  11. Jesus shows mercy • He called out, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ ‘Lord, I want to see,’ he replied. Jesus said to him, ‘Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.’ Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God (Lk 18.38-43). • “The Lord is full of compassion and mercy” (Jam 5.11c)

  12. The mercy of Jesus • “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…” (1 Pet 1.3). • “in view of God’s mercy…offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship” (Rom 12.1). • “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Heb 4.16).

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