Jonah 1:1-5 The LORD gave this message to Jonah son of Amittai: “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh. Announce my judgment against it because I have seen how wicked its people are.” But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the LORD. He went down to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping to escape from the LORD by sailing to Tarshish.

But the LORD hurled a powerful wind over the sea, causing a violent storm that threatened to break the ship apart. Fearing for their lives, the desperate sailors shouted to their gods for help and threw the cargo overboard to lighten the ship. But all this time Jonah was sound asleep down in the hold. 

On my World History Timeline Chart, I can see that the prophet Jonah appeared from 793 to 753 B.C.  In those days, Nineveh was the most important city in Assyria, the rising world power of Jonah’s day. Within fifty years, Nineveh would become the capital of the vast Assyrian empire. While the book of Jonah doesn’t describe the extent of Nineveh’s wickedness, the prophet Nahum provides more insight. Nineveh was guilty of evil plots against God (Nahum 1:9), exploitation of the helpless (Nahum 2:12), cruelty in war (Nahum 2:12-13), idolatry, prostitution, and witchcraft (Nahum 3:4).

Jonah had grown up hating the Assyrians and fearing their atrocities. His hatred was so strong that he didn’t want them to receive God’s mercy. His attitude is representative of Israel’s reluctance to share God’s love and mercy with others, even though this was their God-given mission. They, like Jonah, did not want Gentiles to obtain God’s favor.

Jonah 3:6-10, When the king of Nineveh heard what Jonah was saying, he stepped down from his throne and took off his royal robes. He dressed himself in burlap and sat on a heap of ashes. Then the king and his nobles sent this decree throughout the city: “No one, not even the animals from your herds and flocks, may eat or drink anything at all. People and animals alike must wear garments of mourning, and everyone must pray earnestly to God. They must turn from their evil ways and stop all their violence. Who can tell? Perhaps even yet God will change his mind and hold back his fierce anger from destroying us.”  When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened.

The people of Nineveh believed Jonah’s message and repented. What a miraculous effect God’s words had on them! Their repentance stood in stark contrast to Israel’s stubbornness. The people of Israel had heard many messages from the prophets, but they had refused to repent. The people of Nineveh only needed to hear God’s message once. That’s why Jesus later said that at the judgment, the men of Nineveh will stand up to condemn the Israelites for their failure to repent (Matthew 12:39-41).

God responded in mercy by canceling his threatened punishment. Through the prophet Jeremiah, God had said that any nation on which he had pronounced judgment would be saved if they repented (Jeremiah 18:7-8). So, God forgave Nineveh, just as he had forgiven Jonah.

The purpose of God’s judgment is correction, not revenge. He is always ready to show compassion to anyone willing to seek him.  Jonah had run away from God, but was given a second chance to participate in God’s work.  Past mistakes do not sever our relationship with God. Thank God!  Repentance will always bring forgiveness, always. God loves us, is rich in Mercy and patiently waiting for our prayerful return to Him.