Jonah chapter 1

vs 1

Poor Jonah. As soon as you see these words, you could be in mind of Ezekiel, which is not the place you want to be, really.

vs 2

Nineveh is a wicked city, and it's an enemy of Israel. So going there with the job to preach against it is not exactly the peachiest job. Although if you think it's as simple as not wanting to get beat up, well, this book gets a whole lot more complex.

vs 3

Tarsish was the Caseblanca equivalent back then. It was as far as the map of the known world went to the west, pretty much. Opposite direction of Nineveh.

vs 4

Which is, of course, a pretty scary thing to happen. Apparently you can't outrun God or hide from God simply by getting on a boat.

vs 5

These sound like two pretty reasonable responses to a life-threatening situation. Neither work, but it's worth a try.

Going to sleep is less reasonable, but it is apparently still an option.

vs 6

I suppose this is a typical response in a pantheistic worldview. Gods become like a lucky dip.

vs 7

Now, casting lots to get God's approval has been done many times. This is not something we do these days - we try and make more intelligent choices based on caselaw and theological principle. But the thing is, God has honoured this decision-making many times. Doesn't mean you should flip a coin for major decisions, but is 'going with your heart' after considered prayer really any different?

vs 8

Whether the storm calmed enough for them to have this conversation, or they were all huddled together in the hope of not dying - I mean, if the boat is sinking and they're throwing cargo overboard and stuff, I can't imagine they all gathered together for a heart-to-heart. In my imagination, they've always been yelling at each other over the crash of waves and stuff.

In any case, it's not the question Jonah really wanted to answer.

vs 9

He calls himself a Hebrew, which is fascinating. Very pentateuchy. It's not a term I often consider for describing the Israelites, but I think I will now. His point is that his God created everything, so is damn powerful, and hence they're all going to die.

vs 10

They knew he was running from God, but didn't know why. If they're all going to drown anyway, may as well sate their curiosity. Or they just ask the rhetorical question, "You must've done something hella bad for God to be killing all of us to get to you."

vs 11

But curiosity can wait when there might be a way of getting out of it. What sort of sacrifice would this God of the Hebrews want?

vs 12

God is not exactly the one who is in for human sacrifice, but that's definitely what it looks like here. Really, the guys on the boat might never have seen Jonah again, and thought that that's how God worked. God doesn't correct them, so far as we know. Although really, it's less a sacrifice and more of a just punishment, perhaps.

vs 13

They didn't want to kill this guy. It's not cool.

vs 14

They obviously fear some sort of judgment too. This is a great picture of how God treats the other nations. People sometimes are confused or angry about God using a nation (like Assyria) to be his tool or instrument of judgment (like their army invading Israel), but then judging them for their evil actions (by making their empire fall). They say, "How is this fair? They were doing what God wanted." But look at the reactions of these sailors. God wants them to throw Jonah in, but they know killing someone is wrong. Finally, they beg God not to hold them responsible, because they are trying to do the right thing. They don't know much about the Hebrew God, but they are trying to do his will, at least. You always have a choice - you can choose not to be a bloodthirsty army. God will always find another person to do his dirty work.

vs 15

Here, God was happy for them to do it, after they had made it plain they didn't want to kill him, because he knew that Jonah wasn't going to die. They were, in effect, handing Jonah over to God by throwing him in the water.

vs 16

Which seems the right thing to do in such a situation.

vs 17

It's a bit of a bridging verse, so whether it's at the end of chapter 1 or beginning of chapter 2, not really a bother to me.

But wow, what an incredible and strange thing for the Lord to have happen to someone! And imagine being inside a fish for that long! It's little wonder this story stays in the psyche of western society. Of course, most would question its veracity as a real historical happening, but for me, I think it's awesome that God would make such things happen in the real world. It's a fantastic picture of the wonder God can continue to bring into the world. I wish we saw more of this stuff, not because I want to see miracles per se, but just because I feel that the technological and Enlightenment modern world is a much more boring place.