Jonah
A Prophetic Life
The book of Jonah is a prophetic book remarkable for the fact that it records, not the prophetic utterances of the prophet, but the account of a pivotal moment in his life. This in itself reveals that there is more to being a prophet, or indeed being God’s prophetic people, than just prophesying. It is not just our words, but our very lives that are prophetic. They are prophetic in as much as they point people to Jesus. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (Rev 19:10). Jesus revealed that it was the prophet himself, and not his words, that were the sign, not only to Nineveh, but to Jesus’ own generation of what he had come to do.
Judgment and Mercy
The account of Jonah, discounted by many as fable, but affirmed by Jesus himself as fact, is a tale of judgment and mercy - not just for the wicked city of Nineveh, but for the prophet himself. And so again, it was his very life that communicated to the Assyrians not only fear of what would happen if they did not repent, but also hope of what could happen if they did.
Death and Resurrection
It is not just an account of judgment and mercy, but prophetically it speaks of death and resurrection. For the waters Jonah was cast into represented his grave. Jonah himself makes the connection in the second verse of chapter two. The Psalmists also speak of being in the grave as being under, or overwhelmed by, the waves. And the apostle Paul in his letters of Romans and Colossians, talks about us being buried with Christ in the waters of baptism (Rom 6:4, Cos 2:12). So for Jonah this was a death and resurrection experience. This was Jonah’s baptism. In baptism the old man dies and we are raised to a new life by the power of God. Jonah’s rebellious ways were left at the bottom of the sea and he was given a fresh start to serve God powerfully and effectively.
Nor does it just speak prophetically about any death and resurrection, but about Christ’s own death and resurrection. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. (Matt 12:40) And this is why the book of Jonah is so important. The events of Jonah’s life are a prophetic drama that point forward to the work of Christ. This shows again that all the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, is centered upon the eternal plan of God in Christ.
Jonah and Jesus
The comparisons and contrasts between Jonah and Christ make a very interesting study. On one hand the prodigal prophet is probably the last one you would pick if asked to choose a man who was a sign for Christ. And yet, when we look past the prophet’s surly and stubborn character to the events in his life, the parallels are striking. First there is the three days under the waters which the New Testament reveals symbolised Christ’s own time in the grave. But beyond that, if you take the account of a prophet asleep in a boat during a storm with all around him fearing for their lives, you could be forgiven for thinking you were reading the end of Mark, chapter four! In both cases the sea is miraculously calmed, but through very different actions! But then again, Jonah did, like Christ, give his life to God as a sacrifice to save his fellow men.
Jonah and the Church
For Jonah is not just a sign of Christ, he is also, like many of the other prophets, a sign of us - the church - God’s prophetic people. For all men, like Jonah, were created by God and for God, with a call on their lives to live for him and obey him. All men, like Jonah, and like Adam before him, chose instead to go their own way and do their own thing, taking their lives in completely the opposite direction that God wanted them to go. But just like with Jonah, God is not content to leave things like this; he pursues sinful men, and brings them to a point of crisis where they must chose to surrender to him. And then through the death and resurrection of Jesus, and our powerful identification in him, he raises us to newness of life, giving us a fresh start, and includes us again in his mission to reach the multitudes with the message of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. In these four short chapters of Jonah we see an insightful illustration of the redemptive purpose of God!
What shall we do then - we who have been saved into such a great and far reaching purpose? It is here that the final lesson of Jonah lies. For we were not saved merely to "shade ourselves under the vine" - enjoying all the comforts and blessings of the church and the New Covenant. God took a hold of our lives for a purpose. He wants us to see beyond ourselves and our own needs to grasp his great and deep compassion for this lost world, and to go out as obedient messengers living in all the good of our resurrection life.
This background was written by Chris Hammer-Hodges, a member of Living Rock Church in South Leicestershire and North Warwickshire. You cna visit his blog here