Jonah 1:1-2 The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”
I looked into commentary from two different sources for this book. One presented the view of Jonah’s actions I’ve long been familiar with: Jonah’s telling the sailors to throw him overboard was a selfless, repentant act. Jonah knew he was wrong for disobeying the Lord and this was his way to repent. The other commentary asks whether telling the sailors to throw him overboard was maybe Jonah’s most selfish act yet. What if Jonah was hoping to sink, die, and get out of God’s call permanently?
Jonah 1:3 But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.
It’s an interesting theory that put me in mind of Proverbs 21:2 “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart.” Human beings are quick to judge and interpret actions, but God knows the heart. We can’t know with certainty what Jonah’s motivation was, but God knew and went after Jonah with the same love, mercy, and compassion He shows for each one who is lost.
Jonah 1:11 The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”
Lord, Thank You for the reminder that our judgements of the actions of others are based on human factors. Only You know the heart. Help me not to make snap judgements of others, Lord. I’m not qualified. Draw me closer to You. Amen.
Jonah 1:12 “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.”
Have a blessed day.