Jonah’s sermon.

Jonah’s sermon was a great success, and the people of Nineveh were converted. However, rather than rejoicing, Jonah mourned it. He had preached destruction to Nineveh. If his words did not come true, God’s honour would also be wronged. He did not want to be seen as a liar by these Gentiles for the glory of God. The Lord changed his plan and everything happened the opposite of what Jonah had predicted. This was terrible for his soul, and he desired nothing more than to die.

He was angry with the Lord, but he did not want to give up on him. He prayed to him, but it was difficult to pray well in such a state of mind. Suddenly, the West seems the right way to him, and he feels he was wrong to repent. We often want to take back things we bitterly regret later. God sees that this is only a temporary crisis, in which the remnants of anger and darkness are manifested, but behind this bitterness lies a sincere heart. God is trying to calm Jonah down: ‘Don’t be afraid that they will consider you a liar. I saw their deeds; they turned away from their evil ways; therefore, I forgive them.’

When God asked Jonah if he was angry for the right reasons, Jonah remained silent. He leaves the conversation with God and goes outside the city to build a booth. He was convinced that he was right and that God would eventually recognise this truth. God will have to change his mind, not him. From his booth, Jonah wants to observe God’s terrible judgments. He waits for his prophecies to be fulfilled.

God uses a minor miracle to teach Jonah a lesson. To prevent Jonah from suffering in the sun, God hastily grows a shading plant, which pleases Jonah. However, the next day, the plant withers just as quickly, which makes Jonah sad and upset. God says to him: ‘You can grieve because one plant has dried up, but I shouldn’t be sorry for the death of thousands of people?’ Today, many people call God’s punishments upon the world in the form of thunder and lightning, yet nothing happens to them. How far is that from ‘love your neighbour as yourself’?