But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you. Matthew 5:44
Was there a reason why God sent Jonah to Nineveh and not some other city?
Jonah is mentioned in 2 Kings 14:23-25 as a prophet of the northern kingdom of Israel during the time of the divided kingdom. (After the reign of Solomon, Israel broke up into a northern kingdom of Israel and a southern kingdom of Judah.)
Later, during the reign of King Hoshea of Israel, the northern kingdom was invaded by Assyria and its people (most likely only its upper, educated, and noble classes) deported, which brought the northern kingdom to an end. That story is told in 2 Kings 17, and a thumbnail version in 2 Kings 18:9-12. The king of Assyria at the time was Sennacherib.
At the time of the invasion and captivity of the northern kingdom, Nineveh was the capital city of Assyria, where King Sennacherib resided (see 2 Kings 19:36).
Given that Assyria was the arch-enemy of the kingdom of Israel, of which Jonah was a citizen and prophet, it is only natural that its capital city of Nineveh was seen as an exceedingly evil city.
All of this suggests the answer to why, in the book of Jonah, God sends Jonah to Nineveh, of all possible cities–and why Jonah immediately went in the opposite direction, intending to get as far away from Nineveh as possible (see Jonah 1:1-3).
In the minds of an Israelite of that era, Nineveh represented the most hated and most evil city possible. Therefore the story of Jonah is the story of God telling a prophet of Israel to go prophesy and potentially save the souls of, the very people that he most hated and most wanted to see destroyed.
But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. 11 And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?” Jonah 4: 10-11
- God’s mercy is available to everyone, regardless of how one feels about it.
- When Jonah turned away from his disobedience, God saved him and everyone around him. It’s never too late to turn back
- Running away from one’s calling only leads to more problems.
- You can’t hide from God.
- All people are sinful and God desires that all people repent of their sins.
- When we’re stubborn and proud, God doesn’t give up on us.
- We must be concerned even for our most hated enemies. Uncover your anger, decide to forgive.
“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:31-32
What else can we learn from the book of Jonah? Share your thought.
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