“Now, O Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.” (Jonah 4:3)
Here in the last chapter of Jonah, we get to the meat of the issue and what was really causing Jonah such distress about preaching to the Assyrians in Nineveh. (more…)
“When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened.” (Jonah 3:10)
God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and one of the main characteristics of God is that He is merciful. (more…)
“From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God. He said, ‘In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry.'” (Jonah 2:1-2)
Even as a prophet of God, Jonah was as human as you and I, making many mistakes during his time of ministry. He ran away from God to the point where he was cast overboard from a boat, and the Lord sent a great fish to swallow him whole, where Jonah stayed three days and three nights. (more…)
“But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish.” (Jonah 1:3a)
I love the book of Jonah, as it is rich with lessons from God, gives a foreshadowing of Jesus’s resurrection, and speaks to the complexities of human desire and emotion- even for a prophet of God. (more…)
“The day of the Lord is near for all nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your own head.” (Obadiah 1:15)
We reap what we sow (Gal. 6:7), meaning we will receive the consequences of our actions. God gives us the freedom to make our own choices- either for or against Him, either to bless or harm others, either to live a life surrendered to Jesus or not. What we see in Obadiah, the shortest book of the Old Testament, is that God’s wrath upon sin bypasses no one. (more…)
