Chapter 3 begins with some really refreshing and assuring words, in that the "word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time." The reason this is so encouraging is that God did not give up on Jonah and after Jonah repented of his selfish behavior and realized that His life is in God's hands, God graciously spoke to Jonah a second time; in other words, He is giving Jonah a second chance. I am so thankful that God is long-suffering and that in spite of our mistakes and rebellious ways He still seeks after us and gives us 2nd, 3rd, 35th, 50th, and 100th chances. This time when the Lord tells Jonah to go to Nineveh he does not hesitate but takes off, the actual Hebrew for the phrase, "Arise and go," literally means "go now." Jonah was obedient and went to Nineveh to take the message that the Lord wanted Him to deliver. Jonah began to walk through the great city of Nineveh and only proclaimed 8 words to them and implored them that in 40 days they would be overthrown. Knowing the evil and nefarious nature of the Ninevites surely it would take more than 8 words (5 in Hebrew) for them to repent of their torturous ways. In an astounding response we see that the Ninevites believed in God and even the King put on sackcloth and sat in ashes as as act of repentance. Wow! It is amazing that week in and week out people sit in churches under the direct teaching of the Word and hear the Gospel and yet do not fall under conviction nor repent for their sins and it only took 5 words for the Ninevites to believe. The interesting thing to note in Jonah's prophetic message is that the word "overthrown" can be defined two different ways. The first meaning "overthrown as to destruction," and the second is "overthrown to change." The Ninevites were either going to be destroyed or be changed; they chose to believe and be changed by God.
At the end of Chapter 3 we see just how gracious God is. "When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it."(NASB) It doesn't matter how sinful we have been or what we have done, when we truly repent for our sins and trust in the sacrificial atonement that was made for us through Christ, even the vilest of sinners can be saved. God is a loving Father but also a God of justice. You would think that after seeing such an awesome downpour of grace and the Ninevites being wrought with conviction that Jonah would have rejoiced. In the 3rd and final installment of these insights we will see just how Jonah does respond, and my guess is that we will once again find ourselves not so far removed from that of the reaction Jonah.
Ezekiel 18:30-32- "Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, each according to his conduct," declares the Lord GOD. "Repent and turn away from all your transgressions, so that iniquity may not become a stumbling block to you. "Cast away from you all your transgressions which you have committed and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! For why will you die, O house of Israel? "For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies," declares the Lord GOD. "Therefore, repent and live."(NASB)
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