Introduction

The book of Jonah stands out in the entire Bible. Not only does the book has a unique case but has instances where a prophet of God, goes ahead and disobeys Him. The consequences that follow Jonah live him with no choice but to follow God's will at the end of it all. In terms of the historical background of the book of Jonah centers around a prophet named Jonah, the son of a man named Amittai.

Jonah comes from a place known as Gath Hepher situated in Galilee. The book bears the name of the prophet. In fact, Jonah is the main character in the book. The instructions of God to Jonah were simple and clear. Jonah was to go to a city known as Nineveh. When he reached the city of Nineveh, the prophet was to speak against the things, the people who lived in the great city did. Instead of doing as instructed, Jonah ran away from preaching the destruction of Nineveh.

The prophet opted for Tarshish. He went to Joppa and boarded a ship that would lead him to Tarshish. It was during the journey that Jonah faced the wrath of God. Jonah was fleeing from God but God sent a string storm that nearly broke the boat.

Main characters

Jonah is the main character and the narrative of the book depends on him. Everything within the story moves forward due to Him (Anderson, 2012, 56). Three, Jonah receives a second chance from God the first chance of preaching to the people of Nineveh. In other words, God reconciles with Jonah and forgives his disobedience

God is the second main character in the book of Jonah. From the beginning to the end of the book, God and sets up that in turn develop and twists of the entire story. As stated earlier, in chapter 3 God forgives and reconciles with his servant Jonah. God portrays his forgiveness for Jonah by giving him the same assignment. Just like how a criminal gets a pardon from a court, the same happens to Jonah. Jonah was to carry out the same assignment he refused the first time the word of God came to him (Dascalu, 2015, 67). Hence, by repenting Jonah had the chance to prove that he was truly sorry. In short, God and Jonah are the main characters of the book.

The main subject of chapter 3

The word of God comes to Jonah in the same way it did the first time. It is simply a second chance to correct his past mistake. The second time Jonah did right by God. God shows mercy and grace to his servant Jonah even after the rebellion he showed the first time. Thus, in short, God gives Jonah a second chance and he goes to Nineveh (Gaines, Janet Howe, 2003, 89).

The main subject in chapter 4

Jonah was not happy with the compassion God showed the people of Nineveh. Something about the entire matter did not please Jonah. The behavior of Jonah toward the people of Nineveh is not usual. He was the one who preached the word of God to them and encouraged them to change their ways so that God could offer them a second chance. Yet, after the people accepted the message, he became angry (Anderson, 2012, 33).

 Theological Themes in chapter 3

Grace is a theme that comes out clearly in chapter 3. The mercy and grace of God come out towards his prophet Jonah. When Jonah hears the word of God, the rebels but in this chapter, God shows his endless mercies and grace toward Jonah by giving him a second chance.

Similarly, the people of Nineveh received God's mercies. Just like Jonah, the people violated the rules of God. God sent a Jonah, warning them of the punishment that was so they did their ways. They hid God's message and God gave them another opportunity to rectify their mistakes (Gaines, Janet Howe, 2003, 66).

The other side of grace stands repentance. Citizens of Nineveh had to repent and turn to God for them to receive grace. After repenting, they cried to God for forgiveness. Repenting showed that their mistakes and were ready to change from their old ways. What is most interesting is that they took certain steps to ensure they do not slip back to their old ways. The people of Nineveh wore sack clothes to demonstrate their repentance. They neither ate nor drank as instructed by their king (Dascalu, Raphael, 2012, 12).

Theological themes in chapter 4 and exposition

The theme of selfishness comes out when Jonah gets angry with the Ninevites. He did not want God to forgive them. Yet, he himself was a perfect example of God's forgiveness and mercies. He forgot that all people are created in the likeness of God. God stood by the great city and spared their lives (Gaines, Janet Howe, 2003, 53).

Overall themes of chapter 3 and 4

Apart from the two themes mentioned above, the theme of accountability to God is key. In chapter 3 of the Book, Jonah   had to prove that he is still fully committed to the work of God. More so, the prophet had to do as instructed by God. God observed the people of Nineveh and noticed their sinful and evil ways. They were not accountable in their behaviors. God had to ensure that remain accountable and responsible for each and every thing they did. Therefore, God sent Jonah to warn them of the imminent punishment (Pardes, Ilana, 2005, 29).

Equally important to note is the theme of change. When the people  of Nineveh had the  word  of God , they  turned  away from  their  evil ways  and  changed   from their  evil ways. Even though the word of God was short, it had the power to produce the desired effects of the people (Rudman, Dominic, 2004, 23).

Interpretation and exposition

The main reason that made Jonah go against the will of God is that he thought that Nineveh could not receive God's mercies. He was not ready to see the city belonging to his people destroyed. Jonah was a sign of God to the people of Nineveh. The king and Ninevites accepted the message from God. Although the word of God was brief, it had the ability to change the heart of the Ninevites (Rudman, Dominic, 2004, 19).

 

Conclusion

In short ,Chapters 3 and 4 of  Jonah  deal with  Jonah’s second  chance  and  the impact  of his  message  comes in chapter four. Jonah repents after disobeying God and gets the chance to preach to the people of Nineveh of the oncoming punishment from God. The people of Nineveh accept the word of God and turn from their ways.

 

 

 

 

 

References

 

Anderson, J.E., 2012. Jonah in Mark and Matthew: Creation, Covenant, Christ, and the Kingdom             of God. Biblical Theology Bulletin, 42(4), pp.172-186.

Anderson, Joel Edmund. "Yahweh’s Surprising Covenant Hesed in Jonah." Biblical Theology             Bulletin 42, no. 1 (2012): 3-11.

Dascalu, Raphael. "Between Intellect and Intoxication: An Exploration of Tanḥum ha-      Yerushalmi's Commentary to the Book of Jonah." Jewish Quarterly Review 105, no. 1    (2015): 42-71.

Gaines, Janet Howe. Forgiveness in a wounded world: Jonah's dilemma. No. 5. Society of             Biblical Lit, 2003.

Pardes, Ilana. "Remapping Jonah's Voyage: Melville's" Moby-Dick" and Kitto's" Cyclopedia of             Biblical Literature.”" Comparative Literature 57, no. 2 (2005): 135-157.

Rudman, Dominic. "The Sign of Jonah." The Expository Times 115, no. 10 (2004): 325-328