MONDAY, DECEMBER 14
ADVENT: DAY 12
Jonah
Jonah 4:11
The Lord said, “But Nineveh has more than 120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn’t I feel sorry for such a great city?”
Bible Readings
God asked the Prophet Jonah to go to the city of Nineveh and to tell them about God. Jonah DID NOT want to go, so he tried to run away from God, but he couldn’t. Oddly, a large fish swallowed him, so Jonah prayed, and then the fish spat him out onto dry land.
Jonah decided to follow God.
god’s messenger
Page 160
Jonah 4
Psalm 139
JOHN 2:13-22
Videos
2:58 The Story of Jonah
4:01 The Story of Jonah
3:11 Book of Jonah (PG)
3:55 “Wherever I Go” By Dan Bremnes - A Christian song that relates to Jonah
Historical Artwork: JONAH
“Jonah and the Fish” By Pieter the Elder Brugel
Jonah’s name means “dove”, and he was a prophet for Israel. There is no prophecy in the Book of Jonah - but a great message from God!
Jonah was told to go to Ninevah in Assyria. Ninevah was a gentile city - a pagan or heathen city! Jonah was to go there and tell them about the God of Israel. Jonah doesn’t want to go, and he tries to run away from God. Historians say that it was a terrible city, full of lawlessness, murder, and uncivilized people.
God cared about the people of Ninevah, and He wanted them to be “saved” - not by their works, but by their belief and turning to Him.
It’s a wonderful New Testament message, here in the Old Testament. God cares about ALL His created!
Jonah can’t run away from God, he gets swallowed by a fish and after repenting, God commands the fish to spit out Jonah.
Jonah goes to Ninevah - the people hear a 6 word message from Jonah:
Jonah 3:4-5
On the day Jonah entered the city, he shouted to the crowds: “Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed!” The people of Nineveh believed God’s message, and from the greatest to the least, they declared a fast and put on burlap to show their sorrow.
Jonah 3:6-10
When the king of Nineveh heard what Jonah was saying, he stepped down from his throne and took off his royal robes. He dressed himself in burlap and sat on a heap of ashes. Then the king and his nobles sent this decree throughout the city:
“No one, not even the animals from your herds and flocks, may eat or drink anything at all. People and animals alike must wear garments of mourning, and everyone must pray earnestly to God. They must turn from their evil ways and stop all their violence. Who can tell? Perhaps even yet God will change his mind and hold back his fierce anger from destroying us.”
When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened.
God cares about EVERYONE
1 Timothy 2:3,4
“This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth.”
Today, we can ALL get the word out about how GREAT our God is - this is God’s Will for YOU & each 1 of us!
Questions
Why did Jonah run away from God?
How many days was he inside the fish?
Prayer
Father in Heaven,
We praise you for being able to watch all your people every second of every day at all times. We thank you for this, and your promises to us.
Help us to remember to hold on to you and your ways everyday.
AMEN