Jonah: Session 1

Book Introduction

Author/Title

Anonymous

Probably compiled from Jonah’s own retelling of the story shortly after he got back from Nineveh

Date/Setting

Jonah prophesied during the reign of King Jeroboam II (782-753 B.C.)

2 Kings 14:23–28 ESV

23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, began to reign in Samaria, and he reigned forty-one years. 24 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin. 25 He restored the border of Israel from Lebo-hamath as far as the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the Lord, the God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was from Gath-hepher. 26 For the Lord saw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter, for there was none left, bond or free, and there was none to help Israel. 27 But the Lord had not said that he would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven, so he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash. 28 Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam and all that he did, and his might, how he fought, and how he restored Damascus and Hamath to Judah in Israel, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

The book of Jonah was written sometime between the middle of the eighth and the end of the third centuries. (750-200 B.C.)

Timeline of Events

1005 B.C. David is King —David conquers Jerusalem and unites the 12 tribes of Israel into a Kingdom

971 B.C. Solomon (David’s son) becomes King—During Solomon’s reign, the Kingdom of Israel reached its peak in wealth and size.

931-930 B.C. Civil War—Heavy taxation by Solomon’s son Rehoboam leads to civil war which divides the kingdom into the two kingdoms of “Israel” (Northern 10 tribes) and “Judah” (Southern 2 tribes).

930-722 B.C. Downward spiral of Israel—Evil kings and largescale moral degradation in Israel gets progressively worse

814-798 B.C. Jehoahaz King of Israel—Because of the sins of Jehoahaz, Israel was oppressed by the Syrians constantly during his reign and lost territory to the Syrians (2 Kings 13:3, 22).

2 Kings 13:3 ESV

3 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he gave them continually into the hand of Hazael king of Syria and into the hand of Ben-hadad the son of Hazael.

But, Jehoahaz apparently repented at least partly at some point, so God provided deliverance

2 Kings 13:4–5 ESV

4 Then Jehoahaz sought the favor of the Lord, and the Lord listened to him, for he saw the oppression of Israel, how the king of Syria oppressed them. 5 (Therefore the Lord gave Israel a savior, so that they escaped from the hand of the Syrians, and the people of Israel lived in their homes as formerly.

798-782 B.C. Jehoash expands Israel’s borders—Fighting between Syria and Assyria offered Israel a brief reprieve from Syrian invasions and allowed Jehoash to expand Israel’s borders and recapture towns that had been taken by Syria during the reign of his father, Jehoahaz.

2 Kings 13:22–23 ESV

22 Now Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. 23 But the Lord was gracious to them and had compassion on them, and he turned toward them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, nor has he cast them from his presence until now.

2 Kings 13:25 ESV

25 Then Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz took again from Ben-hadad the son of Hazael the cities that he had taken from Jehoahaz his father in war. Three times Joash defeated him and recovered the cities of Israel.

Map of ANE in Jonah’s day

782-753 B.C. Jeroboam II rules in Israel | Jonah’s prophetic ministry—Fulfilling a prophecy by Jonah the prophet, Jeroboam II expanded Israel’s borders even further than his father, back to the boundaries that had been in place during the time of David and Solomon’s empire.

2 Kings 14:23–25 ESV

23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, began to reign in Samaria, and he reigned forty-one years. 24 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin. 25 He restored the border of Israel from Lebo-hamath as far as the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the Lord, the God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was from Gath-hepher.

Expanded borders during Jeroboam

Point out Gath-Hepher, Jonah’s hometown

So, the time of Jeroboam II and Jonah was, politically at least, a good period in Israel’s history. Neither Syria nor Assyria were giving them much trouble. Israel was able to expand its borders back to their original boundaries and lived in relative peace.

But, spiritually, it was another matter. We’re told in 2 Kings 13:22-23 that it was not because of Israel’s faithfulness that God allowed them a period of respite, but simply because of God’s faithfulness.

And, in 2 Kings 14:24 we’re told that Jeroboam II was no better.

So, spiritually, things were still very bad in Israel during the time of Jonah. But, economically and politically, things were relatively good.

Watch Session 1 (09:44)

Jonah’s Rebellion

Jonah 1:2 ESV

2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.”

Nineveh, Assyria

Nineveh was located in Modern-day Iraq, near Mosul.

Capital city of the Assyrian Empire.

Assyria encompassed parts of modern day Iraq, Iran, and Turkey.

Nineveh was over 500 miles (805 km) northeast of Israel.

God called Nineveh, Assyria’s capital, a “great city.” Its footprint was estimated to be at least 1,850 acres and the perimeter of its walls is thought to have spanned about 7.5 miles.

Experts estimate that Nineveh’s population during Jonah’s time would have been around 120,000.

Culture: Nineveh was known as a royal and luxurious city, containing such things as public squares, parks, botanical gardens, a zoo, and even a library.

Assyria was a militaristic society with a reputation for violence and cruelty in warfare.

As it expanded and conquered other nations, Assyria would use great brutality, killing and enslaving people without mercy. They were infamously cruel and fearsome.

They were pagan and polytheistic. The patron deity of Nineveh was Ishtar, goddess of love and war.

Jonah’s Disobedience

Jonah 1:3 ESV

3 But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.

Jonah’s Travels

Tarshish

Why might Jonah have not desired to go to Nineveh? 1) It was a long, dangerous, inconvenient journey. 500 miles by foot would have taken at least a month of travel. 2) Fear-they had a reputation for violence. 3) They had been Israel’s enemies for a long time. Jonah didn’t want them to have an opportunity to repent.

What modern-day cities or countries remind you of Nineveh and Assyria?

What do you think God could do in those places if we go to them instead of fleeing from them?

Why did Jonah go to Tarshish? Why didn’t he just refuse to go to Nineveh and stay where he was instead? He wanted to get away “from the presence of the Lord.”

What does Jonah’s reasoning for his travels reveal about what he believes about God? He thinks it is possible for him to “get away” from God’s presence. (He believed God’s presence was confined to Israel.)

Read Psalm 139:7–12. What does this tell us about God? God is omnipresent; there is nowhere we can go to get away from his presence.

Psalm 139:7–12 ESV

7 Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? 8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! 9 If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, 10 even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me. 11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light about me be night,” 12 even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you.

After opening Psalm 139 with a brief survey of God’s knowledge about him, King David, the author of this psalm, turns in verse 7 and asks two questions: “Where can I go to escape your Spirit?” and “Where can I flee from your presence?”

The book of Jonah makes it clear that Jonah wasn’t just running from his calling to go to Nineveh, he was running away from God himself. He was trying to get to a place where he thought God wouldn’t find him anymore. As David pointed out, Tarshish wasn’t just far from Nineveh, it was a place where the people hadn’t heard about or seen the glory of God. Jonah wasn’t just having a crisis of calling, he was having a crisis of faith.

Have you ever had a crisis of faith or desired or attempted to “run” from God’s presence? If so, what were the circumstances that led you to want to flee from God? What brought you back?

Why do we disobey God? Do we not trust God? Do we think we know better than him? Do we simply prefer our own way to his? Are we afraid?

Have you ever stayed silent when you had the opportunity to share the gospel with someone else? For what reasons did you hold back? What steps could you take now to help you share God’s Word next time?

Encourage the group to read through the book of Jonah a few times over the next few weeks and see what stands out to them each time they read it.

Close in prayer.