Jonah's Target Audience

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Main Purpose of Book of Jonah

Why is it important to understand the purpose of a book. It serves as a road map on how things fit together why it was structured a certain way. This is a highly structured book. The more structure the more focus of the purpose. How many main streets in America ? If you don’t know what city your in how can you find “main” street ? The Book is structured to achieve something…what is that ? The main purpose of the book is to get Northern Israel to repent !

Nineveh vs Northern Israel

Nineveh vs Samaria

Was Israel ever mentioned in Jonah ? Assyria was a world power, Northern Israel not so much. 722 Israel was overthrown by Assyria.

Jonah’s Target Audience is Israel

Was the book of Jonah written for Ninevah ? (NIV)

“Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” What was Israel’s mission ? Jonah is Israel at least in the first two Chapters. Reluctant to carry out his mission. Famous Jewish saying “ If we are the chosen people I would that God would chose another”

Repentance Aimed at Israel

Isaiah 14:4–23 ESV

you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon: “How the oppressor has ceased, the insolent fury ceased! The Lord has broken the staff of the wicked, the scepter of rulers, that struck the peoples in wrath with unceasing blows, that ruled the nations in anger with unrelenting persecution. The whole earth is at rest and quiet; they break forth into singing. The cypresses rejoice at you, the cedars of Lebanon, saying, ‘Since you were laid low, no woodcutter comes up against us.’ Sheol beneath is stirred up to meet you when you come; it rouses the shades to greet you, all who were leaders of the earth; it raises from their thrones all who were kings of the nations. All of them will answer and say to you: ‘You too have become as weak as we! You have become like us!’ Your pomp is brought down to Sheol, the sound of your harps; maggots are laid as a bed beneath you, and worms are your covers. “How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low! You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’ But you are brought down to Sheol, to the far reaches of the pit. Those who see you will stare at you and ponder over you: ‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms, who made the world like a desert and overthrew its cities, who did not let his prisoners go home?’ All the kings of the nations lie in glory, each in his own tomb; but you are cast out, away from your grave, like a loathed branch, clothed with the slain, those pierced by the sword, who go down to the stones of the pit, like a dead body trampled underfoot. You will not be joined with them in burial, because you have destroyed your land, you have slain your people. “May the offspring of evildoers nevermore be named! Prepare slaughter for his sons because of the guilt of their fathers, lest they rise and possess the earth, and fill the face of the world with cities.” “I will rise up against them,” declares the Lord of hosts, “and will cut off from Babylon name and remnant, descendants and posterity,” declares the Lord. “And I will make it a possession of the hedgehog, and pools of water, and I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,” declares the Lord of hosts.

Judges 9:7–15 ESV

7 When it was told to Jotham, he went and stood on top of Mount Gerizim and cried aloud and said to them, “Listen to me, you leaders of Shechem, that God may listen to you. 8 The trees once went out to anoint a king over them, and they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us.’ 9 But the olive tree said to them, ‘Shall I leave my abundance, by which gods and men are honored, and go hold sway over the trees?’ 10 And the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and reign over us.’ 11 But the fig tree said to them, ‘Shall I leave my sweetness and my good fruit and go hold sway over the trees?’ 12 And the trees said to the vine, ‘You come and reign over us.’ 13 But the vine said to them, ‘Shall I leave my wine that cheers God and men and go hold sway over the trees?’ 14 Then all the trees said to the bramble, ‘You come and reign over us.’ 15 And the bramble said to the trees, ‘If in good faith you are anointing me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade, but if not, let fire come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’

Satire , Satire for Political Purposes, Animal Farm

Satire in Jonah

Jonah the Prophet runs, The Pagan Sailors are more Spiritual than Jonah, King of Nineveh and Animals Repent, Jonah’s Anger, Jonah wishes to die.

What was Northern Israel’s spiritual situation at this time ? The story of the Jereboam monarchy. Talk about Jonah here he had some wins as a Prophet but as a Prophet he knew the situation in Israel all too well. Talk about 722 BC.

Jonah is no quickly jotted down eyewitness account of some event in the Iron Age; it is a carefully crafted work of literature—a literary artifice.

We cannot read the Bible as if it were a piece of modern literature—that is, read it according to our own literary conventions. the forms and genres of biblical literature aren't the same as our own. There is overlap, to be sure, but there are also significant differences, even when there is overlap

Jonah is no quickly jotted down eyewitness account of some event in the Iron Age; it is a carefully crafted work of literature—a literary artifice.

Repentance Aimed at Us

If we are to be a kingdom of Priests how should we carry out our mission ? Talk about Jonah here he had some wins as a Prophet but as a Prophet he knew the situation in Israel all too well. Talk about 722 BC.

Jonah is no quickly jotted down eyewitness account of some event in the Iron Age; it is a carefully crafted work of literature—a literary artifice.

1 Kings 13:33-34

1 Kings 13:33–34 ESV

After this thing Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but made priests for the high places again from among all the people. Any who would, he ordained to be priests of the high places. And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth.

2 Kings 14:23–29 ESV

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. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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? And Jeroboam slept with his fathers, the kings of Israel, and Zechariah his son reigned in his place.

Talk about the situation in Israel, Jeroboam 1 vs Jeroboam II

2 Kings 14:23–25 ESV

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. 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. 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.

2 Kings 14:23–27 ESV

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. 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. 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. 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. 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.

Talk about Jonah here he had some wins as a Prophet but as a Prophet he knew the situation in Israel all too well. Talk about 722 BC.

1 Kings 13:32 ESV

For the saying that he called out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places that are in the cities of Samaria shall surely come to pass.”

We cannot read the Bible as if it were a piece of modern literature—that is, read it according to our own literary conventions. the forms and genres of biblical literature aren't the same as our own. There is overlap, to be sure, but there are also significant differences, even when there is overlap

Jonah is no quickly jotted down eyewitness account of some event in the Iron Age; it is a carefully crafted work of literature—a literary artifice.

1 Kings 13:34 ESV

And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth.

1 Kings 13:34 ESV

And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth.