Jonah Chapter 4 "Consequences. Correction of
Jonah" Jonah 4:1 "But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry." Jonah was the one who brought the Word of God to Nineveh, and they heard him and repented. This is why Jonah was not happy with himself. Jonah wanted to be popular to his people. How well do you think all this will go over when, Jonah returns to tell his own people, that he brought salvation to the enemy, and saved them? Remember, Hosea has told them because of the "House of Israel's sin", God was going to disown them, and scatter them, now Jonah returns with the message, that the enemy is O.K. now. He's ready to do God's work. (which will be to scatter the lost sheep of the house of Israel.) Jonah 4:2 "And he prayed unto the LORD, and said "I pray thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious GOD, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and replenish Thee of the evil." You are going to see the same sincerity and loyalties to the Antichrist when he comes that the Ninevites gave to their king. This is why the Antichrist is called the Assyrian by Ezekiel. It's going to happen. This is why we must observe the deeper meaning to this fourth chapter and the historical events. You will see a revival like never before, when Satan comes with his supernatural powers (Rev. 13:11) and wins over everyone except God's elect. The people of Nineveh were not equipped to handle the supernatural of Jonah being delivered by a whale; and the people of our generation are no different. In fact a large part of the Christian world uses miracles and wonders to confirm a message as being from God. Jonah must have thought himself a pretty good preacher, to think it was he that converted Nineveh. Jonah's words shows he had no idea of God's overall plan of Nineveh, nor for the souls of their people. Poor Jonah is a little thick headed, in his rebellion against God. Jonah 4:3 " Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech Thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live." Jonah still doesn't get it! without the miracle of the fish, not one person in Nineveh would have listened to anything that Jonah would have said. God prepared the way, and the minds of the people of Nineveh to accept the warning. When Jonah arrived they were looking for Him, and his message. Jonah thinks it was only his action and words that did it, now he is crying because of this thing he has done. What vanity! Salvation is for all people. Jonah 4:4 "Then said the LORD, "Doest thou well to be angry?" It's good for you to get all shook up, Jonah, so you think that you made a mistake? Jonah 4:5 "So Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city." Jonah didn't do any follow-up work with his preaching. As soon as he was done, he ran out of town, away from the river, and made a hut to protect himself from the sun; and Jonah waited. Jonah sat and waited to see the city fail. Poor Jonah had no idea in the world what God would work in the minds of the people. When you sow the seeds, it is God that germinates that seed, and causes it to grow. Jonah 4:6 "And the LORD God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his grief." The "gourd" is from the Egyptian word it's, "kikayon" in Hebrew. It's a plant that grows just overnight. It gives shade in it's coverage; and it brought peace in the mind of Jonah. Jonah 4:7 "But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gourd that it withered." Jonah 4:8 "And it came to pass, when the sun did arise, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said, "It is better for me to die than to live." The word "vehement east wind", is a "kadim harithim" wind in the Hebrew. This was an extremely hot and dry wind. When it hit poor Jonah, he passed out. Jonah 4:9 "And God said to Jonah, "Doest thou well to be angry for the gourd? and he said, "I do well to be angry, even unto death." God tells Jonah it's good to be angry for the gourd that he had, and that old worm that took it, and ate it. Jonah is angry because he does not have the gourd which kept him cool. Yet Jonah didn't do one thing to plant, water or take care of the gourd. God gave the gourd and Jonah didn't have to do one thing but enjoy it, then he cried when he lost it. Many times that seed of salvation, once it's planted, will wither and die. If you don't add the word to your works, and pick those worms off that gourd, or correct your sinful ways. You will slip out of God's grace and favor, and your gourd will die. Just as God gives, God can also take away. God doesn't cause one to backslide; you do it to yourself. Because they don't do anything to receive their salvation, they will not do anything to maintain it. Their is a condition to God's free salvation, paid for by the blood of Christ, and given only to those who repent and ask. That condition is repentance, when we fall short daily, and working in His service. Jonah 4:10 "Then said the LORD, thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night:" Jonah 4:11 "And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are one than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle?" God is telling Jonah to wake up and learn the lesson. I gave you a gourd, this plant, in the night and it grew and gave you enjoyment by day from the hot sun. You did nothing to maintain it and it died. I can see why your angry over the gourd. Then God asked Jonah, should I not spare the Ninevites, when they are so ignorant? They don't know their right hand from their left. These 12,000 people had God's pity, and Jonah is how God reached them. This same generation that was spared by God, is the population of Nineveh that executed God's judgment on the house of Israel. The ten tribes Kingdom that Jonah came from, was overthrown and scattered by the sword of these Assyrians. Very few today obey God, and they do it out of ignorance; they simply don't know what His word says. They are to lazy with the would to care for the things of God. You must know this to understand end time Bible prophecy. Because Israel does not return to Palestine (Israel of today) but only the Jews. They are both the good and bad figs (Kenites), and when they established a nation, a prophecy was fulfilled by Jesus in Matthew 24, Luke 21, Mark 13. He said that generation which saw this happen would not pass away (die) until all the end time prophecy had occurred. They would see it and live through it. So if God deals with Judah and Israel separately, it's good to know exactly who He is talking about. This requires many Christians to wake up, and see the error in their Bible teaching's; if they are to understand any of the Minor Prophet's, or prophecies concerning our times, you must know that God will address the "House of Judah" with prophecies dealing with Judah only, and totally different prophecies are given only for the "House of Israel". Without this understanding it's no great wonder that Christian's are confused about Bible Prophecies.
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