In this chapter we learn Jonah is angry that God spared the people of Nineveh – apparently he was hoping to see the city burned to the ground for these were his ‘enemies’ (Assyrians).
“But God said to Jonah, ‘Do you do well to be angry for the plant?’ And he said, ‘Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.’ And the Lord said, ‘You pity the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow, which came into being in a night and perished in a night. And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle?’ ” (v9-11)
While Jonah is waiting for fire from heaven, God gives Jonah a shade plant one day, which then dies the next, exacerbating Jonah’s unrighteous anger. God then asks a powerful question of Jonah, forcing him to compare the value of many human lives to the value of a single plant. This question seems rhetorical – are the 120,000+ lives more valuable than a single plant? He calls Jonah’s value system into question.
Don’t we all have moments where our values are skewed? Prejudices are created by distorted values, where one person / people is considered superior to another for any given reason (eg. skin color, education, geography, lineage, ability, etc). Based on the context, it would seem Jonah thought the people of Nineveh were deserving of destruction, simply because they were Ninevites, and God calls him out on that prejudice.
I challenge us all (myself included) to prayerfully invite the Spirit to look into our hearts and identify any areas of prejudice we have – chances are very good there’s at least one prejudice in there somewhere. These prejudices, which we come by ‘honestly’ through culture, upbringing, or sometimes trauma, are easy to obtain and difficult to eradicate, which is why we need God’s help. I like to think that God’s salvation of Nineveh was as much for Jonah’s (and our) benefit as it was for the Ninevites. This chapter is a good reminder to address misguided values before they grow into a larger problem. Please spend at least a few minutes today inviting the Spirit’s insight – if everyone were to make aligning themselves with God’s values a common practice, there would be far more reconciliation in this world, and far less hatred.
Father God, our Gracious and Merciful Lord, Your compassion knows no bounds. Thank you for relenting from disaster in Nineveh, and in our lives today. We do not deserve Your mercy, just as the Ninevites (and Jonah) did not, yet we gratefully accept it. Please stir our hearts toward reconciliation wherever there is prejudice within. Please transform our minds and hearts to align with Yours, giving equal value to all people of all descriptions. May we all learn to love all of our neighbors, unconditionally, as Jesus does. In His name we praise and worship You, forever and ever, amen.
~ Conqueror in Training