Jonah 3-4

Scripture Thought (What I Learned):

In chapters 3 and 4 we learn a lot about God’s mercy and WHO God really is. In LDS doctrine, we believe that God, His Son and the Holy Ghost are all individual and distinct persons. We believe that God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ have bodies of flesh and bones. After all, we are created in their image, right!? I just love how God says he “repented” (which of course means changed his mind in this context), but God was going to destroy a city and then changed his mind because the people changed their ways. God never hates people, he loves all his children, but he gets upset and sometimes (like any good parent) has to discipline his children.

Jonah gets mad about God NOT destroying the city, but they gets mad at God killing a plant. Here we see the selfishness of Jonah, he only wanted the plant because it gave him shade. God teaches him and any reader a good lesson, ALL Life is important and everyone has a purpose and meaning!

Chapter 3: Jonah saves Nineveh

The word of the Lord comes to Jonah and is again told to cry against Nineveh and its people. Jonah preaches to the people and almost immediately the people repent with ashes and sackcloth. They fasted and turned to their God. Upon seeing this, God decides not to destroy Nineveh.

“…God repented of the evil that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.” (Jonah 3:10)

Chapter 4: Jonah is angry

Jonah is upset because God chose not to destroy Nineveh. He leaves the city and sits in the hot sun where God causes a plant (a gourd of some sort) to grow to provide shade for Jonah. The next day God sends a worm to kill the plant. Without any shade from the hot sun, Jonah is angered and in pain and claims it would be better for him to die.

God questions Jonah’s anger about the death of the plant and asks him why he thinks a plant should be spared from destruction but a large city like Nineveh should not be saved.