Civil Government: Power, Nations, and Constitutional Order: War in the Gates

Run Jonah Run

Transcript: AI Transcript

Professor: John Weaver

Subject: Civil Government

Genre: Sermon

Dictation Name:

Date: 2024-07-21

Synopsis: In this sermon, John Weaver continues his series on Jonah, focusing on chapter 2. He emphasizes that Jonah, who was running from God in chapter 1, is now running to God in prayer from the belly of the fish. Weaver highlights the historical reality of Jonah, affirmed by Jesus, and places Jonah among his prophetic contemporaries. He draws lessons on the fear of death, God's sovereignty over life and death, and how God uses affliction to bring His people to submission and obedience.

[John Weaver] Well, let's open our Bibles to the book of Jonah, chapter two. I started last week a series of four messages on Jonah, and I'm going to continue and Lord willing, there's going to be two more messages. The title of the message today is Run, Jonah, Run. So let's read the second chapter. It's a very short chapter, 10 verses. Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord, his God, out of the fish's belly, and said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me. Out of the belly of hell I cried, and thou heardest my voice. For thou hast cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas, and the floods compass me about, all thy billows and thy waves pass over me. Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight, Yet I will look again toward thy holy temple.

[John Weaver] The waters compassed me about, even to the soul. The depth closed me round about. The weeds were wrapped around my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains. The earth with her bars was about me forever. Yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord my God. When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came in unto thee, into thy holy temple.

[John Weaver] They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy. But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving. I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord. And the Lord spake unto the fish and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land. If you remember last week, I made several opening statements. I said, first of all, that Jonah was a real historical person. And that Jonah was a real historical prophet. And of course that Jonah was also a real disobedient believer.

[John Weaver] He confessed that he worshipped the one true and the living God. And he also confessed that he was running from the presence of God. So last week we looked at the fact from Psalm 139 that God is omnipresent. That is, God is everywhere at once in the totality of His being. And obviously, clearly, Jonah could not run away from the omnipresence of God. But what he was running from was the manifest presence of God, which was the temple. That is where God particularly and peculiarly manifested Himself in the Old Testament. First in the tabernacle, and then in the temple. Interestingly, when you read Jonah 1, Jonah is running from God, and when you read Jonah, chapter two, Jonah is running to God. It's absolutely necessary that we understand that both Jonah and the book of Jonah are historical books or is a historical book. And Jonah is a historical person. And the reason I'm saying that is because our Lord in Matthew, chapter 12, verses 39-41, and Luke chapter 11, verses 29-32, our Lord said, as Jonah was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights, even so must the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth three days

[John Weaver] and three nights. So simply stated, when someone rejects the prophet Jonah, and doubts the book of Jonah. At the same time, he must reject the Lord Jesus Christ and his word. So Jesus then testified to the reality of the book of Jonah and the person of Jonah as well.

[John Weaver] Now, here's something those people have not really grasped. So let me try to put this in perspective for you. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Amos, Jonah, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah were contemporaries. That is, they all prophesied around the same time. All of them prophesied before the exile.

[John Weaver] Now, that does not mean that they had a prophets club and knew each other, but it doesn't mean that they were alive and they were preaching in different parts of the kingdom, some in the southern kingdom, some in the northern kingdom at the same time. So let me just show you. I want you to hold Jonah chapter two, but I want you to turn back in your Bibles, first of all, to the book of Isaiah, chapter one and verse one. And notice, if you would, the ministry of Isaiah. So when you read Isaiah chapter 1 and verse 1, the Word of God says this. The vision of Isaiah, the son of Amos, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. So Isaiah had a rather lengthy ministry as well. But notice, if you would, he mentions four kings. And I'm going to point out Uzziah again just a little bit later. But note, if you would, he was there during the reign of Uzziah.

[John Weaver] Look, if you would now in the book of Jeremiah, chapter one and verse two. Jeremiah chapter one in verse two. And here's what the word of God says concerning Jeremiah's ministry. Jeremiah chapter 1 and verse 2. Here we go. He said, To whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.

[John Weaver] You're going to hear that name again as well. Now, if you would turn in your Bibles, if you would, to the book of Jeremiah chapter 25 and look in verse 3. Jeremiah 25 in verse 3. Notice if you would, Jeremiah had a rather lengthy ministry as well. Because in Jeremiah, chapter 25 in verse three, the Bible says from the 13th year of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah, even into this day, that is the three and 20th year.

[John Weaver] The word of the Lord hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking, but you have not hearkened." So we have the ministry of Jeremiah.

[John Weaver] Now if you would turn, Ronald, over to the book of Hosea. Daniel, Hosea. And look, if you would, in Hosea 1 and verse 1. And look at this. Hosea 1, verse 1. The word of the Lord that came unto Hosea, the son of Beri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel.

[John Weaver] Now, let me just remind you that you have the southern kingdom and you have the northern kingdom. And so depending upon where these men preached, They may list southern kings or northern kings or both. And so, Hosea mentions not only a southern kingdom, but also the northern kingdom as well. So, if you will turn right on over to the book of Amos, Hosea, Joel, Amos, and look if you would in Amos chapter 1 and verse 1, Amos 1 and verse 1, the Bible says, The words of Amos, who was among the herdmen of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake. Now, interestingly enough, Amos was not only from the southern kingdom, but he preached primarily in the northern kingdom. So he's listing Uzziah, which I'll mention again later. And he's also mentioned Joash, the son of Jeroboam. By the way, there was a Joash in the southern kingdom and there's a Joash in the northern kingdom.

[John Weaver] Then if you would turn right over to the book of Zephaniah. So it's Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. So it's about the fourth book from the end of the Old Testament. So, if you look in Zephaniah chapter 1 and verse 1, the Bible says the word of the Lord which came unto Zephaniah, the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Ammariah, the son of Hizkiah, in the days of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah.

[John Weaver] So, he's been mentioned as well. So, all of these men were basically contemporaries in the sense that they preached sometimes in the same territory, sometimes in the same kingdom, sometimes in another kingdom. They may not have been buddy buddies in the sense that they got together each week, but they certainly knew of each other's ministry and they knew of each other's preaching as well. Now, I mentioned Uzziah. Well, I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to 2 Kings chapter 14, and I'm going to show you another passage This also connects Jonah. So, if you'll look in 2 Kings 14, and let's begin reading there with verse 21. 2 Kings 14, verse 21. Look, if you would, please. 2 Kings 14, verse 21.

[John Weaver] And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was 16 years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. Now, do you know who Azariah was? Well, I'll tell you just a moment. Azariah's name is also Uzziah. So, Azariah was made king when he was 16, and he reigned 52 years. That's why all of the prophets I've read about kept mentioning Uzziah, because he had a long reign, and they prophesied sometimes during the 52 years of his reign. So notice, if you would, verse 21, And all the people of Judah took Azariah, which was 16 years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. He built Eloth and restored it to Judah. After that, the king slept with his fathers. In the 15th year of Amaziah, the son of Joash, king of Judah, watch, Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel, began to reign in Samaria, and he reigned 41 years.

[John Weaver] And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. He departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. He restored the coast of Israel from the entering in of Hamath unto the sea of the plain, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which he spake by the hand of his servant Jonah, the son of Amittai, the prophet which was of Gath-Heper." So now we're also connecting Jonah with the reign of Uzziah and also that of Joash, king of Judah, and Joash, king of Israel as well. So all of these people then understood each other's prophecy in that sense of the word. Now, Jonah, of course, was sent by God to Nineveh. I told you last week that Nineveh was the capital of Assyria. Jonah did not want to preach to Nineveh. And the reason he did not want to preach to Nineveh is because the Assyrians were the mortal enemies of Israel. Now, Nahum, the book of Nahum, prophesied the destruction of the Assyrians.

[John Weaver] Habakkuk also talked about the Assyrians, but the problem that Habakkuk had was he could not discern, he could not grasp the fact that God was going to use a more wicked nation such as the Assyrians to chastise a less evil nation that is Israel. So Habakkuk had to wrap his Mind around that, and you'll find that in Habakkuk 2 as well. Now, Zephaniah also demonstrates how God is going to judge the Assyrians and destroy Nineveh. In fact, here's the verse in the book of Zephaniah 2, verse 13, and the Bible is speaking about God, and He will stretch out His hand against the north and destroy Assyria and will make Nineveh a desolation and like a dry wilderness. So, Zephaniah even speaks about the destruction of Assyria.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to the book of Isaiah, and let me try to put this together for you, and to show you that God does exactly that which people say that He cannot do. Because God is God and He can do as He pleases. God took the Assyrians as wicked and as vile as they were, and I spoke about that last week. They were exceedingly cruel. But God took the Assyrians and sent them against Israel. And then he turned around and judged the Assyrians for doing that which they did. So God used them to chastise and correct Israel. And then he judged them for doing what he wanted done. You say, how can that be right? Well, let me show you. Look in Isaiah 10, beginning there with verse 5. Look what God says concerning the Assyrian. He said, O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger and the staff in their hand is mine indignation. So God is using them. He's calling the Assyrian the rod of his anger and their staff is his indignation.

[John Weaver] Now look at verse 6. I will send him." So the Assyrian came at God's command. That is true. God said, I will send him against the hypocritical nation and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge to take the spoil and to take the prey and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. Now look at this. God said, I am sending the Assyrians. I'm giving him a charge. I want him to take the spoil of the prey and to tread them down. Now, look at verse 7.

[John Weaver] Here's the crux of the matter. Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so, but it is in his heart to destroy, to cut off nations, not a few. So, although God used the Assyrians, and God sent the Assyrians, the Assyrians did not come in obedience to God, They did not come for God's honor and God's glory. They only came because they wanted to plunder and wanted to steal and wanted to kill. So God said, I sent him, but he did not come for My honor and My glory. He did not come in obedience to Me. So now what God is going to do is He's going to turn around and judge the Assyrians for doing what they did.

[John Weaver] And I want you to look at it. Skip down in your Bibles, if you would, please. Beginning there with verse 12. Look at verse 12. The Bible says, when wherefore it shall come to pass that when the Lord had performed his whole work upon Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria and the glory of his high looks. So God says, I'm going to judge him for doing what he did. Why did not God send him? Yes. Did not God use him? Yes. But you remember, he said he did not mean to obey God. He did not desire to obey God. And look what he did in verse 13. For he, that is the king of Assyria, said, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, for I am prudent, and I have removed the bounds of the people, and have robbed their treasures, and I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man.

[John Weaver] And my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people, and as one gathereth eggs that are left, have I gathered all the earth, And there was none that moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or peeped. Now look at the question that God asked. Shall the axe boast itself against him that he was there with? Or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it, as if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself as it were no wood?

[John Weaver] Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness, and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire, and the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame, and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briars in one day." So God is saying, I'm going to judge him because he did it because he wanted to do it. It was his sin. It was his wickedness.

[John Weaver] He was in rebellion against me. So, clearly then, God is going to use the Assyrians. Jonah did not want to preach to the Assyrians because he knew the prophecy of Nahum. He knew the prophecy of Habakkuk as well. Now, I pointed out in Jonah chapter 1, and I want you to turn back there, that Jonah is running from God. When you get to Jonah chapter 2, Jonah is now running to God. So, when he's running from God, from the presence of God. He's running from the temple. He's running from God's manifest presence. He's also running from his commission. He does not want to go and preach to the Assyrians. He did not want them to repent. He did not want them spared.

[John Weaver] He wanted them destroyed because they were mortal enemies to his people. Now, evidently, Jonah thought that when he was cast into the sea, that would be the end of it. He just thought he was going to die by drowning. If you look in verse 12 of chapter one, they asked Jonah, what in the world shall we do to make this tempest cease? Look in verse 12. And he said unto them, take me up and cast me forth into the sea. So shall the sea be calm unto you. For I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you." So Jonah then appeared to be willing to die, eager to die, ready to die, and he thought just simply being cast in the sea would be sufficient. So if you look in verse 15, so they took up Jonah and cast him forth into the sea, and the sea ceased from her raging. So the interesting thing is, Jonah did not know that which was waiting for him. I'm sure that he thought this is going to be over with very quickly.

[John Weaver] But in verse 17, now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Now, I spoke about this last week. I'm going to mention a little bit of it again this week. But this had to be an absolutely special fish. It had to be a special whale. He swallowed Jonah. If you remember the story that I read last week of the man who actually was swallowed by a whale and was in his stomach for 16 hours before he was cut out by his mates.

[John Weaver] And the man's skin was bleached white from the digestive juices. His hair was removed from his body. He was blind for several weeks until he regained, after several months, his sight as well. So there was a man in the belly of that whale for 16 hours, and of course, he did survive, but he had great problems. I cannot even contemplate being swallowed by a fish. There are things in the ocean that I certainly do not wish to face.

[John Weaver] I suppose one of the funniest incidents that I've ever viewed in my entire life was a couple of years ago. There was a video clip of a black nurse who happened to be on her way to work. And she was making a video as she drove to work. There had been several people on the East Coast that had been eaten by a shark. The sharks bit them. A couple may have lived, but some did not live.

[John Weaver] This woman was so genuine and so sincere and so real. But it was so funny if I could just capture a voice. Here is what she said. Listen carefully. She said, If you don't want to be eaten by the shark, stay out of the kitchen. The ocean is his kitchen. You jump in and he'll eat you. Stay out of the kitchen. And I thought, well, there's a lot of truth to that. I've never been eaten by a shark. I've never been, because I'm not going in his kitchen. It was absolutely hilarious.

[John Weaver] But Jonah, wow, look in chapter 2 now, verses 1 and 2. He just got swallowed in verse 17. Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly. And he said, I cried by reason of my affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me. Now watch this. Out of the belly of hell, cried I, and thou heardest my voice. So verse 1 says, out of the fish's belly, and then he said, out of the belly of hell. Wow. Wait a minute. Let's also read verse 3. Look at this. For thou hast cast me into the deep, into the midst of the seas, and the floods compassed me about.

[John Weaver] All thy billows and thy waves passed over me. Now that's bad, but hang on to verses 5 and 6. The waters compassed me about, even to the soul. Not just his body, but to the soul, to his inner being. The depth closed me round about, and the weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottom of the mountains. The earth with her bars were about me forever.

[John Weaver] Yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord, my God. It's interesting. Jonah now believes he's going to die. I find this interesting because in chapter one, he wanted to die. He said, just throw me in the ocean. That'll stop this storm. Just throw me in the ocean. But he did not know this special whale that God had prepared for him. Now he's in the belly of that whale. And he's fearful. Why is he so fearful? And Frank, since you're listening in, I don't think Jonah was perspiring. I think he was shaking because the seaweeds are wrapped around his head. And if he was perspiring, I don't think he could tell it from the from the water, from the seaweeds as well. But here he is and he's in the belly of this fish now. I think this is something totally unexpected for Jonah. And Jonah is engulfed in the belly of a whale, listen to this, in absolute, total darkness. Think about that.

[John Weaver] Years ago, Alice and I were in Utah. We had a couple of grandkids with us. And we went to Tim Pentecost which is a cave. Did you two go with us to that cave? We had to walk up a mile, a mountain, to get to the cave. And of course, it was a national park. There were rangers there. And when you got into the cave, or to the cave, you had a ranger escort you through that cave.

[John Weaver] It was not just simply a hole in the ground. I mean, there were passages way back into that mountain like you would not believe. Sometimes you had to step over rocks. I mean, huge rocks. You had to climb through rocks. We got way back in that cave. And of course, they had lights and the ranger said, stand absolutely still, do not move, hold hands. So we had to hold hands and not move. And the ranger then turned the lights off. You talk about darkness. You talk about the expression, I couldn't see the hand in front of my face. You could not see anything. It was absolutely, totally pitch black. Now here Jonah is in the belly of this whale and it is absolutely pitch black. Jonah finally realizes he's not at the top of the food chain. He's at the bottom of the food chain. He's just been eaten by a great fish.

[John Weaver] I saw a picture uh... that was taken by a diver of another diver and just as the picture was snapped which was a excellent picture uh... the diver dropped the camera and turned and fled because behind the diver whose picture he took was a huge grouper standing there almost ready to eat that diver i was just simply saying there are things in the ocean that i don't want to face that is for sure Just think about this.

[John Weaver] There have been incidents that have happened to men, but not to the degree that it happened to Jonah. Here's one I want to read to you. Listen carefully. Provincetown, and this is from Massachusetts. Provincetown. A little before 8 a.m. Friday, veteran lobster diver Michael Packard entered the water for his second dive of the day. His vessel, the J&J, was off here in Cove Beach. and surrounded by a fleet of boats catching striped bass. The water temperature was a balmy 60 degrees, and the visibility was about 20 feet. Licensed commercial lobster divers literally plucked lobsters off the sandy bottom, and as Packard, 56, dove down Friday morning, he saw schools of sand lances and striper swimming by. In something truly biblical, Packard was swallowed whole by a humpback whale.

[John Weaver] All of a sudden, he said, I felt this huge shove and the next thing I knew it was completely black. Packard recalled Friday afternoon following his release from Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis. He said, I could sense I was moving and I could feel the whale squeezing with the muscles of his mouth. Initially, Packard thought he was inside a great white shark, but he couldn't feel any teeth and he hadn't suffered any obvious wounds. It quickly dawned on him that he had been swallowed by a whale. I was completely inside. It was completely black, Packard said. I thought to myself, there's no way I'm getting out of here. I'm done. I'm dead. And all I could think of was my boys.

[John Weaver] They're 12 and 15 years old. Outfitted with scuba gear, he struggled, and the whale began shaking its head so Packard could tell that he didn't like it. He estimated he was in the whale for 30 to 40 seconds before the whale finally surfaced. I saw light, and he started throwing his head from side to side, and the next thing I knew I was outside in the water," said Packard, who lives in Wellfleet. Packard's sister, Cynthia Packard, spoke with crewman Josiah Mayo, who relayed some of the details to her. Packard said, uh, Mayo saw the whale burst to the surface, and he initially thought it was a great white shark. There was all this action at the top of the water, Packard said, Mayo told her. Then the whale flung her brother back into the sea. Mayo picked him up and called by radio to the shore and sped back to the Provincetown pier.

[John Weaver] A Provincetown Fire Department ambulance took him to the Cape Cod Hospital. Thank God it wasn't a white shark. He sees them all the time out there, said Cynthia Packard. He must have thought he was done. Well, I suppose so.

[John Weaver] Now, here's a man in the mouth of a whale for less than a minute. And you stop and think that Jonah was there three days and three nights. So there have been men that have been swallowed by whales, but not to the degree that Jonah was. Yet each one of them spoke of the absolute horror of being swallowed by a whale. And yet Jonah was there three days and three nights.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to go back to verses 5 and 6. I want you to think about this. Look in verses 5 and 6. The waters compass me about even to the soul. Now here's the thing I want you to understand. I can look at Steve. And also I see Steve and I recognize Steve. That body is nothing more than a shell. The real Steve is inside that body. OK, that's the soul. And by the way, you don't have a soul, you are a soul. God breathed into Adam the breath of life and he became a living soul. So we are a soul, period. And so he is saying, look, this this is this is really taken me to the very heart of my being is what it amounts to. So look at it again. He said, The waters compassed me about even to the soul.

[John Weaver] The depth closed me round about. The weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountain. The earth with her bars was about me forever. Yet hath thou brought up my life from corruption, O LORD my God."

[John Weaver] Now, let me say this again. The only reason that Jonah did not die was because of God's sovereign protection and preservation. God was teaching Jonah a particular lesson. And Jonah speaks of the depth. He speaks of the weeds being wrapped around his head. He speaks of going down to the bottoms of the mountains. Let me ask you this. Can you imagine the change in pressure when the whale would go to the bottom and then come back up to the top.

[John Weaver] This is what he's talking about. He's at the bottom of the mountains. A whale was diving, and then he's coming back up. Do you realize the effects that pressure can have on your body? Water is a thousand times denser than air, and while air's density can vary, the density of water cannot. That's why the deeper you go in the ocean, the stronger the pressure. That is why several years ago, the submersible, submersible little sub cracked up. It broke in the pressure of the water.

[John Weaver] And of course, everybody died. But The deeper one dives, the more the pressure is. How this is affecting Jonah, I have no idea. I know God is protecting him. I know God is preserving him. But if that whale was going down, as he says, to the bottom of the mountain and then coming back up to the top. And by the way, the closer you get to the surface of the water, that is where the greatest changes you have in the pressure. And that is why when divers come up at times, if they come up too fast, they get what is known as the bends. And you have to come up easily and gradually and slowly because of the change in pressure. Now, so Jonah has been swallowed.

[John Weaver] He's in this whale's belly. He's experiencing things that he never experienced in his entire life. So before I go any further in this chapter, I want to stop and make some obvious observations. Some things that you and I need to think about. First of all. Put this down, make sure you understand this. Those who think. That they want to die. Really do not want to die. They want to live. Jonah. In chapter one, wanted to die. He was willing to die. He thought he was ready to die. Just throw me over. Just pitch me in. A lot of ground.

[John Weaver] But he did not realize that God had prepared this great fish for himself. Now, when you get to Jonah, Chapter two. Wow. Now, Jonah is wanting to live. I remember as a young man. A neighbor girl decided she wanted to kill herself. And she took a handful of rat poison. And by the time she started having great agony and great pains, and the parents rushed her to the doctor and the hospital, and they were pumping her stomach out, she was screaming and crying that she wanted to live.

[John Weaver] But she did not make it. I'm just simply pointing out the fact she thought she really wanted to die. But then when it came time to die, she wanted to live more than anything else. Just this week, I got. A message from a friend of mine. Informing me about a young man who took his own life. I mean, he was at a university, seemingly had everything going for him. And according to her, he had attempted to take his life previously. This time he actually succeeded.

[John Weaver] But I have watched in nearly 60 years of preaching, I've watched saints. And sinners die. And when it comes time to actually die, It doesn't matter if you're a saint or it doesn't matter if you're a sinner. Your body is still struggling to live. You want to live. The body wants to live. It is normal. It is natural to want to live. And you will find people who are dying, they will be fighting for their breath. They want that breath more than anything in the world. So Jonah thought he wanted to die.

[John Weaver] But then when it came to being in the belly of the hell or the belly of the fish, He changed his mind. So a lot of people try to change their minds, but sometimes it's too late. So here's the second truth. We have to understand that death does not end at all. Many people think that their suffering will be eased when they die. Well, that's not necessarily so. It may be true for a Christian, but it's not true for someone who is unsaved. And I do not care how horrible an individual is suffering. He can be suffering from cancer. He can be suffering from the most grievous and the most aggravating diseases in the world. But if he's unsaved and he dies, that physical suffering is not going to be anything compared to the spiritual suffering. So clearly death does not end it all. Nothing that is painful in this life, that is physical, mental, emotional, can equate or come clear anywhere near the suffering of those who die without the Lord Jesus Christ. So we have to remember that death does not end it all.

[John Weaver] Period. Here's the third thing. Listen to this. We cannot die when we want to die.

[John Weaver] Now, someone's going to say, well, I can't. All I got to do is shoot myself. No, no, no, no. That doesn't mean you're going to die when you want to die. The truth is the Bible teaches us that life and death are in the hands of the Lord, and God is just sovereignly appointed the day of our death, just like he is sovereignly appointed the day of our life.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to hold Jonah chapter two. But I want you to turn back in your Bibles to the book of Job, right before the book of Psalms. Look in Job chapter 7 to begin with, and then we'll go to Job chapter 14. So look in Job chapter 7. Job 7. Look in verse 1. Here's a good question. Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth?

[John Weaver] Are not his days also like the days of a hireling? So there is an appointed time for man upon the earth There's a time to be born and there's a time to die according to the book of Ecclesiastes But if you look in your Bibles to the book of Job chapter 14 Begin there with verse 1 and let's read through verse 5 and look at what the Word of God says Job 14 verse 1 man that is born of woman is a few days and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down. He fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not.

[John Weaver] And dost thou open thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest me into judgment with thee? Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean, not one? Look at this now, seeing his days are determined, the number of his months are with thee, Thou hast appointed His bounds that He cannot pass." None of us are going to live one day, or one minute, or one second longer than God has ordained. Period.

[John Weaver] Now, you're going to say, well, I believe I can die when I want to. I just think I can end my life. Well, if you're that foolish, you might go ahead and try it. But the truth is, you're not going to succeed in doing that which you want to do. Do you realize only God could die when he wanted to die? Do you remember that? What did our Lord say? No man taking my life from me.

[John Weaver] I have power to lay it down. I have power to take it again. And Jesus Christ, when he gave his life, said, Father, in thy hands I commend my spirit. And he gave up the ghost. Man cannot die whenever he wants to die. No. Let me give you a good illustration. I witnessed. A young man who had placed a shotgun under his chin and pull the trigger.

[John Weaver] I did not see him do it. But I was at the hospital when they brought him in through the emergency room. Because when I was at the university, I worked at the hospital. And oftentimes, I was on that back desk which was at the emergency room. They brought this young man in, and he had half of his head blown off. He was on the stretcher. And as he came by my desk, his chest was going up and down, and you could hear him, and all the gurgling. That man lived three days in that condition before he died.

[John Weaver] You can't kill yourself and die when you want to die. You may kill yourself, but you're not going to die until God allows you to die. Period. So you mark this down, if you would, please. Not everybody who thinks they want to die really and truly want to die. And they better understand that death does not end it all. And they better understand, listen carefully, that you can't die when you want to die. And just because you shoot yourself or do something stupid and foolish does not mean that you're going to die when you're going to die. Alice and I know of a young woman who thought she was going to take her life. And she shot herself. And she lived for, I don't know, 20, 30 years in a wheelchair, a vegetable. I'm just simply saying, no, life and death is in the hands of the Lord, not in the hands of man. The fourth one. And here's the fourth observation. I want you to go back to the book of Jonah now. The fourth observation is this.

[John Weaver] God knows exactly what it's going to take to get our attention. Remember, if you would now, Jonah in chapter one is running from God. He's running from his commission. He does not want to preach to the Assyrians. He wants the Ninevites to die. That's all there is to it. But in chapter two, he's running to God. He's praying. He's beseeching. He's ready to preach. Look, if you would, Jonah 2 verse 1. Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly. Look in verse 2 and said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord. Wow. Look in verse 4. Then said I, I'm cast out of thy sight, yet I will look again toward thy holy temple. In other words, I was running from it. Now I'm willing to run to it. Look in verse 6.

[John Weaver] I went down to the bottoms of the mountains. The earth with her bars was about me forever. Yet thou has brought up my life from corruption. Oh, Lord, my God, the words, I'm not going to die. I'm going to live. Look in verse seven. When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord and my prayer came in unto thee. There he is praying into my holy temple. Wow. Now look in verse 9,"...but I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving.

[John Weaver] I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord." Do you realize what you have in Jonah chapter 2 is Jonah is running back to God, and I believe he's running back to God far more quickly than he ran from God. Because he realizes he's in a very desperate situation. Let me tell you what is happening. In Jonah chapter 2, God has Jonah exactly where He wants him, in the position that He exactly wants him in. That is, He wants him submissive and obedient. And that's where Jonah is at right at this particular time.

[John Weaver] I'm willing to do whatever you would have me to do. Now, let me give you a good illustration of this. I want you to turn in your Bibles. if you would hold Jonah chapter 2, but turn to Acts chapter 9. You'll see a similar situation in the life of Saul of Tarsus. You remember how Saul was an enemy of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was consenting to the death of Stephen. He held the cloaks of those who stoned Stephen.

[John Weaver] He had papers from the high priest going to Damascus that he might find any of this way that is Christians. He might bind them and bring them back and throw them into prison or into a dungeon. So Saul of Tarsus was the enemy of Christians and the enemy of the Lord Jesus Christ. But it was on that road that our Lord revealed himself to Saul. And he said, Saul, Saul, It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." And the pricks was those sharp goads that they used to goad the oxen with. And Saul immediately said, Who art thou, Lord? He knew whoever struck him down was Lord. Who art thou, Lord? He said, I am Jesus, and I will not persecute thee. Then he said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?

[John Weaver] And of course, he was blind. And he told him to go into Damascus. And they took him and led him by the hand to go to Damascus.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to look in your Bibles to Acts 9. And let's begin reading there with verse 10. And there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias. And to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him, Arise and go into the street which is called Straight. and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus. For behold, he prayeth, hath seen a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight." Now look at this question or this answer that Ananias gave. Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man how much evil he hath done to thy saints of Jerusalem.

[John Weaver] And here we have authority from the chief priest to bind all that call on thy name. And the Lord said unto him, Go thy way, for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake.

[John Weaver] Now, here's a thing that Ananias missed. If you'll go back to verse 11. And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire of the house of Judas, for one called Saul of Tarsus. For behold, what? He prayeth. And here's what God told Ananias. I have him tamed. Don't worry about him. He's broken to yoke. Doesn't matter what you've heard about him. You just do as I tell you, Ananias, because he's a chosen vessel to me. And I'm going to show him exactly what he's going to have to suffer for my name's sake. So what God did to Jonah was to tame him. What God did to Saul of Tarsus was to tame him.

[John Weaver] You remember that passage in Matthew 11? Where our Lord said, Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I'll give you rest. And then he said, Take my yoke upon you, for I am meek and lowly, and you shall find rest for your soul. Have you ever tried to plow with an untamed oxen or an untamed mule? It's impossible. In order to plow with an oxen, having me in the yoke, in order to plow with a mule, and I used to plow when I was a boy, they had to be tamed. And what our Lord is saying in Matthew 11, you come to me and take my yoke, you submit to me, you be taught of me, You be obedient to me, and you'll find rest for your soul.

[John Weaver] So, I want you to turn back in your Bible to Jonah chapter 2. I want you to look at this. Look at verse 10. Jonah 2 verse 10. Now that God has Jonah praying and Jonah wanting to go back to the temple and obey God, and the Lord spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah, Upon the dry ground. You know. I said last week. When God got through with Jonah, he might have smelled a lot like fish, but he felt a whole lot more like preaching. And, you know, I think probably when he hit that dry ground.

[John Weaver] He went running toward, I believe I would have. I believe I would have run in obedience a lot faster than I ran in disobedience.

[John Weaver] Now, I want to show you one more verse. I want you to turn back in your Bibles to the book of Psalms, Psalm 32, and I want you to watch this. Psalm 32. And I want you to see the promise of God and the warning of God. Look at Psalm 32 in verse 8. Look what God says. I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go. I will guide thee with mine eye."

[John Weaver] Isn't that a blessed truth? God said, I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way that thou shalt go. I'll guide thee with mine eye. All of us have had children. Is it not absolutely wonderful when you can just speak to your children and they say, yes, sir, and yes, ma'am, and they do exactly what they're told to do? It's a blessing to have an obedient child. And this is what God is saying. God is saying, I will instruct you. If you'll listen, I'll teach you. I'll show you the way to go.

[John Weaver] You don't have to guess. All you've got to do is listen and obey. I will teach you. Ah, but look at verse 9. Be ye not as the horse or as the mule, which have no understanding, whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come nigh or near unto thee." God said, don't make me put a bit and bridle on you. Don't make me do that. God can do that. God knows exactly what it's going to take to tame each one of us. He knows exactly what it's going to take to bring us to yoke. He knows exactly what it's going to take to make us submissive and obedient to His will. And God said, I'm willing to teach you. You know, there's an interesting verse in Micah 6 and verse 9.

[John Weaver] It says, Hear ye the rod, and him who hath appointed it. So, boys and girls, listen. If you don't listen to daddy and mama, if you disobey, what comes next? The rod. Hmm. So this is what God is telling us. I will instruct thee. I will teach thee. Listen. Obey. That's a wonderful way to learn. You can also learn by the rod, but that's a more difficult way to learn. Hear ye the rod, and him who hath appointed it. So Jonah was tamed of God, became the obedient, submissive servant and prophet that God ordained him to be.

[John Weaver] He may not have liked the message he had to preach, but he had to preach. We may not like God's will in our life particularly, but if we realize it's God's will, we need to submit to it because it is God's will. And God has a very unique way of breaking us and making us submissive and obedient. It may not be being swallowed by a whale. It may not be lying in bed on our back for six months, but whatever the way, God knows exactly what it will take to bring us into obedience and submission. And that is the position that we want to be in and we need to be in. So let's pray. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we ask for your blessing, for your help, and we ask, Lord, that you would indeed make us obedient, make us submissive. And Father, may we not run from thee, but run to thee. And Lord, may we listen and be instructed by Thee and taught by Thee. May we not have to be bridled with a bit in our mouth.

[John Weaver] May we not have to have the rod applied to our lives. May we just be willing to listen, to hear, heed, and obey. We ask for Your grace and Your mercy. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, Amen.

Run Jonah Run

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	722241936455493
Subject	Civil Government
Course	Civil Government: Power, Nations, and Constitutional Order: War in the Gates
Genre	Sermon
Date	2024-07-21
Dictation Name
Book	Book 009: Civil Government: Power, Nations, and Constitutional Order — Chapter 21
Source Timed Segments	77

Formatted Transcript

Introduction and Reading of Jonah 2

Weaver opens with a reading of Jonah chapter 2 and recaps the previous sermon, noting Jonah's historical reality and his running from God's manifest presence.

Well, let's open our Bibles to the book of Jonah, chapter two. I started last week a series of four messages on Jonah, and I'm going to continue and, Lord willing, there's going to be two more messages. The title of the message today is "Run, Jonah, Run." So let's read the second chapter. It's a very short chapter, 10 verses. "Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly, and said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me. Out of the belly of hell I cried, and thou heardest my voice. For thou hast cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas, and the floods compass me about, all thy billows and thy waves pass over me. Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight, yet I will look again toward thy holy temple."

Scripture Reading — Jonah 2:1-10

"The waters compassed me about, even to the soul. The depth closed me round about. The weeds were wrapped around my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains. The earth with her bars was about me forever. Yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord my God. When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came in unto thee, into thy holy temple." "They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy. But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving. I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord."

And the Lord spake unto the fish and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land. If you remember last week, I made several opening statements. I said, first of all, that Jonah was a real historical person. And that Jonah was a real historical prophet. And of course that Jonah was also a real disobedient believer.

Historical Context of Jonah and His Contemporaries

Weaver establishes Jonah as a historical figure by referencing Jesus' words and places Jonah among contemporary prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Amos, and Zephaniah, showing their overlapping ministries.

He confessed that he worshipped the one true and the living God. And he also confessed that he was running from the presence of God. So last week we looked at the fact from Psalm 139 that God is omnipresent. That is, God is everywhere at once in the totality of His being. And obviously, clearly, Jonah could not run away from the omnipresence of God. But what he was running from was the manifest presence of God, which was the temple. That is where God particularly and peculiarly manifested Himself in the Old Testament. First in the tabernacle, and then in the temple. Interestingly, when you read Jonah 1, Jonah is running from God, and when you read Jonah, chapter two, Jonah is running to God. It's absolutely necessary that we understand that both Jonah and the book of Jonah are historical books or is a historical book. And Jonah is a historical person. And the reason I'm saying that is because our Lord in Matthew, chapter 12, verses 39-41, and Luke chapter 11, verses 29-32, our Lord said, "As Jonah was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights, even so must the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights."

So simply stated, when someone rejects the prophet Jonah, and doubts the book of Jonah, at the same time, he must reject the Lord Jesus Christ and his word. So Jesus then testified to the reality of the book of Jonah and the person of Jonah as well. Now, here's something those people have not really grasped. So let me try to put this in perspective for you. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Amos, Jonah, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah were contemporaries. That is, they all prophesied around the same time. All of them prophesied before the exile.

Now, that does not mean that they had a prophets club and knew each other, but it doesn't mean that they were alive and they were preaching in different parts of the kingdom, some in the southern kingdom, some in the northern kingdom at the same time. So let me just show you. I want you to hold Jonah chapter two, but I want you to turn back in your Bibles, first of all, to the book of Isaiah, chapter one and verse one. And notice, if you would, the ministry of Isaiah. So when you read Isaiah chapter 1 and verse 1, the Word of God says this:

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 1:1

"The vision of Isaiah, the son of Amos, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah."

So Isaiah had a rather lengthy ministry as well. But notice, if you would, he mentions four kings. And I'm going to point out Uzziah again just a little bit later. But note, if you would, he was there during the reign of Uzziah.

Look, if you would now in the book of Jeremiah, chapter one and verse two. Jeremiah chapter one in verse two. And here's what the word of God says concerning Jeremiah's ministry. Jeremiah chapter 1 and verse 2. Here we go. He said,

Scripture Reading — Jeremiah 1:2

"To whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign."

You're going to hear that name again as well. Now, if you would turn in your Bibles, if you would, to the book of Jeremiah chapter 25 and look in verse 3. Jeremiah 25 in verse 3. Notice if you would, Jeremiah had a rather lengthy ministry as well. Because in Jeremiah, chapter 25 in verse three, the Bible says,

Scripture Reading — Jeremiah 1:2

"From the thirteenth year of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah, even into this day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the Lord hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking, but you have not hearkened."

So we have the ministry of Jeremiah.

Now if you would turn, Ronald, over to the book of Hosea. Daniel, Hosea. And look, if you would, in Hosea 1 and verse 1. And look at this. Hosea 1, verse 1.

Scripture Reading — Hosea 1:1

"The word of the Lord that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel."

Now, let me just remind you that you have the southern kingdom and you have the northern kingdom. And so depending upon where these men preached, they may list southern kings or northern kings or both. And so, Hosea mentions not only a southern kingdom, but also the northern kingdom as well. So, if you will turn right on over to the book of Amos, Hosea, Joel, Amos, and look if you would in Amos chapter 1 and verse 1, Amos 1 and verse 1, the Bible says,

Scripture Reading — Hosea 1:1

"The words of Amos, who was among the herdmen of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake."

Now, interestingly enough, Amos was not only from the southern kingdom, but he preached primarily in the northern kingdom. So he's listing Uzziah, which I'll mention again later. And he's also mentioned Joash, the son of Jeroboam. By the way, there was a Joash in the southern kingdom and there's a Joash in the northern kingdom.

Then if you would turn right over to the book of Zephaniah. So it's Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. So it's about the fourth book from the end of the Old Testament. So, if you look in Zephaniah chapter 1 and verse 1, the Bible says, "The word of the Lord which came unto Zephaniah, the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah."

So, he's been mentioned as well. So, all of these men were basically contemporaries in the sense that they preached sometimes in the same territory, sometimes in the same kingdom, sometimes in another kingdom. They may not have been buddy buddies in the sense that they got together each week, but they certainly knew of each other's ministry and they knew of each other's preaching as well. Now, I mentioned Uzziah. Well, I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to 2 Kings chapter 14, and I'm going to show you another passage that also connects Jonah. So, if you'll look in 2 Kings 14, and let's begin reading there with verse 21. 2 Kings 14, verse 21. Look, if you would, please. 2 Kings 14, verse 21.

"And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was 16 years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah." Now, do you know who Azariah was? Well, I'll tell you just a moment. Azariah's name is also Uzziah. So, Azariah was made king when he was 16, and he reigned 52 years. That's why all of the prophets I've read about kept mentioning Uzziah, because he had a long reign, and they prophesied sometimes during the 52 years of his reign. So notice, if you would, verse 21, "And all the people of Judah took Azariah, which was 16 years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. He built Eloth and restored it to Judah. After that, the king slept with his fathers. In the fifteenth year of Amaziah, the son of Joash, king of Judah, watch, Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel, began to reign in Samaria, and he reigned 41 years."

"And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. He departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. He restored the coast of Israel from the entering in of Hamath unto the sea of the plain, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which he spake by the hand of his servant Jonah, the son of Amittai, the prophet which was of Gath-Heper." So now we're also connecting Jonah with the reign of Uzziah and also that of Joash, king of Judah, and Joash, king of Israel as well. So all of these people then understood each other's prophecy in that sense of the word. Now, Jonah, of course, was sent by God to Nineveh. I told you last week that Nineveh was the capital of Assyria. Jonah did not want to preach to Nineveh. And the reason he did not want to preach to Nineveh is because the Assyrians were the mortal enemies of Israel. Now, Nahum, the book of Nahum, prophesied the destruction of the Assyrians.

God's Use and Judgment of Assyria

Weaver explains that God used Assyria to chastise Israel but then judged Assyria for their wicked motives, as seen in Isaiah 10, and notes Jonah's reluctance to preach to Nineveh because of Assyria's cruelty.

Habakkuk also talked about the Assyrians, but the problem that Habakkuk had was he could not discern, he could not grasp the fact that God was going to use a more wicked nation such as the Assyrians to chastise a less evil nation that is Israel. So Habakkuk had to wrap his mind around that, and you'll find that in Habakkuk 2 as well. Now, Zephaniah also demonstrates how God is going to judge the Assyrians and destroy Nineveh. In fact, here's the verse in the book of Zephaniah 2, verse 13, and the Bible is speaking about God,

Scripture Reading — Zephaniah 2:13

"And He will stretch out His hand against the north and destroy Assyria and will make Nineveh a desolation and like a dry wilderness."

So, Zephaniah even speaks about the destruction of Assyria.

Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to the book of Isaiah, and let me try to put this together for you, and to show you that God does exactly that which people say that He cannot do. Because God is God and He can do as He pleases. God took the Assyrians as wicked and as vile as they were, and I spoke about that last week. They were exceedingly cruel. But God took the Assyrians and sent them against Israel. And then he turned around and judged the Assyrians for doing that which they did. So God used them to chastise and correct Israel. And then he judged them for doing what he wanted done. You say, how can that be right? Well, let me show you. Look in Isaiah 10, beginning there with verse 5. Look what God says concerning the Assyrian. He said, "O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger and the staff in their hand is mine indignation." So God is using them. He's calling the Assyrian the rod of his anger and their staff is his indignation.

Now look at verse 6. "I will send him." So the Assyrian came at God's command. That is true. God said, "I will send him against the hypocritical nation and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge to take the spoil and to take the prey and to tread them down like the mire of the streets." Now look at this. God said, "I am sending the Assyrians. I'm giving him a charge. I want him to take the spoil of the prey and to tread them down." Now, look at verse 7.

Here's the crux of the matter. "Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so, but it is in his heart to destroy, to cut off nations, not a few." So, although God used the Assyrians, and God sent the Assyrians, the Assyrians did not come in obedience to God. They did not come for God's honor and God's glory. They only came because they wanted to plunder and wanted to steal and wanted to kill. So God said, "I sent him, but he did not come for My honor and My glory. He did not come in obedience to Me." So now what God is going to do is He's going to turn around and judge the Assyrians for doing what they did. And I want you to look at it. Skip down in your Bibles, if you would, please. Beginning there with verse 12. Look at verse 12. The Bible says, "Wherefore it shall come to pass that when the Lord had performed his whole work upon Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria and the glory of his high looks." So God says, "I'm going to judge him for doing what he did." Why did not God send him? Yes. Did not God use him? Yes. But you remember, he said he did not mean to obey God. He did not desire to obey God. And look what he did in verse 13. "For he, that is the king of Assyria, said, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, for I am prudent, and I have removed the bounds of the people, and have robbed their treasures, and I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man."

"And my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people, and as one gathereth eggs that are left, have I gathered all the earth, and there was none that moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or peeped." Now look at the question that God asked. "Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? Or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it, as if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself as it were no wood?" "Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness, and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire, and the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame, and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briars in one day." So God is saying, "I'm going to judge him because he did it because he wanted to do it. It was his sin. It was his wickedness."

He was in rebellion against me. So, clearly then, God is going to use the Assyrians. Jonah did not want to preach to the Assyrians because he knew the prophecy of Nahum. He knew the prophecy of Habakkuk as well. Now, I pointed out in Jonah chapter 1, and I want you to turn back there, that Jonah is running from God. When you get to Jonah chapter 2, Jonah is now running to God. So, when he's running from God, from the presence of God, he's running from the temple. He's running from God's manifest presence. He's also running from his commission. He does not want to go and preach to the Assyrians. He did not want them to repent. He did not want them spared.

Jonah's Desperate Prayer from the Fish

Weaver describes Jonah's terrifying experience in the fish, his prayer of affliction, and his realization that he is at the bottom of the food chain, leading him to cry out to God.

He wanted them destroyed because they were mortal enemies to his people. Now, evidently, Jonah thought that when he was cast into the sea, that would be the end of it. He just thought he was going to die by drowning. If you look in verse 12 of chapter one, they asked Jonah, "What in the world shall we do to make this tempest cease?" Look in verse 12.

Scripture Reading — Jonah 1:12, 15, 17

"And he said unto them, Take me up and cast me forth into the sea. So shall the sea be calm unto you. For I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you."

So Jonah then appeared to be willing to die, eager to die, ready to die, and he thought just simply being cast in the sea would be sufficient. So if you look in verse 15,

Scripture Reading — Jonah 1:12, 15, 17

"So they took up Jonah and cast him forth into the sea, and the sea ceased from her raging."

So the interesting thing is, Jonah did not know that which was waiting for him. I'm sure that he thought this is going to be over with very quickly. But in verse 17, "Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights." Now, I spoke about this last week. I'm going to mention a little bit of it again this week. But this had to be an absolutely special fish. It had to be a special whale. He swallowed Jonah. If you remember the story that I read last week of the man who actually was swallowed by a whale and was in his stomach for 16 hours before he was cut out by his mates. And the man's skin was bleached white from the digestive juices. His hair was removed from his body. He was blind for several weeks until he regained, after several months, his sight as well. So there was a man in the belly of that whale for 16 hours, and of course, he did survive, but he had great problems. I cannot even contemplate being swallowed by a fish. There are things in the ocean that I certainly do not wish to face.

I suppose one of the funniest incidents that I've ever viewed in my entire life was a couple of years ago. There was a video clip of a black nurse who happened to be on her way to work. And she was making a video as she drove to work. There had been several people on the East Coast that had been eaten by a shark. The sharks bit them. A couple may have lived, but some did not live. This woman was so genuine and so sincere and so real. But it was so funny if I could just capture a voice. Here is what she said. Listen carefully. She said, "If you don't want to be eaten by the shark, stay out of the kitchen. The ocean is his kitchen. You jump in and he'll eat you. Stay out of the kitchen." And I thought, well, there's a lot of truth to that. I've never been eaten by a shark. I've never been, because I'm not going in his kitchen. It was absolutely hilarious.

But Jonah, wow, look in chapter 2 now, verses 1 and 2. He just got swallowed in verse 17. "Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly. And he said, I cried by reason of my affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me." Now watch this. "Out of the belly of hell, cried I, and thou heardest my voice." So verse 1 says, "out of the fish's belly," and then he said, "out of the belly of hell." Wow. Wait a minute. Let's also read verse 3. Look at this. "For thou hast cast me into the deep, into the midst of the seas, and the floods compassed me about."

"All thy billows and thy waves passed over me." Now that's bad, but hang on to verses 5 and 6. "The waters compassed me about, even to the soul." Not just his body, but to the soul, to his inner being. "The depth closed me round about, and the weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottom of the mountains. The earth with her bars were about me forever." "Yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord, my God." It's interesting. Jonah now believes he's going to die. I find this interesting because in chapter one, he wanted to die. He said, "Just throw me in the ocean. That'll stop this storm. Just throw me in the ocean." But he did not know this special whale that God had prepared for him. Now he's in the belly of that whale. And he's fearful. Why is he so fearful? And Frank, since you're listening in, I don't think Jonah was perspiring. I think he was shaking because the seaweeds are wrapped around his head. And if he was perspiring, I don't think he could tell it from the water, from the seaweeds as well. But here he is and he's in the belly of this fish now. I think this is something totally unexpected for Jonah. And Jonah is engulfed in the belly of a whale, listen to this, in absolute, total darkness. Think about that.

The Horror of Being Swallowed and God's Protection

Weaver illustrates the horror of being swallowed by a whale with modern accounts and emphasizes God's sovereign protection of Jonah during the three days and nights.

Years ago, Alice and I were in Utah. We had a couple of grandkids with us. And we went to Timpanogos, which is a cave. Did you two go with us to that cave? We had to walk up a mile, a mountain, to get to the cave. And of course, it was a national park. There were rangers there. And when you got into the cave, or to the cave, you had a ranger escort you through that cave.

It was not just simply a hole in the ground. I mean, there were passages way back into that mountain like you would not believe. Sometimes you had to step over rocks. I mean, huge rocks. You had to climb through rocks. We got way back in that cave. And of course, they had lights and the ranger said, "Stand absolutely still, do not move, hold hands." So we had to hold hands and not move. And the ranger then turned the lights off. You talk about darkness. You talk about the expression, "I couldn't see the hand in front of my face." You could not see anything. It was absolutely, totally pitch black. Now here Jonah is in the belly of this whale and it is absolutely pitch black. Jonah finally realizes he's not at the top of the food chain. He's at the bottom of the food chain. He's just been eaten by a great fish.

I saw a picture that was taken by a diver of another diver and just as the picture was snapped, which was an excellent picture, the diver dropped the camera and turned and fled because behind the diver whose picture he took was a huge grouper standing there almost ready to eat that diver. I was just simply saying there are things in the ocean that I don't want to face, that is for sure. Just think about this. There have been incidents that have happened to men, but not to the degree that it happened to Jonah. Here's one I want to read to you. Listen carefully. Provincetown, and this is from Massachusetts. Provincetown. A little before 8 a.m. Friday, veteran lobster diver Michael Packard entered the water for his second dive of the day. His vessel, the J&J, was off Herring Cove Beach and surrounded by a fleet of boats catching striped bass. The water temperature was a balmy 60 degrees, and the visibility was about 20 feet. Licensed commercial lobster divers literally pluck lobsters off the sandy bottom, and as Packard, 56, dove down Friday morning, he saw schools of sand lances and stripers swimming by. In something truly biblical, Packard was swallowed whole by a humpback whale.

"All of a sudden," he said, "I felt this huge shove and the next thing I knew it was completely black." Packard recalled Friday afternoon following his release from Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis. He said, "I could sense I was moving and I could feel the whale squeezing with the muscles of his mouth." Initially, Packard thought he was inside a great white shark, but he couldn't feel any teeth and he hadn't suffered any obvious wounds. It quickly dawned on him that he had been swallowed by a whale. "I was completely inside. It was completely black," Packard said. "I thought to myself, there's no way I'm getting out of here. I'm done. I'm dead. And all I could think of was my boys."

"They're 12 and 15 years old." Outfitted with scuba gear, he struggled, and the whale began shaking its head so Packard could tell that he didn't like it. He estimated he was in the whale for 30 to 40 seconds before the whale finally surfaced. "I saw light, and he started throwing his head from side to side, and the next thing I knew I was outside in the water," said Packard, who lives in Wellfleet. Packard's sister, Cynthia Packard, spoke with crewman Josiah Mayo, who relayed some of the details to her. Packard said Mayo saw the whale burst to the surface, and he initially thought it was a great white shark. "There was all this action at the top of the water," Packard said Mayo told her. Then the whale flung her brother back into the sea. Mayo picked him up and called by radio to the shore and sped back to the Provincetown pier.

A Provincetown Fire Department ambulance took him to the Cape Cod Hospital. "Thank God it wasn't a white shark. He sees them all the time out there," said Cynthia Packard. "He must have thought he was done." Well, I suppose so.

Now, here's a man in the mouth of a whale for less than a minute. And you stop and think that Jonah was there three days and three nights. So there have been men that have been swallowed by whales, but not to the degree that Jonah was. Yet each one of them spoke of the absolute horror of being swallowed by a whale. And yet Jonah was there three days and three nights.

Now, I want you to go back to verses 5 and 6. I want you to think about this. Look in verses 5 and 6. "The waters compass me about even to the soul." Now here's the thing I want you to understand. I can look at Steve. And also I see Steve and I recognize Steve. That body is nothing more than a shell. The real Steve is inside that body. OK, that's the soul. And by the way, you don't have a soul, you are a soul. God breathed into Adam the breath of life and he became a living soul. So we are a soul, period. And so he is saying, look, this has really taken me to the very heart of my being is what it amounts to. So look at it again. He said, "The waters compassed me about even to the soul."

"The depth closed me round about. The weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountain. The earth with her bars was about me forever. Yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O LORD my God."

Now, let me say this again. The only reason that Jonah did not die was because of God's sovereign protection and preservation. God was teaching Jonah a particular lesson. And Jonah speaks of the depth. He speaks of the weeds being wrapped around his head. He speaks of going down to the bottoms of the mountains. Let me ask you this. Can you imagine the change in pressure when the whale would go to the bottom and then come back up to the top?

Observations on Death and God's Sovereignty

Weaver draws four observations: those who think they want to die really want to live; death does not end suffering for the unsaved; we cannot die when we want because God appoints our days; and God knows what it takes to get our attention.

He's in this whale's belly. He's experiencing things that he never experienced in his entire life. So before I go any further in this chapter, I want to stop and make some obvious observations. Some things that you and I need to think about. First of all, put this down, make sure you understand this. Those who think that they want to die really do not want to die. They want to live. Jonah, in chapter one, wanted to die. He was willing to die. He thought he was ready to die. "Just throw me over. Just pitch me in." A lot of ground.

But he did not realize that God had prepared this great fish for himself. Now, when you get to Jonah, chapter two. Wow. Now, Jonah is wanting to live. I remember as a young man, a neighbor girl decided she wanted to kill herself. And she took a handful of rat poison. And by the time she started having great agony and great pains, and the parents rushed her to the doctor and the hospital, and they were pumping her stomach out, she was screaming and crying that she wanted to live.

But she did not make it. I'm just simply pointing out the fact she thought she really wanted to die. But then when it came time to die, she wanted to live more than anything else. Just this week, I got a message from a friend of mine informing me about a young man who took his own life. I mean, he was at a university, seemingly had everything going for him. And according to her, he had attempted to take his life previously. This time he actually succeeded.

But I have watched in nearly 60 years of preaching, I've watched saints and sinners die. And when it comes time to actually die, it doesn't matter if you're a saint or it doesn't matter if you're a sinner. Your body is still struggling to live. You want to live. The body wants to live. It is normal. It is natural to want to live. And you will find people who are dying, they will be fighting for their breath. They want that breath more than anything in the world. So Jonah thought he wanted to die.

But then when it came to being in the belly of the hell or the belly of the fish, he changed his mind. So a lot of people try to change their minds, but sometimes it's too late. So here's the second truth. We have to understand that death does not end it all. Many people think that their suffering will be eased when they die. Well, that's not necessarily so. It may be true for a Christian, but it's not true for someone who is unsaved. And I do not care how horrible an individual is suffering. He can be suffering from cancer. He can be suffering from the most grievous and the most aggravating diseases in the world. But if he's unsaved and he dies, that physical suffering is not going to be anything compared to the spiritual suffering. So clearly death does not end it all. Nothing that is painful in this life, that is physical, mental, emotional, can equate or come clear anywhere near the suffering of those who die without the Lord Jesus Christ. So we have to remember that death does not end it all.

Period. Here's the third thing. Listen to this. We cannot die when we want to die.

Now, someone's going to say, "Well, I can. All I got to do is shoot myself." No, no, no, no. That doesn't mean you're going to die when you want to die. The truth is the Bible teaches us that life and death are in the hands of the Lord, and God has just sovereignly appointed the day of our death, just like he is sovereignly appointed the day of our life.

Now, I want you to hold Jonah chapter two. But I want you to turn back in your Bibles to the book of Job, right before the book of Psalms. Look in Job chapter 7 to begin with, and then we'll go to Job chapter 14. So look in Job chapter 7. Job 7. Look in verse 1. Here's a good question. "Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth?"

Scripture Reading — Job 7:1

"Are not his days also like the days of a hireling?"

So there is an appointed time for man upon the earth. There's a time to be born and there's a time to die according to the book of Ecclesiastes. But if you look in your Bibles to the book of Job chapter 14, begin there with verse 1 and let's read through verse 5 and look at what the Word of God says. Job 14 verse 1, "Man that is born of woman is a few days and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down. He fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not." "And dost thou open thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest me into judgment with thee? Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean, not one?" Look at this now, "Seeing his days are determined, the number of his months are with thee, Thou hast appointed His bounds that He cannot pass." None of us are going to live one day, or one minute, or one second longer than God has ordained. Period.

Now, you're going to say, "Well, I believe I can die when I want to. I just think I can end my life." Well, if you're that foolish, you might go ahead and try it. But the truth is, you're not going to succeed in doing that which you want to do. Do you realize only God could die when he wanted to die? Do you remember that? What did our Lord say? "No man taketh my life from me."

"I have power to lay it down. I have power to take it again." And Jesus Christ, when he gave his life, said, "Father, in thy hands I commend my spirit." And he gave up the ghost. Man cannot die whenever he wants to die. No. Let me give you a good illustration. I witnessed a young man who had placed a shotgun under his chin and pulled the trigger. I did not see him do it. But I was at the hospital when they brought him in through the emergency room. Because when I was at the university, I worked at the hospital. And oftentimes, I was on that back desk which was at the emergency room. They brought this young man in, and he had half of his head blown off. He was on the stretcher. And as he came by my desk, his chest was going up and down, and you could hear him, and all the gurgling. That man lived three days in that condition before he died.

You can't kill yourself and die when you want to die. You may kill yourself, but you're not going to die until God allows you to die. Period. So you mark this down, if you would, please. Not everybody who thinks they want to die really and truly want to die. And they better understand that death does not end it all. And they better understand, listen carefully, that you can't die when you want to die. And just because you shoot yourself or do something stupid and foolish does not mean that you're going to die when you're going to die. Alice and I know of a young woman who thought she was going to take her life. And she shot herself. And she lived for, I don't know, 20, 30 years in a wheelchair, a vegetable. I'm just simply saying, no, life and death is in the hands of the Lord, not in the hands of man. The fourth one. And here's the fourth observation. I want you to go back to the book of Jonah now. The fourth observation is this.

God knows exactly what it's going to take to get our attention. Remember, if you would now, Jonah in chapter one is running from God. He's running from his commission. He does not want to preach to the Assyrians. He wants the Ninevites to die. That's all there is to it. But in chapter two, he's running to God. He's praying. He's beseeching. He's ready to preach. Look, if you would, Jonah 2 verse 1. "Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly." Look in verse 2 and said, "I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord." Wow. Look in verse 4. "Then said I, I'm cast out of thy sight, yet I will look again toward thy holy temple." In other words, I was running from it. Now I'm willing to run to it. Look in verse 6.

Jonah's Submission and the Example of Saul

Weaver shows Jonah's change from running to submission, paralleling it with Saul of Tarsus' conversion, and emphasizes that God tames His servants to obedience.

"I went down to the bottoms of the mountains. The earth with her bars was about me forever. Yet thou hast brought up my life from corruption. O Lord, my God," the words, "I'm not going to die. I'm going to live." Look in verse seven. "When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord and my prayer came in unto thee." There he is praying into my holy temple. Wow. Now look in verse 9, "...but I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving."

"I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord." Do you realize what you have in Jonah chapter 2 is Jonah is running back to God, and I believe he's running back to God far more quickly than he ran from God. Because he realizes he's in a very desperate situation. Let me tell you what is happening. In Jonah chapter 2, God has Jonah exactly where He wants him, in the position that He exactly wants him in. That is, He wants him submissive and obedient. And that's where Jonah is at right at this particular time.

I'm willing to do whatever you would have me to do. Now, let me give you a good illustration of this. I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would hold Jonah chapter 2, but turn to Acts chapter 9. You'll see a similar situation in the life of Saul of Tarsus. You remember how Saul was an enemy of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was consenting to the death of Stephen. He held the cloaks of those who stoned Stephen.

He had papers from the high priest going to Damascus that he might find any of this way that is Christians. He might bind them and bring them back and throw them into prison or into a dungeon. So Saul of Tarsus was the enemy of Christians and the enemy of the Lord Jesus Christ. But it was on that road that our Lord revealed himself to Saul. And he said, "Saul, Saul, it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." And the pricks was those sharp goads that they used to goad the oxen with. And Saul immediately said, "Who art thou, Lord?" He knew whoever struck him down was Lord. "Who art thou, Lord?" He said, "I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest." Then he said, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?"

And of course, he was blind. And he told him to go into Damascus. And they took him and led him by the hand to go to Damascus. Now, I want you to look in your Bibles to Acts 9. And let's begin reading there with verse 10.

Scripture Reading — Acts 9:10-16

"And there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias. And to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him, Arise and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus. For behold, he prayeth, and hath seen a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight."

Now look at this question or this answer that Ananias gave.

Scripture Reading — Acts 9:10-16

"Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man how much evil he hath done to thy saints of Jerusalem."

"And here we have authority from the chief priest to bind all that call on thy name. And the Lord said unto him, Go thy way, for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake." Now, here's a thing that Ananias missed. If you'll go back to verse 11. "And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire of the house of Judas, for one called Saul of Tarsus. For behold, what? He prayeth." And here's what God told Ananias. "I have him tamed. Don't worry about him. He's broken to yoke. Doesn't matter what you've heard about him. You just do as I tell you, Ananias, because he's a chosen vessel to me. And I'm going to show him exactly what he's going to have to suffer for my name's sake." So what God did to Jonah was to tame him. What God did to Saul of Tarsus was to tame him.

Conclusion: Learning Obedience Willingly

Weaver concludes with Psalm 32:8-9, urging believers to listen and obey willingly rather than needing the bit and bridle of affliction, and prays for submissive hearts.

You remember that passage in Matthew 11? Where our Lord said, "Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I'll give you rest." And then he said, "Take my yoke upon you, for I am meek and lowly, and you shall find rest for your soul." Have you ever tried to plow with an untamed oxen or an untamed mule? It's impossible. In order to plow with an oxen, having him in the yoke, in order to plow with a mule, and I used to plow when I was a boy, they had to be tamed. And what our Lord is saying in Matthew 11, you come to me and take my yoke, you submit to me, you be taught of me, you be obedient to me, and you'll find rest for your soul.

So, I want you to turn back in your Bible to Jonah chapter 2. I want you to look at this. Look at verse 10. Jonah 2 verse 10. Now that God has Jonah praying and Jonah wanting to go back to the temple and obey God, "And the Lord spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry ground." You know, I said last week, when God got through with Jonah, he might have smelled a lot like fish, but he felt a whole lot more like preaching. And, you know, I think probably when he hit that dry ground. He went running toward, I believe I would have. I believe I would have run in obedience a lot faster than I ran in disobedience.

Now, I want to show you one more verse. I want you to turn back in your Bibles to the book of Psalms, Psalm 32, and I want you to watch this. Psalm 32. And I want you to see the promise of God and the warning of God. Look at Psalm 32 in verse 8. Look what God says. "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go. I will guide thee with mine eye."

Isn't that a blessed truth? God said, "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way that thou shalt go. I'll guide thee with mine eye." All of us have had children. Is it not absolutely wonderful when you can just speak to your children and they say, "Yes, sir," and "Yes, ma'am," and they do exactly what they're told to do? It's a blessing to have an obedient child. And this is what God is saying. God is saying, "I will instruct you. If you'll listen, I'll teach you. I'll show you the way to go."

You don't have to guess. All you've got to do is listen and obey. I will teach you. Ah, but look at verse 9. "Be ye not as the horse or as the mule, which have no understanding, whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come nigh or near unto thee." God said, "Don't make me put a bit and bridle on you. Don't make me do that." God can do that. God knows exactly what it's going to take to tame each one of us. He knows exactly what it's going to take to bring us to yoke. He knows exactly what it's going to take to make us submissive and obedient to His will. And God said, "I'm willing to teach you." You know, there's an interesting verse in Micah 6 and verse 9.

It says, "Hear ye the rod, and him who hath appointed it." So, boys and girls, listen. If you don't listen to daddy and mama, if you disobey, what comes next? The rod. Hmm. So this is what God is telling us. "I will instruct thee. I will teach thee. Listen. Obey." That's a wonderful way to learn. You can also learn by the rod, but that's a more difficult way to learn. "Hear ye the rod, and him who hath appointed it." So Jonah was tamed of God, became the obedient, submissive servant and prophet that God ordained him to be.

He may not have liked the message he had to preach, but he had to preach. We may not like God's will in our life particularly, but if we realize it's God's will, we need to submit to it because it is God's will. And God has a very unique way of breaking us and making us submissive and obedient. It may not be being swallowed by a whale. It may not be lying in bed on our back for six months, but whatever the way, God knows exactly what it will take to bring us into obedience and submission. And that is the position that we want to be in and we need to be in. So let's pray. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we ask for your blessing, for your help, and we ask, Lord, that you would indeed make us obedient, make us submissive. And Father, may we not run from thee, but run to thee. And Lord, may we listen and be instructed by Thee and taught by Thee. May we not have to be bridled with a bit in our mouth.

May we not have to have the rod applied to our lives. May we just be willing to listen, to hear, heed, and obey. We ask for Your grace and Your mercy. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, Amen.

Study Guide

Major Themes

God's Sovereignty over Life and Death

Summary: God alone determines the day of our death; we cannot die when we want, as life and death are in His hands.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'life and death are in the hands of the Lord, and God has just sovereignly appointed the day of our death' and cites Job 14:5: 'Seeing his days are determined... Thou hast appointed His bounds that He cannot pass.'

The Necessity of Submission and Obedience

Summary: God uses affliction to bring His people to submission, as seen in Jonah's prayer from the fish and Saul's conversion.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'God has Jonah exactly where He wants him... submissive and obedient' and parallels with Saul: 'he is a chosen vessel unto me.'

The Reality of Divine Discipline

Summary: God knows exactly what it takes to get our attention and may use severe measures to correct disobedience.

Evidence: Weaver explains, 'God knows exactly what it's going to take to get our attention' and references Psalm 32:9 about the bit and bridle.

The Fear of Death and the Desire to Live

Summary: Even those who think they want to die often desperately want to live when faced with death, as Jonah did.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'Those who think that they want to die really do not want to die. They want to live.' and gives examples of suicide attempts.

The Historical Reality of Jonah

Summary: Jonah is a real historical person and prophet, affirmed by Jesus Christ, and his account is not allegorical.

Evidence: Weaver cites Matthew 12:39-41 and says, 'when someone rejects the prophet Jonah... he must reject the Lord Jesus Christ and his word.'

Key Arguments

Jonah's experience was historically real, not mythical.

Summary: Jesus referenced Jonah as a historical figure, so denying Jonah's reality undermines Christ's authority.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'when someone rejects the prophet Jonah, and doubts the book of Jonah, at the same time, he must reject the Lord Jesus Christ and his word.'

God sovereignly uses even wicked nations for His purposes.

Summary: God used Assyria to chastise Israel but then judged Assyria for their pride and cruelty.

Evidence: Weaver reads Isaiah 10:5-15 and explains, 'God used them to chastise and correct Israel. And then he judged them for doing what he wanted done.'

Affliction often leads to genuine prayer and repentance.

Summary: Jonah's prayer from the fish shows that extreme distress drove him back to God.

Evidence: Weaver notes, 'Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly... I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord.'

Death does not end suffering for the unrepentant.

Summary: Physical death for the unsaved leads to far greater spiritual suffering.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'if he's unsaved and he dies, that physical suffering is not going to be anything compared to the spiritual suffering.'

God's discipline is tailored to each individual.

Summary: God knows exactly what circumstances will bring each person to submission.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'God knows exactly what it's going to take to tame each one of us.'

Scripture References

Jonah 2:1-10

Context: The entire chapter is read and forms the basis of the sermon.

Matthew 12:39-41

Context: Jesus affirms Jonah's historical reality and the sign of Jonah.

Luke 11:29-32

Context: Jesus references Jonah as a sign to the Ninevites.

Isaiah 1:1

Context: Shows Isaiah's ministry during the reign of Uzziah, connecting him as a contemporary of Jonah.

Jeremiah 1:2

Context: Jeremiah's ministry began in the days of Josiah, placing him among Jonah's contemporaries.

Jeremiah 25:3

Context: Indicates the length of Jeremiah's ministry, overlapping with other prophets.

Hosea 1:1

Context: Hosea prophesied during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, and Jeroboam, making him a contemporary.

Amos 1:1

Context: Amos prophesied in the days of Uzziah and Jeroboam, two years before the earthquake.

Zephaniah 1:1

Context: Zephaniah prophesied in the days of Josiah, connecting him to the same era.

2 Kings 14:21-25

Context: Connects Jonah to the reign of Jeroboam II and mentions Jonah's prophecy about restoring Israel's borders.

Zephaniah 2:13

Context: Prophecy of Assyria's destruction, showing God's judgment on Nineveh.

Isaiah 10:5-19

Context: God uses Assyria as the rod of His anger but will judge their pride.

Jonah 1:12, 15, 17

Context: Jonah's willingness to be thrown overboard and his being swallowed by the great fish.

Job 7:1

Context: There is an appointed time for man upon earth.

Job 14:1-5

Context: Man's days are determined; God has appointed bounds he cannot pass.

John 10:18

Context: Jesus alone has power to lay down His life and take it again.

Acts 9:10-16

Context: Saul's conversion and God's taming of him as a chosen vessel.

Matthew 11:28-30

Context: Taking Christ's yoke means submission and finding rest.

Psalm 32:8-9

Context: God promises to instruct and guide, but warns against being like a horse or mule needing bit and bridle.

Micah 6:9

Context: Hear the rod and Him who appointed it, emphasizing divine discipline.

Historical References

Uzziah (Azariah), king of Judah

Context: Reigned 52 years; many prophets ministered during his reign, including Isaiah, Hosea, Amos, and Jonah.

Jeroboam II, king of Israel

Context: Reigned 41 years; Jonah prophesied during his reign according to 2 Kings 14:25.

Assyria and Nineveh

Context: Assyria was the mortal enemy of Israel; Nineveh was its capital. Jonah was sent to preach there.

Michael Packard (lobster diver)

Context: A modern man swallowed by a humpback whale in 2021, illustrating the terror of such an experience.

Provincetown, Massachusetts

Context: Location of the Michael Packard whale incident.

Timpanogos Cave, Utah

Context: Weaver's personal experience of absolute darkness in a cave, illustrating Jonah's darkness in the fish.

Important Quotes

when someone rejects the prophet Jonah, and doubts the book of Jonah, at the same time, he must reject the Lord Jesus Christ and his word.

Significance: Establishes the inseparable link between the historicity of Jonah and the authority of Christ.

God used them to chastise and correct Israel. And then he judged them for doing what he wanted done.

Significance: Highlights God's sovereign use of evil nations for His purposes and His subsequent judgment on their motives.

Those who think that they want to die really do not want to die. They want to live.

Significance: Key observation about human nature when faced with death, drawn from Jonah's change of heart.

life and death are in the hands of the Lord, and God has just sovereignly appointed the day of our death, just like he is sovereignly appointed the day of our life.

Significance: Core doctrinal statement on God's sovereignty over human lifespan.

God knows exactly what it's going to take to get our attention.

Significance: Summarizes the theme of divine discipline tailored to the individual.

I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go. I will guide thee with mine eye.

Significance: Quoted from Psalm 32:8 to show God's desire for willing obedience.

Be ye not as the horse or as the mule, which have no understanding, whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come nigh or near unto thee.

Significance: Warning from Psalm 32:9 against stubbornness that requires harsh discipline.

Discussion Questions

How does Jesus' reference to Jonah in Matthew 12 strengthen our confidence in the historical reliability of the Old Testament?

Context: Weaver emphasizes that rejecting Jonah's historicity means rejecting Christ's words.

In what ways might God use difficult circumstances to get our attention and bring us to submission?

Context: Weaver states that God knows exactly what it takes to tame each of us.

Why is it dangerous to assume that death will end suffering, especially for those without Christ?

Context: Weaver warns that physical death for the unsaved leads to far greater spiritual suffering.

How does the account of Jonah's prayer from the fish challenge our tendency to run from God rather than to Him in times of trouble?

Context: Jonah's affliction drove him to pray and remember the Lord.

What does Psalm 32:8-9 teach us about the difference between willing obedience and forced submission?

Context: Weaver contrasts God's gentle guidance with the bit and bridle of discipline.

Applications

Submit willingly to God's will to avoid severe discipline.

Summary: Believers should listen and obey God's instruction rather than forcing God to use affliction to gain their attention.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'Don't make me put a bit and bridle on you... God knows exactly what it's going to take to tame each one of us.'

Trust in God's sovereignty over life and death.

Summary: Recognize that our days are determined by God, and we cannot die outside His appointed time, which should bring comfort and fear of the Lord.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'None of us are going to live one day, or one minute, or one second longer than God has ordained.'

Turn to God in prayer during affliction.

Summary: Like Jonah, we should cry out to God from our distress, remembering that He hears and delivers.

Evidence: Weaver notes Jonah's prayer: 'I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me.'

Do not presume upon God's mercy by delaying repentance.

Summary: Jonah's change of heart came only after extreme discipline; we should repent quickly rather than wait for calamity.

Evidence: Weaver implies that Jonah's suffering was necessary because he initially ran; we should learn from his example.

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T20:52:29Z

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-06T13:08:53Z

Clean Transcript

Run Jonah Run

Clean readable transcript. This view follows the Commentary.net cleaned segment text while preserving timestamps for audio follow-along.

Well, let's open our Bibles to the book of Jonah, chapter two. I started last week a series of four messages on Jonah, and I'm going to continue and, Lord willing, there's going to be two more messages. The title of the message today is "Run, Jonah, Run." So let's read the second chapter. It's a very short chapter, 10 verses. "Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly, and said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me. Out of the belly of hell I cried, and thou heardest my voice. For thou hast cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas, and the floods compass me about, all thy billows and thy waves pass over me. Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight, yet I will look again toward thy holy temple."
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"The waters compassed me about, even to the soul. The depth closed me round about. The weeds were wrapped around my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains. The earth with her bars was about me forever. Yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord my God. When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came in unto thee, into thy holy temple."
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"They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy. But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving. I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord." And the Lord spake unto the fish and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land. If you remember last week, I made several opening statements. I said, first of all, that Jonah was a real historical person. And that Jonah was a real historical prophet. And of course that Jonah was also a real disobedient believer.
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He confessed that he worshipped the one true and the living God. And he also confessed that he was running from the presence of God. So last week we looked at the fact from Psalm 139 that God is omnipresent. That is, God is everywhere at once in the totality of His being. And obviously, clearly, Jonah could not run away from the omnipresence of God. But what he was running from was the manifest presence of God, which was the temple. That is where God particularly and peculiarly manifested Himself in the Old Testament. First in the tabernacle, and then in the temple. Interestingly, when you read Jonah 1, Jonah is running from God, and when you read Jonah, chapter two, Jonah is running to God. It's absolutely necessary that we understand that both Jonah and the book of Jonah are historical books or is a historical book. And Jonah is a historical person. And the reason I'm saying that is because our Lord in Matthew, chapter 12, verses 39-41, and Luke chapter 11, verses 29-32, our Lord said, "As Jonah was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights, even so must the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights."
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So simply stated, when someone rejects the prophet Jonah, and doubts the book of Jonah, at the same time, he must reject the Lord Jesus Christ and his word. So Jesus then testified to the reality of the book of Jonah and the person of Jonah as well.
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Now, here's something those people have not really grasped. So let me try to put this in perspective for you. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Amos, Jonah, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah were contemporaries. That is, they all prophesied around the same time. All of them prophesied before the exile.
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Now, that does not mean that they had a prophets club and knew each other, but it doesn't mean that they were alive and they were preaching in different parts of the kingdom, some in the southern kingdom, some in the northern kingdom at the same time. So let me just show you. I want you to hold Jonah chapter two, but I want you to turn back in your Bibles, first of all, to the book of Isaiah, chapter one and verse one. And notice, if you would, the ministry of Isaiah. So when you read Isaiah chapter 1 and verse 1, the Word of God says this: "The vision of Isaiah, the son of Amos, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah." So Isaiah had a rather lengthy ministry as well. But notice, if you would, he mentions four kings. And I'm going to point out Uzziah again just a little bit later. But note, if you would, he was there during the reign of Uzziah.
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Look, if you would now in the book of Jeremiah, chapter one and verse two. Jeremiah chapter one in verse two. And here's what the word of God says concerning Jeremiah's ministry. Jeremiah chapter 1 and verse 2. Here we go. He said, "To whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign."
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You're going to hear that name again as well. Now, if you would turn in your Bibles, if you would, to the book of Jeremiah chapter 25 and look in verse 3. Jeremiah 25 in verse 3. Notice if you would, Jeremiah had a rather lengthy ministry as well. Because in Jeremiah, chapter 25 in verse three, the Bible says, "From the thirteenth year of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah, even into this day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the Lord hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking, but you have not hearkened." So we have the ministry of Jeremiah.
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Now if you would turn, Ronald, over to the book of Hosea. Daniel, Hosea. And look, if you would, in Hosea 1 and verse 1. And look at this. Hosea 1, verse 1. "The word of the Lord that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel."
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Now, let me just remind you that you have the southern kingdom and you have the northern kingdom. And so depending upon where these men preached, they may list southern kings or northern kings or both. And so, Hosea mentions not only a southern kingdom, but also the northern kingdom as well. So, if you will turn right on over to the book of Amos, Hosea, Joel, Amos, and look if you would in Amos chapter 1 and verse 1, Amos 1 and verse 1, the Bible says, "The words of Amos, who was among the herdmen of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake."
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Now, interestingly enough, Amos was not only from the southern kingdom, but he preached primarily in the northern kingdom. So he's listing Uzziah, which I'll mention again later. And he's also mentioned Joash, the son of Jeroboam. By the way, there was a Joash in the southern kingdom and there's a Joash in the northern kingdom.
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Then if you would turn right over to the book of Zephaniah. So it's Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. So it's about the fourth book from the end of the Old Testament. So, if you look in Zephaniah chapter 1 and verse 1, the Bible says, "The word of the Lord which came unto Zephaniah, the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah."
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So, he's been mentioned as well. So, all of these men were basically contemporaries in the sense that they preached sometimes in the same territory, sometimes in the same kingdom, sometimes in another kingdom. They may not have been buddy buddies in the sense that they got together each week, but they certainly knew of each other's ministry and they knew of each other's preaching as well. Now, I mentioned Uzziah. Well, I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to 2 Kings chapter 14, and I'm going to show you another passage that also connects Jonah. So, if you'll look in 2 Kings 14, and let's begin reading there with verse 21. 2 Kings 14, verse 21. Look, if you would, please. 2 Kings 14, verse 21.
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"And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was 16 years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah." Now, do you know who Azariah was? Well, I'll tell you just a moment. Azariah's name is also Uzziah. So, Azariah was made king when he was 16, and he reigned 52 years. That's why all of the prophets I've read about kept mentioning Uzziah, because he had a long reign, and they prophesied sometimes during the 52 years of his reign. So notice, if you would, verse 21, "And all the people of Judah took Azariah, which was 16 years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. He built Eloth and restored it to Judah. After that, the king slept with his fathers. In the fifteenth year of Amaziah, the son of Joash, king of Judah, watch, Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel, began to reign in Samaria, and he reigned 41 years."
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"And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. He departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. He restored the coast of Israel from the entering in of Hamath unto the sea of the plain, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which he spake by the hand of his servant Jonah, the son of Amittai, the prophet which was of Gath-Heper." So now we're also connecting Jonah with the reign of Uzziah and also that of Joash, king of Judah, and Joash, king of Israel as well. So all of these people then understood each other's prophecy in that sense of the word. Now, Jonah, of course, was sent by God to Nineveh. I told you last week that Nineveh was the capital of Assyria. Jonah did not want to preach to Nineveh. And the reason he did not want to preach to Nineveh is because the Assyrians were the mortal enemies of Israel. Now, Nahum, the book of Nahum, prophesied the destruction of the Assyrians.
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Habakkuk also talked about the Assyrians, but the problem that Habakkuk had was he could not discern, he could not grasp the fact that God was going to use a more wicked nation such as the Assyrians to chastise a less evil nation that is Israel. So Habakkuk had to wrap his mind around that, and you'll find that in Habakkuk 2 as well. Now, Zephaniah also demonstrates how God is going to judge the Assyrians and destroy Nineveh. In fact, here's the verse in the book of Zephaniah 2, verse 13, and the Bible is speaking about God, "And He will stretch out His hand against the north and destroy Assyria and will make Nineveh a desolation and like a dry wilderness." So, Zephaniah even speaks about the destruction of Assyria.
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Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to the book of Isaiah, and let me try to put this together for you, and to show you that God does exactly that which people say that He cannot do. Because God is God and He can do as He pleases. God took the Assyrians as wicked and as vile as they were, and I spoke about that last week. They were exceedingly cruel. But God took the Assyrians and sent them against Israel. And then he turned around and judged the Assyrians for doing that which they did. So God used them to chastise and correct Israel. And then he judged them for doing what he wanted done. You say, how can that be right? Well, let me show you. Look in Isaiah 10, beginning there with verse 5. Look what God says concerning the Assyrian. He said, "O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger and the staff in their hand is mine indignation." So God is using them. He's calling the Assyrian the rod of his anger and their staff is his indignation.
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Now look at verse 6. "I will send him." So the Assyrian came at God's command. That is true. God said, "I will send him against the hypocritical nation and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge to take the spoil and to take the prey and to tread them down like the mire of the streets." Now look at this. God said, "I am sending the Assyrians. I'm giving him a charge. I want him to take the spoil of the prey and to tread them down." Now, look at verse 7.
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Here's the crux of the matter. "Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so, but it is in his heart to destroy, to cut off nations, not a few." So, although God used the Assyrians, and God sent the Assyrians, the Assyrians did not come in obedience to God. They did not come for God's honor and God's glory. They only came because they wanted to plunder and wanted to steal and wanted to kill. So God said, "I sent him, but he did not come for My honor and My glory. He did not come in obedience to Me." So now what God is going to do is He's going to turn around and judge the Assyrians for doing what they did.
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And I want you to look at it. Skip down in your Bibles, if you would, please. Beginning there with verse 12. Look at verse 12. The Bible says, "Wherefore it shall come to pass that when the Lord had performed his whole work upon Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria and the glory of his high looks." So God says, "I'm going to judge him for doing what he did." Why did not God send him? Yes. Did not God use him? Yes. But you remember, he said he did not mean to obey God. He did not desire to obey God. And look what he did in verse 13. "For he, that is the king of Assyria, said, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, for I am prudent, and I have removed the bounds of the people, and have robbed their treasures, and I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man."
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"And my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people, and as one gathereth eggs that are left, have I gathered all the earth, and there was none that moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or peeped." Now look at the question that God asked. "Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? Or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it, as if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself as it were no wood?"
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"Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness, and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire, and the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame, and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briars in one day." So God is saying, "I'm going to judge him because he did it because he wanted to do it. It was his sin. It was his wickedness."
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He was in rebellion against me. So, clearly then, God is going to use the Assyrians. Jonah did not want to preach to the Assyrians because he knew the prophecy of Nahum. He knew the prophecy of Habakkuk as well. Now, I pointed out in Jonah chapter 1, and I want you to turn back there, that Jonah is running from God. When you get to Jonah chapter 2, Jonah is now running to God. So, when he's running from God, from the presence of God, he's running from the temple. He's running from God's manifest presence. He's also running from his commission. He does not want to go and preach to the Assyrians. He did not want them to repent. He did not want them spared.
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He wanted them destroyed because they were mortal enemies to his people. Now, evidently, Jonah thought that when he was cast into the sea, that would be the end of it. He just thought he was going to die by drowning. If you look in verse 12 of chapter one, they asked Jonah, "What in the world shall we do to make this tempest cease?" Look in verse 12. "And he said unto them, Take me up and cast me forth into the sea. So shall the sea be calm unto you. For I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you." So Jonah then appeared to be willing to die, eager to die, ready to die, and he thought just simply being cast in the sea would be sufficient. So if you look in verse 15, "So they took up Jonah and cast him forth into the sea, and the sea ceased from her raging." So the interesting thing is, Jonah did not know that which was waiting for him. I'm sure that he thought this is going to be over with very quickly.
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But in verse 17, "Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights." Now, I spoke about this last week. I'm going to mention a little bit of it again this week. But this had to be an absolutely special fish. It had to be a special whale. He swallowed Jonah. If you remember the story that I read last week of the man who actually was swallowed by a whale and was in his stomach for 16 hours before he was cut out by his mates.
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And the man's skin was bleached white from the digestive juices. His hair was removed from his body. He was blind for several weeks until he regained, after several months, his sight as well. So there was a man in the belly of that whale for 16 hours, and of course, he did survive, but he had great problems. I cannot even contemplate being swallowed by a fish. There are things in the ocean that I certainly do not wish to face.
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I suppose one of the funniest incidents that I've ever viewed in my entire life was a couple of years ago. There was a video clip of a black nurse who happened to be on her way to work. And she was making a video as she drove to work. There had been several people on the East Coast that had been eaten by a shark. The sharks bit them. A couple may have lived, but some did not live.
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This woman was so genuine and so sincere and so real. But it was so funny if I could just capture a voice. Here is what she said. Listen carefully. She said, "If you don't want to be eaten by the shark, stay out of the kitchen. The ocean is his kitchen. You jump in and he'll eat you. Stay out of the kitchen." And I thought, well, there's a lot of truth to that. I've never been eaten by a shark. I've never been, because I'm not going in his kitchen. It was absolutely hilarious.
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But Jonah, wow, look in chapter 2 now, verses 1 and 2. He just got swallowed in verse 17. "Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly. And he said, I cried by reason of my affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me." Now watch this. "Out of the belly of hell, cried I, and thou heardest my voice." So verse 1 says, "out of the fish's belly," and then he said, "out of the belly of hell." Wow. Wait a minute. Let's also read verse 3. Look at this. "For thou hast cast me into the deep, into the midst of the seas, and the floods compassed me about."
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"All thy billows and thy waves passed over me." Now that's bad, but hang on to verses 5 and 6. "The waters compassed me about, even to the soul." Not just his body, but to the soul, to his inner being. "The depth closed me round about, and the weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottom of the mountains. The earth with her bars were about me forever."
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"Yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord, my God." It's interesting. Jonah now believes he's going to die. I find this interesting because in chapter one, he wanted to die. He said, "Just throw me in the ocean. That'll stop this storm. Just throw me in the ocean." But he did not know this special whale that God had prepared for him. Now he's in the belly of that whale. And he's fearful. Why is he so fearful? And Frank, since you're listening in, I don't think Jonah was perspiring. I think he was shaking because the seaweeds are wrapped around his head. And if he was perspiring, I don't think he could tell it from the water, from the seaweeds as well. But here he is and he's in the belly of this fish now. I think this is something totally unexpected for Jonah. And Jonah is engulfed in the belly of a whale, listen to this, in absolute, total darkness. Think about that.
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Years ago, Alice and I were in Utah. We had a couple of grandkids with us. And we went to Timpanogos, which is a cave. Did you two go with us to that cave? We had to walk up a mile, a mountain, to get to the cave. And of course, it was a national park. There were rangers there. And when you got into the cave, or to the cave, you had a ranger escort you through that cave.
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It was not just simply a hole in the ground. I mean, there were passages way back into that mountain like you would not believe. Sometimes you had to step over rocks. I mean, huge rocks. You had to climb through rocks. We got way back in that cave. And of course, they had lights and the ranger said, "Stand absolutely still, do not move, hold hands." So we had to hold hands and not move. And the ranger then turned the lights off. You talk about darkness. You talk about the expression, "I couldn't see the hand in front of my face." You could not see anything. It was absolutely, totally pitch black. Now here Jonah is in the belly of this whale and it is absolutely pitch black. Jonah finally realizes he's not at the top of the food chain. He's at the bottom of the food chain. He's just been eaten by a great fish.
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I saw a picture that was taken by a diver of another diver and just as the picture was snapped, which was an excellent picture, the diver dropped the camera and turned and fled because behind the diver whose picture he took was a huge grouper standing there almost ready to eat that diver. I was just simply saying there are things in the ocean that I don't want to face, that is for sure. Just think about this.
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There have been incidents that have happened to men, but not to the degree that it happened to Jonah. Here's one I want to read to you. Listen carefully. Provincetown, and this is from Massachusetts. Provincetown. A little before 8 a.m. Friday, veteran lobster diver Michael Packard entered the water for his second dive of the day. His vessel, the J&J, was off Herring Cove Beach and surrounded by a fleet of boats catching striped bass. The water temperature was a balmy 60 degrees, and the visibility was about 20 feet. Licensed commercial lobster divers literally pluck lobsters off the sandy bottom, and as Packard, 56, dove down Friday morning, he saw schools of sand lances and stripers swimming by. In something truly biblical, Packard was swallowed whole by a humpback whale.
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"All of a sudden," he said, "I felt this huge shove and the next thing I knew it was completely black." Packard recalled Friday afternoon following his release from Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis. He said, "I could sense I was moving and I could feel the whale squeezing with the muscles of his mouth." Initially, Packard thought he was inside a great white shark, but he couldn't feel any teeth and he hadn't suffered any obvious wounds. It quickly dawned on him that he had been swallowed by a whale. "I was completely inside. It was completely black," Packard said. "I thought to myself, there's no way I'm getting out of here. I'm done. I'm dead. And all I could think of was my boys."
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"They're 12 and 15 years old." Outfitted with scuba gear, he struggled, and the whale began shaking its head so Packard could tell that he didn't like it. He estimated he was in the whale for 30 to 40 seconds before the whale finally surfaced. "I saw light, and he started throwing his head from side to side, and the next thing I knew I was outside in the water," said Packard, who lives in Wellfleet. Packard's sister, Cynthia Packard, spoke with crewman Josiah Mayo, who relayed some of the details to her. Packard said Mayo saw the whale burst to the surface, and he initially thought it was a great white shark. "There was all this action at the top of the water," Packard said Mayo told her. Then the whale flung her brother back into the sea. Mayo picked him up and called by radio to the shore and sped back to the Provincetown pier.
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A Provincetown Fire Department ambulance took him to the Cape Cod Hospital. "Thank God it wasn't a white shark. He sees them all the time out there," said Cynthia Packard. "He must have thought he was done." Well, I suppose so.
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Now, here's a man in the mouth of a whale for less than a minute. And you stop and think that Jonah was there three days and three nights. So there have been men that have been swallowed by whales, but not to the degree that Jonah was. Yet each one of them spoke of the absolute horror of being swallowed by a whale. And yet Jonah was there three days and three nights.
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Now, I want you to go back to verses 5 and 6. I want you to think about this. Look in verses 5 and 6. "The waters compass me about even to the soul." Now here's the thing I want you to understand. I can look at Steve. And also I see Steve and I recognize Steve. That body is nothing more than a shell. The real Steve is inside that body. OK, that's the soul. And by the way, you don't have a soul, you are a soul. God breathed into Adam the breath of life and he became a living soul. So we are a soul, period. And so he is saying, look, this has really taken me to the very heart of my being is what it amounts to. So look at it again. He said, "The waters compassed me about even to the soul."
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"The depth closed me round about. The weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountain. The earth with her bars was about me forever. Yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O LORD my God."
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Now, let me say this again. The only reason that Jonah did not die was because of God's sovereign protection and preservation. God was teaching Jonah a particular lesson. And Jonah speaks of the depth. He speaks of the weeds being wrapped around his head. He speaks of going down to the bottoms of the mountains. Let me ask you this. Can you imagine the change in pressure when the whale would go to the bottom and then come back up to the top?
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This is what he's talking about. He's at the bottom of the mountains. A whale was diving, and then he's coming back up. Do you realize the effects that pressure can have on your body? Water is a thousand times denser than air, and while air's density can vary, the density of water cannot. That's why the deeper you go in the ocean, the stronger the pressure. That is why several years ago, the submersible, that little sub, cracked up. It broke in the pressure of the water.
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And of course, everybody died. But the deeper one dives, the more the pressure is. How this is affecting Jonah, I have no idea. I know God is protecting him. I know God is preserving him. But if that whale was going down, as he says, to the bottom of the mountain and then coming back up to the top. And by the way, the closer you get to the surface of the water, that is where the greatest changes you have in the pressure. And that is why when divers come up at times, if they come up too fast, they get what is known as the bends. And you have to come up easily and gradually and slowly because of the change in pressure. Now, so Jonah has been swallowed.
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He's in this whale's belly. He's experiencing things that he never experienced in his entire life. So before I go any further in this chapter, I want to stop and make some obvious observations. Some things that you and I need to think about. First of all, put this down, make sure you understand this. Those who think that they want to die really do not want to die. They want to live. Jonah, in chapter one, wanted to die. He was willing to die. He thought he was ready to die. "Just throw me over. Just pitch me in." A lot of ground.
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But he did not realize that God had prepared this great fish for himself. Now, when you get to Jonah, chapter two. Wow. Now, Jonah is wanting to live. I remember as a young man, a neighbor girl decided she wanted to kill herself. And she took a handful of rat poison. And by the time she started having great agony and great pains, and the parents rushed her to the doctor and the hospital, and they were pumping her stomach out, she was screaming and crying that she wanted to live.
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But she did not make it. I'm just simply pointing out the fact she thought she really wanted to die. But then when it came time to die, she wanted to live more than anything else. Just this week, I got a message from a friend of mine informing me about a young man who took his own life. I mean, he was at a university, seemingly had everything going for him. And according to her, he had attempted to take his life previously. This time he actually succeeded.
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But I have watched in nearly 60 years of preaching, I've watched saints and sinners die. And when it comes time to actually die, it doesn't matter if you're a saint or it doesn't matter if you're a sinner. Your body is still struggling to live. You want to live. The body wants to live. It is normal. It is natural to want to live. And you will find people who are dying, they will be fighting for their breath. They want that breath more than anything in the world. So Jonah thought he wanted to die.
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But then when it came to being in the belly of the hell or the belly of the fish, he changed his mind. So a lot of people try to change their minds, but sometimes it's too late. So here's the second truth. We have to understand that death does not end it all. Many people think that their suffering will be eased when they die. Well, that's not necessarily so. It may be true for a Christian, but it's not true for someone who is unsaved. And I do not care how horrible an individual is suffering. He can be suffering from cancer. He can be suffering from the most grievous and the most aggravating diseases in the world. But if he's unsaved and he dies, that physical suffering is not going to be anything compared to the spiritual suffering. So clearly death does not end it all. Nothing that is painful in this life, that is physical, mental, emotional, can equate or come clear anywhere near the suffering of those who die without the Lord Jesus Christ. So we have to remember that death does not end it all.
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Period. Here's the third thing. Listen to this. We cannot die when we want to die.
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Now, someone's going to say, "Well, I can. All I got to do is shoot myself." No, no, no, no. That doesn't mean you're going to die when you want to die. The truth is the Bible teaches us that life and death are in the hands of the Lord, and God has just sovereignly appointed the day of our death, just like he is sovereignly appointed the day of our life.
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Now, I want you to hold Jonah chapter two. But I want you to turn back in your Bibles to the book of Job, right before the book of Psalms. Look in Job chapter 7 to begin with, and then we'll go to Job chapter 14. So look in Job chapter 7. Job 7. Look in verse 1. Here's a good question. "Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth?"
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"Are not his days also like the days of a hireling?" So there is an appointed time for man upon the earth. There's a time to be born and there's a time to die according to the book of Ecclesiastes. But if you look in your Bibles to the book of Job chapter 14, begin there with verse 1 and let's read through verse 5 and look at what the Word of God says. Job 14 verse 1, "Man that is born of woman is a few days and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down. He fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not."
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"And dost thou open thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest me into judgment with thee? Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean, not one?" Look at this now, "Seeing his days are determined, the number of his months are with thee, Thou hast appointed His bounds that He cannot pass." None of us are going to live one day, or one minute, or one second longer than God has ordained. Period.
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Now, you're going to say, "Well, I believe I can die when I want to. I just think I can end my life." Well, if you're that foolish, you might go ahead and try it. But the truth is, you're not going to succeed in doing that which you want to do. Do you realize only God could die when he wanted to die? Do you remember that? What did our Lord say? "No man taketh my life from me."
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"I have power to lay it down. I have power to take it again." And Jesus Christ, when he gave his life, said, "Father, in thy hands I commend my spirit." And he gave up the ghost. Man cannot die whenever he wants to die. No. Let me give you a good illustration. I witnessed a young man who had placed a shotgun under his chin and pulled the trigger.
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I did not see him do it. But I was at the hospital when they brought him in through the emergency room. Because when I was at the university, I worked at the hospital. And oftentimes, I was on that back desk which was at the emergency room. They brought this young man in, and he had half of his head blown off. He was on the stretcher. And as he came by my desk, his chest was going up and down, and you could hear him, and all the gurgling. That man lived three days in that condition before he died.
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You can't kill yourself and die when you want to die. You may kill yourself, but you're not going to die until God allows you to die. Period. So you mark this down, if you would, please. Not everybody who thinks they want to die really and truly want to die. And they better understand that death does not end it all. And they better understand, listen carefully, that you can't die when you want to die. And just because you shoot yourself or do something stupid and foolish does not mean that you're going to die when you're going to die. Alice and I know of a young woman who thought she was going to take her life. And she shot herself. And she lived for, I don't know, 20, 30 years in a wheelchair, a vegetable. I'm just simply saying, no, life and death is in the hands of the Lord, not in the hands of man. The fourth one. And here's the fourth observation. I want you to go back to the book of Jonah now. The fourth observation is this.
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God knows exactly what it's going to take to get our attention. Remember, if you would now, Jonah in chapter one is running from God. He's running from his commission. He does not want to preach to the Assyrians. He wants the Ninevites to die. That's all there is to it. But in chapter two, he's running to God. He's praying. He's beseeching. He's ready to preach. Look, if you would, Jonah 2 verse 1. "Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly." Look in verse 2 and said, "I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord." Wow. Look in verse 4. "Then said I, I'm cast out of thy sight, yet I will look again toward thy holy temple." In other words, I was running from it. Now I'm willing to run to it. Look in verse 6.
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"I went down to the bottoms of the mountains. The earth with her bars was about me forever. Yet thou hast brought up my life from corruption. O Lord, my God," the words, "I'm not going to die. I'm going to live." Look in verse seven. "When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord and my prayer came in unto thee." There he is praying into my holy temple. Wow. Now look in verse 9, "...but I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving."
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"I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord." Do you realize what you have in Jonah chapter 2 is Jonah is running back to God, and I believe he's running back to God far more quickly than he ran from God. Because he realizes he's in a very desperate situation. Let me tell you what is happening. In Jonah chapter 2, God has Jonah exactly where He wants him, in the position that He exactly wants him in. That is, He wants him submissive and obedient. And that's where Jonah is at right at this particular time.
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I'm willing to do whatever you would have me to do. Now, let me give you a good illustration of this. I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would hold Jonah chapter 2, but turn to Acts chapter 9. You'll see a similar situation in the life of Saul of Tarsus. You remember how Saul was an enemy of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was consenting to the death of Stephen. He held the cloaks of those who stoned Stephen.
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He had papers from the high priest going to Damascus that he might find any of this way that is Christians. He might bind them and bring them back and throw them into prison or into a dungeon. So Saul of Tarsus was the enemy of Christians and the enemy of the Lord Jesus Christ. But it was on that road that our Lord revealed himself to Saul. And he said, "Saul, Saul, it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." And the pricks was those sharp goads that they used to goad the oxen with. And Saul immediately said, "Who art thou, Lord?" He knew whoever struck him down was Lord. "Who art thou, Lord?" He said, "I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest." Then he said, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?"
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And of course, he was blind. And he told him to go into Damascus. And they took him and led him by the hand to go to Damascus.
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Now, I want you to look in your Bibles to Acts 9. And let's begin reading there with verse 10. "And there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias. And to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him, Arise and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus. For behold, he prayeth, and hath seen a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight." Now look at this question or this answer that Ananias gave. "Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man how much evil he hath done to thy saints of Jerusalem."
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"And here we have authority from the chief priest to bind all that call on thy name. And the Lord said unto him, Go thy way, for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake."
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Now, here's a thing that Ananias missed. If you'll go back to verse 11. "And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire of the house of Judas, for one called Saul of Tarsus. For behold, what? He prayeth." And here's what God told Ananias. "I have him tamed. Don't worry about him. He's broken to yoke. Doesn't matter what you've heard about him. You just do as I tell you, Ananias, because he's a chosen vessel to me. And I'm going to show him exactly what he's going to have to suffer for my name's sake." So what God did to Jonah was to tame him. What God did to Saul of Tarsus was to tame him.
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You remember that passage in Matthew 11? Where our Lord said, "Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I'll give you rest." And then he said, "Take my yoke upon you, for I am meek and lowly, and you shall find rest for your soul." Have you ever tried to plow with an untamed oxen or an untamed mule? It's impossible. In order to plow with an oxen, having him in the yoke, in order to plow with a mule, and I used to plow when I was a boy, they had to be tamed. And what our Lord is saying in Matthew 11, you come to me and take my yoke, you submit to me, you be taught of me, you be obedient to me, and you'll find rest for your soul.
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So, I want you to turn back in your Bible to Jonah chapter 2. I want you to look at this. Look at verse 10. Jonah 2 verse 10. Now that God has Jonah praying and Jonah wanting to go back to the temple and obey God, "And the Lord spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry ground." You know, I said last week, when God got through with Jonah, he might have smelled a lot like fish, but he felt a whole lot more like preaching. And, you know, I think probably when he hit that dry ground.
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He went running toward, I believe I would have. I believe I would have run in obedience a lot faster than I ran in disobedience.
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Now, I want to show you one more verse. I want you to turn back in your Bibles to the book of Psalms, Psalm 32, and I want you to watch this. Psalm 32. And I want you to see the promise of God and the warning of God. Look at Psalm 32 in verse 8. Look what God says. "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go. I will guide thee with mine eye."
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Isn't that a blessed truth? God said, "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way that thou shalt go. I'll guide thee with mine eye." All of us have had children. Is it not absolutely wonderful when you can just speak to your children and they say, "Yes, sir," and "Yes, ma'am," and they do exactly what they're told to do? It's a blessing to have an obedient child. And this is what God is saying. God is saying, "I will instruct you. If you'll listen, I'll teach you. I'll show you the way to go."
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You don't have to guess. All you've got to do is listen and obey. I will teach you. Ah, but look at verse 9. "Be ye not as the horse or as the mule, which have no understanding, whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come nigh or near unto thee." God said, "Don't make me put a bit and bridle on you. Don't make me do that." God can do that. God knows exactly what it's going to take to tame each one of us. He knows exactly what it's going to take to bring us to yoke. He knows exactly what it's going to take to make us submissive and obedient to His will. And God said, "I'm willing to teach you." You know, there's an interesting verse in Micah 6 and verse 9.
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It says, "Hear ye the rod, and him who hath appointed it." So, boys and girls, listen. If you don't listen to daddy and mama, if you disobey, what comes next? The rod. Hmm. So this is what God is telling us. "I will instruct thee. I will teach thee. Listen. Obey." That's a wonderful way to learn. You can also learn by the rod, but that's a more difficult way to learn. "Hear ye the rod, and him who hath appointed it." So Jonah was tamed of God, became the obedient, submissive servant and prophet that God ordained him to be.
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He may not have liked the message he had to preach, but he had to preach. We may not like God's will in our life particularly, but if we realize it's God's will, we need to submit to it because it is God's will. And God has a very unique way of breaking us and making us submissive and obedient. It may not be being swallowed by a whale. It may not be lying in bed on our back for six months, but whatever the way, God knows exactly what it will take to bring us into obedience and submission. And that is the position that we want to be in and we need to be in. So let's pray. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we ask for your blessing, for your help, and we ask, Lord, that you would indeed make us obedient, make us submissive. And Father, may we not run from thee, but run to thee. And Lord, may we listen and be instructed by Thee and taught by Thee. May we not have to be bridled with a bit in our mouth.
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May we not have to have the rod applied to our lives. May we just be willing to listen, to hear, heed, and obey. We ask for Your grace and Your mercy. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, Amen.
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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T20:52:29Z

Run Jonah Run

John Weaver | Freedom Ministries

In this sermon, John Weaver continues his series on Jonah, focusing on chapter 2. He emphasizes that Jonah, who was running from God in chapter 1, is now running to God in prayer from the belly of the fish. Weaver highlights the historical reality of Jonah, affirmed by Jesus, and places Jonah among his prophetic contemporaries. He draws lessons on the fear of death, God's sovereignty over life and death, and how God uses affliction to bring His people to submission and obedience.

Introduction and Reading of Jonah 2

Weaver opens with a reading of Jonah chapter 2 and recaps the previous sermon, noting Jonah's historical reality and his running from God's manifest presence.

Scripture Reading — Jonah 2:1-10

"The waters compassed me about, even to the soul. The depth closed me round about. The weeds were wrapped around my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains. The earth with her bars was about me forever. Yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord my God. When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came in unto thee, into thy holy temple." "They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy. But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving. I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord."

Historical Context of Jonah and His Contemporaries

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 1:1

"The vision of Isaiah, the son of Amos, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah."

Scripture Reading — Jeremiah 1:2

"To whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign."

Scripture Reading — Jeremiah 1:2

"From the thirteenth year of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah, even into this day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the Lord hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking, but you have not hearkened."

So we have the ministry of Jeremiah.

Now if you would turn, Ronald, over to the book of Hosea. Daniel, Hosea. And look, if you would, in Hosea 1 and verse 1. And look at this. Hosea 1, verse 1.

Scripture Reading — Hosea 1:1

"The word of the Lord that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel."

Scripture Reading — Hosea 1:1

"The words of Amos, who was among the herdmen of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake."

God's Use and Judgment of Assyria

Scripture Reading — Zephaniah 2:13

"And He will stretch out His hand against the north and destroy Assyria and will make Nineveh a desolation and like a dry wilderness."

So, Zephaniah even speaks about the destruction of Assyria.

Jonah's Desperate Prayer from the Fish

Weaver describes Jonah's terrifying experience in the fish, his prayer of affliction, and his realization that he is at the bottom of the food chain, leading him to cry out to God.

Scripture Reading — Jonah 1:12, 15, 17

"And he said unto them, Take me up and cast me forth into the sea. So shall the sea be calm unto you. For I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you."

So Jonah then appeared to be willing to die, eager to die, ready to die, and he thought just simply being cast in the sea would be sufficient. So if you look in verse 15,

Scripture Reading — Jonah 1:12, 15, 17

"So they took up Jonah and cast him forth into the sea, and the sea ceased from her raging."

The Horror of Being Swallowed and God's Protection

Weaver illustrates the horror of being swallowed by a whale with modern accounts and emphasizes God's sovereign protection of Jonah during the three days and nights.

Observations on Death and God's Sovereignty

Period. Here's the third thing. Listen to this. We cannot die when we want to die.

Scripture Reading — Job 7:1

"Are not his days also like the days of a hireling?"

Jonah's Submission and the Example of Saul

Weaver shows Jonah's change from running to submission, paralleling it with Saul of Tarsus' conversion, and emphasizes that God tames His servants to obedience.

Scripture Reading — Acts 9:10-16

"And there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias. And to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him, Arise and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus. For behold, he prayeth, and hath seen a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight."

Now look at this question or this answer that Ananias gave.

Scripture Reading — Acts 9:10-16

"Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man how much evil he hath done to thy saints of Jerusalem."

Conclusion: Learning Obedience Willingly

Weaver concludes with Psalm 32:8-9, urging believers to listen and obey willingly rather than needing the bit and bridle of affliction, and prays for submissive hearts.

May we not have to have the rod applied to our lives. May we just be willing to listen, to hear, heed, and obey. We ask for Your grace and Your mercy. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, Amen.

Run Jonah Run

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	722241936455493
Subject	Civil Government
Course	Civil Government: Power, Nations, and Constitutional Order: War in the Gates
Genre	Sermon
Date	2024-07-21
Dictation Name
Book	Book 009: Civil Government: Power, Nations, and Constitutional Order — Chapter 21
Source Timed Segments	77

Lecture Guide

Outline

Introduction and Reading of Jonah 2: Weaver opens with a reading of Jonah chapter 2 and recaps the previous sermon, noting Jonah's historical reality and his running from God's manifest presence.
Historical Context of Jonah and His Contemporaries: Weaver establishes Jonah as a historical figure by referencing Jesus' words and places Jonah among contemporary prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Amos, and Zephaniah, showing their overlapping ministries.
God's Use and Judgment of Assyria: Weaver explains that God used Assyria to chastise Israel but then judged Assyria for their wicked motives, as seen in Isaiah 10, and notes Jonah's reluctance to preach to Nineveh because of Assyria's cruelty.
Jonah's Desperate Prayer from the Fish: Weaver describes Jonah's terrifying experience in the fish, his prayer of affliction, and his realization that he is at the bottom of the food chain, leading him to cry out to God.
The Horror of Being Swallowed and God's Protection: Weaver illustrates the horror of being swallowed by a whale with modern accounts and emphasizes God's sovereign protection of Jonah during the three days and nights.
Observations on Death and God's Sovereignty: Weaver draws four observations: those who think they want to die really want to live; death does not end suffering for the unsaved; we cannot die when we want because God appoints our days; and God knows what it takes to get our attention.
Jonah's Submission and the Example of Saul: Weaver shows Jonah's change from running to submission, paralleling it with Saul of Tarsus' conversion, and emphasizes that God tames His servants to obedience.
Conclusion: Learning Obedience Willingly: Weaver concludes with Psalm 32:8-9, urging believers to listen and obey willingly rather than needing the bit and bridle of affliction, and prays for submissive hearts.

Major Themes

Key Arguments

Jonah's experience was historically real, not mythical.

Jesus referenced Jonah as a historical figure, so denying Jonah's reality undermines Christ's authority.

Weaver says, 'when someone rejects the prophet Jonah, and doubts the book of Jonah, at the same time, he must reject the Lord Jesus Christ and his word.'

God sovereignly uses even wicked nations for His purposes.

God used Assyria to chastise Israel but then judged Assyria for their pride and cruelty.

Weaver reads Isaiah 10:5-15 and explains, 'God used them to chastise and correct Israel. And then he judged them for doing what he wanted done.'

Affliction often leads to genuine prayer and repentance.

Jonah's prayer from the fish shows that extreme distress drove him back to God.

Weaver notes, 'Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly... I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord.'

Death does not end suffering for the unrepentant.

Physical death for the unsaved leads to far greater spiritual suffering.

Weaver states, 'if he's unsaved and he dies, that physical suffering is not going to be anything compared to the spiritual suffering.'

God's discipline is tailored to each individual.

God knows exactly what circumstances will bring each person to submission.

Weaver says, 'God knows exactly what it's going to take to tame each one of us.'

Scripture References

Jonah 2:1-10: The entire chapter is read and forms the basis of the sermon.
Matthew 12:39-41: Jesus affirms Jonah's historical reality and the sign of Jonah.
Luke 11:29-32: Jesus references Jonah as a sign to the Ninevites.
Isaiah 1:1: Shows Isaiah's ministry during the reign of Uzziah, connecting him as a contemporary of Jonah.
Jeremiah 1:2: Jeremiah's ministry began in the days of Josiah, placing him among Jonah's contemporaries.
Jeremiah 25:3: Indicates the length of Jeremiah's ministry, overlapping with other prophets.
Hosea 1:1: Hosea prophesied during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, and Jeroboam, making him a contemporary.
Amos 1:1: Amos prophesied in the days of Uzziah and Jeroboam, two years before the earthquake.
Zephaniah 1:1: Zephaniah prophesied in the days of Josiah, connecting him to the same era.
2 Kings 14:21-25: Connects Jonah to the reign of Jeroboam II and mentions Jonah's prophecy about restoring Israel's borders.
Zephaniah 2:13: Prophecy of Assyria's destruction, showing God's judgment on Nineveh.
Isaiah 10:5-19: God uses Assyria as the rod of His anger but will judge their pride.
Jonah 1:12, 15, 17: Jonah's willingness to be thrown overboard and his being swallowed by the great fish.
Job 7:1: There is an appointed time for man upon earth.
Job 14:1-5: Man's days are determined; God has appointed bounds he cannot pass.
John 10:18: Jesus alone has power to lay down His life and take it again.
Acts 9:10-16: Saul's conversion and God's taming of him as a chosen vessel.
Matthew 11:28-30: Taking Christ's yoke means submission and finding rest.
Psalm 32:8-9: God promises to instruct and guide, but warns against being like a horse or mule needing bit and bridle.
Micah 6:9: Hear the rod and Him who appointed it, emphasizing divine discipline.

Historical References

Uzziah (Azariah), king of Judah: Reigned 52 years; many prophets ministered during his reign, including Isaiah, Hosea, Amos, and Jonah.
Jeroboam II, king of Israel: Reigned 41 years; Jonah prophesied during his reign according to 2 Kings 14:25.
Assyria and Nineveh: Assyria was the mortal enemy of Israel; Nineveh was its capital. Jonah was sent to preach there.
Michael Packard (lobster diver): A modern man swallowed by a humpback whale in 2021, illustrating the terror of such an experience.
Provincetown, Massachusetts: Location of the Michael Packard whale incident.
Timpanogos Cave, Utah: Weaver's personal experience of absolute darkness in a cave, illustrating Jonah's darkness in the fish.

Important Quotes

when someone rejects the prophet Jonah, and doubts the book of Jonah, at the same time, he must reject the Lord Jesus Christ and his word.

Establishes the inseparable link between the historicity of Jonah and the authority of Christ.

God used them to chastise and correct Israel. And then he judged them for doing what he wanted done.

Highlights God's sovereign use of evil nations for His purposes and His subsequent judgment on their motives.

Those who think that they want to die really do not want to die. They want to live.

Key observation about human nature when faced with death, drawn from Jonah's change of heart.

life and death are in the hands of the Lord, and God has just sovereignly appointed the day of our death, just like he is sovereignly appointed the day of our life.

Core doctrinal statement on God's sovereignty over human lifespan.

God knows exactly what it's going to take to get our attention.

Summarizes the theme of divine discipline tailored to the individual.

I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go. I will guide thee with mine eye.

Quoted from Psalm 32:8 to show God's desire for willing obedience.

Be ye not as the horse or as the mule, which have no understanding, whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come nigh or near unto thee.

Warning from Psalm 32:9 against stubbornness that requires harsh discipline.

Discussion Questions

[Question]

How does Jesus' reference to Jonah in Matthew 12 strengthen our confidence in the historical reliability of the Old Testament?

[Context]

Weaver emphasizes that rejecting Jonah's historicity means rejecting Christ's words.

[Question]

In what ways might God use difficult circumstances to get our attention and bring us to submission?

[Context]

Weaver states that God knows exactly what it takes to tame each of us.

[Question]

Why is it dangerous to assume that death will end suffering, especially for those without Christ?

[Context]

Weaver warns that physical death for the unsaved leads to far greater spiritual suffering.

[Question]

How does the account of Jonah's prayer from the fish challenge our tendency to run from God rather than to Him in times of trouble?

[Context]

Jonah's affliction drove him to pray and remember the Lord.

[Question]

What does Psalm 32:8-9 teach us about the difference between willing obedience and forced submission?

[Context]

Weaver contrasts God's gentle guidance with the bit and bridle of discipline.

Applications

Format deepseek deepseek-v4-pro structured study JSON | Source Commentary.net transcript enrichment

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-06T13:08:53Z