Jonah Runs Away

Imagine if when you arrived at Sunday school nothing had been prearranged and nothing prepared for you. No lesson was set up, no songs decided. Your teacher hadn't arranged anything that she would generally do. Do you consider you would have a good time? It would all be confused, wouldn't it? It's better to have a plan, to know what you are going to do. Do you think God has any plans? Do you think He ever organizes anything beforehand so that his plans can be carried through? This brief narrative is about one of God's plans and how a man attempted to keep it from coming to pass.

Five hundred miles away from the land of Israel was the nation of Assyria. Back then it represented the biggest and strongest nation on earth. Their armies had captured a lot of cities and countries. They were evil and unkind. The capital city of Assyria was Nineveh. It was a big city, ninety miles walking around the walls. There were more than a million people living in it. Great walls were constructed, so wide you could get three chariots side by side. It was a handsome city with big buildings and trees. But it was a sinful city.

The children of Israel were afraid of the Assyrian armies, because they thought they might come and attack them at any time. This was a country that knew nothing of the living God and His love. Their city was full of idols and pagan temples. They particularly idolised Dagon, a fish God. They thought that he had come up out of the ocean and established their country.

Jonah was the first prophet of the northern kingdom after Elisha. He had examined the scrolls on which the Word of God was written. He acknowledged that God had already said his nation would be carried off as prisoners unless they turned from their idols, (Deuteronomy 28:49,50).

One day God spoke to him and told him to go to Nineveh and warn the people there that they must turn from their wickedness or God would demolish their city. Jonah didn't want to obey. He did not want to go to a pagan city, and he didn't want them to listen to God's Word and repent. If they were wiped out, they could not come and attack his people. Even though Jonah was a prophet, he did not want to be part of the plan God had prepared.

And so Jonah chose to disobey God by running away from Him and the job he had been given to do. He imagined that he could hide from God and that He wouldn't find him.