24 The City-Wide Repenting Series

The City-wide Repenting

Jonah 3:5 – “So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them. 6 Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh by the decree of the king and his [b]nobles, saying, let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything; do not let them eat, or drink water. 8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to God; yes, let every one turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9 Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish?”

5“So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them.

In response to Jonah’s obedience to God and his preaching to the people of Nineveh, three astounding things happen – the people of Nineveh believe God, they proclaim a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them. We’re not sure whether Jonah expected this to happen and if he didn’t, then this would have been most astounding to him. He was preaching a message that seemed to be final and binding on the people of Nineveh, one which the Lord had decided on, and was not going back on. He was warning of God’s impending punishment on the people on account of their sins and it came with a deadline, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” (Jonah 3:4)

The fact that the people believed Jonah and proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth instead of arguing with, questioning, attacking, or reasoning with Jonah, is an indicator that they themselves knew that their lifestyle was displeasing to God and deserving of punishment. It’s much like when we do wrong and are aware of it, we don’t really question when it’s exposed and we allow ourselves to be held accountable for it. It’s only the very rebellious and stubborn person who would try to justify his sin. It’s those who acknowledge their sin that has a chance of finding mercy and forgiveness from God, not those who seek to cover up their sins In fact that’s what the wise King Solomon himself said in Proverbs 28:13, “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.”

6 Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.

It wasn’t long before the news of what was happening in the city came to the knowledge of the king. What’s even more astounding is the fact that not only did the people acknowledge their sin, but even the king readily acknowledged his sin and that of the people. He did three things that demonstrated his personal repentance – he got off his throne and laid aside his robe (of royalty), covered himself instead with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. This was a common symbol of repentance – wearing sackcloth and sitting in ashes. When he got off his throne and laid aside his royal robe, he was saying in effect that though he was an earthly king, He was in no way comparable with God - the King of the universe. By covering himself with sackcloth and sitting in ashes, he was saying in no uncertain terms that he was acknowledging his sin before the God-King of the universe and pleading for His mercy and forgiveness.

7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, "Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything; do not let them eat, or drink water."

Not only did the king repent, but he also passed a decree throughout the city of Nineveh instructing all people and animals to undertake a fast, where they abstained from both food and water. The king had exercised authority before, but no one would have ever heard of a decree of this nature before. He was taking advantage of his position as ‘king,’ to bring the entire city to repentance. While many people in positions of influence might use their influence in ways that are not conducive to national growth and would rather better themselves, while they can, here was an instance where the supreme authority in the land was using his authority in a good way – to expedite a change in the lifestyle of both himself and his people, so as to save the lives of both himself and the people he led. He was so serious about his decree that it not only affected humans but animals as well. The decree prevented any person or animal from consuming food or water.