Jonah And The Worm Series

“The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away.” Destruction finally comes, but not upon Ninevah. A hungry worm arrives and eats the plant, which had become very important to Jonah; maybe this worm was from Ninevah, where all the animals had been fasting! The devouring appetite of the worm is mentioned elsewhere in the Bible to symbolize the punishment of the wicked. Next comes the scorching hot breath of a shemal, a desert storm. Jonah’s zest for life shrivels like the leaves of his vine, and instead of considering what God might be trying to teach him, Jonah again bitterly asks to die (vs 8); his vehement words take the force of an expletive. In so doing, Jonah unwittingly plays into God’s hands. He is defeated by his own words. Jonah obviously lacks a sense of humor; the means God uses are comical, but Jonah fails to see the wit of the situation.

Another Minor Prophet, Habakkuk, declared that no matter what happened, he would choose to live by faith; he writes: “Though the fig tree does not bloom and there are no grapes on the vine…yet I will rejoice in the Lord” (Hab 3:17-18). Habakkuk is describing a devastating crop failure; Jonah’s upset over a mere lack of shade.

Jonah is all shook up over a withered plant--but Who made that plant? God points out in vs 10 that Jonah had nothing to do with it. He didn’t start its growth, and he couldn’t stop it. Jonah didn’t create that plant--God did, and He also created Ninevah. Those people were His. God produced the conversions in Ninevah, and they were of more concern to Him than Jonah’s plant. The implied message from God is, “Don’t you see how I feel? What is your hurt compared to Mine?”

Before pitiless Jonah could argue that the Ninevites were guilty and deserving of death, God reminds him (the last vs) that 120,000 innocent children were there, who haven’t reached an age of accountability, who ware unable to discern good from evil. Is God not allowed to take pity on them?

God has the last word, and in so doing He invites us to answer as well, for His message is for us as it is for Jonah. Whose attitude have we been invited to condemn throughout this book? If we admit that, in many ways, we are Jonah, we will be able to rise above our prejudices and self-centeredness. Jonah cared more about personal comfort than an entire city! He was bothered by the hot rays of the desert sun, but could care less about the burning fire of hell falling on a city.

What makes us happy? For Jonah is was a plant. What gives us great joy? When we answer that, we discover if we care more about comfort and pleasure than people.

The ending may seem abrupt and unresolved, and we might like to know how Jonah responded, but it’s not important to know what he said or did. Jonah’s missing final answer isn’t an oversight or the result of our lacking the last page of the manuscript. Jonah’s not the main character here--God is. We’re left with an intentional, powerful statement concerning God’s grace. Rather than show us Jonah’s response, God invites us to respond. Will we show compassion, or will we run from our responsibility? As Christians, we’re compelled to care. God didn’t hang up on Jonah. Did Jonah? Do we hang up on God when He doesn’t meet our expectations? May God have mercy on foolish people like Jonah...like you and me.