Jonah 4:1-11 NIV
But Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry. 2 He prayed to the LORD, "O LORD, is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. 3 Now, O LORD, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live." 4 But the LORD replied, "Have you any right to be angry?" 5 Jonah went out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. 6 Then the LORD God provided a vine and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the vine. 7 But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the vine so that it withered. 8 When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die, and said, "It would be better for me to die than to live." 9 But God said to Jonah, "Do you have a right to be angry about the vine?" "I do," he said. "I am angry enough to die." 10 But the LORD said, "You have been concerned about this vine, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. 11 But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?"
Hitchhiker 4 – Hanging on to Anger
See! I told you so! I knew it… I knew it… I KNEW it! Way back when all of this started I KNEW IT! Why do you think I was going to Tarshish!?! I knew that you would do what you always do! I knew you couldn’t help being…. YOU! Gracious! Compassionate! Slow to anger! Abounding in love! Come ON!
You know what Ninevah deserves! It deserves punishment. It deserves pain. It deserves to be wiped off the face of the earth with all the fury and anger you can muster. Hold nothing back, let it rip. They are horrible. They are evil. There is not a single one of them that has ever done a kind thing in all their lives! Give them what they deserve! Send fire. Send plagues. Send vengeance! But don’t just do…. NOTHING!
But that’s exactly what you are doing. They repent, they change their ways… and there you are… Mr. All Loving… Mr. Compassionate… there you are… to forgive… and pretend like nothing ever happened… like they were completely free from sin when NOTHING could be further from the truth. Now look at them… the entire town is partying. They rejoice! They sing! They dance! They drink and are merry! Where, oh Lord, are the cries of anguish? Where, oh Lord, are the tears of sorrow? They mock your justice Lord! That’s what’s happening here.
And you know what? If that’s how you are going to run things… if that’s how you are going to do things around here… then I don’t want any part of it! I’m done. I am DONE! Just KILL ME NOW! Just end it because I AM DONE!
I guess… you could say… Jonah was a little upset with God. Funny how quickly the mood of the book of Jonah changes from chapter 3 when Jonah is God’s guy… Jonah is out the preaching the word… doing good work… saving lives! Was it all an act? Was Jonah hoping that maybe… just maybe it wouldn’t work? Because, in the midst of the rejoicing and celebrating… in the midst of the joy that God would spare the city, we get this rant from Jonah… and he lets it rip.
I’m not sure what it was like in your house growing up… but one thing you DID NOT DO in my house… was talk back to dad. You would get as far as “Oh yeah!?!” and dad would get out his authority look. His eyes would glare… his lips would purse… his one eyebrow would raise just slightly… and you KNEW you were on very… thin… ice… and you would shrink… [childlike voice] “I am so sorry father!” You just didn’t do it… it was against one of the natural laws… you DO NOT talk back to dad.
In the same way, there is almost some kind of “natural law” being broken in our text today too. So many of us have this ingrained belief that no matter what happens… no matter what God does… you should accept it… you should go with it. You should never… EVER get angry with God… you should never… EVER talk back to God. You just don’t do it. So when Jonah starts ripping into God like this… there is almost room for an audible gasp… because you do NOT talk to God like that!
Jonah doesn’t care… he let’s rip… then he sits himself east of the city to wait for God… to change his mind. Jonah sits… still FUMING… waiting for God to bring down the destruction that Ninevah so greatly deserved.
I can’t wait for what happens next. I can’t wait for God’s response to Jonah. Somebody help me out here. Somebody read me the verse where God sends the lightning bolts down on Jonah. “You talking to ME? You talking to ME!?!” Lightning bolt. *BAM*! Somebody please read me that verse where God sends the lightning bolts down. Jonah broke the code… Jonah not only got upset at God… he came very close to blaspheming him… and you do NOT talk to God like that! Who’s found that verse… the one with the lightning bolts… and Jonah… “kaprchhhhhh.” Anyone?
It’s not there. Instead we get verse 6… there sits Jonah… fuming… I mean just FUMING at God… and God sends a bush to grow… to cover Jonah… to protect him from the heat and give him comfort.
I think, that there is something very… VERY important about that verse. While many of us would probably agree that “as good Christians” we should trust God and we should never get angry with God and should never tell him off like Jonah just did… God shows us… that, sometimes… it is OK to get a little angry at him.
When I say that, I think he understands that there is a process we need to go through when we are dealing with pain, loss, or great disappointment. So if part of the healing process is expressing our anger and disappointment with him… I don’t think he minds that much… he’s God… he’s used to it. So, as Jonah fumes… God doesn’t punish him… he in fact goes out of his way to help provide comfort to Jonah. We need to remember that during the times when we might fume at God… it’s ok… it’s part of the process… and God is there… doing his best to provide comfort as best he can.
But that lesson does not end there… we can’t just leave it there because “it’s OK to get angry” is a shallow lesson at best. Sure, God understands our anger… but he refuses to let us dwell on it forever. He gives Jonah, and us, a beautiful lesson in anger management next. This is what we read from verse 7:
7 But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the vine so that it withered. 8 When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. Jonah wanted to die, and said, "It would be better for me to die than to live." 9
Jonah, in his furious rage, is now livid that God has taken away the vine that provided him comfort… that provided him the ability to remain in his anger. Now it is God’s turn to speak. “So Jonah, you are pretty upset that the vine died. DO you have a right to be angry?”
“I do! I am angry enough to die!”
You are upset because of the loss of a lowly vine… you are angry to the point of death because this plant was lost to you. So… how do you think I felt about loosing Ninevah… about an entire city of my children being lost to me? Don’t you think I had a right to be angry? But I let my anger go, and gave forgiveness and love instead. You see Jonah, anger may be helpful, but it can be so very destructive too.
Proverbs 30:33
33 For as churning the milk produces butter, and as twisting the nose produces blood, so stirring up anger produces strife."
James 1:19-20
9 My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.
So, Jonah, do not dwell on anger forever… it is not good for you. Get up… move on… it is time.
Even when God should be angry… even when he has a right to be angry…he shows love; to Ninevah… to Jonah… and to us! Is there any greater example of letting go of anger than that? Isn’t that the “better way” that God is trying to example to all of his children?
Anger is one of those emotions that can hang on forever. I’m sure every single one of us knows a story that has something to do with something that happened 50 years ago…. 100 years ago… where the very mention of the event will send someone into a vehement rage. Brothers and sisters, we have this knack for hanging on to anger forever… and we allow that anger to poison our very souls. So many people live their entire lives… just one step away from the next thing that will make them go off. God tries to tell us… anger has it’s place… especially if it’s a righteous anger… but don’t let anger rule your life… don’t let anger consume you!
God has shown us a better way, he has shown us the example to live by. And we know… we KNOW that God will always show that side of himself… even when he has a RIGHT to be angry with you and with me! We KNOW that God will always be gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. As people who have been shown this great compassion and love… may we be able to “let go” when it is our RIGHT to be angry.
In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
