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| Photo by James Tracy |
1 The word of the I Am came to Jonah the second time, saying,
2 "Get up! Go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it what I told you too."
3 So Jonah got up, and went to Nineveh, just like the I Am told him to. Now Nineveh was a very large city. It took three days just to walk through it.
4 Jonah walked a day into the city, and began to cry out and say, "In forty days the City of Nineveh will be destroyed!"
5 And the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the richest to the poorest.
Sackcloth was a rough garment made of coarse goat’s hair, (probably resembling a sack), with holes cut into it for the head and arms. This was not the soft kind of goat’s hair we call cashmere or mohair but was made of the outside guard hair which was very coarse (much like burlap). These were likely clothes made specifically for mourning. They would have been cheap enough that anyone could afford them. In fact, the poor’s everyday clothes wouldn’t have been much more comfortable.
This practice of wearing uncomfortable clothing showed the world and, more importantly, God that you were so upset you didn’t want to be comfortable.
Sitting in ashes and rubbing them all over was also a sign of mourning. The practice probably stems from the practice of widows sitting under their husband’s funeral piers after he had been cremated in an attempt to be closer to him for just a little bit longer. This grew into a symbol of mourning.
6 (Jonah's message) was even told to the king of Nineveh, and he got up from his throne, and took off his royal robe, and covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
7 And he ordered it to be proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, “Don't let humans or animals taste any thing. Don't let them eat or drink!
The denying of food and water to animals would have been to draw the attention of the gods represented by those animals. Even though they were praying to the One and Only True God, they would have been in the habit of using their animals to appeal to the deities in their lives.
8 "But every person and animal must be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to God. Yes, Everyone turn from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands!
Can you imagine trying to dress your animals in sackcloth? That would have been an entertaining show.
9 "Who can tell if God will change His mind and turn away from His fierce anger so that we don't die?"
Jonah was a very effective preacher. The entire city converted.
10 And God saw their works; that they turned from their evil ways. And God changed His mind about the destruction that He had said He was going to cause them.
Since the people turned from their evil way, God was able to turn from His plans to destroy them. He is a merciful God and always prefers restoration to destruction.
Most of God’s promises are “If-then” promises. “If you do XYZ Then I will do ABC.”
“If” Nineveh didn’t repent, “Then” God would destroy them (though it appears Jonah left that part about repentance out and expected God to just destroy them no matter what.)
“If” Israel had chosen to serve God, and only God, “Then” they would have been His people forever. They broke their part of the agreement, so God is not obligated to keep His.
“If” we accept Jesus as our Savior and Boss, “Then” God will erase all our sins and take us to Heaven. If we don’t do our part, however, God won’t do His.