Flotsam and Jetsam

THE SCENE IS SET

Fierce winds shrieked through the ship's riggings. Mountainous waves thundered against the sides of the vessel. Her timber creaked and groaned. The man on the deck wanted to shut out the terrible sounds. Far worse were the shouts of the mariners, captain and crew, as they struggled to keep the ship afloat. Jonah felt sure that those men were about to die – all because of him!

Jonah made a very serious mistake. What did he do wrong? He impulsively went against God's instructions. He was a prophet, and they were supposed to do as God commanded. They were entrusted with important assignments. Were matters beyond repair? 

Jonah wasn’t a bad person. He had proved faithful on many occasions. God would not have selected him for such a weighty responsibility had he been unfaithful or unrighteous .

Israel was willfully returning to Baal worship. The land was under the influence of a king who continued to do what was bad in God’s eyes. Jonah’s assignment could not have been easy or pleasant. 

THE ASSIGNMENT

“Get up, go to Nineveh the great city, and proclaim against her that their badness has come up before me”. 

This assignment was daunting. Jonah was to deliver God's judgement message to the Assyrians, who were notoriously violent, even savage. Jonah had been expecting a positive response among the Israelites, God's chosen people. What hope could he expect to see among those pagans? Nineveh came to be called the “city of bloodshed”. 

JONAH'S IMPULSIVE MISTAKE

On impulse, Jonah decided to go in the opposite direction – to get as far away from Nineveh as possible; he headed west. He went to Joppa, a port on the coast, where he found a ship headed for Tarshish thought to be in Spain. It meant a journey of some 2,200 miles away from Nineveh. A voyage to the Great Sea, the Mediterranean Sea in those days – might have taken as long as a year. Jonah was determined to get as far away from Nineveh as possible. 

WAS JONAH A COWARD?

We have all grappled with fear, haven’t we? Jonah faced a terrifying experience as we shall see. Yet he exhibited great courage. He was no coward.

His problem was being indecisive and impulsive; being figuratively tossed about on the waves of the sea, like flotsam and jetsam.

The vessel he was on was probably like a Phoenician cargo ship. Jonah watched as captain and crew got their craft underway and out of port. Jonah may have hoped he was leaving his troubles behind. But suddenly the weather changed. The sea churned up into a nightmarish rage. The waves were gigantic. The ship seemed terribly small and frail. The mariners began crying out to their various gods, and he knew no help would come from them.

The account says: “As for the ship, it was about to be wrecked.”

How could he pray to the God he was disobeying? Feeling powerless to help, Jonah went below deck and found a place to lie down. He fell asleep. The captain woke him up and urged him to pray to his god, as the others were doing. The superstitious seamen were convinced that the storm was supernatural and cast lots to ascertain which of the people on board might be the cause of their trouble. Jonah’s heart sank as he realized God was directing the storm and the lots to one man – Jonah!

JONAH IS SWALLOWED BY A GREAT FISH

Jonah told the sailors about his impulsive mistake to run away from an assignment that his God, Jehovah, had given him. He knew he could save the men from certain death.

So he urged them: “Lift me up and hurl me into the sea, and the sea will become still for you; because I am aware that it is on my account that this great tempest is upon you.”

Hardly the words of a coward. Jonah was brave and self-sacrificing in that dire moment. 

At first, the sailors refused to comply. They were astounded at Jonah's honesty and bravery. The tempest grew worse and they saw they had no choice but to call out to Jonah's God for mercy, then they tossed Jonah into the sea. 

Jonah plummeted into the raging waves. He struggled and floundered and saw the ship swiftly moving away.

The sea crashed over him and forced him under. Down, down and down he went. He must have sensed that there was no hope for him.

He thought with sadness that his life was over. He would never again see the beautiful temple in Jerusalem. He felt he was sinking to the very depths of the ocean, near the roots of the mountains. Seaweed entangled him. He believed this was to be his grave. 

Something nearby moved toward him – an immense, dark shape, a living thing. It darted at him and engulfed him. It swallowed him! But, he was till alive, breathing and neither crushed, digested nor suffocating. He became filled with awe realizing his God, Jehovah, had “appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah.”

Minutes passed, stretching into hours. In the darkest deep, Jonah composed his thoughts and prayed to God. In the “inward parts of the fish” – Jonah learned that God can find anyone, any time and anywhere, and save them. Only God could keep a man alive and well for three days and three nights in the belly of a great fish. He owed his very breath, his existence to him. 

JONAH CONQUERS HIS INDECISIVENESS AND IMPULSIVENESS. HE OBEYS GOD AND CARRIES OUT HIS ASSIGNMENT

The fish spewed him out onto dry land. Jonah faced a long journey through valleys and over mountain passes. It was a journey of more than 500 miles. He would likely have to skirt the Syrian desert. It would take him about a month to reach Nineveh on foot.

One thing Jonah knew for certain was he couldn’t run away from this second assignment. He obediently went on his journey. Jonah did not see the great city of Nineveh as did God. Three times in the record of Jonah, Nineveh is referred to as a great city. Why was it so important to God? 

Nimrod, the great hunter in opposition to Jehovah God, founded Nineveh. He established it after the flood. It was vast requiring a man three days to walk from one end to the other. It was impressive with its stately temples, mighty walls and other edifices. It was a city steeped in false worship. God instructed Jonah to serve notice on the idolatry and apostasy practised by the huge population of more than 120,000.

Jonah was faced with having to make another difficult decision. To face the king of Nineveh and the masses was a fearful challenge. He may have briefly wavered on indecisiveness and impulse. However, he was grateful for God's mercy and he plucked up the courage to fulfill his assignment. He braced himself for a violent and hostile response. He had to stand before the people and tell them:

“Only forty days more, and Nineveh will be overthrown.”

With boldness and courage he spoke out for the forty days. His message got the Ninevite's attention and they listened! Before long the whole city was talking about Jonah's prophecy of doom. They were all caught up in a spirit of repentance. They fasted. The king too responded to Jonah's proclamation. He removed his luxurious robes of state, got off his throne and decreed that all wear sackcloth, even the domestic animals. He humbly acknowledged that his people were guilty of badness and violence. 

He asked God to, “…turn back from his burning anger, so that we may not perish.”

Was Jonah's prophecy a false one? No; it fulfilled its purpose as a warning from God. The people changed their bad ways. No doom descended upon them. Did Jonah feel ridiculed because after forty days proclaiming doom, no doom came? Were his indecisiveness and impulsive behavior justified? On the contrary. 

A great city and thousands upon thousands of lives were saved. That was God's purpose; to warn them and give them the opportunity to repent and survive. 

Jonah did feel bitterness and self-pity for awhile. His pride was wounded. God mercifully forgave him and simply asked him one gentle, probing question:

“Have you rightly become hot with anger?” 

Because of being indecisive and giving way to impulse God's distressed prophet brought anguish upon himself. 

A LESSON FOR US

It is unwise to attempt to challenge the Most High God! He commands obedience for our own benefit and for the sake of others. His will and purpose is for the benefit of all mankind. May anyone never make the mistake of standing in God's way. We are told in the book of Ecclesiastes it is better not to make a vow, or promise, if we do not intend to keep it. 

If we decide to do something it is best to stick to it. God promises to help us succeed in any endeavour that is in accordance with his will.

Being indecisive is like flotsam and jetsam being tossed about on the waves of the sea. It's one terrible ride, but you get nowhere.

Reference: the Bible Book of Jonah