Bible Commentaries
Jonah 3

Verses 1-10

Jonah 3:1-10 Jonah Preaches in Nineveh In Jonah 3:1-10 we have the account of Jonah preaching to the people of Nineveh, followed by their response of repentance.

Jonah 3:4 And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.

Jonah 3:4 Comments - Jonah preached a five-word sermon, ( עֹוד אַרְבָּעִים יֹום וְנִֽינְוֵה נֶהְפָּֽכֶת ) This sentence consisted of five words in the Hebrew, “ 1 Yet 2 forty 3 days 4 and Nineveh 5 shall be over thrown. ”

Jonah 3:5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.

Jonah 3:5 “the people of Nineveh believed God” - Comments - When we speak what God tells us to speak, it may be a man’s voice that speaks, but it is God’s voice that people hear. This is because the message speaks to our hearts.

Jonah 3:6 For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.

Jonah 3:7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water:

Jonah 3:8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.

Jonah 3:8 “ cry mightily unto God” Comments - When we sin, we need to do the same in our prayers.

Jonah 3:10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.

Jonah 3:10 Comments - The Hebrew word “repent” is ( נָחַם ) (H5162). God allowed a change of heart, showed pity, was sorry, and showed remorse. God told Jeremiah that if a nation repents, He will turn from His judgment (Jeremiah 18:8).

Jeremiah 18:8, “If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.”

Micah’s prophecy was delivered to Judah and Hezekiah repented, thus turning away divine judgment and the utter destruction of Jerusalem (Jeremiah 26:19).

Jeremiah 26:19 Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him at all to death? did he not fear the LORD, and besought the LORD, and the LORD repented him of the evil which he had pronounced against them? Thus might we procure great evil against our souls.

Jonah 3:10 Comments - In Rick Joyner's book The Call he meets Lot in a heavenly vision. Lot then explains that many perished in Sodom and Gomorrah because of Lot's silence. Lot goes on to explain that he thought that he would be able to just live a godly life in front of these people, thus being enough of a warning of God's judgment. [17] It is the power of the spoken word that the Holy Spirit uses to convict man of sin. It is not enough just to live different in the midst of an ungodly world. In contrast to Lot, Jonah did lift up his voice and witness to the people of Nineveh. They repented at the preaching of Jonah and God spared their city. Did not our Lord Jesus Christ say that He would have spared Sodom and Gomorrah if they had heard the preaching of the judgment of God? (Matthew 11:23-24)

[17] Rick Joyner, The Call (Charlotte, North Carolina: Morning Star Publications, 1999), 42-3.

Matthew 11:23-24, “And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.”