Friday Devo
Scripture:
Jonah 3:4-10
4 On the day Jonah entered the city, he shouted to the crowds: “Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed!” 5 The people of Nineveh believed God’s message, and from the greatest to the least, they declared a fast and put on burlap to show their sorrow.
6 When the king of Nineveh heard what Jonah was saying, he stepped down from his throne and took off his royal robes. He dressed himself in burlap and sat on a heap of ashes. 7 Then the king and his nobles sent this decree throughout the city:
“No one, not even the animals from your herds and flocks, may eat or drink anything at all. 8 People and animals alike must wear garments of mourning, and everyone must pray earnestly to God. They must turn from their evil ways and stop all their violence. 9 Who can tell? Perhaps even yet God will change his mind and hold back his fierce anger from destroying us.”
10 When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened.
4 On the day Jonah entered the city, he shouted to the crowds: “Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed!” 5 The people of Nineveh believed God’s message, and from the greatest to the least, they declared a fast and put on burlap to show their sorrow.
6 When the king of Nineveh heard what Jonah was saying, he stepped down from his throne and took off his royal robes. He dressed himself in burlap and sat on a heap of ashes. 7 Then the king and his nobles sent this decree throughout the city:
“No one, not even the animals from your herds and flocks, may eat or drink anything at all. 8 People and animals alike must wear garments of mourning, and everyone must pray earnestly to God. They must turn from their evil ways and stop all their violence. 9 Who can tell? Perhaps even yet God will change his mind and hold back his fierce anger from destroying us.”
10 When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened.
Commentary:
3:9 Who knows? expresses hope (see 2 Sam. 12:22) that God may turn and relent—the exact hope of the prophet Joel for the people of Judah (Joel 2:14). we may not perish. This is the third time a pagan has been concerned that people not perish (see Jonah 1:14 and note on 1:6); ironically, Jonah has not expressed any such concern.
3:10 evil … disaster. Both terms translate Hebrew ra‘ah (see note on 1:2). The use of the same word underscores the close connection between human action and divine response. God did not carry out the threatened disaster because the Ninevites repented of their evil (see note on 3:4). From a temporal perspective, God responds to human action; from an eternal perspective, God chooses the means (human repenting) as well as the end (divine relenting). The repentance of Gentiles contrasts with the repeated lack of repentance on the part of Israel (see note on vv. 7–8).
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 1690.
3:10 evil … disaster. Both terms translate Hebrew ra‘ah (see note on 1:2). The use of the same word underscores the close connection between human action and divine response. God did not carry out the threatened disaster because the Ninevites repented of their evil (see note on 3:4). From a temporal perspective, God responds to human action; from an eternal perspective, God chooses the means (human repenting) as well as the end (divine relenting). The repentance of Gentiles contrasts with the repeated lack of repentance on the part of Israel (see note on vv. 7–8).
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 1690.
Questions:
When the king of Nineveh called the people to repentance, he said, "Who knows? God may yet relent." His words remind us that God's mercy is a gift of grace, not something we can presume upon.
Nineveh experienced revival in Jonah's day, but that revival did not last forever. Generations later, the city returned to its old ways and eventually faced God's judgment. God's patience is real, but it is not endless. Every day we are given is another opportunity to respond to His grace.
Nineveh experienced revival in Jonah's day, but that revival did not last forever. Generations later, the city returned to its old ways and eventually faced God's judgment. God's patience is real, but it is not endless. Every day we are given is another opportunity to respond to His grace.
- The king of Nineveh responded immediately because he understood that tomorrow was not guaranteed. What distractions, comforts, or routines tend to lull you into spiritual complacency? How might your priorities change if you lived with a greater awareness of eternity?
- Nineveh experienced both God's mercy in Jonah's day and His judgment generations later in Nahum's day. What do these two very different outcomes teach us about God's patience, holiness, and justice? How do they challenge the assumption that we can always put off repentance until later?
- Is there a step of obedience, act of reconciliation, ministry opportunity, or area of repentance that you have been delaying? What is one specific thing you can do today to respond to God's prompting rather than assuming you will have another chance tomorrow?
Prayer Topics:
- Ask God to wake you up from spiritual complacency.
- Pray for a greater awareness of eternity and the shortness of life.
- Surrender any delayed obedience and commit to respond to God.
This Week's City 7:
Try to commit to memory!
2. Are there sources outside the Bible that confirm the Biblical account of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead?
Many Roman and Jewish historians have confirmed that the apostles died as martyrs for preaching that they saw Jesus risen from the grave. No one dies for something they know to be a lie.
(Luke 1:1-4; Acts 26:26; 1 John 1:1-4, Josephus, Clement, Hegesippus, Tertullian, Origen, Polycarp)
Many Roman and Jewish historians have confirmed that the apostles died as martyrs for preaching that they saw Jesus risen from the grave. No one dies for something they know to be a lie.
(Luke 1:1-4; Acts 26:26; 1 John 1:1-4, Josephus, Clement, Hegesippus, Tertullian, Origen, Polycarp)
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