A new act begins in chapter 3, an act that is remarkably similar in form to the opening act yet wonderfully different in the way the drama plays out. Structurally, this second act mirrors the first in that it has three main scenes: (1) Jonah’s recommissioning (3:1-4), (2) Nineveh’s repentance (3:5-10), and (3) Jonah’s rebuke (4:1-11).
As expected, chapter 3 unfolds much as chapter 1 did. Just as chapter 1 begins with the familiar prophetic commission (1:1-2), chapter 3 returns to this familiar language with a much more satisfying result (3:1-4). Similarly, just as the scene quickly shifted away from Jonah to the sailors (1:4-16), the people of Nineveh fill most of the space here in chapter 3 (vv. 5-9) with God having the final word (v. 10). There is much to be said by the similarities as well as the differences in these first two scenes.
Reset (vv. 1-4)
Just as 1:1-3 provided the contextual setting for the rest of the act, 3:1-4 serve a similar purpose. The initial prophetic commission is given a second attempt, or the prophet is given a second chance. Much can be gleaned by comparing the two interactions.
Jonah Recommissioned (vv. 1-2)
“And the Word of Yhwh came unto Jonah a second time saying, ‘Arise! Go unto Nineveh the great city, and cry unto it the proclamation which I speak unto you.’’”
If Jonah resigned his commission in chapter 1, it would appear that his resignation was not accepted. The language used here is identical to 1:1 with the exception that Jonah is no longer identified as “the son of Amittai”. In fact, it is almost as if “second” (שֵׁנִית) modifies Jonah rather than the coming of the Word of Yhwh. This is a new Jonah (a second Jonah?) and a new beginning.
In many respects, this command from the Word of Yhwh is identical to what was recorded in 1:2. The same three imperatives dominate and guide the commission (arise!, go!, call!). Nineveh is still the object of Jonah’s cry and is still considered a great (גָּדוֹל) city. Yet, there are at least two distinct differences that confirm some of our earlier suspicions. First, the ambiguity regarding the tenor of Jonah’s message may have increased rather than decreased. In 1:2, Jonah was commanded to cry/call against (עַל) Nineveh and here he is simply to cry/call unto (אֶל) the great city. This does not mean that the message will not be negative, but there is no way to understand the preposition אֶל in an adversative way. Jonah is simply commanded to proclaim the message unto/toward Nineveh.
In addition, the fact that we suspected something was missing (namely; the content of what Jonah was supposed to cry) from 1:2 is confirmed here. The Word of Yhwh recommissions Jonah by telling him to cry exactly what He will tell Jonah. Yet, the audience does not receive that information. We still do not know the content of what Jonah is supposed to cry but at least we know that we don’t know it.
Jonah’s Response (vv. 3-4)
“And Jonah arose and went to Nineveh according to the Word of Yhwh. Now, Nineveh was a great city to God, a walk of three days. And Jonah began to go in the city, a walk of day one. And he said, ‘Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overturned!’”
The first two verbs that describe Jonah’s response perfectly mirror the first two imperatives given to him by the Word of Yhwh. Jonah was told to arise (קוּם) and so he arose (וַיָּקָם). Jonah was told to go (לֵךְ) to Nineveh and so he went (וַיֵּלֶךְ) to Nineveh. To make his obedience explicit, the often-anticipated phrase “according to the word of Yhwh” (כִּדְבַר יְהוָה) is added. There is no doubt about it, Jonah is no longer fleeing the presence of Yhwh.
There is a break in the narrative for an editorial note. This note seems to be for the benefit of the audience more so than anything else. The fact that Nineveh is a great city is reiterated, but now there is a measurement of just how great or, by what unit of measure it is considered to be great. What most English Bibles translate as “exceedingly great” (NASB, ESV, NKJV, LSB) is more accurately translated as “Nineveh was a great city to God” (לֵאלֹהִים). The greatness of Nineveh is measured not in its size or in geo-political significance but is measured according to God’s estimation. Nineveh was great to Him. That this great city was a walk of three days (מַהֲלַךְ שְׁלֹשֶׁת יָמִים) does not fully explain why Nineveh is great to God, but certainly its size seems to have something to do with it. Any city that would take three days to admonish must have more than a little significance in the eyes of God.
In v. 4 Jonah begins his walk of three days with the walk of one day. The point is simply that he has only just begun his mission, being only one day into a three-day mission of proclamation. For the first time we find out, at least in part, what it was that Jonah was called to proclaim. Nineveh has forty days until it will be overturned. This revelation brings several things to consider.
The first of which is the term “overthrown” itself. The verb הפך means simply “to turn” in the sense of a shift in position (Ex. 10:19), a change in appearance (Lev. 13:3 ff.), disposition (Ex. 14:5), or even the transformation of something such as a staff transformed into a serpent (Ex. 7:15). More to the point, this is the same verb used to describe the overturn or the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19:21, 25). The sense there is that God turned the cities of the plain upside down, erasing them from the face of the earth. It seems that this is the same sense in Jonah’s message, yet the idea of “overthrow” is not even close to the most frequent use of הפך. Therefore, there is perhaps more than a little ambiguity within this message.
Second, we might wonder why Jonah gave a forty-day time stamp. While it is true that “forty days” is often used to measure a time of testing (i.e., Jesus’ forty days in the wilderness) this doesn’t seem to fit the context of “testing”. Perhaps this is more closely aligned with the forty days Moses spent in intercession for Israel so that Yhwh would not destroy them after their wickedness revolving around the golden calf (Deut. 9:18) and again after the rebellion at Kadesh-barnea (Deut. 9:25). Nothing is stated about intercession or supplication, but perhaps there remains the implication within what is left unstated.
A third thing to consider is the brevity, even the incompleteness of this message. In fact, we are left to wonder if this is the complete message Jonah was commanded to deliver. The residents of Nineveh are here told that they have forty days before their city is turned, transformed, overturned. What are they supposed to do with this information? Why is this overthrow going to happen? What is the source behind this looming calamity? It seems that yet again, we are not given the whole story as this proclamation demands more questions than it answers.
Finally, the nagging feeling that there is more to this message is reinforced by the fact that Jonah initially ran away from this mission. Why would an Israelite prophet run away from pronouncing divine destruction on the scale of Sodom and Gomorrah to these heathens? While we certainly know more than we did, it seems that the audience is still being kept in the dark.
Repent & Relent (vv. 5-10)
There is a scene change between v. 4 and v. 5, from Jonah and his mission to the people of Nineveh and their response. This scene change mirrors the transition in chapter 1 between the initial setting with Jonah and the sailors panicking upon the throttled ship. Keeping track of the similarities and differences between those two scenes will continue to reveal the author’s intended meaning. First, we read of Nineveh’s response to Jonah’s preaching, that is, their repentance (vv. 5-9). Then, there is a brief description of God’s response to that repentance (v. 10).
Nineveh Repents (vv. 5-9)
The response and repentance of Nineveh takes the lion’s share of chapter three and is arranged in three parts: (1) the response of the people (v. 5), (2) the response of the king (v. 6), and (3) the legally binding response of the kingdom (vv. 7-9).
The People (v. 5)
“And the men of Nineveh believed in God. And they called a fast and wore sackcloth, from the greatest of them and to the smallest of them.”
It is impossible to overstate the significance of that initial phrase because it confirms that the audience was not provided with Jonah’s whole message in v. 4. If the only words the men of Nineveh heard were, “yet forty days and Nineveh will be overturned”, how would the men of Nineveh know whom to trust? Jonah made no mention (as far as v. 4 is concerned) of God. If v. 4 truly is the full extent of Jonah’s message to Nineveh, would it not make more sense that the men of Nineveh trusted in Jonah or at least trusted in his message? The audience knows that God is the one who will overturn Nineveh, but how do the men of Nineveh know this? There must be more to Jonah’s message just as there was more to Jonah’s confession to the sailors (1:10).
The relationship between chapter 1 and chapter 3 is significant because of the many precedents chapter 1 established. As we’ve seen, the precedent of ellipsis, or missing information, is something that the audience almost expects at this point. Then, there’s the precedent of positive Gentile reception. When Jonah revealed that Yhwh was the One behind the storm and why, the Gentile sailors believed it and feared Yhwh. When Jonah revealed to the Gentile citizens of Nineveh that God is the one who sent him to pronounce pending doom, they believed the God who sent Jonah. In a very real sense, chapter 1 is a foundational microcosm of chapter 3. If it is possible for Gentile sailors to receive revelation from a knowing Hebrew and repent to Yhwh, then it is also possible for a great city full of Gentiles to receive revelation from that same Hebrew and believe in God.
That the men of Nineveh believed God is made evident by what they do. The called (קרא) for a fast and put on/wore (לבשׁ) sackcloth. This response seems to be spontaneous and unanimous. No proclamation has yet been issued and Jonah had only just begun his preaching tour and yet the men of Nineveh responded immediately and en masse. “From the greatest to the smallest” indicates the age range of those who believed and responded. Young and old alike without exception. The nature of this response is that of mourning, humility, and contrition. So readily do they accept Jonah’s message from God that they behave as if they were attending a funeral, their own funeral.
This response is not only appropriate but is what one might expect of an Israelite audience in a similar situation. Yet, how many times has Israel fallen into sin, been confronted by a prophet with a divine message, and failed to show any signs of contrition? Jeroboam I was warned by a prophet regarding his sin (1 Kings 13:1-10) yet the altars and golden calves remained at Bethel and Dan. In the days of Ahab, Hiel ignored the warning of Yhwh through Joshua and rebuilt Jericho with the loss of his firstborn son and the loss of his youngest son (1 Kings 16:34). The men of Nineveh respond just like one might expect Israel to respond, yet there is serious doubt whether Israel truly would respond with such immediate contrition and faith. This is the first direct revelation from God received by the heathens of Nineveh and they respond more appropriately and whole-heartedly than Israel ever has.
The King (v. 6)
“And the word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he passed over his robe from upon him, and he covered himself with sackcloth, and he sat upon the ashes.”
The word (הַדָּבָר) that reached the king is the same message which the Word of Yhwh (דְבַר־יְהוָה) told Jonah (1:2), the content of which we only know in part. In all likelihood, this king is the ill-fated Assur-dan III, whose reign was marked by turmoil, trouble, and turbulence. Plague and famine were destroying the Assyrian economy, enemies were encroaching on their northern border, and rebellious upstarts were making trouble in nearby provinces. Perhaps there is something to consider in what this Hebrew prophet brings from God. As the corporate head of his people, how the king responds is of the utmost importance.
The language used to describe the king’s response is that of abdication and contrition. The king of Nineveh exchanges glory for shame. There is a flow of movement regarding his position and his attire. He arises from his throne to sit on the ashes. He passes over his royal robes to cover himself with sackcloth. It is as if he abdicated the throne when he heard the word of God. The sense seems to be that, as far as he is concerned, God is now calling the shots. The whole city of Nineveh, through their representative, have forsaken the position privilege in favor of contrition.
The Proclamation (vv. 7-9)
“And he cried and said to Nineveh, “From the discernment of the king and his great ones saying: The man and the beast, the herd and the flock will not discern anything. They will not feed and water they will not drink. And they will be covered with sackcloth, the man, and the beast, and they will call unto God with strength. And they will repent, each man from his wicked way, and from the violence which is in their hands. Who knows, God may repent and relent, and turn from His burning anger so we will not perish.””
The people immediately responded with contrition and the king followed suite. But it’s one thing to record popular opinion and quite another to record Nineveh’s official response and stance regarding God’s word against the city. These verses provide the audience with Nineveh’s official and legally binding response. The ruling class is weighing in with their own discernment or taste (טַעַם). As a decree from the king and his “great ones” (וּגְדֹלָיו) or nobles, it is now illegal not to repent.
The language of v. 7 is interesting to say the least. What is normally translated as “caused to be proclaimed” (NKJV) or “issued a proclamation” (NASB, ESV) is more literally rendered “he [the king] cried”. The author (Jonah) uses the same verb (זעק) used to describe the panic-stricken sailors’ cries to their heathen gods (1:5). The fear is real. The difference is that this is the king crying to his people to heed their only recourse. The fast that was spontaneously undertaken by the people is now given definition and will encompass both man and beast. All living creatures within the bounds of Nineveh will neither taste (טעם) food or drink water. The fast will be complete.
Not only will all living creatures participate in the fast, but all will don mourning attire and join in a united call to God. The grammar of v. 8 points to both man (הָאדָם) and beast (הַבְּהֵמָה) as equal participants. Both man and beast will wear sackcloth and both man and beast will cry to God. The men of Nineveh will not be the only fatalities when the city is overturned. Such destruction will reach all living things and so all living things are called upon to participate in this act of corporate contrition. The proclamation leaves no stone unturned.
The second half of v. 8 touches on the main point, that is, the wickedness of Nineveh that had come up before Yhwh (1:2). It matters very little how many crocodile tears are shed if Nineveh’s wicked way and violence are not repented of. Just as each man was calling to his god (1:5), the king now commands that each man repent from his wickedness. The king seems to be taking on the same role as the captain did in chapter 1. This fact is confirmed with the final clause of the royal edict.
Just as the captain’s hope echoed the promise of Joel 2:32, v. 9 echoes the rationale of repentance as given in Joel 2:14. The only response man can have to the promised wrath of God is repentance. Yet, one wonders how the king would have arrived at this conclusion. That is, unless there was more to Jonah’s preaching than only a message of certain doom. The audience, on the other hand, know the promises and proclamations of Joel and thus understand the relationship between repentance and reprisal.
God Relents (v. 10)
“And God saw their works, that they repented from their wicked way; and He relented upon the wickedness which He said to do to them, and He did not do it.”
That God saw their works does not indicate that the men of Nineveh were saved by their works as opposed to faith. The point is simply that their deeds demonstrated true repentance from their wickedness and violence. They didn’t just talk a good game and put on a good show. Their wickedness and violence ceased, and God saw it. Thus, God relented from the calamity which He said and did not do it.
That God relented (נחם) does not suggest that God can be manipulated and that He is changeable like so many other capricious pagan deities. This is the same language used by Moses to record how Yhwh did not destroy Israel for their rebellious idolatry at Sinai (Ex. 32:12, 14). In that context, Moses recalled Yhwh’s covenant promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God spared Israel because of His word, not because of anything they did or deserved. If that is justice, then what should a just God do to a people who do repent?
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