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The people have spoken: recently I have received many requests to write more shorter series rather than longer ones; the series on John has been going for twelve weeks now and although it has been great learning more about Jesus we have only just got to the end of chapter one and, perhaps understandably, there is a desire for something new! With that in mind we are about to embark on a slightly shorter journey - turn with me in your Bibles, if you will, to the short Old Testament book of Jonah. This wonderful book's story is well-known to many Christians but there are still truths hidden within its words that I am sure will shake our faith and help us to mature spiritually. We'll use this week as a way of introduction before jumping headfirst into the book of Jonah next week.

Who was Jonah?

We learn from 2 Kings 14:23-28 that Jonah was from a place called Gath-hepher, and his father's name was Amittai. He was a prophet to Israel during the reign of Jeroboam II, two generations after that of Jehoahaz in which Israel was oppressed by the Arameans for his sins (see 2 Kings 13). The point here is that Jonah was an unknown - where on earth is Gath-hepher anyway?! There are times when we may think that we do not have a wonderful birthplace or famous parents; God doesn't care! God will use for His glory whoever He sees fit - and I'm pretty certain that's you and me because we are all a royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9).

What is the book of Jonah about?

Jonah is clearly a historical account - it contains such specific details that it must not be a parable of sorts, and is treated as historical fact by Jesus himself in Matthew 12:40-41. The storyline is so beautifully simple that young children easily understand it, but there is a level within Jonah that is often missed - its humour. The book of Jonah is hilarious - the ridiculous image of the childish prophet who thinks he can run away from God by getting on a ship even though he states in Jonah 1:9 that God 'made the sea'; his sulking which leads to him preferring death over life without his shade tree (Jonah 4:8-9)! The enormous nature of the account adds to this satiric edge - the size of the fish and the huge repentance as a result of Jonah's tiny sermon. Interestingly enough, during the reign of Ashur-dan III Nineveh experienced an auspicious eclipse of the sun, which no doubt helped their repentance along the way. It is of great importance for us to learn from this record that we should have a sense of humour - God obviously does! We humans are absolutely ridiculous; we need to learn to laugh at ourselves and this is something we will look at in closer detail in the coming weeks.

What can Jonah teach us?

Apart from many biblical truths we will learn from over the next few weeks there is one over-arching truth that we would do well to acknowledge at the outset. When Jesus mentions Jonah in Matthew 12:39-40 we see that Jonah's fall and rise is a picture of Jesus' death and resurrection. We can also see that God's forgiveness at the repentance of the Ninevites anticipates the widespread repentance of the gentiles (Matthew 28:18-20, Luke 24:47). The theme of Jonah points us towards recognising that God is entirely in control - he appoints the fish (Jonah 1:17), the plant (4:6), the worm (4:7) and even the east wind (4:8)! And finally it speaks so clearly of God's amazing grace. The Ninevites were sinners but God wanted to forgive them. Jonah was an idiot but God gave him a second chance. The sailors were pagans but God showed them His power and mercy.

Reading Jonah, I am sure, will speak to us about God's character and, as a result, will lead us to worship Him - what better reason can there be to study a book of the Bible?

"Point of Reference" from Fred Price

"As water reflects a face, so a man's heart reflects the man." Prov. 27:19