Jonah, the Disobedient Prophet

By Russell Taylor

Jonah was a prophet who was called by God to announce God’s judgement on the heathen people of Nineveh. Jonah however refused to go and tried running away from God to try and avoid going. But God caught up with him by causing a storm while Jonah was at sea. This ended up by Jonah being thrown overboard to what would have been his death if God had not stepped in. He provided a large fish to swallow Jonah and take him to dry land.

These studies show that despite Jonah’s disobedience God had His way with him, showing that you cannot say ‘No’ to god and expect to get away with it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Russell Taylor
• Release date: Oct 10, 2020
• ISBN: 9781005664145

Russell Taylor

Russell Taylor was employed for many years in the engineering department of a large steelworks in North East Wales. Following the closure of a large part of the works in 1980 he worked in Local Government in Management Services and Housing Maintenance. After taking early retirement in 1996 he joined the staff of Emmaus Bible School UK where he was involved in their prison ministry. he has also been involved in a broadcasting ministry with GBS Radio but is now enjoying writing.He is married with one daughter and two grandchildren and is active as an Elder in an independent chapel in North Wales.

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JONAH, THE DISOBEDIENT PROPHET

Russell Taylor

Copyright © Russell Taylor 2020

Published by Russell Taylor

All rights reserved.

No portion of this publication may be reproduced, resold, or given away without written permission of the copyright holder.

This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment.

Unless otherwise stated, scripture is taken from the New King James Version Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All right reserved.

Table of Contents

1. Running Away (Jonah 1:1-3)

2. The Storm at Sea (Jonah 1:3-17)

3. Jonah in the Sea (Jonah 1:17 - 2:10)

4. God's Second Command to Jonah (3:1-3)

5. Jonah Preaches to the Ninevites (Jonah 3:1-10)

6. Jonah's Anger (Jonah 4:1-11)

About Russell Taylor

Other books by Russell Taylor

1. Running Away

Jonah 1:1-13

There are two books in the Old Testament that I find fascinating. They each have four chapters. They are both biographical. They both have lessons from which we can learn. They both feature a man who has travelled to a distant country. They both give the name of the man, and although one of them just mentions him, the other centres on him.

One was called Elimelech, who you find in the book of Ruth, and the other was Jonah. Most people have read the book of Jonah, and if they haven’t, they will have heard the story of what has become known as Jonah and the Whale. I don’t know why it is called that, because we don’t read anything about there being a whale involved in the story.

By the way, what we read in this book is not just a story. It’s not a work of fiction. It is a record of events that really did happened to Jonah, who is given two titles in the Bible. He is called, "His (God’s) servant Jonah" (2 Kings 14:25), because he had been called and appointed by God to serve Him (the highest authority) in whatever way God chose. He is also called, The prophet Jonah (Matthew 14:39; 16:4).

What did God appoint prophets for? I give three reasons, although there are probably more. Firstly, he was appointed to reveal who God is to men and women, His love for those He created and His purpose for those He has created. Also, he was to reveal what God can and will do for those He has created, plus what He expects from us.

Secondly, he was to be an instrument to be used to bring people back into a loving relationship with God; a relationship built on love and obedience to His will.

Thirdly, to warn people that sin will incur God’s wrath and therefore His judgement.

So, Jonah was a prophet, and the book is named after him. You could say that it contains a few chapters of the autobiography of this man, Jonah. Although the book does not identify its author, most scholars believe that it was written by Jonah, himself.

As a book, it is quite unique in that it centres around the life of the prophet rather than the message he was given, or the people he was sent to. Most, if not all the prophetic books of the Old Testament centre on the message that was to be passed on to the people of the time, but this book is centred around the man, Jonah.

The difference between Jonah and the other Old Testament prophets is that he is a prophet more by what he is and does, or doesn’t do, than by what he says.

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So, who was Jonah? We know very little about the man himself except he is the son of Amittai (v. 1), showing that Jonah was a real person and from a real family. He is the only prophet who is recorded as having run away from God.

We also read he was from Gath Hepher, which was a town or village within the tribe of Zebulun which when the kingdom divided became part of the northern kingdom of Israel. In later years, it became part of Galilee (Joshua 19:10). The village was about 5 miles from the New Testament town of Nazareth. So, he was a prophet of the northern kingdom of Israel. His predecessors were Elijah and Elisha, and his contemporaries were possibly Hosea and Amos.

We are not told exactly when he prophesied, but it would be between 800 and 740 BC. In 2 Kings 14 it appears that Jonah prophesied that the southern kingdom of Judah would expand its borders during the reign of the wicked king, Jeroboam. In fact, it would regain some of the land that it had lost (2 Kings 14:25).

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What was the