God Welcomes All the Nations - An Ancient Example

An Ancient Example

Like other prophets in Israel, Jonah spoke primarily to the Israelites.  He prophesied at a time when the apostate ten-tribe kingdom openly  engaged in God-dishonoring practices.  (2 King 14:23-25)  Imagine Jonah's reaction when he received the special mission to leave his home country and go to Assyria to preach to the inhabitants of Nineveh, people with a different  religion and culture.  Johan might not even have spoken the Ninevites' language, at least not fluently.  Whatever the case, Jonah apparently found the challenge overwhelming, and he fled.-Jonah 1:1-3.

Clearly, Jonah needed to learn that Jehovah God sees beyond mere appearances and examines the heart.  (1 Samuel 16:7)  After Miraculously saving Jonah from drowning, Jehovah commanded him a second time to preach the inhabitants of Nineveh.  Jonah obeyed, and as a result, the Ninevites repented en masse.  Still, Jonah did not have the right viewpoint.  By means of a powerful object lesson, Jehovah taught him that he needed to change his attitude.   Jehovah asked Jonah:  "Ought I not to feel sorry for Nineveh the great city, in which there exist more than one hundred and twenty thousand  men who do not at all know the difference between their right hand and their left? "  (Jonah 4:5-11) What about us today?  How can we help people from a different background?

Next time: God Welcomes All the Nations - Welcoming Samaritans and Non-Jews

The Watchtower, 2002