He Learned From His Mistakes

Jehovah Disciplines  His Wayward Prophet

We can just imagine Jonah getting himself situated on that vessel, likely a Phoenician cargo ship.  He watched as the captain and his crew bustled about to get their craft under way and  out of port.  As the shoreline slowly receded and disappeared, Jonah may have hoped he was escaping the danger he so dreade.  But suddenly, the weather changed.

Strong winds churned up the sea into a nightmarish rage, with waves that might dwarf even modern-day vessels.  How long did  it take for that wooden craft to seem terribly small and frail, lost in a watery wilderness of towering waves and plunging canyons?  Did Jonah know, at that point, what he later wrote-that "Jehovah himself hurled forth a great wind at the sea"?  It was  about to be wrecked." (Jonah 1:4)  And how could Jonah pray to the God he was running from? 

Feeling powerless to help, Jonah  went below the deck of the ship and found a place to lie down. There, he went fast asleep." The captain found Jonah, woke him up, and urged him  to pray for his god, as everyone else was doing .  Convinced that there was something supernatural about this storm, the seamen cast lots to see which of the people on board might the cause of their trouble  No doubt Jonah's heart sank as the lots eliminated one man after another.  Soon the truth was plain.  Jehovah directing the storm, as well as the lots, towards one man - Jonah! - Read JONAH 1:5-7.

Next time: He Learned From His Mistakes - Jehovah Displines His Wayward Prophet- Conclusion

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