Then they called on the LORD and said, “We earnestly pray, O LORD, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life and do not put innocent blood on us; for You, O LORD, have done as You have pleased.” So they picked up Jonah, threw him into the sea, and the sea stopped its raging. Then the men feared the LORD greatly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows. And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights.
—Jonah 1:14-17
Y’all, I am still loving my Bible study on the book of Jonah. If you’ve ever gone back and watched a movie you loved as a kid and suddenly seen whole new layers of meaning that the creators added in for the grown-ups, you understand how I’m feeling about Jonah right now. It’s right on up there with the Christmas story and David and Goliath as the most common flannelgraphed Bible stories of all time, but as I read through this story again verse by verse, there is so much more I never realized was there.
Today we’re going to focus on the sailors. Narratively, they operate as a foil to Jonah’s selfishness, demonstrating the kindness and general goodwill that should have been coming from a follower of a merciful God, but if we look closely there are some other lessons these men can teach us.
- It’s so easy to fall into the trap of leaning on our own understanding.
Just before these men come to the conclusion that the only thing they can do to save themselves is to throw Jonah overboard, they try to make a run for shore. It’s another humbling moment where Jonah’s selfish decision to run away from God’s calling is contrasted with the sailors’ selfless run for shore to try to save Jonah. But even as they do so, they are showing how much they misunderstand who the God of Israel is.
First, their attempt to reach land reveals their belief that it’s possible to thwart God’s purposes. But I also think it shows us something else—the belief that God’s judgment and power are the sum total of who He is. At that moment, judgment and power were the only facets of God’s character they could see. And because that’s who they thought God was, they did their very best, risking their lives in the process, to save Jonah from the God who seemed to be threatening him. - It is such a blessing to live in a time and place that makes it easy to learn more about God and His character.
When they finally do throw Jonah overboard, they finally get to see a new piece of God’s character—mercy. The storm suddenly stops, and everyone else on board is saved. As a result of witnessing this, the sailors’ response is amazing. They were so in awe of all they had seen God do that they were in awe and immediately offered God a sacrifice and made vows to Him. Translation: they entered into a relationship with Him.
If I compare the sailors’ situation with our own, it’s humbling. They knew so little of God’s character. They didn’t have a church to go to or a Bible to read to learn about Him. They knew His power and discipline. They knew His mercy. And that was enough. We have so much opportunity to learn about God and deepen our relationship with Him, but so often we don’t make it a priority to deepen that relationship. - There is always more to God and the beauty of His character than we can see.
If I’m honest, this is the one I’m most excited to write about because it’s the most encouraging for someone like me who struggles with the feeling that I need to know what’s going on to be okay.
Here’s the deal. The sailors saw God’s mercy when they threw Jonah over the side of the ship and the storm stopped, but they didn’t see all of God’s mercy. They watched Jonah sink. They watched the storm stop. But they never got to see God’s salvation for Jonah. More likely than not, they assumed that Jonah drowned, but the goodness of God runs so much deeper than they were able to see!
What a comforting truth to trust in! We will never see the totality of God’s goodness until (maybe) eternity. We will never know all the things He is working on behind the scenes and they are all for our good.
For me, these three lessons mirror a truth that God has been working on teaching me (very patiently, of course)––the more I know Him, the more I can trust in the goodness of His sovereign workings and stop leaning on my own understanding of a situation. As we go through this week, I hope you’ll join me in teaching our hearts and minds to do this, because I think as we do, we’ll find the same peace that follows any storm when God says, “Be still.”
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