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2 Kings 14:1-14; 2 Chronicles 25:1-24; 2 Kings 13:12-13; 2 Kings 14:15-16; 2 Kings 14:23-27; 2 Chronicles 25:25-28; 2 Kings 14:17-22; 2 Kings 15:1-5; 2 Chronicles 26:1-21; Jonah 1:1-4:11<\/strong><\/span> In 2 Kings 14 today we read about King Amaziah of Judah.\u00a0 I\u2019m not sure if you caught this \u2013 I barely did \u2013 but we read about the ancient city of Petra, which is located in modern day Jordan, in verse 7: \u201cIt was Amaziah who killed ten thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt. He also conquered Sela and changed its name to Joktheel, as it is called to this day.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Sela\/Joktheel is the same city as Petra.\u00a0 I\u2019m curious of anyone reading this has visited the ruins of Petra in Jordan?\u00a0 Can you post up reviews in the Comments?\u00a0 Are they worth visiting?\u00a0 I have heard they are incredible!\u00a0 In fact, <\/span>Bruce Feiler\u2019s book, Walking the Bible<\/span>, has a wonderful chapter on Petra \u2013 I highly recommend this book! I hope to visit Petra someday.\u00a0 A map of where Petra is located in comparison to Amman, Jordan, and Jerusalem is below.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Today we start and finish the book of Jonah!\u00a0 There is so much information to consider in this short 4 chapter book.\u00a0 I definitely encourage you to do some further study on this book in a Commentary or online.\u00a0 Or \u2013 at the very least, rent the Veggie Tales movie about Jonah\u2026\u00a0 \ud83d\ude42\u00a0 I have to confess \u2013 I did see the Veggie Tales Jonah movie when it came out in the theaters with my friends & their kids \u2013 and as I started to read today, I did very briefly envision Jonah as the asparagus or whatever type of green vegetable he was in that movie\u2026\u00a0 \ud83d\ude42\u00a0 It is a fun movie for kids of all ages!\u00a0 Okay, I digress\u2026\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n ~Jonah~<\/strong> Jonah is called by God to prophesy to the city of Nineveh \u2013 which was not part of Israel or Judah \u2013 but was a \u201cGentile\u201d city to the east.\u00a0 If you are wondering why Jonah got so grouchy with God\u2019s command \u2013 this is why.\u00a0 Jonah did not think he should be prophesying to Gentile nations \u2013 because, as we read later in the book, Jonah knows that God is a compassionate God who will show mercy on Nineveh.\u00a0 Last thing to point out before we check out some verses.\u00a0 There is some dispute over whether Jonah is a real history when it comes to him being in the belly of a whale for 3 days.\u00a0 I guess this comes down to the basic question of whether you believe in miracles or not?\u00a0 If you do believe in miracles, then it is of course possible that Jonah lived in the belly of the whale for 3 days.\u00a0 I believe in miracles\u2026\u00a0 As some contemporary song says, I\u2019m a miracle myself\u2026 <\/span><\/p>\n Check out what Jesus had to say about Jonah\u2019s history of being in the belly of the whale in Matthew chapter 12 verse 40: \u201cFor as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.\u201d <\/em>Here we see Jesus compares his 3 days of death, burial and resurrection to Jonah\u2019s 3 days in the belly of the whale\u2026\u00a0 Do you believe in miracles?<\/span><\/p>\n Jonah chapter 1 verse 3 stood out to me in today\u2019s reading: \u201cBut Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction in order to get away from the LORD.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 How often in our own lives are we like Jonah?\u00a0 Do we sense God wanting us to do something?\u00a0 For others?\u00a0 And we run in the opposite direction of God\u2019s will?\u00a0 If we do this, might we bring storms upon our lives as Jonah did?\u00a0 \u00a0Might we even bring storms upon other people\u2019s lives by disobeying God\u2019s will as Jonah did?\u00a0 Will we learn from Jonah?<\/span><\/p>\n Chapter 2 Verse 8 also stood out to me: \u201cThose who worship false gods turn their backs on all God\u2019s mercies.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Do you believe that God wants to show us mercy all the time?\u00a0 But, it\u2019s possible that we sometimes literally turn our backs on God?\u00a0 Will we turn back toward God, and God only?\u00a0 And not turn away again?\u00a0 And receive his mercies?\u00a0 Please don\u2019t ever turn your back on God\u2026\u00a0 Don\u2019t turn your back on all of God\u2019s mercies!<\/span><\/p>\n In Jonah chapter 4 verse 2 we read a verse that I have to confess made me chuckle when I first read it: \u201cSo he complained to the LORD about it: \u201cDidn\u2019t I say before I left home that you would do this, LORD? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that you were a gracious and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. I knew how easily you could cancel your plans for destroying these people.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 I love it!\u00a0 Jonah complaining to God about how gracious He is!\u00a0 \ud83d\ude42 Is it possible that we do this in our own lives too?\u00a0 Do we complain to God about how good he is to others?\u00a0 Are we at times like Jonah or the Prodigal Son\u2019s brother, showing jealousy toward God\u2019s goodness and grace toward others?\u00a0 Shouldn\u2019t we instead rejoice in this, realizing that God shows this same unfailing love toward us too?<\/span><\/p>\n Worship Video:<\/strong> Today\u2019s readings remind me of Matt Maher\u2019s fantastic song \u201cYour Grace is Enough:\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \n
~ Click here to read today\u2019s Scripture on Bible Gateway ~<\/span><\/em>
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Author<\/span>: Jonah
Date<\/span>: Eighth century B.C.
Content<\/span>: Jonah was a prophet who was born in Israel (see 2 Kings 14:25) and called by God to preach repentance to Assyria (the capital city was Nineveh) \u2013 the nation that was shortly going to destroy Israel in 722 B.C. On receiving the call, Jonah\u2019s nationalistic spirit would not allow him to offer salvation to the pagans, so he attempted to flee from God by ship. He was thrown overboard, swallowed by a great fish, disgorged on the shore, and finally obeyed God\u2019s command by going to Nineveh to preach. His success there angered him, however, and God taught him an object lesson by means of a plant. Jonah\u2019s experience in the fish is used in the New Testament (see Matthew 12:38-41) as an example of Jesus\u2019 burial and resurrection.
Theme<\/span>: The basic theme of Jonah is found in 4:11, where God declares his love for all men, whether Israelites or not. Jonah was unable to love the Assyrians properly, but God desired nothing for them but their good and their salvation, and he sent a prophet to offer repentance unto life. The book also shows the power of God and his control over the forces of nature. (Above commentary is from \u201cThe One Year Bible Companion\u201d p. 17)\u00a0 <\/em>A wonderful commentary on the book of Jonah by Hampton Keathley IV is <\/span>at this link<\/span>. Here is a quote from this link: \u201cJonah is different than the other prophets because it is not full of prophecies by the prophet, it is instead, about the life of the prophet. Little attention is given to what he actually said.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n