This paper continues examining the effects of Jonah’s preaching on the city of Nineveh. The previous papers up to this point, in order from the start, are: Nineveh Revival; Believing Ninevites; and, Individuals and the Whole. Here, I add two more points to consider.
The Red Sea
Israel’s Red Sea experience may be a good example of what happened in Nineveh.
In an earlier article we talked about the miracle of Israel passing through the Red Sea on dry land from Exodus 14 & 15. The Egyptians who tried to follow after them and cross on dry land, perished when the sea crashed in on top of them.
Right after this event, Israel is singing about the incident. They describe the majesty of God and how God has become their salvation. Salvation here, is used in the sense of ‘victory.’1 Exodus 15:2 says,
“The LORD is my strength and song,
And He has become my salvation;
This is my God, and I will praise Him;
My father’s God, and I will extol Him.”
The Israelites experienced the salvation of God, but their belief didn’t seem to last very long. Three days later they were grumbling again. From Exodus 15:22-24,
“Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness and found no water. And when they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of Marah, for they were bitter; therefore it was named Marah. So the people grumbled at Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?””
The Israelites believing God in this instance is just temporary. The salvation they experienced was significant, even if short-lived. Salvation in this context is not of their souls eternally, but victory over the immediate catastrophe.
Nineveh Calamity
The believing and salvation afforded to the Ninevites may be like what Israel experienced in Exodus 14 & 15. The Ninevites belief in God and repentance was genuine, so God gave them the victory over their present calamity, and spared their lives. It is hard to tell however, if the salvation also is of their souls eternally.
We already mentioned from Jonah 3:5, that the Ninevites believed God. Verse 8 also records that they each turned, “from his wicked way and from the violence which is in his hands.” The response from God is found in Jonah 3:10,
“When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it.”
In 4:2, Jonah relates his reason for running, knowing that God may not destroy Nineveh. Jonah 4:2 tells us,
“He prayed to the LORD and said, “Please LORD, was not this what I said while I was still in my own country? Therefore, in order to forestall this I fled to Tarshish, for I knew that Thou art a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, and one who relents concerning calamity.””
In both 3:10 and 4:2, the end result is that the Ninevites are saved from destruction. Nothing is said about any other benefits of believing God. Nothing is mentioned about saving faith or that God reckoned it to them as righteousness.
Many conservative Bible teachers and commentators say that the Ninevites received eternal life. Some say most, if not all of the city, were saved. Based on my investigation, I’m still not sure how many believed leading to salvation.
I think that I agree with Bible commentator Albert Barnes who says, “God saw them, looked upon them, approved them, accepted the Ninevites not for time only, but, as many as persevered, for eternity.”2
Certainly all of the Ninevites benefited from escaping the devastation at hand. Some may have also received eternal salvation. I think the book of Jonah is clear on the first part, but not so clear on the second part.
Bible commentators Keil and Delitzsch give their view on Nineveh’s condition. They report that Jonah preached to the Ninevites not that they,
“might be converted at once to faith in the living God, and its inhabitants be received into the covenant of grace which He had made with Israel, but simply to give His people Israel a practical proof that He was the God of the heathen also, and could prepare for Himself even among them a people of His possession.”3
In my previous articles I had summarized with 5 points. Continuing then with the numbering is the next point:
Point 6 -God rescued Nineveh from destruction, and saved those who truly believed.
Jealousy Provoked
Throughout the Bible God uses many approaches to establish a relationship with His people, Israel. He gives instruction, discipline, chastisement, calamity, and puts them in servitude to other nations.
Another of the methods God used was to provoke Israel to jealousy. Paul writes about how he was provoking the Jews of his day, so I will look to the New Testament (NT) for our example.
The Greek word translated ‘jealous’ in the NT is zēlóō, (dzay-lo’-ō). Vine’s gives the meaning, “to have a zeal for, to be zealous towards,” whether in a good or evil sense.4 The word is used in the negative sense in Acts 7:9,
“And the patriarchs became jealous of Joseph and sold him into Egypt. And yet God was with him.”
The same Greek word is used in a positive way in 1 Corinthians 14:1 where the NASB5 translates it as ‘desire earnestly.’ The verse reads,
“Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.”
The Greek word translated ‘provoke to jealousy’ in the NT is parazēlóō, (par-ad-zay-lo’-ō); “to provoke to jealousy.”6
In Romans 10:19, Paul is quoting out of Deuteronomy 32:21 and says,
“But I say, surely Israel did not know, did they? At the first Moses says,
“I WILL MAKE YOU JEALOUS BY THAT WHICH IS NOT A NATION,
BY A NATION WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING WILL I ANGER YOU.””7
Later, in Romans 11:14, Paul expresses his desire for his nation to be reconciled to God. He says,
“if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them.”
We could put the two definitions for the Greek words together and say that Paul is ‘provoking Israel to earnestly desire reconciliation with God through Jesus.’ In the NT, the Gentiles become the tool to provoke Israel to jealousy so that they would seek God.
Paul used the word “with a view to stirring his fellow nationals to a sense of their need and responsibilities regarding the Gospel.”8
One Bible commentary states, “Our Lord (Matthew 12:41) makes Nineveh’s repentance a reproof of the Jews’ impenitence in His day, just as Jonah provoked Israel to jealousy (Deuteronomy 32:21) by the same example. Jonah’s mission to Nineveh implied that a heathen city afforded as legitimate a field for the prophet’s labors as Israel, and with a more successful result.”9
In other words, Jonah preached to Nineveh for the sake of Israel. God wanted to show Israel what it looked like when a nation repented.
Continuing from the previous points that I have made, the last point is number 7:
Point 7 -The Jews were provoked to jealously.
Conclusion
Summarizing all of the points in this series on Nineveh, we have the following:
- Point 1 -All believing is not the same.
Knowing the context and seeing the results of one’s belief help us see the type and quality of the believing. - Point 2 -The Nineveh witnesses in Matthew 12 may not be saved.
This point was to show that the Matthew 12 passage was not sufficient proof that all Ninevites believed. - Point 3 -The point of the passage in Jonah 3 is the majority.
The passage is likely using a figure of speech when it says they, “believed in God.” - Point 4 -There are almost always exceptions.
A passage may be talking about the majority and not mention the exceptions. - Point 5 -It is likely that not every single Ninevite believed.
The point is to show us what happened to the city, not every particular person. - Point 6 -God rescued Nineveh from destruction, and saved those who truly believed.
God can accomplish multiple results from one single event. - Point 7 -The Jews were provoked to jealously.
God desires a relationship with His creation and goes to great efforts to bring us to Him.
My final conclusion is that the preaching and repentance of the Ninevites was for two basic reasons:
- God rescued Nineveh from destruction, and saved those who truly believed.
- The Jews were provoked to jealousy.
1 Strong’s entry for the Hebrew word yᵉshûwʻâh, (yesh-oo’-aw) “Something saved, deliverance, aid, victory, prosperity.”
2 Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
3 Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament
4 Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words
5 NASB: New American Standard Bible
6 Vine’s
7 All caps in the New Testament indicate an Old Testament quote.
8 Vine’s
9 Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary