The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: ² “Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it because their evil has come up before me.”³ Jonah got up to flee to Tarshish from the Lord’s presence. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. He paid the fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the Lord’s presence.

1) Why was Nineveh described as a “great city”?
The ancient city of Nineveh was a massive metropolitan area with a population exceeding 120, 000 (about the size of today’s Hartford, Connecticut or Abilene, Texas). For that time period, however, Nineveh may well have been comparable to our modern-day New York City or Washington, DC. It was an epicenter of activity and had a powerful political and religious sway. Nineveh was also the headquarters for the Assyrian monarchy, which boasted the most powerful military of its time, while also the most savage and brutal. The prophet Nahum mentions the immense wealth belonging to Nineveh and scholars estimate the city to have been 48 miles across, at minimum.

2) How had Nineveh’s evil “come up” before God?
Word studies are an interesting tool and with resources like www.studylight.org, anyone can begin researching the words as they were first used in the original language. The word for “evil” here is actually from the same root word that also gets translated “close-knit friendship” depending on context. In other words, Nineveh had a “close-knit friendship” or, even clearer, an “all-consuming relationship” with evil. Wickedness was its most intimate companion. Pause for a moment and consider how grievous that is! Sin was Nineveh’s best friend. The idea that evil had “come up” before God isn’t that God suddenly seemed to notice Nineveh’s sin, but rather that evil “had risen to His face”. God had His “fill” of Nineveh and the time for His patience was ending.

3) What is Jonah commanded to do and how was he to do it?
God gave Jonah three action commands, “Get up”, “Go”, and “Preach”. Whereas many prophets of the day would have messengers to carry prophecies for them, God’s command was personal. Jonah was given this job personally; carrying the message and preaching it were the Lord’s personal commissions to him. There’s also an urgency inherent in the words. The Hebrew for “get up” is a personal call to action. It’s a “stirring of oneself”. Whatever had been going on for Jonah and his life was now relegated to farther down on the “to do list”, God’s commissioning command became top priority. There was no option to not fulfill what God had given Jonah to do. The directives were clear, urgent, important, and personal.

1) Why was Nineveh described as a “great city”?
Nineveh appeared to be very great indeed. Formidable, powerful, wealthy, and virtually impossible to capture. This city had it all and wanted for nothing, or so it would appear. Yet, Nineveh lacked one thing, fear of the Lord God. Nineveh was a city that lived and lusted after death and destruction and wickedness. Its powers were used for cruel, hateful acts. Nothing pleasant is said of Nineveh or the Assyrian militia. Their powers were limited to earthly reign, and even that, had “come up” before the Lord. God was saying “enough” to Nineveh and its wickedness. Of course, it’s easy to look at Nineveh and judge its sinfulness, as it was indeed, full of sin. But when it comes to our own hearts…. Perhaps we are quicker to point to how “great” we are. Good leadership, acts of compassion, impressive skill sets, cute wardrobe, but how much do we point to our “greatness”, rather than letting our most noticeable trait be our underlying fear of the Lord God. As you go through your day, consider what is most prominent about you to others; what is the root source making you truly “great”?

2) How had Nineveh’s sin “come up” before God?
It can be easy to see God’s death sentence proclaimed to Nineveh as wrathful and vengeful, but what about kind and righteous? God was pursuing the Ninevites, even though they were desperately lost in their sin. No fear of the Lord, no inkling to follow Him, their closest intimacy was evil itself, but God gave chase. Once again, beautifully, we see the gospel, even here in the folds of ancient history before Jesus was even born. A pursuant God who longed for intimacy in a relationship of righteousness, even for the vilest of offenders. Evil is no respecter of persons, its ugly head is just as awful on you and I as it was on the “greatest” Assyrian warrior. We are just as far from God and desperately lost because of our own intimacy with evil, but God gives chase. Where do you know you have loved sin? Where do you long for redemption and healing and wholeness? Let the Father’s heart of love chase you and catch you, sweeping up in His embrace of grace!

3) What is Jonah commanded to do and how was he to do it?
The Lord God, though all-powerful and capable of anything, chooses to invite us personally, not only into deep, intimate relationship with Him, but also into His eternal kingdom work. My everyday probably looks different than yours, but as followers of Jesus, we all have been given the same commission. Get up, Go, and Preach. (Matthew 28:19-20) In what ways is the Spirit encouraging your heart to go deeper in making disciples and teaching others about Him? Are you following quickly and stirring yourself to decisive, intentional action? Perhaps you aren’t sure if you’ve truly asked Jesus to be your personal Savior. His invitation is open now! All He is looking for is a heart willing to surrender to His chase!

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We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources.  Just type in the verse you’re looking at and Boom! It’s right in front of you in English and Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament), which are the original languages the Bible was written in.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Find super awesome stuff like “origin”, “definition”, and even all the different ways that single word has been translated into English! If you want to be geeky, you can even click the word and hear its original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want to get more background on a word or phrasing or passage? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus.
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See all past studies in Chase!