Jonah's Anger; God's Mercy (Jonah 4)- Pastor Kenneth Collins Maple

Let us take our Bibles now and open up to the

fourth chapter of the book of Jonah. Jonah chapter

four. As we come to the conclusion of this book,

we've seen the ups, and the downs of Jonah. Seems

like mostly down. But we also saw and will continue

to see the Lord doing something wonderful for

the people of Nineveh, showing his mercy to them

as he has shown mercy to us. Let's read this

chapter, Jonah 4. But it displeased Jonah exceedingly.

And he prayed to the Lord and said, O Lord, is

not this what I said when I was yet in my country?

That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish.

For I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful,

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love

and relenting from disaster. Therefore now, O

Lord, please take my life from me. For it is

better for me to die than to live. And the Lord

said, do you do well to be angry? Jonah went

out of the city and sat to the east of the city

and made a booth for himself there. He sat under

it in the shade till he should see what would

become of the city. Now the Lord God appointed

a plant and made it come up over Jonah. that

it might be a shade over his head to save him

from his discomfort. So Jonah was exceedingly

glad because of the plant. But when dawn came

up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked

the plant so that it withered. When the sun rose,

God appointed a scorching east wind and the sun

beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was

faint and he asked that he might die. and said,

it is better for me to die than to live. But

God said to Jonah, do you do well to be angry

for the plant? And he said, yes, I do well to

be angry, angry enough to die. And the Lord said,

you pity the plant for which you did not labor,

nor did you make it grow, which came into being

in a night and perish in a night. And should

I not? pity Nineveh, that great city in which

there are more than 120 ,000 persons who do not

know the right hand from their left and also

much cattle. This is God's word. Let's pray.

Father, we thank you for your enduring word that

truly does last forever. Father, as we look at

this text, we might have questions. We want to

know how do we apply this? What do we do with

this? But the number one thing we see here is

that you are gracious and merciful, slow to anger

and abounding in steadfast love. Would you work

that truth even deeper down into our hearts as

we study this text? We pray it in Christ's name.

Amen. If you're ever at trivia night, or maybe

game night with some friends, or if you ever

happen to be on Jeopardy, if the question comes,

I don't think they'd ask this question, but if

the question comes, which two books of the Bible

end in a question, the answer would be this one,

Jonah and Nahum. Jonah and Nahum both end in

a question. And I don't know if that's especially

significant, but we do notice the similarity

between those two books. They're both about Nineveh,

right? And this question right here at the end

posed by the Lord Himself, you'll notice here

Jonah doesn't answer that last question, does

he? We don't get Jonah's answer here. And I believe

the reason that we don't get Jonah's answer here

is because the author of the book of Jonah is

much more interested in your response than Jonah's.

And so we need to consider this last question.

We need to consider the pity and the mercy of

God, right? The answer should be obvious. Should

not I pity Nineveh? It's a rhetorical question,

but we can still answer it, can't we? God can

be merciful on whoever he wants to be merciful

upon. But I also want us to think about this.

Who are the people in our lives that we think

shouldn't have the mercy of God? Who are the

countries, the people groups? that we think,

God, you don't need to bother with them. But

even more than that, who are the people in our

environments, in our circles, that we think shouldn't

have the mercy of God? I want us to see God's

mercy and His grace and His love are wider than

we can ever imagine. That's what this text shows

us today. Usually I try and give you some points

to organize the sermon. Today I'm just gonna

go verse by verse. There's a lot of action in

here, so let's look at verse one. It displeased

Jonah exceedingly and he was angry. As a preacher,

and some of you will understand this, as you

might be teachers, you might be people who share

the gospel with others, I hope that you do, but

as a preacher, This is befuddling. This is perplexing.

Jonah proclaims the word of God. The people listen

to it. They believe and repent. And then Jonah

gets mad about that. Can you imagine that? What

if everybody that you told the gospel to believed

it? Isn't that what we want? Right? I'm like,

Jonah, like, what is wrong with you? This is

the greatest thing ever. The people believed

and God relented. We're all begging people to

believe and repent. Jonah gets it. The people

get it and Jonah gets mad. This reveals Jonah's

heart, doesn't it? Jonah never wanted Nineveh

to repent. Jonah never wanted God to relent.

And the wording of this is interesting too, as

you look there in verse one. That word for displeasure.

Sometimes that word actually means evil. What

Jonah feels here is that what God did was evil.

He finds what the Lord did in saving the Ninevites

to be evil. He's asking, how could you do this,

Lord? How could you spare them? This is intense

anger from Jonah. This is hot anger. We might

say here that Jonah is hopping mad. He is so

angry. This may remind us of the parable of the

unforgiving servant. I wonder if you remember

that. Maybe you remember what precipitated the

parable. Peter comes to Jesus and says, How many

times do I gotta forgive? Is it seven? Seven's

a good biblical number. Do I gotta forgive seven

times? I think that sounds pretty generous, right?

What does Jesus do? He multiplies it by 10. He

is saying, no, it's much more than that. You

have to keep on forgiving people because you

have been forgiven in Christ by me, right? And

so then Jesus tells this parable. There was a

king who wished to settle accounts with his servants,

and one of the king's servants was in debt up

to his eyeballs. I mean, the amount, and this

is in Matthew 18, the amount that the servant

owed, 10 ,000 talents, which is an astronomical

figure. That's how much he was in debt. Basically,

that servant is never paying that money back.

It's almost impossible to conceive how he got

in that much debt. So the servant who is in that

much debt, he does the only thing he can possibly

do, which is to go to the king and plead for

mercy, plead for forgiveness. And you know what

the king does? He forgives him, right? Hallelujah,

that's great. But what happens next after that?

The forgiven servant is also owed money by another

servant. And the amount that is owed there is

much smaller, 100 denarii. It's not nothing,

but it's a blip on the radar compared to 10 ,000

talents. So the first servant goes to the second

servant and says, pay me. The text actually says

that he chokes him and says, pay me what you

owe. And he throws that servant in prison. Can

you imagine that, that kind of debt being forgiven?

And then what do you do as you are forgiven?

You go and demand payment and perform physical

violence upon somebody else. This is Jonah. Jonah

who receives mercy, but he's mad when other people

get it, especially the people of Nineveh. He's

happy to receive it, but he calls it evil when

God shows it to others. And what does all this

do? This leads Jonah to pray. What a funny thing

to do in verse two. We have been wanting Jonah

to pray. He finally prayed in chapter two. There

in chapter 2 he prayed out of gratitude. He prayed

with Thanksgiving, but here he prays out of anger

and he reveals what we already know about him.

He reveals the very reason that he fled from

God in the first place. The reason he fled is

because of one of the most wonderful statements

in all of Scripture. Look there at verse 2. I

knew That you are a gracious God and merciful

Slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love

and relenting from disaster Imagine that's the

reason that Jonah ran away Because God is this

This is kind of a refrain that's used throughout

scripture we see this many times Who would have

ever thought that this wonderful refrain of scripture?

would be read or would be said in a negative

way. Think back to the King of Nineveh. The King

of Nineveh's hope would be that God is what is

there in verse two. But Jonah, not so. Jonah

is angry about it. So we might say this, Jonah

knows that God is gracious and merciful, meaning

Jonah's got good theology, but he's got a bad

heart. He's got good theology, but he's got a

bad heart. His theology is on point, but his

heart is not. But before we start pointing fingers

at Jonah and telling him how bad of a prophet

he is, let's recognize this, that we can be like

this too. We can be like this too where we know

our theology pretty well, but our hearts are

not in it. If you are not applying your theology,

you're missing the point. This is like the Pharisees,

if you remember this in Jesus's time. The Pharisees

were known for being religious leaders, right?

But their hearts were not in the right place.

The study of theology should bring us to doxology.

The study of theology should bring us to doxology.

meaning the study of theology should help us

to worship. And the study of theology should

help us to more and more be like God. The study

of the scriptures should have us living the scriptures.

But Jonah is a prophet of God who looks nothing

in this moment like God. To me, his prayer sounds

a lot like, do you remember the Pharisee? who

went up to the temple to pray, and there was

the tax collector there. And what did the Pharisee

pray to God? He said, thank you, Lord, that I'm

not like that guy. That's the worst prayer. This

one's not much better, is it? Can you imagine

being upset with God for his mercy and for his

grace? And so he continues his prayer in verse

three, his request, take my life. Jonah would

rather die than to see Nineveh live. He says

he's better off dead than alive. This is severe

hatred for the people of Nineveh. A few weeks

ago I talked about living in Europe and seeing

the disdain, the hatred for the Roma population,

for the gypsy population, about how they are

shunned. And they do bring some of that upon

themselves. But let's ask the question here in

our context right here. Fountain Inn, South Carolina.

Who are the people that we shun? Who are the

people that we despise? Who are the people that

we believe should not have the mercy of God?

And as maybe you're wondering who that is, and

I hope it's tough for that to come to mind. We

don't want that. But let's also remember to whom

Jesus ministered, right? Jesus ministered to

these sorts of people. Jesus touched the people

that others wouldn't touch. Jesus ate with people

that other people would not eat with. Jesus healed

people that others would have said just leave

them alone. And so who is it for us? Who are

the Ninevites for us? And then remember this.

You are a recipient of God's mercy. It's only

by His grace that you are freed from your former

self, and now you are a child of God. It's only

by His grace that you are not shunned by society.

But maybe today, you even think that you are

shunned by society. Maybe you feel like you're

on the outcast. that nobody wants you, no one

wants to be near you. Maybe, as I said last week,

maybe you feel like God doesn't love you anymore,

like he's got no use for you anymore. Christian,

I want you to know this today, that you are everything

in God's eyes. I want you to know how much he

loves you. Let's let the love of God shine through

this passage. that he shows that kind of love

and mercy and compassion and grace on the people

of Nineveh. And this is what the Lord is showing

us. This is what the Lord is showing Jonah. Look

at verse four. The Lord asks this important question.

Do you do well to be angry? We might say it this

way. Are you justified in being this mad? And

this is the first of three questions that the

Lord asks. You would have thought that one question

would have been enough. Friends, if God asks

you, are you justified in being this angry? The

answer is no. If God's not mad about it, you

shouldn't be either. I like how Calvin put it.

John Calvin said, God shows Jonah how far he

has fallen. by allowing himself to be angry.

It is a sad thing when a creature rises up against

God and starts arguing with him. But that was

Jonah's state of mind. Now, with this first question,

we don't see Jonah's response, do we? We only

see his action. What does he do? He leaves the

city. He gets out of there. Why? Why is Jonah

getting out of Nineveh? Well, he wants a front

row seat just in case God changes his mind. Jonah

wants to see the fireworks. Jonah is the sort

of person who watches NASCAR for the crashes.

That's who he is. And so he goes out of the city

and he makes a booth for shade. Now, I think

that this is important. If we were to go to Deuteronomy,

you could turn there if you wish. Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy 16:13–14

chapter 16, verses 13 through 14, we perhaps

may be seeing something similar to what Jonah

made and sat in. Certainly the word booth may

have us thinking of this. Deuteronomy 16, 13

through 14, says, You shall keep the feast of

booths seven days when you have gathered in the

produce from your threshing floor and your wine

press. You shall rejoice in your feast, you and

your son and your daughter, your male servant

and your female servant, the Levite, the sojourner,

the fatherless, and the widow who are within

your towns. What was the purpose of the feast

of booths for those wandering Israelites in the

wilderness? The point of it was to care for those

who were in need of mercy. I can't say it definitively,

but is it possible that Jonah makes a booth like

that, a booth made to recall the mercy of God?

This is what Jonah sits in, right? And while

he's sitting there, he's ignoring the very purpose

for those booths and he is ignoring who God truly

is. He perhaps is pleading with God for harm

to come upon the Ninevites while sitting in a

structure designed to recall the mercy of God.

And so he sits there and he waits. And while

he is waiting, God does something nice. Look

in verse six. God makes a plant to come up for

shade Apparently the booth is not enough for

shade. So once again, we see God Working through

his creation just like Jonah or just like God

appointed the fish to swallow Jonah and spit

him out Here we see something else appointed

by God this plant to deliver Jonah and when it

says deliverance then we should understand that

Jonah is not just mildly uncomfortable. Jonah

is really suffering under heat. The booth was

not enough. And so God brings about this plant

and Jonah is happy with the extra shade. He welcomes

the kindness of God here. But once again, he

welcomes it, but he is upset when the Ninevites

get it. But what happens when God removes that

kindness? Look in verse seven. God appoints,

there's that word again, he appoints the worm

to attack the plant. And so the plant withers

just as quickly as it came, showing us that God

gives and God takes away, right? So we should

note, friends, that the blessings that we have,

they are not ours. The blessings that we have,

we don't own them. They are given to us by the

Lord and so we ought to be thankful for our blessings

from God and we should be willing to share these

blessings and so in verse 8 The Sun rises God

appoints. There's that word again appoints the

scorching east wind The Sun is beating down on

Jonah's head. I Was playing basketball with some

friends yesterday and three of them are bald

and they were all complaining about their sunburns

on their head. And so Jonah is getting really

hot here. He's very uncomfortable. And I like

what John MacArthur says here. The Lord's choice

of discipline was fitting. Jonah had been hot

with anger having hoped to see the fiery destruction

of the city. So God exposed Jonah to the heat

of his judgment. the scathing wind and the searing

heat tormented him and so once again you see

from Jonah his request from God God let me die

now why doesn't Jonah just ask again for the

mercy of God why doesn't Jonah just pray and

say Lord you brought that plan I'd sure like

to have that again well wouldn't it be very hard

to ask for God's mercy knowing how much He has

shown his hatred of it for other people. And

so he doesn't ask for the plant again. He asks

for death. Now, through it all, God's really

teaching Jonah a lesson, isn't he? For the first

question that God asked was about Jonah being

upset over God's mercy. But now. He says, are

you justified in anger about the plan? And so

what does God do? He turns the tables. Jonah

was angry about showing about God showing mercy,

but now he is angry about God showing not showing

the mercy to him. Right. And so after all of

this, maybe hopefully prayerfully, he's learned

his lesson. You see in verse 10. Jonah doesn't

have anything else to say, does he? Jonah, to

me, he's a lot like Job. If you remember the

book of Job, there's a lot of back and forth,

and finally God starts speaking, Jonah speaks

back, and then God shares his reasoning, and

then Job stops talking. Here we do not see Jonah

talking anymore. There's nothing more to say.

God connects the dots, not just of this chapter,

but God connects the dots of the whole book.

One commentator says here, the pagan captain

was concerned that people not perish. The pagan

sailors concerned that people's not perish. The

pagan king was concerned that people not perish.

Finally, Jonah is concerned about perishing,

but concerned about a plant perishing, not a

people. ironic you see Job as we know did nothing

to make that plant grow did he it wasn't his

it was all of God's mercy and yet he's upset

about the loss and the lesson here is this unlike

Jonah God did make the people of Nineveh didn't

he they do belong to him and he can have mercy

on them if he chooses and today You have faith

in Jesus Christ if you have been brought to repentance

by the mercy of God friends It is truly all of

his mercy. You might remember Romans chapter

Romans 5:6

5 verse 6 for while We were still weak at the

right time Christ died for the ungodly Friends,

you know this about Jesus. Jesus is the embodiment

of of the mercy of God. Were it not for Christ,

we'd be under the wrath of God. We would be under

God's judgment. What is stated though in verse

two is true. The Lord is gracious and merciful,

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

This is the character of God. God showers us

with grace upon grace. In just a minute. We're

gonna sing a new hymn And I want you to really

think about the words of it Just the beginning

this tells us more of the character of God For

it begins here is love vast as the ocean Loving

kindness as the flood when the prince of life

our ransom shed for us his precious blood Friends,

what is the right response to the mercy of God?

It's what we're doing right here, right now.

The right response to the mercy of God is to

worship. But what is the right response to God's

mercy and the repentance of others? How should

we feel when other people come to faith in Jesus

Christ? Look no further than heaven. For perhaps

you remember Luke chapter 15. Luke chapter 15

Luke 15 · chapter mention Luke 15 · chapter mention

in which there is a lost coin. There's a lost

sheep. There's a lost son. And within that chapter

we see this twice. There will be more joy in

heaven over one sinner who repents than over

99 righteous persons who need no repentance.

And that's what verse 11 shows us of Jonah chapter

Jonah 4 · chapter mention

4. It explains the extent of God's mercy, the

wideness of God's mercy, that within this book

the mercy and the grace of God, the kindness

of God, encompasses the entire population and

the animals. And heaven loves it. Heaven loves

this. And so we too must thank God for mercy.

Not just for us But thank God for his mercy that

he shows to all kinds of people in all kinds

of places Let us be vessels of God's mercy showing

God's loving kindness. Let us be those who reach

out to our communities proclaiming salvation

in the name of Jesus Christ alone and As the

book of Jonah ends with a question I want to

leave you with two questions to ponder today.

Ponder it today, ponder it this week. The first

question is, do you know the mercy of God in

Christ? And the second question is, what are

you going to do about it?