Written by Scott B. Hayashi
Jonah 4:11 (NRSV) [The LORD said], “And should I not be concerned about Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also many animals?”
Jonah is fed up with being vomited up on the beach and being asked too many questions by too many important people—all while walking across a city full of sin and shame. God is refusing to do any smiting today, and Jonah is not interested in any of this mercy business. Like a little kid having a meltdown, Jonah is unspooling into a heap of whiny, self-righteous indignation.
God meets Jonah right where he is, reminding him that there are things beyond his ability to create or destroy in Nineveh. God is not ready to give up on Nineveh, or Jonah, or us. Ever.
God gives us what we need—and sometimes takes what we have when we need to be reminded of the source of all things. All of us (Jonah too) are reminded that even on our worst days, God finds ways to love us and to open our eyes to a world that needs us to share that love every single day.
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