I tried to think about it on a basic two-fold analysis:
- the story teaches us about God,
- the story teaches us about ourselves.
We dealt only with the seventeen verses of chapter one where in 5 verses Jonah goes from calling, to running, to sleeping in the hold of a storm-tossed ship. Then the remaining narrative finds him tossed into the sea so the storm will stop and the sailors be saved. And in the sea a great fish swallowed him. Amazing!
What do we learn about God? He calls: in particular, in seasons, for a lifetime.
What do we learn about ourselves? We can resist, we can run. We are not forced.
But the story teaches us more. Jonah's calling was to speak truth in a difficult context. Easy to shy away from that! Our calling always involves speaking truth with care and self-giving love in the day, season and life we are living.
If we run from our calling God may come after us -- He is good that way. And there will be turmoil and difficulty until we heed the call and follow. God will use all means at his disposal to help us come back. The storm, the sea-toss, and the great fish are this story's version of seeking the lamb lost from the fold.
There is much to consider about calling and I tried to go there, reminding us we all have a calling, it is good and fitted to who we are, and we need the help of others to discern and follow. But my main takeaway as I reflect now and look to the remainder of the book is the recurring mercy of God: mercy in calling Jonah to Nineveh, mercy in seeking the running Jonah, mercy in sending the great fish, mercy on repeat.
In Jonah we see ourselves, unwilling to follow God's way. And we see God, unwilling to let us take our own poor way without pursuing us. God's mercy is in that pursuit, to be sure. And that's the happy remnant as I look forward to chapter two for next week.
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