The Storm Sleepers
Before the Voyage
In the book of Jonah, we read that God told the Hebrew prophet to travel to Nineveh and warn the city’s inhabitants of the Lord’s impending judgment on them, but that God would spare them if they repented. Instead of obeying, Jonah boarded a vessel bound for Tarshish, fleeing God.
Centuries later, Jesus’ teachings attracted a large crowd by the sea. Jesus stood in a boat and told the crowd a parable about a farmer who planted seeds in different soils. Jesus explained to His disciples that the seed that “fell into the good soil…and yielded a crop” (Mark 4:8) represented those who “hear the word and accept it and bear fruit” (Mark 4:20). The disciples were still mulling this over when Jesus suggested they join Him in the boat to cross the Sea of Galilee.
The Storm
During Jonah’s voyage to Tarshish, “the Lord hurled a great wind on the sea and there was a great storm on the sea, so that the ship was about to break up” (Jonah 1:4). Unaware of the dangerous storm swirling outside, Jonah slept peacefully in the ship’s stern.
The captain of the ship woke up Jonah, asking, “How is it that you are sleeping? Get up, call on your god! Perhaps your god will be concerned about us so that we will not perish” (Jonah 1:6).
A similar scene unfolded for the disciples. As they crossed the Sea of Galilee, “a fierce gale of wind developed, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling with water” (Mark 4:37). Just like Jonah, Jesus had fallen asleep in the stern, while disaster was imminent. It was the disciples who awoke Him, crying, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” (Mark 4:38).
Centuries earlier in the raging Mediterranean, Jonah’s shipmates turned to divination to discover who had caused the gods’ wrath. When the lots fell on Jonah, they demanded that he explain what he had done to anger his god and provoke the storm. Jonah admitted that he was fleeing the presence of God, and told his shipmates, “I am a Hebrew, and I fear the Lord God of heaven who made the sea and the dry land” (Jonah 1:9).
The Solution
In the storm-tossed fishing boat, Jesus saw his disciples’ terror, but He was unafraid. He asked his companions, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?” (Matthew 8:26). Then He rebuked the wind and sea as if they were children.
Moving from terror to amazement as they watched the storm die, the disciples wondered, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?” (Luke 8:22-25).
Jonah’s predicament did not end so peacefully. The sailors’ fear redoubled when they learned who Jonah was and why he was there. “How could you do this?” they asked incredulously (Jonah 1:10).
The storm was growing in proportion with their fear; if it continued, there was no hope of survival. Reluctantly, the sailors asked the prophet, “What should we do to you so that the sea will become calm for us?” (v. 11).
Was it with fear, resignation, or shame that Jonah told his shipmates to throw him into the sea? Did he choose death to save the lives he had endangered, or was this a final rebellious effort to escape the task God had appointed him?
The biblical account does not tell us how Jonah felt; only that he told the sailors: “Pick me up and hurl me into the sea. Then the sea will become calm for you, because I know that on account of me this great storm has come upon you” (v.12).
At first the men shrank from carrying out Jonah’s instructions, instead attempting to row ashore. But the storm only grew more violent; the wind and the waves were too strong for them. The sailors had to face the fact that no human effort could deliver them. At last they agreed to do as Jonah said. “We earnestly pray, O Lord,” they cried, “do not let us perish on account of this man’s life and do not put innocent blood on us; for You, Lord, have done as You pleased” (v. 14).
With that, they threw Jonah overboard, and just as the sea would someday calm under Jesus’ rebuke, the waves and wind ceased their tumult. Their lives spared, the men made sacrifices and vows to God, convinced Jonah was dead beneath the waves.
But verse 17 reveals the next supernatural event in Jonah’s life: “And the Lord designated a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish for three days and three nights.”
Denouement
You probably know how Jonah’s story ends. He eventually makes it to Nineveh and delivers God’s message, which falls in “good soil”: the Ninevites listen and repent. Jonah withdraws from them, hoping to watch this evil city fall to fire and brimstone. But God spares Nineveh and rebukes Jonah for his lack of compassion.
As for Jesus, not long after He has commanded the storm to flee, the scribes and Pharisees challenge Him to give them a sign. Jesus responds, “…no sign will be given…except the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as Jonah was in the stomach of the sea monster for three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights” (Matthew 12:39-41).
Remember the sailors’ prayer? “Do not let us perish on account of this man’s life and do not put innocent blood on us” (Jonah 1:14). Like Jonah, Jesus’ death saved others’ lives. Through His crucifixion, the One who is greater than Jonah put His innocent blood on us, freeing us from condemnation.
Jonah came reluctantly to proclaim God’s judgment to one city, but “the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10), “so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
Written by Miriam, Life in Messiah Communications Assistant
Did you know that the book of Jonah is typically read on Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement) in the synagogue? If God can forgive the Ninevites, He can forgive the worst of sinners. Have you experienced His merciful forgiveness?
The book of Jonah ends without telling us of Jonah’s ultimate response. Perhaps you are in a time of deep testing today. This may be a good time to ask someone to pray with you that your ultimate response will be one of humility, faith, and obedience.
Read through the book of Jonah and Matthew 26:36-28:20. What other parallels do you see between Jonah’s and Jesus’ stories?
