In the Bible a "sign" is something, miraculous or otherwise, that carries a message. Prophets can be signs, for example. Isaiah says in Isaiah 8:18, "Behold, I and the children whom the LORD has given me are signs and portents in Israel from the LORD of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion."
Recall that Isaiah's children had special names. The name of his son Shear-Jashub (Isa 7:3) conveyed the message that Judah would suffer exile, and a remnant would return. (The name means, "a remnant will return.") The name of his son Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz predicted that Damascus and Samaria would soon fall to the Assyrians (Isa 8:1-4).
A generation or so before Isaiah, Jonah was another prophet who was a sign. Jesus stated that "Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh" (Lk 11:30). The Ninevites responded to Jonah's warning of coming judgment with sincere repentance (Jonah 3:4-5).
Another aspect of the sign of Jonah is the fact that Jonah was rescued from death after being swallowed by a giant fish. Jesus stated that this miracle pointed forward to his own coming resurrection from the dead (Mt 12:38-40).
What was it about Jonah that made him a sign to the Ninevites? Old Testament scholar Eugene Merrill addresses this question in an interesting 1980 paper.
Jonah prophesied during the reign of Jeroboam II of the northern kingdom of Israel (793-753 BC). He was from Gath-hepher (2 Ki 14:25), about 3 miles northwest of Nazareth.
Merrill explains that Assyria faced a number of external and internal challenges during the first half of the eighth century BC. Perhaps their difficulties during this period made them more receptive to Jonah's message than they might have been otherwise.
Merrill also points out that the name "Nineveh" seems to have meant something like "Fishtown," and there were legends that "Assyria's arts and sciences were brought from the Persian Gulf by a half-man, half-fish deity called in the Greek Oannes" (p. 27 of the paper). Given this background, we can see why the Ninevites would have been interested to hear from someone who had been regurgitated by a large fish. Was Jonah's God more powerful than Oannes?
At Church of the Messiah on February 14, 2026, Kyle Kettering gave a sermon on the sign of Jonah and signs in general. In Matthew 16:1 Jesus, who had performed many miracles, was asked for a "sign from heaven.'' Those who asked him may have been hoping for some encouraging news about when Israel's restoration would come. Jesus replied that they should have been better able to discern "the signs of the times" (verse 3). They were in a time, like that of Jonah, when repentance was called for. People who understood the signs of the times would heed Jesus' message, as the Ninevites had heeded Jonah (verse 4).
When we look at the times we live in, we see lots of discouraging things. Kyle encouraged us to set an example that would be a positive sign to those around us.
No comments:
Post a Comment