Jonah 4 Study Notes: Jonah's Anger and God's Compassion
Jonah is angry that God spared Nineveh, admitting he fled because he knew God was merciful. God gives him a shade plant, then sends a worm and a hot wind, and the book closes with God asking whether He should not care about a great city full of people and animals.
General
True or False: The book of Jonah ends with Jonah answering God and agreeing that sparing Nineveh was right.
Answer: False
This is false. The book ends with God's own question about whether He should not care for Nineveh, that great city (4:11). Jonah's reply is never given. The question is left open, pressing on anyone who resents God's mercy toward people they think undeserving. Many readers compare Jesus' parable of the lost son, which likewise closes with the father's appeal to the angry older brother and never gives his answer (Luke 15:31-32). God is free to show mercy to whomever He chooses (Romans 9:15).
- Jonah 4:11 (BSB)“So should I not care about the great city of Nineveh, which has more than 120,000 people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well?””The book's final words are the LORD's question about caring for Nineveh, that great city.
- Luke 15:31-32 (BSB)“‘Son, you are always with me,’ the father said, ‘and all that is mine is yours. But it was fitting to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’””Jesus' parable of the lost son also ends with the father's appeal, leaving the older son's reply untold.
- Romans 9:15 (BSB)“For He says to Moses: “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.””God declares that He has mercy and compassion on whomever He chooses, the freedom Jonah resented.
Theological
True or False: The book of Jonah closes with Jonah's repentant reply accepting God's mercy toward Nineveh.
Answer: False
This is false. The book closes on the LORD's question concerning His care for Nineveh (4:11), and Jonah's response is not recorded. The open ending presses the question on everyone who resents God's mercy toward the undeserving. Many readers compare the parable of the lost son, where the father's appeal to the resentful older son likewise receives no recorded reply (Luke 15:31-32). God's mercy is His sovereign prerogative, shown to whom He wills (Romans 9:15).
- Jonah 4:11 (BSB)“So should I not care about the great city of Nineveh, which has more than 120,000 people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well?””The book's final words are the LORD's question about caring for Nineveh, that great city.
- Luke 15:31-32 (BSB)“‘Son, you are always with me,’ the father said, ‘and all that is mine is yours. But it was fitting to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’””Jesus' parable of the lost son also ends with the father's appeal, leaving the older son's reply untold.
- Romans 9:15 (BSB)“For He says to Moses: “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.””God declares that He has mercy and compassion on whomever He chooses, the freedom Jonah resented.
General
In 4:2, what reason does Jonah give for having fled toward Tarshish?
Answer: He knew God was gracious and would relent from disaster
When God spared Nineveh, Jonah was deeply displeased and angry (4:1). He prayed and admitted why he had run toward Tarshish: he knew that God is kind and merciful, patient, overflowing with loving devotion, and willing to hold back disaster (4:2). He then asked God to take his life (4:3). Jonah was echoing the LORD's own description of Himself to Moses (Exodus 34:6), words repeated by Joel (Joel 2:13) and the psalms (Psalm 145:8). Jonah had gladly received God's mercy when he was rescued from the sea, yet he was angry when that mercy reached Nineveh.
- Jonah 4:1-3 (BSB)“Jonah, however, was greatly displeased, and he became angry. So he prayed to the LORD, saying, “O LORD, is this not what I said while I was still in my own country? This is why I was so quick to flee toward Tarshish. I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion—One who relents from sending disaster. And now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.””Displeased at God's mercy to Nineveh, Jonah explains why he fled and asks the LORD to take his life.
- Exodus 34:6 (BSB)“Then the LORD passed in front of Moses and called out: “The LORD, the LORD God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness,”The LORD proclaimed His own name to Moses with the description of His character that Jonah echoes.
- Joel 2:13 (BSB)“So rend your hearts and not your garments, and return to the LORD your God. For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion. And He relents from sending disaster.”Joel uses the same description and, as Jonah does, includes His readiness to hold back disaster.
- Psalm 145:8 (BSB)“The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in loving devotion.”The psalm praises the LORD with this same description of His grace and patience.
Theological
According to 4:2, why had Jonah fled toward Tarshish?
Answer: He knew God was gracious and would relent from disaster
Jonah's anger at Nineveh's reprieve (4:1) exposes his motive: he fled because he knew the LORD to be gracious, compassionate, patient, rich in loving devotion, willing to withhold disaster (4:2), and he now asks to die (4:3). He is echoing the LORD's self-revelation to Moses (Exodus 34:6), a confession echoed in Joel 2:13 and Psalm 145:8. The prophet who had just confessed that salvation is from the LORD (2:9) objects when that same mercy is extended to Nineveh.
- Jonah 4:1-3 (BSB)“Jonah, however, was greatly displeased, and he became angry. So he prayed to the LORD, saying, “O LORD, is this not what I said while I was still in my own country? This is why I was so quick to flee toward Tarshish. I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion—One who relents from sending disaster. And now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.””Displeased at God's mercy to Nineveh, Jonah explains why he fled and asks the LORD to take his life.
- Exodus 34:6 (BSB)“Then the LORD passed in front of Moses and called out: “The LORD, the LORD God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness,”The LORD proclaimed His own name to Moses with the description of His character that Jonah echoes.
- Joel 2:13 (BSB)“So rend your hearts and not your garments, and return to the LORD your God. For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion. And He relents from sending disaster.”Joel uses the same description and, as Jonah does, includes His readiness to hold back disaster.
- Psalm 145:8 (BSB)“The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in loving devotion.”The psalm praises the LORD with this same description of His grace and patience.
General
Which things does God appoint in 4:6-8 to teach Jonah?
Answer: A plant, a worm, and a hot east wind
While Jonah sat east of the city waiting to see its fate, the LORD God provided a plant that grew up to shade his head, and Jonah was very glad of it (4:6). At dawn the following day God sent a worm to strike the plant, and it dried up (4:7). Then God sent a burning wind from the east, and the blazing sun made Jonah so weak that he wanted to die (4:8). As with the storm and the fish, God rules every part of creation, small and great (Psalm 135:6; Psalm 148:8), and He is the one who makes plants grow (Psalm 104:14).
- Jonah 4:6-8 (BSB)“So the LORD God appointed a vine, and it grew up to provide shade over Jonah’s head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was greatly pleased with the plant. When dawn came the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant so that it withered. As the sun was rising, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint and wished to die, saying, “It is better for me to die than to live.””God appoints a plant to shade Jonah, then a worm to destroy it, then a hot east wind as the sun beats on him.
- Psalm 135:6 (BSB)“The LORD does all that pleases Him in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and in all their depths.”The LORD does whatever pleases Him in heaven and on earth, as He directs plant, worm, and wind.
- Psalm 148:8 (BSB)“lightning and hail, snow and clouds, powerful wind fulfilling His word,”Even the powerful wind carries out the LORD's word.
- Psalm 104:14 (BSB)“He makes the grass grow for the livestock and provides crops for man to cultivate, bringing forth food from the earth:”God makes plants grow, showing His care over the growth of every green thing.
Theological
What does God appoint in 4:6-8 in His dealings with Jonah?
Answer: A plant, a worm, and a hot east wind
Three times in this scene God is said to appoint something: the LORD God appoints a plant to shade Jonah (4:6), God appoints a worm to strike it at dawn (4:7), and God appoints a hot east wind as the sun beats on Jonah's head until he faints and longs to die (4:8). The same verb was used of the great fish (1:17), and at sea the LORD had flung the wind (1:4); together these show God's meticulous providence over creation, great and small (Psalm 135:6; Psalm 148:8), including the growth of every plant (Psalm 104:14), all directed toward His purpose of instructing His prophet.
- Jonah 4:6-8 (BSB)“So the LORD God appointed a vine, and it grew up to provide shade over Jonah’s head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was greatly pleased with the plant. When dawn came the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant so that it withered. As the sun was rising, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint and wished to die, saying, “It is better for me to die than to live.””God appoints a plant to shade Jonah, then a worm to destroy it, then a hot east wind as the sun beats on him.
- Psalm 135:6 (BSB)“The LORD does all that pleases Him in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and in all their depths.”The LORD does whatever pleases Him in heaven and on earth, as He directs plant, worm, and wind.
- Psalm 148:8 (BSB)“lightning and hail, snow and clouds, powerful wind fulfilling His word,”Even the powerful wind carries out the LORD's word.
- Psalm 104:14 (BSB)“He makes the grass grow for the livestock and provides crops for man to cultivate, bringing forth food from the earth:”God makes plants grow, showing His care over the growth of every green thing.
General
True or False: When God questioned Jonah about his anger over the plant, Jonah admitted his anger was wrong.
Answer: False
This is false. The LORD first asked Jonah whether his anger was justified, and no reply from Jonah is recorded; he went out east of the city to watch (4:4-5). Later God asked the same question about the plant, and Jonah answered that he did, and that his anger was so great he wanted to die (4:9). Jonah held on to his anger. James 1:20 teaches that human anger does not produce the righteous life God wants, and in Jesus' parable the older brother likewise grows angry when his father welcomes home the younger son with a feast (Luke 15:28).
- Jonah 4:9 (BSB)“Then God asked Jonah, “Have you any right to be angry about the plant?” “I do,” he replied. “I am angry enough to die!””God asks about Jonah's anger over the plant, and Jonah insists his anger is justified, even to the point of death.
- James 1:20 (BSB)“for man’s anger does not bring about the righteousness that God desires.”James teaches that human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires.
- Luke 15:28 (BSB)“The older son became angry and refused to go in. So his father came out and pleaded with him.”In Jesus' parable the older son grows angry over the welcome given his returning brother and will not join the feast, a similar response to grace.
Theological
True or False: In 4:9 Jonah conceded that his anger over the plant was unjustified.
Answer: False
This is false. To the LORD's first question about his anger no answer is recorded; Jonah went out east of the city to watch (4:4-5). When God asked again concerning the plant, Jonah insisted that his anger was justified, even to the point of death (4:9). His anger resists God's mercy, and such anger does not work the righteousness of God (James 1:20). The older brother in Jesus' parable displays the same resentment when his father welcomes home a returning son (Luke 15:28).
- Jonah 4:9 (BSB)“Then God asked Jonah, “Have you any right to be angry about the plant?” “I do,” he replied. “I am angry enough to die!””God asks about Jonah's anger over the plant, and Jonah insists his anger is justified, even to the point of death.
- James 1:20 (BSB)“for man’s anger does not bring about the righteousness that God desires.”James teaches that human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires.
- Luke 15:28 (BSB)“The older son became angry and refused to go in. So his father came out and pleaded with him.”In Jesus' parable the older son grows angry over the welcome given his returning brother and will not join the feast, a similar response to grace.
General
What comparison does the LORD make in 4:10-11?
Answer: Jonah grieved over a plant he did not grow, so should God not care for the great city?
God points out that Jonah felt concern for the plant even though he had not tended it or made it grow, and it lasted only one night (4:10). Then God asks whether He should not care about Nineveh, a great city of over 120,000 people unable to know right hand from left, along with many cattle (4:11). If Jonah could feel sorry for a plant, how much more should God care for people He made. God's compassion reaches every creature He made (Psalm 145:9), He preserves both people and animals (Psalm 36:6), and He is Lord of Jews and Gentiles alike (Romans 10:12).
- Jonah 4:10-11 (BSB)“But the LORD said, “You cared about the plant, which you neither tended nor made grow. It sprang up in a night and perished in a night. So should I not care about the great city of Nineveh, which has more than 120,000 people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well?””God contrasts Jonah's concern for a short-lived plant with His own concern for Nineveh's many people and animals.
- Psalm 145:9 (BSB)“The LORD is good to all; His compassion rests on all He has made.”The psalm says the LORD's compassion reaches every creature He made.
- Psalm 36:6 (BSB)“Your righteousness is like the highest mountains; Your judgments are like the deepest sea. O LORD, You preserve man and beast.”The psalmist says the LORD preserves both people and animals, matching God's mention of Nineveh's cattle.
- Romans 10:12 (BSB)“For there is no difference between Jew and Greek: The same Lord is Lord of all, and gives richly to all who call on Him,”Paul says there is one Lord over Jew and Gentile alike, generous to everyone who prays to Him.
Theological
What argument does the LORD make to Jonah in 4:10-11?
Answer: Jonah grieved over a plant he did not grow, so should God not care for the great city?
The LORD argues from the lesser to the greater: Jonah cared for a plant he neither tended nor caused to grow, which sprang up and died within a night (4:10); should not God care for Nineveh, with over 120,000 people unable to distinguish right hand from left, besides many cattle (4:11)? The plant had eased Jonah's own discomfort (4:6), but God's compassion rests on the creatures He made (Psalm 145:9), extending even to beasts (Psalm 36:6). His mercy is not confined to Israel; one Lord rules over all and gives generously to everyone who calls on Him (Romans 10:12).
- Jonah 4:10-11 (BSB)“But the LORD said, “You cared about the plant, which you neither tended nor made grow. It sprang up in a night and perished in a night. So should I not care about the great city of Nineveh, which has more than 120,000 people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well?””God contrasts Jonah's concern for a short-lived plant with His own concern for Nineveh's many people and animals.
- Psalm 145:9 (BSB)“The LORD is good to all; His compassion rests on all He has made.”The psalm says the LORD's compassion reaches every creature He made.
- Psalm 36:6 (BSB)“Your righteousness is like the highest mountains; Your judgments are like the deepest sea. O LORD, You preserve man and beast.”The psalmist says the LORD preserves both people and animals, matching God's mention of Nineveh's cattle.
- Romans 10:12 (BSB)“For there is no difference between Jew and Greek: The same Lord is Lord of all, and gives richly to all who call on Him,”Paul says there is one Lord over Jew and Gentile alike, generous to everyone who prays to Him.