RABBI YITZHAK KADURI

Rabbi Yitzhak Kaduri 

Rabbi Yitzhak Kaduri reveals the name of the Messiah before he died! He was a renowned Mizrahi Haredi rabbi and Kabbalist who devoted his life to Torah study.

Shortly before he died in 2006 at the age of 108, one of Israel's most prominent rabbis wrote the name of the Messiah on a small note which he requested would remain sealed until one year later after his death.

When the note was unsealed one year later, it revealed what many have known for centuries: Yehoshua, or Yeshua (Jesus), is the Messiah.

name of the Messiah on a small note

With the biblical name of Jesus, the Rabbi and kabbalist described the Messiah using six words and hinting that the initial letters form the name of the Messiah. The secret note said: Concerning the letter abbreviation of the Messiah’s name, He will lift the people and prove that his word and law are valid.

I don't know if the visions he had and the prophecies he made about Jesus are true. With all respect for Rabbi Yitzhak Kaduri I am inclined to think that these visions and prophecies are in most cases "imaginations from our mind". See Jeremiah 23:16-18

But, in my opinion, what makes the Bible and Christianity credible is that Rabbi Yitzhak Kaduri  is a renowned Mizrahi Haredi rabbi and Kabbalist who devoted his life to Torah study, and recognized that Jesus was the Messiah!

Click below to watch the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0DTT3u2JZ8

No church, no lodge, no good works can save you. Remember, God does the saving. All of it! God's simple plan of salvation is: You are a sinner. Therefore, unless you believe on Jesus Who died in your place, you will spend eternity in Hell.

So this mean Rabbi Yitzhak kaduri was a Christian?

If you believe on Him as your crucified, buried, and risen Savior, you receive forgiveness for all of your sins and His gift of eternal salvation by faith. Christ died for your sins. You are a sinner by nature and by choice.

Jesus took your sins and charged them to His own record. He went to the cross and paid the penalty for your sins.

He says if you're willing to receive Him in faith, he will transfer His payment to your debt, and His righteousness to your sins.

He will impute to you, His goodness, and impute to His own record your sin; if you in faith will trust Him as your Savior.

You must believe that Jesus died, was buried and rose again.1 Corinthians 15:1-4 teaches that the gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. God's simple plan of salvation is: You are a sinner. Unless you believe on Jesus Who died in your place, you will spend eternity in Hell. If you believe on Him as your crucified, buried,risen Savior, you receive forgiveness for all of your sins and His gift of eternal salvation by faith.

Would you like to know Jesus personally?

Would you like to be saved?

You can pray the following prayer and read the Bible everyday beginning with John's gospel, the Gospel that reveals that Jesus is THE SON OF GOD:

Take God at His word...claim His salvation by faith. 

Dear Jesus, I admit that I am a sinner, deserving of Hell. Please forgive me of my sins and take me to Heaven when I die. I now believe upon You alone, apart from all self-righteous works and religion, as my personal Savior.

Thank you. Amen.

Just take God at His word and claim His salvation by faith. Believe, and you will be saved.

Further Info on Salvation at this Link:

http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/how_to_be_saved.html

I you want to know more about Rabbi Yitzhak Kadari, please clik below:

http://www.yeshuahamashiach.org/Kaduri_names_Messiah.htm

Bill Johnson's 'Kingdom Now' theology

2 Chronicles 20:37 

Eliezer son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, “Because you have made an alliance with Ahaziah, the LORD will destroy what you have made”.

Bill Johnson

There is a doctrine called 'knosis theology' - meaning that Jesus 'put aside' His divinity when he became man.

'Kenosis' is a Greek word for emptiness. So, the 'kenosis doctrine' is based on a misuse of Philippians 2:7 where Paul says that Jesus emptied Himself.

'Functional knosis' speaks about Jesus 'putting aside' His functions; 'Ontological knosis' speaks about Jesus 'putting aside' His nature or divine attributes.

Some theologians say that 'functional knosis' is not heretical, but 'ontological knosis' is.

I myself don't believe in 'knosis', because I believe in the 'hypostatic theology', or 'hypostatic union', that describes the union of Christ's humanity and divinity in one, meaning that Jesus was complete man, but also complete GOD on earth from His conception until His death!

Bill Johnson's doctrine about the divinity of Jesus is very confusing. On one hand his followers imply that  he teaches 'functional knosis', but on the other hand, in saying that Jesus 'put aside' his divinity and lived on earth as a man anointed by the Holy Spirit, Bill Johnson is diminishing Jesus' divine nature as a man. So, actually, he also teaches 'ontological knosis'. 

Bill Johnson' kenosis view is a very serious heresy, because in a subtle way, he wants to come to the following presumption: 

If Jesus did all the miracles, signs and wonders as a man, 'anointed' by the Holy Spirit, we also, 'anointed' by the Holy Spirit are capable of doing the same things that Jesus did. Bill Johnson goes on to affirm:

Not only that, we shall do greater works than Jesus, referring to Jesus' signs and wonders". Based on John 14:12.   

Analise of Bill Johnson' presumptions:

I believe that Bill Johnson's Kingdom Now Theology has as its goal 'the glorification of man', hence the reason he diminishes Jesus' Divinity.
  
Firstly:

Because he affirms: 

Because of Jesus self-imposed restriction, His miracles were only done by virtue of an anointing of the Holy Spirit on His ministry and this same anointing is also available to us.

And he goes on and make another presumption: 

If we are filled by the Spirit like Jesus, we are capable of doing the same signs, miracles and wonders that Jesus did on earth".

He then goes completely heretic, based on John 14 v 12, when he says: 

Not only that, but 'we shall do greater works than Jesus", referring that we are capable to do greater signs and wonders than Jesus. 

But the 'greater works' in John 14:12 cannot refer to signs and wonders that are greater in quality than those done by Jesus because no believer ever has or ever will do greater miracles than Jesus. 

He raised the dead, opened the eyes of the blind, restored hearing to the deaf, cast out demons, healed the lame, walked on water, calmed a stormy sea, multiplied bread and fish and turned water into wine.

No miracle-worker has even come close since the days of the apostles and even the apostles did not do any signs and wonders that were greater.
 

Secondly:

Bill Johnson is obviously wrong when he says: 

When Christ died on the cross he took away the curse and defeated Satan in order for us to reach prosperity: welfare, dominion, power, health, wealth, happiness and joy, while living on this earth.

A careful reading of the Bible indicates otherwise. Simply put, the Bible never commands Christians to take dominion, because this will never happen any way. 

A search for such a mandate proves fruitless. The Bible never even hints that this is to be the purpose of the church between Christ's first and second comings. 

The purpose of the Church firstly is to preach the Gospel to all creation.

However, when a nation is reached by the Gospel, people will know justice, freedom, health and wealth, but that doesn't mean believers will be healthy and prosperous at all times.

It also doesn't mean that believers - the Church - will dominate the Earth.

After all, Dominion Theology and 'Kingdom Now' Theology conceive Christianization as a social and political event.  They teach that believers - the Church - must dominate the entire world and establish a theocratic government, before Jesus comes back.

If anyone would come after me...

But any teachings to do with the Great Commission that involve sacrifice and abnegation of life in order to evangelize the lost, become secondary because the mainly objective of these doctrines is for believers to dominate the world 'Now'.  

Luke 9

23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 

24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it".

By the way, we can ask: 

Is Britain a Christian nation? 

What is the percentage of ‘born again’ believers ' in Britain and USA?

What is the percentage of ‘born again’ believers  in Arab countries?

So, although we find in the Bible that God bless materially people who turns to Him, most of the blessings promised in the New Testament have a spiritual connotation linked with a small percentage of people around our world.

We are and we will be always a minority, so we will never 'dominate' the world! Our task is not to 'dominate' but rather to evangelize the world!

Bill Johnson's central idea about "life-affirmation" puts in question all Biblical doctrines that teach the possibility of Christians going through suffering, weakness, sickness and poverty while living on this earth.

 

Romans 8:1-39, the central idea of this chapter  is that we believers also 'groan', even though we have the Holy Spirit within us, as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. 

We too, wait with eager hope, for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies He has promised us. 

While we are part of the creation, we will know:

v18 Suffering v18.

v26 Weakness.

v35 Hardship', persecution, famine, nakedness, danger, sword and death. 

As Paul says:

v36 For your sake we face 'death' all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.

v18-27 But through the Holy Spirit, in spite of suffering, troubles, afflictions, hardship, we have the hope of future glory.

v31-37 And because of this hope we are more than conquerors. 

v28 we read that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. 
 

Of course God heals. Of course He prospers. But as for me, I plan to continue praising Him in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, till death reunites me with the One whose sufferings we are sometimes called to share, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

Conclusion: 

In my opinion, Bill Johnson's extremist beliefs about the "Kingdom Now" theology and "Dominion" theology are heretical and therefore he is preaching another Gospel.

For the protection of people who are under our leadership, we should have the courage to stand against these extremist teachers, denouncing them rather than making a compromise with them, like many Christians leaders are doing.

We must not do wrong alliances to try to develop our Churches. I I Chronicles 20:30-37

When  Jehoshaphat did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, he was blessed and the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was at peace: ³⁰And the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side ³² He followed the ways of his father Asa and did not stray from them; he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD

But when he decided to make a commercial alliance with Aaziah, what happened?: ³⁵ Later, Jehoshaphat king of Judah made an alliance with Ahaziah king of Israel, whose ways were wicked. ³⁶ He agreed with him to construct a fleet of trading ships. After these were built at Ezion Geber, ³⁷ Eliezer son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, “Because you have made an alliance with Ahaziah, the LORD will destroy what you have made.” The ships were wrecked and were not able to set sail to trade.

If you want to know more about my opinion on  the Third Wave, Kingdom Theology, Kingdom Now Theology, Dominion Theology, Prosperity gospel, please click on the site below:

Would you like to know if FREEMASONRY is of the devil? Please, click below:

• Is Freemasonry of the devil?

"180" movie

It's ok to kill a baby in the womb, when?

A dramatic film that documents the responses of young adults to questions about abortion by evangelist Ray Comfort, which also includes discussions on Adolf Hitler and the Holocaust in Europe, appears to be gathering enough momentum to go viral after being released online a week ago.

Prior to the video’s online release, Comfort told The Christian Post that, in the process of making the film, he asked a question that was “so powerful that it not only changed the people’s minds about abortion, and made them do a 180 (degree turn in viewpoint), but it made them do a 180 when it comes to their own eternal salvation.”

If you want to know more, please click on the site below and watch “180” movie. It has been seen by more than a half million people since was released online two weeks ago.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7y2KsU_dhwI

Rob Bell or Hell?

A. Introduction 

Rob Bell or Hell?

If Rob Bell is right, then God, Jesus and the Bible are wrong?

But who is right, Rob Bell or Hell?

There are too many biblical passages that describe God as actively judging sinners. Surely this view of judgment is unpopular and has negative connotations. 

This may be the place it hits us Westerners the hardest.

In trying to make sense of the biblical portrait of eternal judgment, we are left with no other choice. As glorious and majestic as the New Testament portrayal of resurrection and new creation is, so horrific and terrifying is its portrayal of God’s wrath against sinners.

The number of times 'hell' appears in the texts in English Bible Translations are many.

Authorized" King James Version 54 times and New King James Version 32 times.

And Jesus speaks of 'hell' more than other character in the Bible. Jesus didn’t stir things up by backing off the truth of final judgment. 

He stirred things up by reaching for the most gruesome, horrifying images imaginable in order to communicate the horror of God’s judgment.

I want God to use what Jesus taught about hell in such a way that my own heart will be gripped by compassion for lost people, and that I will be bold enough to faithfully represent a Savior whose teaching is increasingly unpopular.

Please look below a few verses to see how terrifying Jesus portrayal God's wrath against sinners.

Matthew 7:13 

Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many".

Matthew 25:41 

Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

Mark 9

42 Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. 

43 And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire".                                                                                                                 
B. Why is Rob Bell dismissing what Jesus said?

Heaven or Hell?

Why is Rob Bell dismissing what Jesus said, becoming a teacher of the Universalism doctrine?

Because Rob Bell came to the same conclusion like people who don't believe, and say: 

If your God is perfect and all powerful and loving, then why does he not give everyone on this earth a fair chance to know him and accept him? Why would a loving God condemn anyone to hell?

This is the lie of universalism that says all road lead to God, that because God's love and mercy, everyone will somehow make it to Heaven

Universalism rejects completely the message and the power of the Gospel.

But, let's be very clear, if we believe the Bible is the word of God, we just don't care what Rob Bell thinks about hell and heaven, because the Bible is our ultimate authority?

But Rob Bell is not just dismissing what Jesus said about hell, he is also dismissing the teaching of the Bible about judgement and condemnation of the wicked, as you can see in the following texts:                                                

Marc 16:16 

Whoever believes and is baptised will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned

John 5:24 

Whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life

John 5:29 

And come out, those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned.

Acts 24:15 

And I have the same hope in God as these men themselves have, that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.

Romans 2:5 

But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.

The dead were judged
according...

II Thessalonians 2:12 

And so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.

Hebrews 6:2 

Instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgement

Revelation 20

12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 

15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire

Revelation 21:8 

But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars, they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”

Ecclesiastes 11:9 

You who are young, be happy while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment

Psalms 1:5 

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous

Daniel 12:2 

Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.

C. Why will God judge people? 

The Bible answer is straightforward "we have all sinned against Him and have broken His law and we need to believe in the gospel to be saved".

Romans 3:23 

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God"   

Mark 16

15-16 He said to them, Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. 

16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned".                                              
It is a fact that most people's consciences tell them not to kill, steal, and commit rape. 

Our laws also show that it is wrong to do these things. No one protests when our police officers throw people into jail because they have committed these horrible crimes.

 Why? Because you know that evildoers must be punished.

I pronounce you guilty ...

If a judge were to set criminals free without the punishment specified in the law, that judge would be unjust and would have to be dismissed from the bench.

In the same way, a mighty good and holy God would also condemn a sinner or a person to hell that chooses to remain separated from Him in their sins. If He didn't, He would not be a righteous and just God.

Sin separates mankind from God. Let's test ourselves on God's Ten Commandments: Exodus 20

1º Commandment  

Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 

Have you always put God first in every area of your life? If you answer no, you have broken God's 1st commandment.

2. Commandment 

Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.

Have you ever put a material thing like money, a car, or a career ahead of God? If you answer yes, you have broken God's 2nd commandment.

3º Commandment 

Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain'.

Have you ever used God's name as a swear word? If so, you are profane - you have broken God's 3rd commandment.

4º Commandment  

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy".

Have you always kept the Sabbath holy (Christians keep Sunday)? If not, you have broken God's 4th commandment.

5º Commandment  

Honor thy father and thy mother.

Have you ever disobeyed or spoken evil of your parents? Who doesn't, you might say, so you have broken God's 5th commandment.

6º Commandment. 

Thou shalt not kill.

The Bible says that if we hate someone, we commit murder in our hearts. Matthew 5:21-22  

Yes you have the capacity to hate, you have broken God's 6th commandment.

7º Commandment 

Thou shalt not commit adultery.

Have you ever engaged in sexual fantasies or lustful thoughts about anyone not your spouse? 

If so, you are an adulterer, you have broken God's 7th commandment. Matthew 5:27-28

8º Commandment 

Thou shalt not steal.

Have you ever taken anything that didn't belong to you, no matter how small in value? You are a thief - you have broken God's 8th commandment.

9º Commandment 

Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.

Have you ever told a lie, a fib, white lie, or half truth about someone else? 

I am sure we all have broken God's 9th commandment so many times. 

10º Commandment  

Thou shall not covet.

Have you ever desired to have something that someone else has - a girl or guy, a car, a house, a job, or anything else? 

Don't tell me you're innocent and you have never broken God's 10th commandment!

D. Conclusion

Everyone that has ever lived (except the Lord Jesus Christ) has broken at least one of these commandments.

Most of us have probably broken most of them. Breaking only one of God's commandments only one time is all it takes to separate yourself from God and be destined to hell! 

Revelation 21:8

Their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone.

When you, a murderer, a thief, an adulterer, a liar stand before the righteous Judge of all the universe, how could He not require that justice be satisfied by exacting the due penalty for your sins in the fires of hell?

E. Would you like to pray?

Does the situation seem hopeless? Wait!

There's GOOD NEWS! BECAUSE OF GOD'S MERCY THERE IS HOPE!

God does not want you to go to hell!

The Bible says 

Romans 10:9-10 

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him(Jesus) from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

To be saved, a sinner simply needs to become "guilty" before God. 

To receive Jesus Christ into your life right now just say a simple prayer like the one below meaning it with all your heart:

In Jesus name, Amen.

Dear Lord God. 

I come to You a sinner and I humbly repent. 

I believe that Jesus Christ is Lord and I believe You raised Him from the dead. Come into my life Jesus and be my Lord and Savior. 

I ask You, Lord Jesus, to change and take control of my life that I may live for You from this day forth and from now on. 

Thank You Lord for saving me and cleansing me with Your precious blood.

Amém 


I wrote this post with some help of the sites below:

http://www.the.wayofthemaster.com/goodperson.shtml

http://www.fillthevoid.org/Christian/Hell/Hellevangelism1.html

http://trevinwax.com/2011/05/24/n-t-wright-on-rob-bell-and-the-reality-of-hell/


Would you like to know if FREEMASONRY is of the devil? Please, click below:

• Is Freemasonry of the devil?

Strange Factor

In my post, the ‘Strange Omission’, I said that “prayerlessness is the Church’s major malady”.

Today, I want to speak about another weakness of the Church - the ‘Strange Factor’, which is the hidden message of the Acts of the Apostles.

Christians often think that the Acts of the Apostles records the first Christians' obedience to the Great Commission. But, is that right?

It might sound ‘strange’, but in the book of Acts (although we don’t see it straightaway because it is hidden) Christians were very reluctant to venture beyond the borders of Judaism. A closer look shows that if there had not been a “great persecution” in Jerusalem, Christians would probably have stayed in the capital indefinitely (Acts 8:1).

So, the ‘Strange Factor’ in the book of Acts of the Apostles (the hidden message), is 'reluctance'.

In Romans 16:25-26 Paul speaks about a mystery, going on to reveal that this mystery, which had been kept secret since the world began, is the gospel, the salvation that should be preached to all nations. This was at the heart of his calling, just as God had told Ananias about Saul's calling:

Acts 9:15: “This man is my chosen instrument, to carry my name before the gentiles”

But, was it at the heart of the Jewish Christians, also called Hebrew Christians?

The book of Acts shows how reluctant the Jews were to preach the gospel to the gentiles.

Even the leading apostle, Peter, was very reluctant to associate with gentiles, hence the reason that God gave a vision and said:

“Get up Peter. Kill and eat. Peter replied, I have never eaten anything impure. Then, when Peter was wondering about the meaning of the vision, the men sent by Cornelius, the Gentile, stopped at the gate.” Acts 10: 12-17

Peter needed that vision to go to Cornelius’ house and preach the gospel we find recorded in Acts. 10:34-43.

But, it was not just the first Christians who showed reluctance. The Church of Christ throughout its history on earth has always shown reluctance in obeying the Great Commission.

“Sit down, young man! When God pleases to convert the heathen, He’ll do it without you or me!” said John C. Ryland, a senior Baptist minister in the 1780’s to the young man before him - William Carey.

Do you know what the cause of offense was?

William Carey had suggested that the Great Commission, the mandate of Christ to go to the ends of the earth, was binding not just in the Acts of the Apostles, but also upon every succeeding generation of Christians.

Are we reluctant to go and preach to our neighbors, colleagues, relatives, people in our streets or in the next village/town, not forgetting those who live away in another Country or Continent?

Have you spoken to anybody this week about Christ?

Have you ever considered leaving your 'comfort zone' to go to another Country and do something for Christ, even if it is just for 'short term'? Or do you just go abroad for holiday?

We need prayer, good meetings and solid teaching in our Churches, but our primordial task is to go and preach the Gospel to the lost and we must be involved in it.

Jerusalem (evangelism 1)

Judea and Samaria (evangelism 2)

The end of the earth (evangelism 3).

In the three parables in Matthew 21:28-22:14, Jesus teaches about God taking His kingdom from one people and giving it to another people.

In the second parable “The Parable of the Talents” – Jesus said:

“Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits”.

Are we producing fruits, or have we fallen in the same apathy that we see in West Countries, where Churches are developing social and anthropological areas (that's good), but are ignoring the Great Commission?

Many Churches are saying, “Come, we have the best meetings in our community", instead of saying “Go and preach the gospel to all creation!"

Our disobedience will not stop God fulfilling His eternal purpose, but we will miss out and God will give the task to other people!

If we won’t miss out, why would I be bothered to write this post?

Do you know GLOBAL outreach day? If not click below, please:

http://globaloutreachday.com/home

http://globaloutreachday.com/content/5-z-%E2%80%93-evangelistic-ideas

The Prophet Obadiah

Study By: Imanuel Christian

I. Introduction

Please look to your right under Assuntos to find more Minor Prophets:

Stoke Poges is a small village in England not too far from Windsor Castle.278 One of the most famous cemeteries of the world is located in this village, where the well-known poet Thomas Gray penned his famous Elegy written in a Country Churchyard. Those who have gone through the American school system have, I am sure, studied it, or, at least, read this poem at one time or the other during the course of their studies. I came to know about it only recently when I wrote a commentary on the First Letter of Peter and was reading

Warren Wiersbe's commentary on that book.Wiersbe quotes these words from that poem:

The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power,

And all that beauty, all that wealth e’er gave,

Awaits alike the inevitable hour,

The paths of glory lead but to the grave.

“Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher; Vanity of vanities, all is vanity,” and “… there was no profit under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:11). Those who find their safety and security in the things under the sun will finally be destroyed, along with the things in which they trusted. But those who find their safety and security in the Eternal God will never be shaken. This is the central message of the Bible so clearly presented in the little book penned by an ancient prophet named Obadiah.

The shortest book in the Old Testament and among all the writing prophets, Obadiah provides an overview of the message presented in each of the writing prophets: God's judgment on the unbelieving Gentiles who opposed God's chosen people Israel, and God's grace and ultimate deliverance of the believing Israel. This double thread is woven throughout every prophetic book in the Old Testament.

I I. The Author

Obadiah literally means “Servant of the Lord.” This was one of the most common names in the Hebrew Bible. There are 12 other men with this same name in the Old Testament, none of whom can be identified with the author of this book. We do not know anything about this man except that he must have lived in Judah since he prophesies in relation to Jerusalem.

I I I. Historical Context

From the historical references in the book, we can locate Obadiah’s ministry in Judah during the reign of Jehoram (848-841 B. C.), son of Jehoshaphat. Edom is indicted because of his violence against his brother Jacob: “On the day you stood aloof while strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were like one of them …” (11-14).

Both 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles tell of the war and rebellion of Edom in the days of Jehoram when Edom, after a fierce struggle, threw off the yoke of Judah (2 Kings 8:20-22; 2 Chronicles 21:8-10). Shortly after that revolt of Edom, according to 2 Chronicles 21:16ff, the Philistines and Arabians broke into Judah and,

They attacked Judah, invaded it and carried off all the goods found in the king’s palace, together with his sons and wives. Not a son was left to him except Ahaziah (Jehoahaz), the youngest (2 Chronicles 21:17).

This best fits the statements in Obadiah, chapters 11-14. When the Philistines, Arabians, and Edomites entered Jerusalem, they cast lots to decide which portions of the city would be granted to each contingent for the purpose of plunder.

I V. The Literal Theme of the Book

The animosity between Edom and the Israelites, and Edom’s punishment because of that, is the literal theme of the Book of Obadiah. The animosity between the Edomites and the Israelites is one of the oldest examples of a discord in human relationships. It began even before their ancestors, Esau and Jacob, were born: “The babies jostled each other within her,” in the womb of their mother Rebekah (Genesis 25:22). Then, for a bowl of red stew, Esau readily traded his birthright to his younger brother Jacob (Genesis 25:29-34). Later Jacob stole the blessing to which Esau said, “Isn't he rightly named Jacob?

He has deceived me these two times: he took my birthright, and now he has taken my blessing!” And so, Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob” (Genesis27:36, 41). Then Esau moved to the land of Seir (Genesis 36:8-9), the red sandstone area southeast of the Dead Sea.

Later, Edom refused to let the Israelites pass through their land when the Israelites were on the way to the Promised Land, and the Edomites “… came out against them with a large and powerful army” (Numbers 20:14, 21). Even then, God told Israel, “Do not abhor an Edomite, for he is your brother” (Deuteronomy 23:7). However, the animosity continued for centuries, and the Edomites harbored hostility against Israel (Ezekial. 35:5). Saul (1 Samuel 4:47), David (2 Samuel 8:13-14), Joab (1 Kings 11:16), and Solomon (1 Kings 11:17-22) all had problems with the Edomites.

The enmity between the seed of Jacob and the seed of Esau is seen even in the New Testament incident. Edom was later controlled by Assyria and Babylon, and in the Fifth century B. C., they were forced by the Nabateans to leave their territory and move to the area of southern Palestine, where they became known as Idumeans. Herod the Great, an Idumean, became the King of Judea under Rome in 37 B. C. This was the king who attempted to murder Jesus by ordering that all the babies under two years of age be killed.

Obadiah, the oldest of all the writing prophets, takes up here the topic of the doom of Edom. After him, almost all prophets have made Edom an object of the Lord’s wrath and destruction, and more than any other nation mentioned in the Old Testament, Edom is the supreme object of God's wrath.

V. The Cause for God’s Wrath

What was so wrong about Edom that God was so upset with him and made him the object of His supreme wrath? The basic reasons were his pride and self-sufficiency. The book gives five reasons for this pride and self-sufficiency:

1. Pride because of their safety and security.

Obadiah writes:

The pride of your heart had deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks and make your home on the heights, you who say to yourself, “Who can bring me down to the ground?” Though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars … (verses 3-4).

Edom’s imposing capital city of Petra was impregnable and virtually inaccessible. Edom found her security in the clefts and the rocks. Some of the peaks reached as high as 5,700’ and surrounded her like fortresses. The deep terrifying gorges kept the enemy away. Edom found her safety and security in her surroundings.

However, there is something more involved in the high peaks and lofty clefts. The prophet speaks about her soaring like the eagle and making her nest among the stars. That reminds us of someone else who thought to himself:

I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; will make myself like the Most High (Isaiah 14:13-14).

Edom in her pride had lifted her head against God, just like Satan.

2. Pride because of her hidden treasures. 

Obadiah talks about Edom's hidden treasures (verses 5-6), for which Edom was proud.

3. Pride because of her allies. 

Edom was proud of her allies and friends and their political alliances (verse 7).

4. Pride because of wisdom and wise men. 

Obadiah talks about “the wise men of Edom, men of understanding in the mountains of Esau” (verse 8). Edom was known for her wise men and sages. Her location on a major highway provided intellectual exchange with distant nations.

5. Pride because of her military power. 

Obadiah talks about her warriors, her military power for which Edom was proud. All these things for which Edom is proud, the prophet tells her, will be taken away. From her lofty heights, she will be brought down on the ground (verse 4). She will be ransacked and her hidden treasures pillaged (verse 6). All her allies will deceive and overpower her and set a trap for her (verse 7). The wise men will be destroyed (verse 8). The warriors will be terrified and will be cut down in the slaughter (verse 9).

Anything and everything that man trusts and relies upon will be taken away. These things will be taken away not because they are evil in and of themselves, but because they take the place of God. Man trusting in these things makes himself God and does not see any need for God. He raises his fist against God and says, “I don't care for you; I don't need you.”

Edom is a symbol of human philosophy that has no place for God. Strangely enough, if there is any nation on the face of the earth today who can boast of these things listed about Edom, it is the United States of America. Where has all the prosperity, military power, and prominent place in world politics brought us today?

6. Pride against God expressed in persecuting God’s people. 

Edom, and any nation’s or people’s pride and haughty attitude against God, is expressed in various ways. One of the ways is persecuting God’s people, which Obadiah describes about Edom.

The major reason for the judgment of Edom is: “Because of the violence against your brother Jacob, you will be covered with shame; you will be destroyed forever” (verse 10). The details of the violence against his brother are given in the next four verses:

a. They stood withholding assistance (verse 11).

b. They rejoiced over Judah’s downfall (verse 12).

c. They plundered the city, Jerusalem (verse 13).

d. They prevented the escape of Judah’s fugitives (verse 14).

Behind every persecution of God’s people, there is pride and rebellion against God. Jesus said:

If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember the words I spoke to you: No servant is greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me (John 15:18-21).

V I. The Ultimate Outcome – The Day of the Lord

Speaking about the judgment of Edom because of his violence against his brother Jacob, Obadiah turns to speak to all nations who have turned their back to God and talks about their final judgment in terms of the Day of the Lord: “The day of the Lord is near for all nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your own head” (verse 16). On the other hand, “But on Mount Zion will be deliverance; it will be holy, and the house of Jacob will possess its inheritance” (verse 17).

A. There are two major aspects of the Day of the Lord.

5. 1. Judgment. The first major aspect of the Day of the Lord will be judgment upon the nations who did not obey God. The wicked nations will drink the cup of God’s wrath: “ … so all the nations will drink continually; they will drink and drink and be as if they had never been” (verse 16). As the psalmist describes God’s wrath: “In the hand of the Lord is a cup full of foaming wine mixed with spices; he pours it out, and all the wicked of the earth drink it down to its very dregs” (Psalm 75:8). Isaiah declares in God’s words: “I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end of the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless” (Isaiah 13:11).

Those who trust in things will be destroyed, along with the things in which they trusted.

6. 2. Deliverance. The other major aspect of the Day of the Lord is the final deliverance of those who trust God, and the Lord's eternal Kingdom, as noted above: “But on Mount Zion will be deliverance; it will be holy, and the house of Jacob will possess its inheritance” (verse 17).

B. Mount Zion. 

1. Jerusalem will be the capital of the Kingdom of God as noted in verse 17 above. 

Isaiah notes:

In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it… . The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem (Isaiah 2:2-3).

The moon will be abased, the sun ashamed; for the Lord Almighty will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before its elders, gloriously (Isaiah 24:23).

2. Israel will fully possess the Promised Land verses 18-20.

3. The people of God will rule with the King 

As it says in verse 21: “Deliverers will go up on Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau.”

4. The Lord’s eternal Kingdom will be established: 

“And the kingdom will be the Lord’s” verse 21b. And, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever” Revelation 11:15.

Obadiah, the first of the writing prophets, provides the overview of the kingdom message that becomes one of the major theses of all the rest of the prophets.

5. Obadiah does not talk about the “cross;” but about the “crown":

Obadiah does not talk about the “cross;” he only talks about the “crown.” David had already prophesied:

Psalm 2:1-12,  Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One.“Let us break their chains,” they say, “and throw off their fetters.” The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. Then he rebukes them in anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, “I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill.” I will proclaim the decree of the Lord: He said to me, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father.  Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter; You will dash them to pieces like pottery.” Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him

Those who rebel against God, trusting in themselves, will finally be destroyed. Those who trust in the Lord will finally be delivered for eternity.

To whom do you think Obadiah is talking? To Edom? No, the prophet is not talking to Edom; he is talking about Edom to his own people.

Remember the situation in Judah during Obadiah’s time? In northern Israel, Ahab-Jezebel ruled with all their wickedness 1 Kings 16-22.

In Judah, Asa begins well 2 Chronicles 14, 15, but ends in disgrace 2 Chronicles 16. Asa’s son Jehoshaphat, like his father, began well: “The Lord was with Jehoshaphat because in his early years he walked in the ways his father David had followed … ” 2 Chronicles 17:3-6, but later allied himself with Ahab 2 Chronicles 18:1; 19:1-2; 20:37. Jehoshaphat’s son Jehoram from the beginning “walked in the ways of the kings of Israel,” and “He did evil in the eyes of the Lord” 2 Chronicles 21:6.

During this time, Obadiah brings the message to the faithful in Judah – a message of doom to those who trust in their own evil practices and wickedness – and a message of comfort and peace to those who continue to trust the Lord in spite of the wickedness around them.
Applications

V I I. We see three applications to us today in the Book of Obadiah:

A. God keeps His promises. 

God had promised Abraham, “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 12:3). He had promised Jacob, through Isaac’s blessing; “May those who curse you be cursed and those who bless you be blessed” (Genesis 27:29b). God kept those promises.

Similarly, God kept His promise to Edom too: “Your dwelling will be away from the earth’s richness, away from the dew of heaven above. You will live by the sword and you will serve your brother” (Genesis 27:39-40).

One of the most striking statements of God’s faithfulness in the Bible comes from the mouth of a heathen prophet. When the Moabite king Balak saw the hordes of Israelites camped along the Jordan across from Jericho, he was filled with dread, and he summoned Balaam to curse the Israelites. However, Balaam was not successful in cursing the Israelites, and when the Moabite king Balak kept forcing him, he said:

God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that He should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?” (Numbers 23:19).

What he was saying is that God is faithful in keeping His promises, and no one can revoke the promises that He has given.

B. God makes His own choices. 

Not only does God keep His promises, He also makes His own choices. Obadiah speaks of the final doom of Edom and the final deliverance and blessing of Israel. However, God had already made His choice between Esau and Jacob, even before they were born. As Malachi later notes:

“Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” the Lord says, “Yet I have loved Jacob, but Esau I have hated, and I have turned his mountains into wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals” (Malachi 1:2-3).

Paul, commenting on this, notes,

Not only that, but Rebekah’s children had one and the same father, our father Isaac. Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God’s purpose in election might stand: not by works but by him who calls—she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” Just as it is written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated” (Romans 9:10-13).

C. We are responsible for the choices we make. 

Edom made his choice, and he suffered the consequences. Moab (Lot) made his choices, and his descendants suffered the consequences. The people of the world make their own choices, and they will suffer the consequences.

1 Peter 4:5. “They will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead”       

We too will have to stand before the Lord to give account of our choices. We will not be condemned like the unbelievers Romans 8:1. However, we will have to give an account to the Lord of how we spend our life, how we use our resources that He has given us as His stewards, how we decide our priorities and goals, and where our heart is set. “These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come” 1 Corinthians 10:11.

Those who trust in the things under the sun will be destroyed along with those things. But those who trust in the Lord will finally be delivered and enjoy His blessing.

Psalm 20:7-8. “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, But we trust in the Name of the Lord our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, But we rise up and stand firm”

1 John 2:17 The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power, all that beauty all that wealth e’er gave, awaits alike the inevitable hour, Paths of glory lead but to the grave … but the man who does the will of God lives forever”

If you ant to know more about the book, please click on the site below:

http://bible.org/seriespage/book-obadiah


 Would you like to know if FREEMASONRY is of the devil? Please, click below:

• Is Freemasonry of the devil?

The Prophet Jonah

The section below is from a study By Richard D. Patterson. 

Jonah’s declaration

In what would appear to be a singularly strange reaction God’s successful prophet Jonah complained bitterly to the Lord: “Oh, LORD, “This is just what I thought would happen when I was in my own country. This is what I tried to prevent by attempting to escape to Tarshish!Because I knew that you are gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in mercy, and one who relents concerning threatened judgment” Jonah 4:2.1

Jonah’s declaration would also appear to be at variance with a sometimes- popular conception that the presentation of the God of the Old Testament, unlike the One of the New Testament, is that of a stern figure who unwaveringly demanded total submission to His will on penalty of severe judgment. Jonah obviously held a different view.

If one should inquire as to how Jonah came to believe this, the answer is readily at hand. For Jonah was the recipient of a long chain of revealed scriptural truth, which demonstrated that Yahweh is not only a God who equitably administers the world in holiness and justice, but is also One whose grace and tender compassion are accompanied by a patient and forgiving nature. Accordingly, He reaches out to a needy mankind with a desire for man’s best. Thus Jonah could understand and react to that which had been revealed earlier.

Jonah’s case underscores the fact that biblical writers utilized earlier biblical authors and texts. Such is, of course, an established fact. For example, this has been abundantly exhibited in the New Testament writer’s use of Old Testament passages, as illustrated recently in a voluminous commentary detailing New Testament texts, which contain, allude to, or are related to Old Testament texts.2

 
Study By Hampton Keathley IV  

I. Author and Book:

 Jonah is one of the most ridiculed books by liberal scholars. The story of a fish swallowing a man and the man living sounds impossible, and since most liberal scholars deny the possibility of the supernatural, they reject the book of Jonah as anything but a fairy tale. I’ve heard people tell a story from the time that such an event actually occurred about a hundred years ago when whaling was popular, but I also heard somewhere that the story was fabricated to try to lend credibility to the book of Jonah. So, we will just have to believe Jonah is true because God says it is true.

Jonah is different than the other prophets because it is not full of prophecies by the prophet, it is instead, about the life of the prophet. Little attention is given to what he actually said. But it does start off the same way the other prophetic books do because we see the phrase, “And the word of the Lord came to Jonah, son of Amittai, saying.”

While most of the other prophets prophesied to Israel and Judah, Jonah’s task was to go to Ninevah and prophesy to them.

I I. Date:

It is difficult to pinpoint when the author of the book actually put the story on paper. It could have been written soon after the events or long after the events. Some date the writing of the book in the Persian period because of certain literary features, vocabulary, etc.

What is clear is that the events of the book took place while Ninevah was capitol of Assyria. At the risk of giving away the plot, the Assyrians repent in the story, and so I would place the events at the beginning of the era when prophets prophesied of the coming destruction by Assyria (eighth century).

This would give the Assyrians time to respond to Jonah’s message, for a new generation or two to come along, who would decline spiritually, and become bad guys again and a threat to Israel


I I I. Content of the Book

A. Jonah disobeying

1. God's Command 1:1-2

God commanded Jonah to go to Ninevah and preach to them about their sinfulness and call them to repentance. This is the only time in the OT where Israel is commanded to actively pursue the Gentiles. God’s Covenant with Abraham mentioned that through Abraham’s descendants God would bless the nations, but no Israelite is ever commanded to go to the nations and tell them about God.

They were to have a passive witness. The Gentiles were supposed to see the difference between their society and Israel’s and be attracted to it. The OT is full of examples of Gentiles who became Jewish proselytes and worshipped Yahweh - Ruth, Jael, Shamgar, the woman at Jericho, etc.

2. Jonah's Disobedience (1-3)

What is Jonah’s reaction to God’s command? He refused. He didn’t say anything. He just left town. Notice the route he took: He went down to Joppa. Found a ship going down to Tarshish, so he went down into the boat. If God is up then down is bad. Every thing Jonah did took him further from God.

3. God's Discipline (1:4-9)

This section emphasizes God’s sovereignty over nature. He sent the wind and caused the sea to heave.

It is the heathen sailors who feared and are praying while the man of God is complacently sleeping below. The sailors were praying to the wrong gods, but they were convicted by the events at sea. Jonah’s lack of reaction is significant. Sin hardens the heart and makes us insensitive. Here we see that Jonah is insensitive to what God is doing.

And we see the first of many contrasts between the heathens and Jonah. Jonah is insensitive, but the heathens are aware that something out of the ordinary is going on and they are praying to their gods.

Jonah’s statement in 1:9 is the exact opposite of what his actions show. He does not fear God. If he did, he would have obeyed the first time, and at the least, been praying because of the storm.

4. Sailor's prayer (1:10-14)

What stand’s out in this section?

They would eventually learn that Jonah’s God was the true God.

1:10 shows that the men were amazed that Jonah would do something to displease his God. They spent their life in fear of their gods, trying to please and pacify them. It is ironic and sad that those who worship the true God - the only God worth fearing - and experience His grace, take advantage of His grace and do not live their life in an effort to please Him.

1:13 shows that the heathen sailors had more compassion than Jonah. They did not want to throw him overboard and tried desperately to get to land without doing that. They begged Jonah’s God’s pardon for what they had to do. This is also a contrast with the man of God who had no compassion on the people of Ninevah.

5. God's Answer (1:15-16)

God responded by calming the sea .

The sailors recognize that the true God is Jonah’s God, so they pray to Yahweh. And after the sea calms, we see that they feared Yahweh and offered sacrifices to Him and made vows. They were probably vows that they would follow and obey Him. This is in contrast to Jonah who disobeyed God.

More Discipline (1:17)

God is not through with Jonah. A great fish comes along and swallows him. There is more irony here. If you remember, Jonah went down, down, down in the first few verses. Now God is sending Jonah down to the depths of Sheol (2:2). At least that is what it felt like to Jonah.

6. Jonah 's Prayer (2:1-9)

Jonah finally prays and thanks God for his deliverance even before he is delivered. This shows that he is convinced God answers prayer.

Some think that at this point Jonah is repenting, especially since he now goes and preaches to Ninevah. But let’s look at his prayer:

Nowhere in his prayer did he mention his own rebellion and sin, so there is no real confession going on here.

He piously considered himself better than the pagans (cf. vs 8-9). What is ironic and sad is that we have already seen that the sailor’s came out looking better than Jonah.

I think Jonah is making a big assumption here that God would deliver him. He certainly didn’t deserve it.

We will see by Jonah’s actions in chapter 4: that he didn’t really repent here.

Feinberg points out that the life of Jonah parallels the history of the nation of Israel, and the phrase, “Salvation is from the Lord” is a key ingredient in that parallel. Like Jonah, Israel was chosen. Like Jonah, Israel rebelled. Like Jonah, Israel received discipline (dispersion and abuse by other nations up to the present day).

Israel looks to military alliances and national defense as the solution but until Israel recognizes that Salvation is from the Lord, there can be no ultimate deliverance. (Charles L. Feinberg, The Minor Prophets, p. 141-43).

I think the life of every individual is also parallel to Jonah’s experience. God calls us, but we rebell. We search for life in everything else but God until we come to a point in our life where we are so low that we finally recognize our inability and come to the conclusion that Salvation is from the Lord.

7. God's Answer (2:10)

God is gracious and He does answer Jonah’s prayer and the fish delivers Jonah to the beach outside of Ninevah.

B. Jonah Obeying (chapter 3)

1. God's Command (3:1-2)

God repeated his command to Jonah to go to Ninevah. I think it shows the grace of God that He gave Jonah a second chance.

2. Jonah's Obedience (3:3-4)

This time Jonah obeys. It seems that there was no complaint this time. God had gotten Jonah's attention.

Jonah's message is a simple one - “In forty days Ninevah will be destroyed!” There wasn't a lot of persuasion. I don't think Jonah tried very hard to persuade them. He would have gone into town, said his piece and left saying something like, “Well, I told them. It's their own fault now when God destroys them.” I think this also shows that Jonah hasn’t really changed his attitude. It seems to me he is obeying, but grudgingly.

3. Ninevah's prayer (3:5-9)

But the people of Ninevah heard him and believed him and repented. And this was a thorough repentance. Everyone from the king down to the cows were crying out. I'm sure the animals were just hungry, but it probably seemed like they were repenting too.

4. God's Answer (3:10)

God is gracious and does not destroy the city.

C. Jonah Learning (Chapter 4)

1. Jonah's Anger (4:1-4)

Jonah is furious when he sees the people's repentance. He knows now that God is not going to destroy them. Here we also see his true heart and further proof that he did not repent in chapter 2. The truth comes out about Jonah's fleeing from God in the beginning. He knew God would forgive them if they repented, but Jonah hated the Assyrians so much he didn't want to even give them the chance to repent.

Why did he hate them? The Assyrians were a dominant world power during this time and had even defeated Israel in a few battles and exacted tribute from Israel. Assyria wasn't just a non-hostile Gentile nation. It was an active enemy of Israel.

2. Jonah's Lesson (4:5-8)

So Jonah goes out of the city to pout and see if maybe God will destroy them. It is hot so God causes a plant to grow and give Jonah shade. The text says Jonah was “extremely happy about the plant.” Then, when the plant withers, Jonah wants to die. Doesn't it seem a little odd that Jonah would be so happy about the plant and so distraught over a plant’s death? I think the author is trying to make a point to us about how Jonah is all mixed up in his priorities.

3. God's question (4:9-11)

God's question brings the point home. If Jonah is so upset about the death of a plant, which he didn't even plant, How much more should God be concerned about the death of human beings. 


I V. Lessons  from this Book

1. We learn about the character of God.

2. We see his omnipotence as he controls the wind, the sea, the fish and the plant. And all of his power is directed toward a single goal - the reclamation of sinful humans - both Jonah and the Ninevites. (Chisholm, Interpreting The Minor Prophets, p. 129)

3. We see his love and compassion as he gives Jonah a second chance and as he forgives the Ninevites.

4. We see that God answers prayer. He answered the sailors' prayers, Jonah's prayer and the Ninevites' prayers.

5. I think it ironic that God would spare the Assyrians so that they could destroy the Northern kingdom of Israel only a few decades later.

6. I think this book shows that Jonah knew a lot about God. He presumed on God's grace and assumed his deliverance while still in the fish. He knew God was compassionate and gracious and would not destroy the

Assyrians if they repented. So, although Jonah knew about God, he did not want to obey him. It could even be said that Jonah disobeyed in the name of justice. (Chisholm, Interpreting The Minor Prophets, p. 130)

The Assyrians certainly had committed enough atrocities that they deserved judgment, and Jonah wanted them to get their due. But he was ignoring the sovereignty of God and disobeying God. He also was displaying a double standard. He was forgetting that Israel had been forgiven many times for her sins and that he himself had just been forgiven for his disobedience. He was a walking contradiction. I think we need to be careful that we do not fall into the same trap.

V. Jonah and the law of love:

I think Jonah gives us a negative illustration of love. I see Jonah as a good example of how we tend to judge others and consider ourselves to be better than others. I mentioned at the beginning of the series that the prophets were more concerned about the present failings of the people to follow the law than with future predictions. Jonah’s life illustrates this failure.

Jesus summed up the whole law in one phrase, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Jonah definitely illustrates not loving one’s neighbor. Loving involves forgiveness. Jonah would not forgive the Assyrians for their evil. Instead, he clung with pride to his heritage as a Jew, the chosen people of God, and he condemned the Assyrians.

I think Jonah mistakenly thought that he deserved the favor of God. I think his prayer in chapter 2 demonstrates that. He called on God for deliverance without repenting of his evil. Why did God choose Israel? Because they were the biggest nation? Because they were more spiritual than the rest? No. He chose them out of grace.

If you read Eze 16, you will see a good description of what Israel was like and what God did for them. It also describes how they became proud and forsook God. They certainly did not deserve the special relationship with God.

Jonah forgot that. If he had recognized his evil, he would have seen that he was just as bad as the Ninevites.

This reminds me of the parable of the unforgiving servant, who was forgiven an enormous debt by the king.

He in turn refused to forgive a fellow slave a small debt. When the king found out, the unforgiving servant was handed over to the torturers until he could repay the debt. I think God was torturing Jonah to try to make him see his evil, so he would repent and so he would recognize that he was no better than the Assyrians. He should have forgiven them and gone to help them.

The message of the unforgiving servant is that we should forgive, because we have been forgiven. Jonah was forgiven and delivered from the fish, but he did not see it that way.

When I read Larry Crabb and Dan Allender’s books, they say that love means moving into another person’s life to build them up, to help them see their evil so they will repent. It usually involves sacrifice on our part and forgiveness for the harm they do to us. I see Jonah as failing to do this. He failed to forgive and therefore was unwilling to move toward the Ninevites to help them see their evil so they could repent and have a relationship with God. He failed to love.

V I. Conclusion and Applications

The book of Jonah and many other prophet's message, strongly suggest that the divine revelation of God’s character in Exodus 34:6-7 and Deuteronomy 32:4 became foundational to future settings where these particular qualities could be applied, elaborated upon, and celebrated.

Assumedly, then, they would be well known to Jonah, even though his primary indebtedness is to Exodus 34:6-7. For Jonah, however, God’s known character had proven to be a stumbling block, first to carrying out his commission to warn the Ninevites of their need of changing their ways and then to their positive response to his preaching. “Apparently, Jonah had forgotten how God provided a sea creature to bring him to repentance. Yet Jonah was not willing to grant God the prerogative of accepting the penitence of the Ninevites.

Jonah grieved over a plant that God had provided Jonah 4:6-8 but was unwilling to grant God the privilege of compassion for needy human beings.”29

Did Jonah respond positively to God’s patient correction (vv.9-11) of His prophet?30 Although the text does not plainly say so, it can be hoped that if, as is likely the case, Jonah is the author of the book that bears his name, he penned this full account of his spiritual journey to underscore the need for compassion for the spiritual needs of all people.

Jonah’s odyssey would thus be a story against himself with God being shown as a patient, loving Lord who gently restored him to further service. Such an indication may well lie in the historic account that Jeroboam II “restored the border of Israel from Lebo Hamath to the north to the sea of the Arabah in the south, in accordance with the word of the LORD God of Israel announced through his servant Jonah son of Amittai, the prophet from Gath Hepher” 2 Kings 14:25.

As well, one of the lesson of Jonah and the revelation of God’s person stand as reminders of the need for the Lord’s character qualities to be reflected and reproduced in the lives of His believing people. Micah thus captures well the need of God’s standard of justice as well as His compassion for the believer:

“He has told you, O man, what is good and what the LORD really wants from you: He wants you to promote justice, to be faithful, and to live obediently before your God” Mic. 6:8. As Kaiser remarks, “This passage is more than just an ethical or cultic substitute for inventions of religion posed by mortals. It is duty indeed, but duty grounded in the character and grace of God… . It was … a call for the natural consequences of truly forgiven men and women to demonstrate the reality of their faith by living it out in the marketplace.”31

No less than the case with Jonah the heed for embodying the divine characteristics inherent in Exodus 34:6-7 and Deuteronomy 32:4 remain true for today’s Christians. Thus Paul reminded the Colossian believers to clothe themselves with compassion (or tenderheartedness—Col.3: 12). In keeping with such an appeal is the quality of mercy, a quality that James 3:13-17 stresses is characteristic of true wisdom and that Jesus repeatedly emphasized e.g., Matt 5;7; 9:13; 12:7. In keeping with both character qualities is the need for believers to be gracious both in their actions Lk. 7:42 and their speech Col. 4:6, and to be faithful Matt. 23:23.

Indeed, faithfulness is often urged upon believers e.g., 1 Tim. 3:11 and exemplified by God’s servants e.g., 1 Tim. 1:12. In keeping with this virtue John conveys a challenge to the Christians at Smyrna, “Remain faithful even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown that is life itself” Rev. 2:10. Not only for the difficult times, as was the case at Smyrna, but it is also incumbent upon believers at all times to be faithful to the end, to compete well in the race of life, and to finish the course cf. 1 Cor. 9:24-27—all the while keeping the faith. Such carries the anticipated blessing and reward of the Lord Himself 2 Tim. 4:7-8.

Two of the more difficult character qualities for many Christians center on forgiveness and patience. Yet each is enjoined upon us in God’s Word. Thus Paul writes to the Ephesian Christians, “Be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ forgave you” Eph. 4:32. He also reminds the Colossians to remember just as God has forgiven them, so they are to have a forgiving heart toward others Col. 3:12.

Patience, too, is often difficult for many to achieve. Yet it is a divine quality that is desperately needed by all of us. Because God is long suffering, He bore with a world of total spiritual bankruptcy in the days of Noah 1 Pet. 3:20. Similarly, He yet delays the Great Day of Judgment so as to prolong the day of salvation 2 Pet. 3:15. Indeed, God’s patience ought to bring men to repentance Rom. 2:4; 9:22-24; and surely because God is patient, believers also ought to be patient cf. Matt. 18:21-35. Every Christian should be marked by godly patience toward all 1 Thess. 5:14.

Indeed, patience makes us worthy to walk in our calling Eph. 4:2; Col. 3:12 and helps reproduce the same performance of faith in other believers Heb. 6:11-12. Perhaps Paul has encapsulated all the needed virtues in writing, “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another” Col. 3:12-13a.

There are other lessons to be learned from journeying with Jonah. Thus like Jonah Christians can be “about the Master’s business” but be “too busy” to spend time with Him or in His Word. Therefore, our spiritual quest becomes sidetracked. Even our worship experience can degenerate into a mere routine, as was the case too often in ancient Israel.32 There is therefore the need for each of us not only to be submissive to the standards of God in His Word, but to love Him supremely and to be in daily fellowship with Him.

As well, a missionary imperative springs out of Jonah’s experience. It is all too easy to criticize Jonah for his attitude with regard to the Ninevites, but a similar disregard or disdain for enemy nations, terrorists, or “unlovely” people can too often stand in the way of our extending the Gospel message of God’s saving forgiveness in Christ to them.

“Jonah’s story thus reminds us of the need for sharing the Word of God with an unbelieving world and for praying for all people everywhere cf. 1 Tim. 2:1-6. The desperate condition of the lost and the urgency of the times demand that as unrepentant generation be confronted with the lesson of Nineveh: “Someone greater than Jonah is here” Matt 12:41.”33

If you want to know more about the book, please click on the sites below:

http://bible.org/article/scripture-interpreting-scripture-case-jonah-42 

http://bible.org/passage/299/Jonah


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