Background on the Book of Jonah

Background - Context of the times Jonah prophesied (800-750 B.C.). The nation of Israel was divided into two kingdoms – the Northern Kingdom of Israel, also called Samaria. It consisted of ten of the twelve tribes of Israel. Its capital was Samaria. The Southern Kingdom consisted of two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, with its capital in Jerusalem.

Life in the Northern Kingdom of Israel.

Northern Kingdom - Jonah prophesied during the reign of Jereboam II, an evil king who did what was evil in the sight of God. Jonah prophesied about the same time as two other prophets - Amos and Hosea. All three prophesied in the Northern Kingdom. We first encounter Jonah in the Bible in II Kings 14:23-27.

23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel became king in Samaria, and reigned forty-one years.
24 He did evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel sin.
25 He restored the border of Israel from the entrance of Hamath as far as the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the LORD, the God of Israel, which He spoke through His servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was of Gath-hepher.
26 For the LORD saw the affliction of Israel, which was very bitter; for there was neither bond nor free, nor was there any helper for Israel.
27 The LORD did not say that He would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven, but He saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.

Jonah was born in Gath-hepher in the Northern kingdom – a town northeast of Nazareth near the sea of Galilee. What did Jonah prophecy about? It was good stuff. He prophesied about the restoration of Israel’s borders. Despite Israel’s sins, God showed compassion/mercy on Israel. God hoped that by showing mercy to Israel they would see him as the one true God and return to Him. God’s word through Jonah was fulfilled by Jereboam II. Israel’s borders were expanded during his reign. The Northern Kingdom was strong politically. Economic prosperity soon followed. God had blessed the Northern Kingdom. Unfortunately, during this time of prosperity, Israel developed spiritual arrogance/pride. They thought they were special because they were God’s chosen people/most favored nation. They were the children Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Illustrations of pride:

a) Prosperity led to moral and religious corruption (idolatry – God called it adultery. He often called Israel an adulteress/prostitute; sexual immorality, no compassion for the poor, widows, orphans). The people of the Northern Kingdom were not concerned about their spiritual decline. After all, they were still “worshipping” God. They continued to perform the worship rituals God required of them. They worshipped God on the Sabbath as required. But the rest of the time they lived life however they pleased. They believed God would still bless them regardless of how they lived their lives. After all, the people of Israel were His Chosen People. Is this attitude prevalent among people in today’s Church? As long as I go to church on Sunday, tithe my 10%, and do a good deed every once in awhile, God will bless me.

b) Pride created a heart of prejudice in the people of the Northern Kingdom towards other peoples of the world whom the people of Israel referred to as Gentiles. The people in Northern Kingdom lived in expectation of the “day of the Lord” (Amos 5:18-20) when God would wipe out all the Gentile nations while Israel relaxes in His light. According to Jewish tradition, Gentiles were fuel for the fires of hell. God had no use for any other nation but Israel because the Israelites were His people. That was not true. Israel was chosen by God to be a light to all nations. They were to be an example of what it meant to be a people of God for other nations to follow. They were to point the peoples of the world to God. Read Genesis 12:2-3; I Kings 8:41-43; Jeremiah 3:14 - 4: 2; Zecheriah. 2:11; 8:20-23.

The Assyrian Empire

Assyria was the most powerful empire in the region. See map. Its greatest city was Nineveh. Its ruins can be seen today near the city of Mosul in Iraq. The Assyrians were known for their cruelty. It was a very militaristic society. Conquest was a divine mission of kings. Their writings reflect their pride in the devastation of their enemies. The Assyrians rejoiced in butchery. Quotes from Assyrian kings - “I cut their throats like sheep,” recorded one king. Another king - “I caused great slaughter. I destroyed, I demolished, I burned. I took their warriors prisoner and impaled them on stakes before their cities.” After sacking one city, an Assyrian king stacked the corpses of the dead like firewood outside the gate, then flayed the nobles who opposed them, and spread their skins out on the piles. After another battle, a king wrote “Many of the captives I burned in fire. Many I took alive; from some I cut off their hands to the wrist, from others I cut off their noses, ears, and fingers; I put out the eyes of many of the soldiers. I burnt their young women and men to death.” What was the purpose of such cruelty by Assyria? It was a deliberate design to instill fear and submission into conquered peoples. The Assyrians also used exile as a means to enforce their rule. They shuffled peoples of different nations from one place to another in the Middle East. Many were sent to Assyria to work as laborers/artisans. The Assyrians shifted 4 million people around Middle East. Consequently, the Northern Kingdom, along with all other peoples in the Middle East, lived in constant terror of Assyria. It was this huge, bloody monster on Israel’s border poised to swallow the Northern Kingdom at any moment. The threat of Assyria added more fuel to Israel’s hatred of Gentiles.

The Assyrians were a very religious people. The Assyrian king was a spiritual leader as well as a political leader. The Assyrian king was regarded as an earthly delegate of the gods. His number one priority was to keep the gods happy. He did this by consulting priests, oracles, exorcists, diviners, astrologers, and soothsayers, fasting, or retreating to a reed hut for a week. The Assyrians were also a very superstitious people. A solar eclipse foretold the death of the Assyrian king. When a solar eclipse began the king quickly abdicated in favor of a substitute. After 100 days, the king returned to the capital. The substitute king and his family members were then killed to fulfill the prophecy.

At the end of our study of the Book of Jonah, we will answer the following questions: Why was Book of Jonah included in Scripture? What did God want Israel to learn from Book of Jonah? Did they? What does God want us to learn from the Book of Jonah? Do you and I get it?