Anger (or, the Book of Jonah) Part Four

'But Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry. He prayed to the Lord, "O Lord, is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, O Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.'

But the Lord replied, 'Have you any right to be angry?'

Jonah went out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. Then the Lord God provided a vine and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the vine.

But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the vine so that it withered. When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah's head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die, and said, 'It would be better for me to die than to live.'

But God said to Jonah, 'Do you have a right to be angry about the vine?'

'I do,' he said. 'I am angry enough to die.'

But the Lord said, 'You have been concerned about this vine, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?'"

Jonah 4

Jonah is torqued. And from a human perspective, I can totally see why. Not only has he had the worst time of his life getting to Ninevah (conveniently forgetting that he was the reason it was so difficult), but now God has forgiven Ninevah with seeming ease. Jonah must be thinking, "What?! No fire!? No brimstone!? Not even a measly rain or slow drought to show them they had a close call??? I was swallowed by a freaking FISH for crying out loud! Where is their mighty lesson? This was pointless. This whole trip was stupid." He even goes one step further beyond being "displeased" and "angry." He questions God and, in typical human fashion, flips the whole situation, justifying his previous actions. "Is this not what I said when I was still home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish."

Before I continue further, I'll state a pretty obvious fact: Jonah is having trouble with the whole, "love your enemies" concept. Granted, the Assyrians couldn't have been the most lovable people around (go look them up, they were brutal...actually, brutal is a tame term for them), but as God's prophet, he should have been overjoyed at the Ninevites quick turn around. I'm actually glad that Jonah has struggled this entire book, and that this is the final icing on the cake. And I'll tell you why. I love that the Bible isn't filled with "holier-than-thou-art" people who always do the right thing, who always are perfect. You know why? Because it's unrealistic, and because there is so much more to be learned from a flawed perspective. Also, it is such powerful testimony to the fact that God uses those who think they are the least qualified to accomplish something beyond their wildest dreams. Jonah has just saved an entire city (120,000 people, as the passage later says), and yet he is angry?

I love God's response to Jonah. It's short, simple, powerful. "Have you any right to be angry?"

Hold up Jonah, think about that for a second. Do you have a right to be angry? Why are you aching for personal revenge to have the city suffer for your own sufferings? But Jonah doesn't even reply! In fact, if you read the passage, it doesn't even seem like he acknowledges what God has said. And what does he do next? Like a small child he runs away to pout. In the desert. Once again making life way harder than it needs to be for himself. And, gathering from the passage, attempting to test God---but the wrong way with the wrong motivations. While Jonah waits "to see what would happen to the city," the Ninevites are celebrating their new lease on life. While Jonah is pouting, God's compassion and mercy is obvious to all who are willing to see it. And Jonah obviously isn't willing to see it, so how can he experience it? How often do I sulk and refuses to see something that God has placed right in front of me?

Then God decides to show Jonah his final lesson for the book. He makes a vine grow and then takes it away from Jonah. When He asks Jonah about it, Jonah still is adamant that he has a right to be angry. And then God completely pwns Jonah (in a good way, I promise). It reminds me of the passage in Psalms that talks about how not even a sparrow can fall to the ground without the Lord's notice, how he can number the hairs on our head. And if God is concerned such a problem as my hair and the tiny sparrow which nests outside my window, than how could he ignore a huge city of people? He can't. It's not within His nature. Jonah is missing another crucial facet of God's being. Our God is one of deep compassion and mercy. He does not delight in pain. And his aim is never to condemn without warning or an opportunity to claim His grace. I think that is one of the overwhelming themes of this book. God has COMPASSION. He has incredible MERCY. It is only up to the individual to seek our God's love, for that love is already ready and waiting to be claimed.

So, what right do we have to be angry? None. Am I willing to see God's compassion and mercy and grace, and to share it with others, or do I get upset at the inconvenience it causes me? Am I going to be like Jonah, who fights against God and denies His very nature, or am I going to have an attitude like that of the Ninevites, repentant, pensive, overjoyed at the grace available? I love the flip. The rebellious "man of God" and the "wicked" future repentant people. It's almost a paradox. It makes you think, and, like most things lately for me, it is a conviction.

So, Jonah, why are you angry? And do you have any right to be?