He Did Not Run: What Jonah Shows Us About Jesus
"Then Jesus said, 'For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.'" — Matthew 12:40 (ESV)
Though I’ve generally avoided the prophets in my study (it’s up there with Leviticus!), they do tend to be a lot easier to see Christ. It’s even easier when Jesus makes that connection himself, as he does in Matthew 12:40!
Sometimes we see Jesus as a foreshadowing in the foreshadowing of a great leader. Joseph, Moses, Joshua, David—they are great men, but their failings remind us that we need an even greater deliverer and king.
Then, there are others who point to Jesus by being the opposite, like Jonah. By including Jonah’s story, we see who Jesus is in contrast with Jonah. So what do we learn about Jesus as we look at Jonah’s story?
Jonah, the Anti-Prophet
Some of the prophets, like Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, record their “calling” stories. Isaiah responds in awe. Jeremiah protests that he is too young. Ezekiel is led by the Spirit to the people, and he does some rather strange things. They may have felt too sinful or too young, but they obeyed. Their passion and love for Him fueled their desire for others to turn back to Him as well.
Jonah, on the other hand, is an anti-prophet. God calls him to go east to Nineveh, but he boards a ship going west. He sleeps through the storm without a care in the world, even though it is entirely his fault. Instead of confessing his guilt, he waits till the lot reveals him as the culprit.
Even after God graciously rescues him through the great fish, he remains unchanged. He preaches the shortest and most reluctant sermon in Scripture—and the entire city repents. What more could a prophet want?
Chapter 4 tells us a lot about Jonah. It’s not that he doesn’t have any compassion. He was quite upset when his special plant died. He just didn’t have any pity for those God loved.
And that contrast tells us so much about Jesus.
Jesus, the Compassionate Prophet
In Acts 3:22, Peter identifies Jesus as the prophet that Moses was looking forward to—the one God will raise up among them—and tells them to listen to him. Hebrews 1:1-2 contrast Jesus with the prophets of the past, calling him the prophet of these last days—the heir of all things and the agent of creation.
When the scribes and Pharisees demand a sign from Jesus, He tells them the only sign they will receive is the sign of Jonah: three days in the belly of the earth, then resurrection. The sign is already standing in front of them, and they are missing it.
But Jesus does not only fulfill Jonah's story. He reverses it — at every point.
Jonah runs from the mission. Jesus sets His face toward Jerusalem without hesitation or detour, knowing exactly what waits there (Luke 9:51).
Jonah is caught in his guilt and thrown into the sea by others. Jesus offers Himself willingly — innocent and undeserving of death — to pay for the sins of many (Matthew 20:28). Jonah's descent is the consequence of disobedience. Christ's descent is the choice of love.
Jonah may be patriotic but it hardens him. Jesus feels pity: for the crowds, bearing heavy burdens (Matt. 9:36). For those who are affected with disease (Mark 1:40-41). And even for Jerusalem, with their hard-hearted rejection of the One they’ve been waiting for (Luke 19:41-44).
Instead of being a reluctant preacher, Jesus urgently entreats those who refuse Him. Jonah would rather die because God was merciful. Jesus was willing to die so that the world might experience God's mercy.
Same mission. Opposite hearts.
Jesus tells the Pharisees that the people of Nineveh repented at Jonah's preaching — and someone greater than Jonah is standing before them (Matthew 12:41). The greater one is not a better version of Jonah. He perfectly fulfills what Jonah did not. He was the prophet who did not run, the servant who did not resent seeing God’s mercy bestowed on sinners, the Son who went into the deep willingly and came out with authority.
Good News For Us
Maybe you too have been running from what you know God wants you to do. Jonah’s story reminds us that we might try, but we will never outrun Him.
But neither does this mean that we have no choice. God not only shows him mercy by preserving him in and through the belly of the fish, He also gives Jonah a second chance. He repeats the same call to him. Jonah obeys this time, albeit with reluctance—perhaps because he now knows what happens if he doesn’t!
Maybe there’s something God is calling you to do but you’ve been hedging or negotiating your way around it. This is something I need to learn today. I believe God is calling me to take some steps of faith and I’ve been pushing it off or making excuses: I’ve got too much going on right now. I don’t know enough. Others can do a better job.
However, all these excuses only means I’m the one missing out. While I might delay the hardships that come with obedience, I also delay the joy of fellowship with Him through these challenges. I miss out on deepening my faith and knowing Him more as I trust Him with all my excuses.
Or maybe, like Jonah, you’ve been sitting in a hard place. You are even angry that God is showing kindness to people who don’t deserve it while you’re suffering. It feels like others are the recipient of His pity while you are outside it.
Remember, our God does see you. The answer to sin and suffering has come in Jesus, the one who pities and has compassion on us. He has already shown that love for us on the cross. That grace has extended to you and to me. Jesus gives us His own life and does not run from it.
God's mercy is always available to those who repent. This is His character. We can bank on it, whether we’re trying to run from him or whether we feel resentful of His mercy. This is the nature of our Savior, shown here in Jonah.
