Jonah’s Second Opportunity (sermon: Jonah 3:1-10) | 8/17/25

This is from the Sunday Gathering worship service at 9AM at PAX Christian Church on 08/17/2025

We are a non-denominational church in Gardnerville, NV.
The current series is Jonah
This week’s message is “Jonah’s Second Opportunity” (sermon: Jonah 3:1-10)
Speaker: Brian Lucas | Pax Co-Lead Pastor

Get the notes: https://www.bible.com/events/49473906

Jonah's Second Opportunity (sermon: Jonah 3:1-10) | Pax Christian Church 8/17/25 – PAX Christian Church Sermons

This is from the Sunday Gathering worship service at 9AM at PAX Christian Church on 08/17/2025We are a non-denominational church in Gardnerville, NV.This week's message is "Jonah's Second Opportunity" (sermon: Jonah 3:1-10)Speaker: Brian Lucas | Co-Lead Pastor Find out more about PAX: http://paxchristian.church

NOTES:

Jonah 3:1-10 NIV

Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.” Jonah obeyed the word of the LORD and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it. Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth. When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.” When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.

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Look at the parallels between the first chapter and this third chapter:

Jonah 3:1 NIV

Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time

Jonah 1:1 NIV

The word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai

Jonah 3:2 NIV

“Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.”

Jonah 1:2 NIV

“Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”

Jonah 3:3 NIV

Jonah obeyed the word of the LORD and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it.

Jonah 1:3 NIV

But Jonah ran away from the LORD and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the LORD.

Reversal and juxtaposition of the first and third chapters.

“the word of the LORD came to…” used over 100x in the OT.
Both times here:
GOD: “Get up and go…”
JONAH: “Got up and went…”
But the 1st time, Jonah went away.
THIS TIME, Jonah obeys and goes where God told him to go.

Jonah 3:4 NIV

Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”

Will be overturned. The verb hāpak, ‘overturn’, is used elsewhere to describe the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19:25; Lam. 4:6; Amos 4:11). The basic idea underlying the verb is ‘to turn’. On occasions it means ‘to overturn’ (2 Kgs 21:13, ‘to overturn a plate’). However, it can also mean ‘to turn around’, ‘transform’ (1 Kgs 22:34, ‘to turn around a chariot’; Jer. 13:23, ‘to transform one’s appearance’). With these different connotations the use of the word here is hardly accidental. Although Nineveh was not overturned, it did experience a turn around.”

Donald J. Wiseman, T. Desmond Alexander, and Bruce K. Waltke, Obadiah, Jonah and Micah: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 26 of Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 133–134.

THIS IS ABOUT GOD’S GRACE.
Because GRACE is meaningless if there is no consequence otherwise.

Jonah 3:5 NIV

The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.

The Ninevites (much like the pagan sailors before them) believed God (or believed in God) and repented.

This is what God expects of Jonah, to believe God and obey.
This is what God expects of Israel, but rarely gets from them.
This is what God expects…

Jonah 3:6 NIV

When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.

Some word play:
there’s a lot of “cry out” and “proclaim”.
There’s a lot of “repent/turn/relent/change”

Here, the king:
Arises.
puts OFF clothes
puts ON sackcloth
Sits down.

Chiastic journey.
Transformation.
The message goes from the lowest people and animals,
to the highest (king) person,
who makes himself low.

THIS IS THE GOSPEL: ALL ARE SAVED BY FAITH IN CHRIST.
EVERY KNEE WILL BOW. EVERY TONGUE CONFESS: “JESUS IS LORD”

Jonah 3:7-9 NIV

This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink.But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence.Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.”

Repent. because it’s right.
AND MAYBE GOD WILL RELENT and not kill us.
BUT REPENT ANYWAY.

Jonah 3:10 NIV

When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.

“Maybe he will relent…”
AND HE DOES!

Now. God does not “repent” like we think of it… he’s not “sorry” that he was going to, or did anything wrong.
God changes course. He doesn’t destroy Nineveh (at that time).
That’s what repentance is (biblically).
He turned from where he was / what he was going to do.

Jonah 3:10 NIV

When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.

THIS IS ABOUT YHWH.
THIS IS ABOUT OBEDIENCE.
THIS IS ABOUT GRACE.
THIS IS ABOUT REPENTANCE.

Targum Jonathan (a translation of the Prophets into Aramaic, for use in the synagogue) addresses this question in its introduction to Nahum: “In former times, Jonah son of Amittai, the prophet from Gath Hepher, prophesied against her, and she repented from her sins, but then, when she sinned again, Nahum of the house of Qoshi prophesied against her again, as is written in this book” (Nah 1:1). The implicit message of the Twelve to its readers is that God’s forgiveness cannot be taken for granted. Although the Lord is “a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing” (Jonah 4:2; compare Exod 34:6–7 and Nah 1:3), it is disastrous to presume upon the Lord’s grace.

Steven Tuell, “Nahum, Book of,” in The Lexham Bible Dictionary, ed. John D. Barry et al. (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2016).

Ezekiel 3:17-21 NIV

“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.But if you do warn the wicked person and they do not turn from their wickedness or from their evil ways, they will die for their sin; but you will have saved yourself.“Again, when a righteous person turns from their righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block before them, they will die. Since you did not warn them, they will die for their sin. The righteous things that person did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.But if you do warn the righteous person not to sin and they do not sin, they will surely live because they took warning, and you will have saved yourself.”

John 8:24 NIV

I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am he, you will indeed die in your sins.”

Matthew 28:18-20 NIV

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spiritand teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Romans 5:1 NIV

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ

WILL YOU OBEY GOD?
Will you share the good news, that in Christ there is life?
THERE IS PEACE WITH GOD, FOR EVERYONE WHO BELIEVES, THROUGH CHRIST JESUS.

Matthew 12:41 NIV

The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now something greater than Jonah is here.

Luke 13:1-5 NIV

Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices.Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way?I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem?I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.”

Mark 1:15 NIV

“The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”

EXAMINE YOUR HEART.
TURN TO GOD.
REPENT.

If you have done so, then know that the path God is placing you on includes sharing this good news with others.

AND KNOW THAT FOR THEM AND FOR YOU, THERE IS GRACE IN CHRIST.

2 Peter 3:9 NIV

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

Hebrews 4:16 NIV

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Ephesians 2:1-10 NIV

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sinsin which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercymade us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesusin order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of Godnot by works, so that no one can boast.For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.