Jonah – The Consolations of Writing

Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Christmas Eve

The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat,the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them…They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters coverContinue reading “Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Christmas Eve”

Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 25

But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tellContinue reading “Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 25”

Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 24

But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?” “It is,” he said. “And I’m so angry I wish I were dead.” Jonah 4:9 Again, God asks Jonah if his anger is right, this time his anger about the destruction of the plant. And Jonah, oblivious to theContinue reading “Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 24”

Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 23

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.” Jonah 4:8 There’s a parallel moment to this in the Old Testament, when the prophet Elijah,Continue reading “Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 23”

Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 22

Then the Lord God provided a leafy plant and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the plant. But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered. When the sun rose,Continue reading “Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 22”

Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 21

Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 20

Are you right to be angry?The question smarts like a slapped face.Wrong wording.Whether or not I am right, my anger deserves the time of day.So turn a sullen, smarting cheek.Stare into the raging haze.Grace taps your chipped shoulder.Grace takes the heat from your brow,yet inwardly you burn with a summer sun that has no roomContinue reading “Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 20”

Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 19

Jonah had gone 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. Jonah 4:5 Jonah, like me, has no answer to God for his anger. He can give the reason for it, butContinue reading “Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 19”

Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 18

But the Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry?” Jonah 4:4 The answer, of course, has to be no. No, it isn’t right for Jonah to be angry. He has just identified one of God’s must defining characteristics for Israel – His mercy – and framed it as a problem, something to “forestall”. SoContinue reading “Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 18”

Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 17

He prayed to the Lord, “Isn’t this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing 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, Lord, takeContinue reading “Advent with the Prophet Jonah: Day 17”