Jonah 1:1-6: a reflection

1Now the LORD’s word came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2“Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach against it, for their wickedness has come up before me.” 3But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid its fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. 4But the LORD sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty storm on the sea, so that the ship was likely to break up. 5Then the mariners were afraid, and every man cried to his god. They threw the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone down into the innermost parts of the ship and he was laying down, and was fast asleep. 6So the ship master came to him, and said to him, “What do you mean, sleeper? Arise, call on your God! Maybe your God will notice us, so that we won’t perish.”

When God calls Jonah to go to Nineveh, Jonah instead tries to flee from God's presence, boarding a ship in the opposite direction, only to find that he cannot escape God or his call, and that running from it leads into the storm. Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, the account says; but the LORD sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a great storm. God had called Jonah to go and preach to Nineveh; but Jonah, unwilling, tried to run away, boarding a ship going the opposite direction, seeking to flee from God's presence and his call. Yet he could not escape: God sent a great storm, and Jonah, asleep below deck, was roused by a pagan sailor to call on his God. Running from God's call led not to peace, but into the storm. This shows that we cannot flee from God or his call; running from it leads into the storm. You cannot flee from God or his call. Running from what God asks leads not to peace, but into the storm. There is no escaping God's presence by going the other way. Better to obey God's call than to flee it into trouble.

Notice what Jonah tried and what came of it. God gave Jonah a clear call: go to Nineveh. But Jonah did not want to go, and so he tried to flee, not just to disobey, but to run away from God's presence altogether, boarding a ship headed the opposite direction, as far as he could go. He thought, perhaps, to escape God and his unwelcome call by running. But he could not. God was not left behind; God sent a great storm on the sea, and Jonah's flight led him not to freedom and peace, but into danger and trouble, roused from his sleep by a frightened sailor. Running from God's call led into the storm. This holds a truth worth taking to heart. We cannot finally flee from God or escape his call by going the other way. God is not left behind when we run; his presence is not escaped by distance. And running from what God calls us to do does not lead to peace and freedom, but tends to lead us into trouble, into storms of our own making. When God calls us to something we would rather avoid, we may be tempted, like Jonah, to run from it; but this is not the path to peace. It is far better to obey God's call than to flee it, for we cannot escape him, and fleeing leads into the storm. We do well not to flee from God's call, which we cannot escape and which leads into the storm, but to obey it. Do not try to flee from God or his call; you cannot escape him. Running from what God asks leads into the storm, not into peace. God's presence is not escaped by going the other way. Better to obey God's call than to flee it into trouble.

That is worth taking to heart, for we cannot flee from God or his call, and running from it leads into the storm, as Jonah's flight led into the storm. We can try to run from what God calls us to do; but Jonah found he could not escape God, and his flight led into a great storm. There is no fleeing God. When God calls you to something you would rather avoid, do not try to flee it; you cannot escape him, and running leads not to peace but into the storm. Do not try to flee from God or the call he gives you, for you cannot escape him and running from it leads not to peace but into the storm, as when God called Jonah to go to Nineveh, Jonah instead tried to flee from God's presence, boarding a ship in the opposite direction, only to find he could not escape God or his call, since the LORD sent a great wind and storm on the sea; for God had called Jonah to preach to Nineveh, but Jonah, unwilling, tried to run away and flee from God's presence, yet could not escape, since God sent a great storm and Jonah asleep below deck was roused by a pagan sailor to call on his God, so that running from God's call led not to peace but into the storm, which holds a truth worth taking to heart, that we cannot finally flee from God or escape his call by going the other way, since God is not left behind when we run and his presence is not escaped by distance, and running from what God calls us to do does not lead to peace and freedom but tends to lead us into trouble and storms of our own making, so that when God calls us to something we would rather avoid we may be tempted like Jonah to run, but this is not the path to peace, and it is far better to obey God's call than to flee it, for we cannot escape him and fleeing leads into the storm.

Lord, when you call Jonah to go to Nineveh, Jonah instead tries to flee from your presence, boarding a ship in the opposite direction, only to find that he cannot escape you or your call, and that running from it leads into the storm. Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, the account says; but the LORD sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a great storm. You had called Jonah to go and preach to Nineveh; but Jonah, unwilling, tried to run away, seeking to flee from your presence and your call. Yet he could not escape: you sent a great storm, and Jonah, asleep below deck, was roused by a pagan sailor to call on his God. Running from your call led not to peace, but into the storm. Show me what Jonah tried and what came of it. You gave Jonah a clear call: go to Nineveh. But Jonah did not want to go, and so he tried to flee, not just to disobey, but to run away from your presence altogether, as far as he could go. He thought, perhaps, to escape you and your unwelcome call by running. But he could not. You were not left behind; you sent a great storm on the sea, and his flight led him not to freedom and peace, but into danger and trouble. Running from your call led into the storm. This holds a truth worth taking to heart. I cannot finally flee from you or escape your call by going the other way. You are not left behind when I run; your presence is not escaped by distance. And running from what you call me to do does not lead to peace and freedom, but tends to lead me into trouble, into storms of my own making. When you call me to something I would rather avoid, I may be tempted, like Jonah, to run from it; but this is not the path to peace. Take that to my heart. When you call me to something I would rather avoid, keep me from trying to flee it; help me obey your call, Lord, rather than run from it, knowing I cannot escape you and that fleeing leads not to peace but into the storm.