The question was put to Jonah after Nineveh repented and God spared the city, when the prophet was angry that it had been spared rather than destroyed. His anger ran so deep that he wished to die rather than see Nineveh live. By asking whether he does well to be angry, the Lord calls him to face squarely whether his anger is right. The question is not dismissal but examination, pressing for a verdict on his own spirit and preparing the way for further instruction.
It exposes his anger as resentful and self-centered. He was concerned for his own reputation, wishes, feelings, humiliation, and will instead of sharing God's compassion. He failed to rejoice in the mercy shown to the people and to care about their lives as God cared. The rebuke thus lays bare a heart set on self vindication rather than on the salvation of others.
That searching question prepares Jonah for the lesson of the gourd. His pity for the gourd or plant is set in contrast with God's compassion for Nineveh. The lesson shows that God's mercy toward Nineveh was as fitting as Jonah's pity for what had sheltered him. It is made still more forceful because Nineveh's people had not been taught to do right, yet were objects of divine compassion.
The same question rebukes anger that comes from wanting events to go one's own way. It rebukes displeasure with God's choice to prosper His work and carry it forward for the people's good and His own glory. Jonah was angry because matters had not gone according to his will, and the divine inquiry meets that spirit wherever it appears.
Jonah's grief over the reprieve parallels the disappointment of those who expected the Lord's coming and the end in 1844. As he grieved that the city was spared, so they were tempted to grieve that the expected end did not come. They are warned not to remain in personal, selfish sorrow over humiliation but to trust God's wisdom and mercy. They were to recognize with gratitude that God had granted the world more time to prepare and to rejoice in His mercy. That added time allowed the warning of judgment to reach more people, gave opportunity to be tested with greater light, and left room for people to repent, be saved, and be brought to salvation through continued work.
The question was put to Jonah after Nineveh repented and God spared the city, when the prophet was angry that it had been spared rather than destroyed. His anger ran so deep that he wished to die rather than see Nineveh live. By asking whether he does well to be angry, the Lord calls him to face squarely whether his anger is right. The question is not dismissal but examination, pressing for a verdict on his own spirit and preparing the way for further instruction.
It exposes his anger as resentful and self-centered. He was concerned for his own reputation, wishes, feelings, humiliation, and will instead of sharing God's compassion. He failed to rejoice in the mercy shown to the people and to care about their lives as God cared. The rebuke thus lays bare a heart set on self vindication rather than on the salvation of others.
That searching question prepares Jonah for the lesson of the gourd. His pity for the gourd or plant is set in contrast with God's compassion for Nineveh. The lesson shows that God's mercy toward Nineveh was as fitting as Jonah's pity for what had sheltered him. It is made still more forceful because Nineveh's people had not been taught to do right, yet were objects of divine compassion.
The same question rebukes anger that comes from wanting events to go one's own way. It rebukes displeasure with God's choice to prosper His work and carry it forward for the people's good and His own glory. Jonah was angry because matters had not gone according to his will, and the divine inquiry meets that spirit wherever it appears.
Jonah's grief over the reprieve parallels the disappointment of those who expected the Lord's coming and the end in 1844. As he grieved that the city was spared, so they were tempted to grieve that the expected end did not come. They are warned not to remain in personal, selfish sorrow over humiliation but to trust God's wisdom and mercy. They were to recognize with gratitude that God had granted the world more time to prepare and to rejoice in His mercy. That added time allowed the warning of judgment to reach more people, gave opportunity to be tested with greater light, and left room for people to repent, be saved, and be brought to salvation through continued work.