When my kids were in elementary school, each of them had to work on a Tall Tale project. Tall Tales are narratives with fantastic, unbelievable, impossible elements, that tell a story as if the elements were true and factual. Other tall tales have elements of truth but extreme exaggerations of actual events. I remember my kids studied tales like Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill, and Johnny Appleseed. Then, they had to write their own tall tale which they made into a book. It really was a lot of fun.
Today, we get a tall tale from the Old Testament. Quite honestly, when people read the book of Jonah, we find out what kind of readers they are – whether they are literalists or lovers of a story that is not factually true but communicates a much deeper truth. And, the literalists lose out on this one. The book of Jonah is a wildly funny, improbable, subversive story and, because we get only the middle part of this tale in today’s reading, I really need share with you the whole story.
The first thing you need to know is that many theologians believe the story of Jonah is midrash, a practice in which Jewish rabbis would take a verse from scripture and expound upon it, tell a story to explain it, and give commentary regarding it. Midrash commentaries were often humorous, and the story of Jonah has all these markings. The story of Jonah is likely midrash based on a verse from Joel, which Jonah later quotes in complaint. To set the context for this story, you should also know that Jonah’s people were part of ancient Israel…and Israel had this enemy called Assyria, the imperial force of the day. Assyria’s capitol and seat of power was Nineveh. The Assyrians were ruthless. They had ravaged and pillaged much of Israel, they had taken their wealth, occupied their land, and demanded the people of Israel pay them tribute. The Assyrians were despised enemies.
Anyway, the word of the Lord comes to this very reluctant prophet called Jonah and God says, “Go at once, head east to that great city of Nineveh and proclaim the message I tell you!” So, what does Jonah do? Not wanting to go to that wicked city, he goes west to Tarshish, the city that was, at that time, thought to be as far west as one could possibly go. Jonah takes a boat in the exact opposite direction of Nineveh at which point God causes a bad storm. The sailors realize that Jonah is the problem, and they throw him overboard. Then, just before drowning, Jonah is swallowed by a big fish and for three days our hero is given a whale of a time-out. Nothing like sitting in the dark, slimy belly of a large aquatic creature for a few days to make you reflect and think about what you have done. So, from inside the large fish, Jonah thanks God for God’s mercy in saving him from the deep. Then, Jonah gets thrown up on the shores of…you guessed it, Nineveh! Gross – but very funny. Jonah thought he could escape what God called him to do and now he is covered in whale puke.
Well, the fun continues. When he gets to Nineveh, he moans to God that the city is absurdly humongous, a three-days walk, or about sixty miles. How could he ever possibly cover that much distance? Anyway, he whines and complains, but he does do what God commands. When he gets to Nineveh, he is the most ridiculous, reluctant prophet, with the most hopeless message ever. He speaks a paltry little eight-word sermon, saying, “Just forty days, and you will be overthrown.” No message about God, just those eight words! You see, Jonah really did not want to share the news of God’s mercy to those hated Assyrians and his message was truly a measly proclamation. Yet, almost in spite of Jonah, Nineveh does repent along with all of the livestock! The people and the livestock fast and put on sackcloth! Now, think about it – repenting cows wearing sackcloth? Anyway, as the people repent, God changes God’s mind! In fact, the story says God repents and the people are saved. Then, hilariously, Jonah storms off like a little kid, pouting because the people really did repent! He then takes an ancient, beautiful song of praise from the book of Joel, the verse on which the midrash is based, twists it and uses it to complain to God as he says, “That’s why I fled in the first place, because I knew you are a gracious God, a merciful God, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love!” And, for extra melodrama, he adds, “Just kill me now.” God responds by making a tree grow, then wither, all in a lighthearted attempt to show Jonah something about compassion. Then, God asks Jonah, “If you care about a tree, why can’t I care about Nineveh?”
That is the story of the very reluctant prophet, Jonah. It’s a great tall tale. So, what is it about? Friends, Jonah is one of those stories in the Bible that is very, very true without being particularly factual. There actually was a man named Jonah, and you can find him in 2 Kings, chapter 14, verse 25 where he gets one small mention. And, the Assyrians had been a very powerful and feared nation, but Nineveh had been destroyed long before the story of Jonah was even written. The author took these few facts to spin a story aimed at getting the people of Israel to broaden their understanding of the wideness of God’s mercy. You see, if God can love and forgive the wicked, despised people of Nineveh, God can love and forgive anybody, including us. And, if God can forgive anybody, so can we.
So, as we look at our present context, as we look at the division and hatred that spews forth from so many people, the lies that have been told, the conspiracy theories that have been propagated, and the grief and pain so many people are experiencing, to what is God calling us? What if God is calling us to do something we do not want to do? What if God is calling us to extend to others not only God’s mercy but our mercy, not only God’s love but our love, not only God’s forgiveness but our forgiveness, to the people we don’t like, to the people we don’t believe deserve love and forgiveness and mercy?
Quite honestly, we may sit minding our own business, being nice and good to those who are nice and good to us, busy about the business of creating a friendly, family church, and not hear God calling us to proclaim God’s message of mercy, forgiveness, and love to this broken world. Like the disciples in our gospel reading, we may be working on the home front, merely mending our own nets. But, in the person of Jesus, the voice of God is always calling to us saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent, and believe the good news!”
To repent means to turn around, to change your mind and to turn back toward God. When we hear this call, how shall we respond? Will we repent? Will we change our minds about what’s important and alter the direction of our lives to more faithfully follow God’s call? Will we, like the disciples in our gospel lesson, leave whatever boats and nets are representative of the “stuff” we hold on to in our lives, and follow after the one who calls us? Will we go to “Nineveh” and proclaim God’s love?
Friends, it is helpful to wonder and ponder all these things. However, the biggest news and message in this story is this: in a certain sense, our reactions and responses really do not matter. God knows and accepts human frailty and loves us and reaches out to us and ALL OTHERS with compassion anyway – even when we are rebellious, angry, pouting, or despairing. Friends, God is always coming after us, pursuing us with mercy and grace, and God’s mercy is wider than we can even begin to imagine. The biggest news of all, the news that needs to be exaggerated and proclaimed is this: God is gracious and God will be gracious to whom God wants to be gracious. As Nadia Bolz Weber says:
God loves you. [God loves me.] God loves you and God loves your enemies. God loves those who love your enemies. Which means that [God is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love towards you, even though you are in all likelihood – someone else’s enemy]. God is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love towards me even though I am in all likelihood – someone else’s enemy. How many generations, how many layers of divine mercy do we need before we get the message?
That is truly THE good news for everyone!!
