John Calvin Commentary Jonah 1:13-14

"Nevertheless the men rowed hard to get them back to the land; but they could not: for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them. Wherefore they cried unto Jehovah, and said, We beseech thee, O Jehovah, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man`s life, and lay not upon us innocent blood; for thou, O Jehovah, hast done as it pleased thee." — Jonah 1:13-14 (ASV)

This verse shows that the sailors and the others were more inclined to mercy when they saw that the holy Prophet was willing to undergo the punishment he deserved. Therefore, when he confessed that he was guilty and did not refuse to be punished, they became anxious to spare his life, even though they were pagans and, for the most part, barbarians. And since each of them could not help but be frightened by his immediate danger, it is all the more wonderful that they had such regard for the life of one who alone was at fault and who had now freely confessed this.

But the Lord so turned their hearts that they now saw more clearly how grievous a sin it was to flee from the call of God and not to yield obedience to His command, as we have previously observed. Many think that this is a minor offense and readily indulge in it; but it is not in human power to weigh sins, for the balance is deceitful when people estimate their sins according to their own judgment.

Let us, then, learn to ascribe to God His own honor—that He alone is Judge, is far above us, and alone can determine how serious or how slight any sin is. But common sense, except when people willfully deceive themselves with vain flatteries, clearly teaches this: that it is no minor offense when we evade the command of God. For, as we have stated, people thereby take away from God His supreme authority; and what is left for God when He does not govern the creatures whom He has formed and whom He sustains by His power?

The Lord, then, intended to show here that His displeasure could not be pacified otherwise than by drowning Jonah in the sea, though, as we shall soon see, He had something greater in view. But, in the meantime, this is worth observing: the Lord intended to make Jonah an example, so that all may now know that He is not to be trifled with, but that He ought to be obeyed as soon as He commands anything.

The word which the Prophet uses has been variously explained by interpreters. חתר, chetar, properly means to dig, so some think it is a metaphorical expression, as rowers seem to dig the sea; and this sense is not unsuitable. Others carry the metaphor still higher, suggesting that the sailors searched for or sought means by which they might bring the ship to land. But the other metaphor, being less remote, is more to be approved. The Latins call it to toil (moliri) when rowers not only apply their oars gently but make a greater effort. The sailors, then, toiled to bring back the ship. But for what purpose? To spare the life of the man who had already confessed that he was guilty before God and that the storm, which threatened them all with shipwreck, had arisen because of his fault. But he says that they could not, for the sea was tempestuous, as we have already seen in our lecture yesterday.

I come now to the second verse. The Prophet says, They cried to Jehovah and said, We beseech, Jehovah, let us not perish, we pray, on account of the life of this man, and give not, that is, lay not, innocent blood upon us. The Prophet now expresses more fully why the sailors toiled so much to return to port, or to reach some shore: they were already persuaded that Jonah was a worshipper of the true God, and not only this, but that he was a Prophet, since he had told them, as we have seen, that he had fled from the presence of God because he feared to execute the command we have noted.

It was therefore pious fear (reverentia) that restrained the sailors, since they knew that Jonah was the servant of the true God. At the same time, they saw that Jonah was already standing for his sin before God’s tribunal and that punishment was demanded. They saw this, yet they wished to preserve his life.

Now this passage shows that an abhorrence of cruelty is by nature implanted in everyone; for however brutal and bloodthirsty many people may be, yet they cannot rid themselves of this feeling—that the shedding of human blood is hateful. Many, at the same time, harden themselves, but they apply a searing iron; they cannot shake off horror; indeed, they feel that they are detested by God and by others when they shed innocent blood in this way. This is why the sailors, who in other respects hardly retained a drop of humanity, fled as suppliants to God when it concerned the death of a man. And they said, אנה יהוה, ane Ieve, ‘We beseech Jehovah;’ and the expression is repeated, which shows that the sailors earnestly prayed that the Lord would not count this as a sin against them.

Hence, we see that though these men had never known the doctrine of the Law, they were nevertheless so taught by nature that they knew that human blood is dear and precious in the sight of God. As for us, we ought not only to imitate these sailors but to go far beyond them. For not only ought the law of nature to prevail among us, but also the law of God, for we hear what God formerly pronounced with His own mouth:

Whosoever sheddeth man’s blood, shed shall his blood be (Genesis 9:6).

And we also know the reason why God undertakes to protect human life: it is because people have been created in His image. Whoever then uses violence against human life destroys, as far as one can, the image of the eternal God. Since this is so, ought we not to regard violence and cruelty with double horror?

We ought also to learn another thing from this doctrine: God proves by this remarkable testimony what paternal feeling He manifests towards us by taking our life under His own guardianship and protection. He even proves that we are really the objects of His care, since He will execute punishment and vengeance when anyone unjustly injures us.

We then see that this doctrine, on the one hand, restrains us, so that we may not attempt anything against the lives of others; and, on the other hand, it assures us of the paternal love of God, so that, being drawn by His kindness, we may learn to entrust ourselves wholly to His protection.

I now come to the last clause of the verse: For thou, Jehovah, hast done as it has pleased thee. The sailors clearly prove here that they did not willingly shed innocent blood. How then can these two things agree—that the blood was innocent and that they were blameless?

They adopted this excuse: that they obeyed God’s decree, that they did nothing rashly or according to their own inclinations, but followed what the Lord had prescribed. Though, indeed, God had not spoken, yet what He required was really evident; for as God demanded an expiation by the death of Jonah, so He intended to continue the tempest until he was thrown into the deep.

These things the sailors now put forward. But we must notice that they did not cast the blame on God, as blasphemers are accustomed to do, who, while they seek to exempt themselves from blame, find fault with God, or at least put Him in their own place. “Why then,” they say, “does He sit as a judge to condemn us for that of which He Himself is the author, since He has so decreed?” In our day, there are many fanatics who speak this way, who obliterate all the difference between good and evil, as if lust were to them the law.

At the same time, they use God’s providence as a pretext. Jonah did not wish that such a thing should be thought of the sailors. But as they well understood that God governed the world justly, though His counsels are secret and cannot be comprehended by us—as, then, they were thus convinced, they thus strengthened themselves. And though they gave to God the praise due to His justice, they at the same time trembled lest they should be guilty of innocent blood.

We now see, then, how reverently these men spoke of God, and that so much religious fear possessed them that they did not rob God of His praise. They said, Thou, Jehovah, hast done as it has pleased thee. Do they here accuse God of tyranny, as though He confounded all things without any cause or reason?

By no means. They took this principle for granted: that the will of God is right and just; indeed, that whatever God has decreed is beyond doubt just. Being then thus persuaded, they took the will of God as the rule for acting rightly: “As You, Jehovah, have done as it seemed good to You, so we are blameless.” But at the same time, it is also proper to add that the sailors do not vainly talk here of the secret providence of God in order to impute murder to Him, as ungodly people and profane cavilers do today. But as the Lord made known His purpose to them, they show that the storm and the tempest could not be otherwise calmed and quieted than by drowning Jonah; they therefore took this knowledge of God’s purpose as a certain rule to follow.

At the same time, as I have said, they fled to God and supplicated His mercy, lest in a matter so perplexing and difficult He should involve them in the same punishment, as they were constrained to shed innocent blood. We now, then, understand the meaning of this passage.