John Calvin Commentary Jonah 4:2

"And he prayed unto Jehovah, and said, I pray thee, O Jehovah, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I hasted to flee unto Tarshish; for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness, and repentest thee of the evil." — Jonah 4:2 (ASV)

It seems by no means fitting that Jonah should have said here that he prayed, for prayer ought to be calm; but he confesses that his mind was in a state of excitement. Since anger was burning within the Prophet, how could he come before God and offer a suitable prayer?

Furthermore, what is the purpose of praying, but to confess that whatever good is to be obtained resides in God, and is to be sought humbly from Him? But Jonah here, on the contrary, expostulates and clamors against God, for he seems, in a way, to be contending that he had a just reason for his flight, and also that God ought not to have pardoned the Ninevites.

He then accuses God, so that he might free himself from all blame. But all this is foreign and remote from what is required in prayer. How then must we understand this passage, in which he says that he prayed? My answer is—that the faithful often approach God with a desire to pray while in a disturbed state of mind, and that their prayers are not wholly rejected, though they are not altogether approved and accepted.

And from this it also appears more evident how the works of the godly are regarded by God, though they are sprinkled with many stains. Whenever the Papists read that any work has pleased God, they imagine that all was perfection and purity; but there is no work which is not infected with some pollution, unless it is purified by a free pardon.

This, I say, is evident to us in this prayer, which was not so rejected by God as if it did not retain the character of prayer. And yet it is certain that Jonah was by no means rightly influenced when he prayed so clamorously, finding fault, as it were, with God, and still retaining some portion of his own obstinacy, for he boasted of his flight. But this flight, as we have stated, was a proof of manifest rebellion, since, by shaking off the yoke, he despised the call of God.

We must therefore acknowledge that there was some piety in this prayer of Jonah, as well as many faults. It was an act of piety that he addressed his complaints to God. For though hypocrites may pray to God, they are still wholly averse to Him and freely give vent to their bitterness against God. But Jonah, while he here complains and observes no moderation, but is carried away by a blind and perverse impulse, is still prepared to submit to God, as we will see later.

This is the reason why he says that he prayed: for he would not have been ashamed to confess any grievous sin of which he might have been conscious. He did not then lessen his fault by using the word "prayer" as hypocrites are accustomed to do, who always set up some pretenses or veils when they seek to cover their own baseness; this was not Jonah's purpose. Therefore, when he says that he prayed, he generally declares that he did not speak against God in such a way, but that he still retained some seed of piety and obedience in his heart.

Jonah then prayed. Hence it follows, as I have stated before, that many of the prayers of the saints are sinful (vitiosas—faulty), which, when tested by the right standard, deserve to be rejected. But the Lord, according to His own mercy, pardons their defects so that these confused and turbulent prayers still retain their title and honor.

Now he says, I pray You, Jehovah, is not this what I said? Here Jonah openly declares why he so resented the deliverance of Nineveh from destruction: because he was thus shown to be false and lying. But it may seem strange that the Prophet had more regard for his own reputation than for the glory of God; for in this especially shines forth the glory of God, that He is reconcilable as soon as people return to the right way, and that He offers Himself to them as a father.

Should Jonah then have preferred his own honor to the glory of God? I answer—that the Prophet was not so devoted to himself; on the contrary, a concern for the glory of God held the first place in his soul; this is certain. For he connected, and justly so, his own ministry with the glory of God, as it proceeded from His authority. When Jonah entered Nineveh, he did not cry out as a private man, but declared that he was sent by God. Now if the preaching of Jonah is found to be false, reproach will recoil on the author of his call, even on God.

Jonah then, no doubt, could not bear that the name of God should be exposed to the reproaches of the Gentiles, as though God had spoken deceitfully, now opening hell, then heaven; and there is nothing so contrary to the glory of God as such deceit. Thus we see why Jonah was seized with so much grief: he did not primarily regard himself, but because he saw that an occasion would be given to ungodly blasphemers if God changed His purpose, or if He did not appear consistent with His word, he felt much grieved.

But however specious this reason may be, we still learn how much good intentions avail with God. Whatever good intention can be imagined, it was certainly a good intention in Jonah, worthy of some praise, that he preferred dying a hundred times rather than to hear these reproachful blasphemies—that the word of God was a mere sport, that His threatenings were no better than fables, that God made this and that pretext, and transformed Himself into various characters.

This was certainly the very best intention, if it is estimated by our judgment. But we shall soon see that it was condemned by the mouth of God Himself. From this let us learn not to arrogate to ourselves judgment in matters which exceed our capacities, but to subject our minds to God, and to seek from Him the spirit of wisdom.

For why was it that Jonah so fretted against God, except that he burned with a desire for His glory? But his zeal was inconsiderate, for he wished to be himself the judge and arbitrator, while, on the contrary, he ought to have subjected himself altogether to God. And the same rule ought to be observed by us also.

When we see many things happening through a divine intervention, that is, through the secret providence of God, and things which expose His name to the blasphemies of the ungodly, we ought indeed to feel grief. But in the meantime, let us ask the Lord to eventually turn these shameful reproaches to His own glory; and let us by no means raise an uproar, as many do, who immediately begin to contend with God when things are ordered differently from what they wish or think to be useful.

Let us learn by the example of Jonah not to measure God’s judgments by our own wisdom, but to wait until He turns darkness into light. And at the same time, let us learn to obey His commands, to follow His call without any disputing. Though heaven and earth oppose us, though many things occur which may tend to turn us away from the right course, let us still continue in this resolution—that nothing is better for us than to obey God, and to go on in the way which He points out to us.

But by saying that he hastened to go to Tarshish, he does not altogether excuse his flight; but he now more clearly explains that he did not shun trouble or labor, that he did not run away from a contest or danger, but that he only avoided his call because he felt a concern for the glory of God.

The meaning, then, of Jonah’s words is—that he makes God here, as it were, his witness and judge, that he did not withdraw himself from obedience to God through fear of danger, or through idleness, or through a rebellious spirit, or through any other evil motive, but only because he was unwilling that His holy name should be profaned, and would not of his own accord be the minister of that preaching which would be the occasion of opening the mouths of ungodly and profane men, and of making them laugh at God Himself.

“Since then I cannot hope,” he says, “for any other outcome of my preaching than to make the Gentiles deride God, yes, and to revile His holy name, as though He were false and deceitful, I chose rather to flee to Tarshish.” Then Jonah does not here altogether clear himself; for otherwise that chastisement, by which he ought to have been thoroughly subdued, must have failed in its effect.

He had recently been restored from the deep, and shall we say that he now so exalts himself against God that he wishes to appear wholly free from all blame? This certainly would be very strange. But, as I have said, he declares to God that he fled at the beginning for no other reason than because he did not expect any good fruit from his preaching, but, on the contrary, feared what now seemed to be happening—that God’s name would be ridiculed.

For he immediately adds, For I know that You are a God full of grace, and merciful, slow to wrath, etc. It is a wonder that Jonah withdrew from his lawful call, for he knew that God was merciful, and there is no stronger stimulant than this to stir us on when God is pleased to use our labor. And we know that no one can with alacrity render service to God unless he is allured by His paternal kindness.

Hence no one will be a willing Prophet or Teacher unless he is persuaded that God is merciful. Jonah then seems here to reason very absurdly when he says that he withdrew himself from his office because he knew that God was merciful.

But how did he know this? By the law of God; for the passage is taken from Exodus 33:1, where that remarkable and memorable vision is described in which God offered Moses a view of Himself. And there was then shown to the holy Prophet, as it were, a living representation of God, and there is no passage in the law which expresses God’s nature more vividly, for God was then pleased to make Himself known in a familiar way to His servant.

Since then Jonah had been instructed in the doctrine of the law, how could he discharge the office of a Prophet among his own people? And why did not this knowledge discourage his mind when he was called to the office of a Teacher? It is then certain that this ought to be confined to the sort of preaching that we have explained before.

Jonah would not have shrunk from God’s command had he been sent to the Ninevites to teach what he had been ordered to do among the chosen people. Had then a message been committed to Jonah, to set forth a gracious and merciful God to the Ninevites, he would not have hesitated a moment to offer his service.

But as this express threatening, Nineveh shall be destroyed, was entrusted to him, he became confused and eventually sought to flee away rather than execute such a command. Why so? Because he reasoned with himself in this way: “I am to denounce a near ruin on the Ninevites; why does God command me to do this, except to invite these wretched people to repentance?

Now if they repent, will not God be instantly ready to forgive them? He would otherwise deny His own nature: God cannot be unlike Himself; He cannot put off that disposition of which He has once testified to Moses. Since God, then, is reconcilable, if the Ninevites will return to the right way and flee to Him, He will instantly embrace them: thus I shall be found to be false in my preaching.”

So now we perceive how this passage of Jonah is to be understood, when he says that he fled beyond the sea, at least that he attempted to do so, because he knew that God was gracious. For he would not have deprived God of his service had not this contradiction disturbed and discouraged his mind: “What!

I shall go there as God’s ambassador, and in a short time I shall be discovered to be a liar. Will not this reproach be cast on the name of God Himself? It is therefore better for me to be silent than that God, the founder of my call, should be ridiculed.” We see that Jonah had a distinct regard for that sort of preaching to which we have already referred.

And thus it appears that Jonah gave to the Ninevites more than he thought, for he supposed that he was sent by God only that the Ninevites might know that they were to be destroyed. But he brought deliverance to them. Indeed, he partly suspected or knew this before, for he retained this truth—that God cannot divest Himself of His mercy, for He remains ever the same.

But when he went out to execute the duty enjoined on him, he certainly had nothing to expect but the entire ruin of the city Nineveh. God in the meantime employed Jonah’s ministry for a better end and purpose. There is indeed no doubt that he exhorted the Ninevites to repentance, but his own heart was, as it were, closed up, so that he could not allow them the mercy of God. Thus we see that Jonah was seized with perplexities, so that he could not offer deliverance to the Ninevites, and yet it was offered to them by God through his instrumentality.

So now we understand how God often works through His servants, for He leads them as the blind by His own hand where they do not expect. Thus, when He stirs up any one of us, we are sometimes ὀλιγόπίστοι—very weak in faith; we think that our labor will be useless and without any fruit, or at least attended with small success.

But the Lord will let us see what we could not have expected. Such was the case with Jonah; for when he came to Nineveh, he had no other object but to testify about the destruction of the city, but the Lord was pleased to make him the minister of salvation.

God then honored with remarkable success the teaching of Jonah, while he was unworthy of so great an honor; for, as we have already said, he, in a way, closed up every access to the blessing of God. So now we apprehend the meaning of this passage, in which Jonah says that he fled from the call of God because he knew that God was ready to be gracious and merciful.

I come now to the great things which are said of God. חנון, chenun, properly means a disposition to show favor, as if it were said that God is gratuitously benevolent; we express the same in our language by the terms benin, gratieux, debonnaire. God then assumes this character for Himself; and then He says, merciful; and He adds this so that we may know that He is always ready to receive us, if indeed we come to Him as to the fountain of goodness and mercy.

But the words which follow express more clearly His mercy and show how God is merciful—namely, because He is abundant in compassion and slow to wrath. God then is inclined to kindness; and though the people on whom He looks are unworthy, He is still merciful; and this He expresses by the word רחום, rechum.

It is at the same time necessary to add these two descriptions: that He is abundant in compassion and slow to wrath. Why so? For we always seek in ourselves some cause for God’s favor; when we desire God to be kind to us, we inquire in ourselves why He ought to favor us; and when we find nothing, all the faith we previously had regarding God’s grace at once vanishes.

The Lord therefore does here recall us to Himself and testifies that He is kind and merciful, inasmuch as He is abundant in compassion; as though He said, “I have in Myself a sufficient reason why I should be accessible to you, and why I should receive you and show you favor.” Hence the goodness of God alone ought to be regarded by us when we desire His mercy and when we have need of pardon.

It is as though He had said that He is not influenced by any regard for our worthiness, and that it is not for merits that He is disposed to mercy when we have sinned, and that He receives us into favor; but that He does all this because His goodness is infinite and inexhaustible.

And it is also added, that He is slow to wrath. This slowness to wrath proves that God provides for the salvation of mankind, even when He is provoked by their sins. Though miserable people provoke God daily against themselves, He still continues to have a regard for their salvation. He is therefore slow to wrath, which means that the Lord does not immediately execute such punishment as those who thus provoke Him deserve. So now we see what the meaning of these words is.

Let us now return to this—that Jonah thrust himself from his office because he knew that God was slow to wrath, merciful, and full of grace. He even had recourse to this reasoning: “Either God will change His nature, or He will spare the Ninevites if they repent. And it may be that they will repent; and then my preaching will be found to be false, for God will not deny Himself, but will afford an example of His goodness and mercy in forgiving this people.”

We may again remark that we act perversely when we follow our own zeal without discrimination; it is indeed a blind fervor which then hurries us on. Though a thousand inconsistencies may meet us when God commands anything, our eyes ought to be closed to them, and we ought always to follow the course of our calling, for He will so regulate all events that all things shall redound to His glory.

It is not for us in such a case to be overly wise; but the best way is to leave the outcome of things in God’s hand. It becomes us indeed to fear and to feel concerned, but our anxiety ought, at the same time, to be in submission to God, so that it is enough for us to pray. This is the meaning of the whole matter.

Now as to what he says that God repents of the evil, we have already explained this: it means that though God has already raised His hand, He will still withdraw it as soon as He sees any repentance in people, for evil here is to be taken for punishment. The Lord then, though He might justly inflict extreme punishment on people, still suspends His judgment, and when they come to Him in true penitence, He is instantly pacified. This is God’s repentance; He is said to repent when He freely forgives whatever punishment or evil people have deserved whenever they loathe themselves.