Story Producer 170 - Jonah

Title Ideas:Jonah runs away from God.Jonah’s story.The Lord rules over his creation.The Lord who judges is merciful.

Jonah was a prophet who spoke messages from the Lord. One day, the Lord said to him, “Go to the big city called Nineveh in Assyria Land, and tell [announce to] the people that I am angry at [because of] their many sins!”

But Jonah chose not to obey the Lord. So he entered a ship that carried him far away from Nineveh and Assyria.

As the ship traveled across a sea [big waters], the Lord made [sent] a big storm with strong wind. This storm made the ship start to break apart.

The seamen [ship workers / sailor crew] became so frightened that they cried out to their gods: “Rescue us from drowning [death]!” Then they began throwing cargo [things] into the sea, to lighten the ship and to prevent it sinking.

As the storm grew [became] worse, Jonah said to the seamen, “The Lord is my God! It is he who made the sea and the land! He has sent this storm, because I have fled [run away] from him! If you will cast me into the sea, then the Lord will stop this storm!”

The seamen tried to rescue everyone by rowing [steering the ship] to land, but the storm was too violent [strong].So the seamen seized Jonah and threw him into the sea.

Immediately, the wind stopped blowing, and the sea became calm. This amazed the seamen and made them fear the Lord. So they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and vowed to serve [worship] him.

The Lord saw Jonah in the sea and sent a very big fish that swallowed Jonah [as though he were food].

Jonah remained inside that fish for three days and nights. There he repented and prayed, “I once vowed to obey the Lord, and now I will do so!

“Although I ran away from you, I shall worship you again. I will offer a sacrifice [gift] to you, my Lord! You are able to rescue me!”

Then the Lord made the fish carry Jonah to dry land and to spit [vomit] him out. There the Lord spoke again to Jonah, saying, “Go to the big city called Nineveh in Assyria, and tell the people that I am angry at their many sins!”

Jonah obeyed the Lord. He traveled to [went to] Nineveh in Assyria Land. For three days, he walked about shouting [announcing], “Forty days from now, God will destroy this city!”

The people in Nineveh believed in God, so their king and his officials ordered them [everybody]: “Do not eat anything [fast] and pray to God! Ask God not to destroy us!” Then the Lord felt mercy [pity] for them, and did not destroy them.

But Jonah, because he hated the king and the people in Nineveh, he became angry and prayed, “O Lord! I did not want to speak to the people in this city, because I knew that you might relent [change your mind] [forgive them] and might not destroy them!”

Then Jonah went out of Nineveh and sat beneath a shelter [cover]. He watched to see if God would destroy the city, as Jonah had said God would do.

[As Jonah waited] One night, God made a vine [plant] to grow up and give to Jonah shade and comfort from [against] the hot sun. Jonah felt glad about [grateful for] that vine.

The next day, God caused a worm to eat and kill the vine. When a hot wind blew on Jonah, making him feel so weak, he said, “It is better for me to die than to live!” So God asked him, “Are you angry about this vine that died?” Jonah replied [with anger], “Yes!”

Then the Lord said, “It is not you who made this vine grow, [it is I]! Also, it is I who made all the people in Nineveh, and I do not want them and their livestock [animals] to die!”