Is It Right For You To Be Angry?

Jonah 4:1-4

On May 2, 2011 at 11;30 pm, I got out of bed for some reason and turned the tv on. It was on a news station and the reporter was said that they were awaiting an announcement from President Obama. At 11:35 he walked to the podium and made the announcement, Osama Bin Laden had been killed by U.S. Navy Seals. I remember pumping my fist and saying "Yes!". I was excited because we had taken out our top enemy. In that moment, the Holy Spirit impressed upon me that he was probably in Hell. Suddenly there was a tinge of remorse for the fact that I was harboring hate towards someone. That is probably the closest I can come to understanding how Jonah felt about Nineveh.

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But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he became angry. 2 So he prayed to the LORD, and said, “Ah, LORD, was not this what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm. 3 Therefore now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live!”

4 Then the LORD said, “Is it right for you to be angry?”

Jonah 4:1-4

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I have been impressed by the fact that Jonah never stopped talking to God. He may have been angry with God. He may have tried to disobey God. No matter where he was at in this journey, he talked to God. In other words, he never had a crisis of faith. He simply did not like what God wanted him to do. I can relate to that as well. I went through a very difficult time several years back. Like Jonah, I got angry at what God was doing in my life. I tried to run away, but God got my attention. It did not involve a whale, but it was exactly what I needed to send me back in the right direction. During that time, I never stopped believing in God. I also talked with Him more honestly than perhaps any other time in my life. Just like Jonah, it resulted in me having to endure some circumstances that I did not want to be a part of. However, I survived it, and now I wish I had handled all of it with more obedience and faith.

Jonah's issue with God was the fact that God is merciful and forgiving. Jonah said that he did not want to preach because he knew that God would forgive them of their sins and have mercy on them instead of destroying them. I cannot imagine hating a group of people so much that I became angry when they turned their life over to God. Let me add that I am very grateful that God has protected me from going through anything in my life that would be hurtful enough to push me towards such hard feelings. In verses 1 and 2, Jonah is mad that God forgave these people of their sins when they repented. Just like pastors today, that was Jonah's message and mission. He was supposed to proclaim God's Word so that people repented of their sins and turned to God. Even those who are Christians are supposed to be in a continual process of abandoning fleshly behaviors and thoughts and conforming more and more to the image of Christ (Romans 12:1-2).

Jonah is so upset by all of this that in verse 3 he prays that God will take his life. This whole ordeal had left Jonah in a state of depression, and he was ready to die. Rather than be judgmental of Jonah, I want us to take a step back and consider why he may be feeling this way.

1. Nineveh was the capital city of Assyria, the occupying enemy of Israel.

2. God had sent Jonah to Nineveh, but Jonah refused and ran away.

3. While we do not know the exact timeframe, it was probably only a few days from the commandment and Jonah's purchasing a ticket to run away by boat.

4. Jonah, knowing he cannot escape God, has the sailors throw him into the sea, and he is eaten by the fish.

5. He spends three very uncomfortable days and nights in the belly of the fish.

6. He is then spit up on dry land and heads straight to Nineveh. He makes a three day journey in one day and walks into the city and preaches God's Word.

It is quite possible that this emotional, spiritual, and physical rollercoaster all occurred within a single week. Even if Jonah was happy that the people repented, he could have still became depressed from the ordeal. He had been through a lot. To answer Jonah's prayer, God asked a single question, "Is it right for you to be angry?" I do not want to jump ahead in the story, but if we were in Jonah's shoes, we could think of many reasons to answer "Yes". The problem is, there is no justifiable reason to answer yes. A true Christians should never be angry when someone repents of sin and turns their life over to worship the true and living God. I like the fact that God is now being tender with Jonah. Jonah has had the firm hand. Now he needs the tender correcting of God. The voice is more comforting, but the message is still one of correcting to Jonah. No matter how bad we blow it, God always works to lead His sheep back to Himself.

Father, thank You for not throwing us away when we mess up big. Sometimes we receive Your firm hand of correcting. Other times You guide us gently in the direction we need to go. You are always right in how You correct us, and You always correct us in love.