Jesus did not come to convince God that sinners were not guilty. He came to bear the judgment guilty sinners deserved.
Jonah 3:5-10 – 5 And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.
6 The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7 And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, 8 but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9 Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.”
10 When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.
Do we deserve second chances in life? In Jonah 3, we explored this question and last time concluded that we may desire a second chance, but we don’t deserve it because Jonah’s story is not the story of a great fish but a great God whom Jonah disobeyed, yet he did not receive what he deserved: God’s wrath. Instead, he received what he did not deserve: God’s grace. That is true of every human being, starting with Adam and Eve and their disobedience in the Garden of Eden.
The Problem
The problem is that most people write off second chances as mere coincidences or luck. They need to know that every second chance, no matter how small or big it may seem, is God’s grace that we do not deserve. Then the question is, why does God grant us second chances?
In a very real sense, Jonah 3 answers that question for us. God gave Jonah a second chance because Jonah’s failure did not cancel God’s plan or purpose because God’s grace was greater than Jonah’s rebellion and His mission was greater than Jonah’s mistakes.
Therefore, last time, in Jonah 3:1-5, when God spoke to Jonah the second time, the message did not change. The mission did not change. The destination did not change. Only Jonah changed.
The Big Idea
The big idea as we return to Jonah 3 is that our failures may change our path, but they cannot change God’s plans or purposes for and through us. We know that because that is what happened in Jonah chapter 3, as God restored Jonah so that Jonah could return and respond to God and reach others for God.
Last time, in Jonah 3:1-5, we covered the first two reasons and their practical application for us; today we continue with the third reason for the second chance in Jonah 3:6-10.
A Second Chance to Reach (Jonah 3:6-10)
The command to Jonah the second time was the same: arise and go to Nineveh and call out against it. The exact wording is in Jonah 3:4, “4 Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” This Word of God provoked repentance and caused a revival that resulted in a communal decision.
It is recorded in Jonah 3:5, “5 And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.” Last time, I explained the difference between believing God and believing in God, but today I want to go back and ask a different question: What changed their mind?
As the oppressors of Israel, they have heard about the God of Israel and even mocked Him. They changed because hearing about God and hearing from God are two different things. If we treat God’s Word, the Bible, as a religious book, it doesn’t do much for our mind, heart, and soul; however, when we see it as the living Word of God, it speaks to us, changes us, and transforms our mind, heart, and soul.
Apart from that, Bible scholars have three theories for this mass repentance.
- The first one is the Dagon theory, which says the Assyrians worshiped a fish god, and the news about Jonah being delivered by a great fish on the shore must have reached the Ninevites. So, they paid attention.
- The second theory says the belly acid of the fish must have bleached Jonah to the point that he looked like a ghost. So, they feared him.
- The third theory says historically it was about the time when Nineveh was struck with three massive disasters.
All three have some merit, and from Christian missions, we know God uses cultural language and religious beliefs to bring salvation to unreached, unredeemed, and unchurched people to Jesus.
Here, though, it seems Jonah 3:5 sums up the outcome of Jonah 3:6-9 that resulted in Jonah 3:10. It is like giving the big idea first and then explaining how it came to be.
Jonah 3:6-10 follows three actions in progression: the reception of the Word, the repentance of the wicked, and the relenting of wrath.
The Reception of the Word (Jonah 3:6)
Jonah 3:6 reads, “6 The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.” That is the ultimate reception of the Word of God because of the actions the king took.
- First, the removing of the robe indicated God’s supreme power and authority.
- Second, the covering with sackcloth, a scratchy, hot, intensely uncomfortable garment made from goat hair, indicated grief, humility, and utter surrender. It was the physical fruit of a heart pierced by conviction. It announced, “I am guilty, I am broken, and I refuse to pretend everything is fine.”
- Third, the sitting in ashes signified the absolute death of self-righteousness. From leaving the throne to sitting in ashes, the king demonstrated surrender to the sovereign rule and reign of God.
Is it not a tragedy that a pagan king responded to the Word of God with more righteous brokenness than God’s prophet, Jonah? Nineveh had no cross, no covenant, and no dynamic church community—they had only five Hebrew words of warning. Yet the king heard God’s truth and repented.
In comparison, we sit in comfortable pews with padded seats and listen to God’s Word every week, hear about God’s grace, and yet many of us don’t even let God touch our weekend plans. Our greatest struggle isn’t confession—it’s complacency. We want the comfort of gospel grace without the discomfort of the heap of ashes. The gospel reality check is this: You cannot crown Jesus as Savior while you are still sitting on the throne of your own life.
Application
Get off your thrones and let God sit where only God belongs.
Quit pretending that “everything is fine.” Put on the sackcloth of honest confession and say it out loud: “I am guilty, I am broken, and I need a Savior.”
Run to the heap of ashes, meaning don’t wait for tragedy to force you to your knees. God who meets you at the heap of ashes is the very same God who lifts you up in Jesus Christ!
The Repentance of the Wicked (Jonah 3:7-9)
Jonah 3:7 reads, “7 And he [the king] issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water…”” Notice that the leaders set the example before they called for communal repentance and fasting.
Christian husbands and fathers, God appointed you to be the spiritual leader of your house; you must lead by example, in humility, and utter dependence on God’s Word.
The same is true for the leadership of this church, including the pastors. First Peter 5:3 says, “not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.”
The king’s conviction, confession, and courage led the whole city to repent, pray, and fast. Further, the decree of the king, in Jonah 3:8-9, says, “8 but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9 Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.”
Nineveh heard and believed God’s Word. Not only the people repented and fasted, but their livestock as well. It’s hard to find another example of such repentance in the Bible or outside the Bible. This is pure repentance. Repentance isn’t simply feeling bad. Repentance is not merely remorse over where you’ve been. It is a reorientation of where you’re going.
Imagine driving down the highway and suddenly realizing you’ve been going in the wrong direction. You can feel terrible about it. You can become embarrassed. You can say, “I can’t believe I did this.” But none of that gets you where you need to go. At some point, you have to turn around. That’s repentance. When was the last time you actually repented?
Nineveh’s repentance affected their behavior. The hands that had been used for violence needed to become hands that stopped violence. Repentance moves us from the heart to the hands.
Imagine a warning light on your dashboard. Rather than fixing the problem, what if you put a piece of tape over it? That’s how many of us treat sin. We want the guilt to disappear. We want the consequences to stop. We want the discomfort to end. The gospel reality check is this: God doesn’t want to put tape over the warning light. God wants to repair what’s broken.
Application
God’s grace does not merely make us feel better about our sin. God’s grace teaches us to turn from our sin. Sometimes repentance begins with simply saying, “God, You are right, and I am wrong.” That’s where restoration begins.
We see that in:
The Relenting of Wrath (Jonah 3:10)
The last verse of Jonah 3 reads, “10 When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.” Now we have to understand what this does and does not mean.
It doesn’t mean God changed His mind because He made a mistake. A god who can change his mind cannot be trusted, and a god who can make mistakes cannot be God, for God is perfect and foresees every possible outcome.
This verse means that God responded to genuine repentance according to His revealed character and purposes. The warning was real. The repentance was real. The mercy was real. This reveals that God is not eager to destroy sinners. He delights to show mercy to repentant sinners. Nineveh deserved judgment; so did Jonah, and so do we. But God showed mercy. This should make every sinner rejoice, starting with the preacher.
The gospel is that God has provided mercy through Jesus Christ. Nineveh received a reprieve. But in Christ, God provides something even greater than a reprieve. He provides redemption. Nineveh was spared temporal judgment.
In Christ, sinners are rescued from eternal condemnation. Nineveh’s story points toward the gospel. The question for all of us is this: do we actually believe the grace that the gospel offers?
If yes, then where is the physical evidence?
Think this way: if I say I believe exercise is good for me and I never exercise, something is wrong. I can say I believe healthy eating matters, but if I eat junk food every day, eventually my actions reveal what I really believe.
Spiritually, the same thing is true. We can say we are Christians, but eventually our lives reveal whether we actually trust Jesus. The gospel reality check is this: Belief that never changes behavior is merely information, not transformation. Does your faith produce change? True belief eventually produces visible behavior.
Application
Just as Jonah was restored to his mission and Nineveh was spared from judgment, God is willing to restore and spare us from judgment, but there is one condition: true repentance that visibly carries our confession of faith in Jesus.
Closing Thought
As I close, imagine standing in a courtroom guilty of a crime. The evidence is overwhelming. There is no technicality. There is no loophole. You are guilty. The judge has every right to pronounce judgment. But then someone steps forward and says: “I will take his place.” That’s grace. Not pretending you weren’t guilty. Not changing the facts. Not ignoring justice. But providing a substitute. That’s what Jesus did.
Jesus did not come to convince God that sinners were not guilty. He came to bear the judgment guilty sinners deserved. That’s why the cross is so beautiful. At the cross, God’s justice was not ignored. It was satisfied. This is why we should love the Savior more than sin and love His purposes more than our preferences.
Action Step
If you have been running away, repent and return to Jesus. Respond to His Word today. Not with remorse but repentance; reach someone with the gospel.
Appeal
Find your Nineveh. Ask God: “Who is the person You have placed in my life that needs to hear Your truth?”
Then do something about it. Call them. Text them. Invite them. Pray with them. Share your testimony. Open the Bible with them. Tell them what Jesus has done for you. And then trust God with the results.
Five words in Hebrew brought national and communal repentance. You cannot make anyone repent. But you can tell them about the One who calls sinners to repentance. You cannot save them. But you can point them to the Savior.
And perhaps years from now, someone will look back and say: “Because that person obeyed God, my life was changed.”
You may never know the full impact of your obedience this side of eternity. But that’s okay. Faithfulness doesn’t require you to see the results. It requires you to trust the God who does.
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