The Daily Walk | 03.17.26 | Isak Morehous | Jonah 3:10

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.

Transcript

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Good morning, and thank you for beginning your day with us. This past Sunday, Pastor Mike finished up his mini-series through Obadiah, and one of the points that he made from the text is that sinful people will be judged. This reminded me of Jonah, which is something that we have been studying in student ministry over these past several weeks. In Jonah, you see that he is called by God to go to Nineveh, and then he runs in the complete opposite direction. Then there's a storm, a big fish, and a prayer, and then Jonah is vomited out from the fish onto the shore. Then Jonah is called again to go to Nineveh and he obeys, and he goes and he delivers God's message. And then something incredible happens. The people of Nineveh, including the king, turn from their evil ways and cry out to God in hopes that he'll show them mercy. And then in Jonah 3.10, you see this. When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he said he would do to them, and he did not do it. Nineveh was a wicked people who were incredibly deserving of God's judgment. But their response to God's message delivered through Jonah was to turn from their evil ways and cry out to God. When Jonah sees what happens, he's unhappy. But perhaps that's a discussion for a later podcast. The people of Nineveh deserved God's wrath for their sinful ways, but they received mercy instead. We too deserve God's judgment, but we receive grace. Roughly 150 years after Jonah's journey to Nineveh, we see that Nineveh is actually destroyed by the Medes. And this is actually the fulfillment of prophecy that we see in Nahum 1. So even though Nineveh initially turns towards God 150 years before this, this does not last, and they return to their evil and wicked ways. If you want to better understand how wicked they were and everything that's wrapped up in the story of Nineveh, I recommend reading Nahum. But in the end, there is not a single person that has ever lived or that ever will live that will escape God's judgment. But I praise God that He has provided a way for us to receive mercy and grace in this judgment rather than His wrath, which is what we deserve. So today, this morning, I'm thanking God for sending Jesus to die on the cross for my sins and satisfying the wrath of God. That's all for this morning, and I hope that it was encouraging to you. Let's strive to love Jesus more obediently and to make him known. Peace.