5. The Ninevites believed God. They declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.

6  When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.

7. Then he issued a proclamation in Nineveh: "By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let any man or beast, herd or flock, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink.

8.  But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence.

9  Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish."

Jonah preached “yet forty days and Nineveh shall be overthrown.” I personally don’t believe that was the whole message, but that was the core of what he had to say. The Ninevites knew they needed to get right with God, so Jonah had to introduce them to the Lord. This message wasn’t a popular message. It was message of condemnation for sin. Jonah would in our day be called a hell, fire and brimstone preacher. It is a message that needs to be heard today. If you do not turn from your sin you will be judged by God and sent to hell. That is true for each person. God also judges nations and leaders.  

 Sometimes the discipline God chooses to use is to have more ungodly nations oppress more godly nations who should know better. America should know better. We should know that life is precious and truth is paramount. We should know what the Bible teaches on marriage, sexuality, adultery, fornication, greed, gossip, lying, stealing, and doing evil.

The message of grace sells much better. It is also truth, but not the whole truth. There is something that precedes grace and that is the awareness of our desperate need for it because of sin. If you die in your sin you will go to hell. If you remain in your sin you will be judged. That is the word of the Lord. That is the warning now before it is too late. Mind you, it might be easier to listen to a prophet of doom, when he just spent the last three days in the belly of a fish. It was likely his skin and hair are bleached white from the digestive juices. He probably looked like a ghost, but that is just a guess and Jonah knew the consequences for his sin.

The great city had a surprising response - they repented. They believed the word of the Lord. Revival broke out. They responded in not only repentance, but faith believing God was going to do what God said He was going to do. It began with trusting God. The people in Nineveh from the King to the servants and including the animals were called upon to fast and pray, asking God not to do what He said He would do. The King removed his robe, and covered self in dust. So did all the people.

Ashes signified dust, valuelessness, loathsomeness, misery and shame. It signified humility before God and contrition of heart. People, in mourning in our Eastern world, sometimes will still cover themselves in dust or ashes. However, repentance is both inward and outward. There is more than just feeling badly, it is a change of action. In our “repentance” we can often be concerned more with stopping feeling bad, rather than understanding the offense of our sins.

Nicky Gumbel, in his biography, tells of a man who sent a check to the government for back taxes with a note attached that said, “I felt so guilty for cheating on my taxes I had to send you this check. If I don’t feel any better, I’ll send you the rest.”

That wasn’t the attitude of the folks in this story. When one comes clean before God, he wants to all sin to be taken away, so they cried for God to save them even though they were guilty.

 Repentance includes changing your direction.

Dale