Falaite Tisema 15, 2023
Hurled into a Watery Exile
Hiki ‘o Tolo ki Tahi
JONAH 1:12
[JONAH] SAID TO THEM, "PICK ME UP AND HURL ME INTO THE SEA; THEN THE SEA WILL QUIET DOWN FOR YOU, FOR I KNOW IT IS BECAUSE OF ME THAT THIS GREAT TEMPEST HAS COME UPON YOU."
SIONA 1:12
Pea pehē ‘e ia kiate kinautolu, Hiki au, ‘o tolo ki tahi; pea ‘e toki laolao ‘a e tahi kiate kimoutolu; he ‘oku ou ‘ilo kuo tō mai ‘a e fu‘u matangi ni kiate kimoutolu koe‘uhi ko au.
Jonah's story is about more than just one Israelite. It is a window into a broader world of what God was up to. Long before, the Lord had warned Israel that should they forsake him to serve idols, then he would make Israel jealous by focusing on Gentile nations (Deut. 32:21). That's precisely what he's doing by sending a prophet, not to his own people, but to the Assyrian city of Nineveh. What's more, God threatened to tul ("hurl") rebellious individuals (Isa. 22:17) and his nation into exile (Jer. 16:13). That same verb, tul, is used when the sailors tul ("hurl") Jonah into the sea. And in the Israelite mind, seas (Isa. 17:12-13) and sea monsters (Isa. 30:7) were emblematic of Gentiles and their leaders.
Jonah, therefore, by being hurled into "exile" in the sea, represents all Israel going into a future exile. And his regurgitating reentrance onto dry land pictures Israel's return from the Gentile sea of exile. That's all the more reason why Jesus compared himself to this prophet (Matt. 12:40). He truly is Israel-reduced-to-one who undergoes the ultimate exile in death to bring us all back to life again.
Hurl us not away from you, O Lord, but hold us, by grace, in the palm of your hand.
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