We read of wrath that kills the
foolish man, and envy that slays the silly one
(Job 5:2),
and foolish silly ones indeed those are that cut their own throats with
their own passions, that fret themselves into consumptions and other
weaknesses, and put themselves into fevers with their own intemperate
heats.
VII. The improvement of it against him for his conviction that he did
ill to murmur at the sparing of Nineveh. Out of his own mouth God will
judge him; and we have reason to think it overcame him; for he made no
reply, but, we hope, returned to his right mind and recovered his
temper, though he could not keep it, and all was well. Now,
1. Let us see how God argued with him
(Jonah 4:10,11):
"Thou hast had pity on the gourd, hast spared it" (so the
word is), "didst what thou couldst, and wouldst have done more, to keep
it alive, and saidst, What a pity it is that this gourd should
ever wither! and should not I then spare Nineveh? Should not I
have as much compassion upon that as thou hadst upon the gourd, and
forbid the earthquake which would ruin that, as thou wouldst have
forbidden the worm that smote the gourd? Consider,"
(1.) "The gourd thou hadst pity on was but one; but the inhabitants of
Nineveh, whom I have pity on, are numerous." It is a great city and
very populous, as appears by the number of the infants, suppose from
two years old and under; there are 120,000 such in Nineveh, that have
not come to so much use of understanding as to know their right hand
from their left, for they are yet but babes. These are taken notice
of because the age of infants is commonly looked upon as the age of
innocence. So many there were in Nineveh that had not been guilty of
any actual transgression, and consequently had not themselves
contributed to the common guilt, and yet, if Nineveh had been
overthrown, they would all have been involved in the common calamity;
"and shall not I spare Nineveh then, with an eye to them?" God
has a tender regard to little children, and is ready to pity and
succour them, nay, here a whole city is spared for their sakes, which
may encourage parents to present their children to God by faith and
prayer, that though they are not capable of doing him any service (for
they cannot discern between their right hand and their left,
between good and evil, sin and duty), yet they are capable of
participating in his favours and of obtaining salvation. The great
Saviour discovered a particular kindness for the children that were
brought to him, when he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon
them, and blessed them. Nay, God took notice of the abundance of
cattle too that were in Nineveh, which he had more reason to pity and
spare than Jonah had to pity and to spare the gourd, inasmuch as the
animal life is more excellent than the vegetable.
(2.) The gourd which Jonah was concerned for was none of his own; it
was that for which he did not labour and which he made not to grow; but
the persons in Nineveh whom God had compassion on were all the work
of his own hands, whose being he was the author of, whose lives he
was the preserver of, whom he planted and made to grow; he made them,
and his they were, and therefore he had much more reason to have
compassion on them, for he cannot despise the work of his own
hands
(Job 10:3);
and thus Job there argues with him
(Jonah 4:8,9),
Thy hands have made me, and fashioned me, have made me as the
clay; and wilt thou destroy me, wilt thou bring me into
dust again? And thus he here argues with himself.
(3.) The gourd which Jonah had pity on was of a sudden growth, and
therefore of less value; it came up in a night, it was the son of a
night (so the word is); but Nineveh is an ancient city, of many
ages standing, and therefore cannot be so easily given up; "the persons
I spare have been many years in growing up, not so soon reared as the
gourd; and shall not I then have pity on those that have been so many
years the care of my providence, so many years my tenants?"
(4.) The gourd which Jonah had pity on perished in a night; it
withered, and there was an end of it. But the precious souls in
Nineveh that God had pity on are not so short-lived; they are immortal,
and therefore to be carefully and tenderly considered. One soul is of
more value than the whole world, and the gain of the world will not
countervail the loss of it; surely then one soul is of more value than
many gourds, of more value than many sparrows; so God accounts, and so
should we, and therefore have a greater concern for the children of men
than for any of the inferior creatures, and for our own and others'
precious souls than for any of the riches and enjoyments of this
world.
2. From all this we may learn,
(1.) That though God may suffer his people to fall into sin, yet he
will not suffer them to lie still in it, but will take a course
effectually to show them their error, and to bring them to themselves
and to their right mind again. We have reason to hope that Jonah, after
this, was well reconciled to the sparing of Nineveh, and was as well
pleased with it as ever he had been displeased.
(2.) That God will justify himself in the methods of his grace towards
repenting returning sinners as well as in the course his justice takes
with those that persist in their rebellion; though there be those that
murmur at the mercy of God, because they do not understand it (for his
thoughts and ways therein are as far above ours as heaven above the
earth), yet he will make it evident that therein he acts like himself,
and will be justified when he speaks. See what pains he takes
with Jonah to convince him that it is very fit that Nineveh should be
spared. Jonah had said, I do well to be angry, but he could not
prove it. God says and proves it, I do well to be merciful; and
it is a great encouragement to poor sinners to hope that they shall
find mercy with him, that he is so ready to justify himself in showing
mercy and to triumph in those whom he makes the monuments of it,
against those whose eye is evil because his is good. Such murmurers
shall be made to understand this doctrine, that, how narrow soever
their souls, their principles, are, and how willing soever they are to
engross divine grace to themselves and those of their own way, there is
one Lord over all, that is rich in mercy to all that call upon
him, and in every nation, in Nineveh as well as in Israel,
he that fears God and works righteousness is accepted of him; he
that repents, and turns from his evil way, shall find mercy with
him.
Matthew Henry "Verse by Verse Commentary for 'Jonah' Matthew Henry Bible Commentary".
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