House Group Material – Jonah – Week Four
4. God has the last word
Having read the fourth chapter of Jonah there are a number of themes which merit some thought.
Jonah was clearly and openly very upset by the actions of God!
Have you ever found yourself upset or even angry by something trivial? Why did this happen and did you feel it was the right attitude to have both at the time and now later when time has passed?
Jonah’s prayer in verses 2 and 3 contrasts with his prayer when he is rescued from drowning. In what ways and why are his prayers so different?
In verses 6 – 8 there is a theme of God’s provision to Jonah. Perhaps God’s provision is the main theme of the whole book of Jonah. Do you think this is the case?
God provides shelter for Jonah but then provides a worm to destroy the plant.
Why would God do this and in what ways might this action be a further extension of God’s grace towards Jonah?
A slightly odd phrase is used in verse 11 concerning the Ninevites. There were 120,000 who did not know their right hand from their left. What do you think this means?
In summary – the book of Jonah is about the actions of God using Jonah, to enable a people to turn to him.
How does the story affect your thoughts on your ministry to those who you meet in your daily life who do not know God or who have turned away from him?
Reflecting on the whole of the book of Jonah, what action(s) do you think God is calling both you individually and our wider fellowship at Hatfield Road to do to open up opportunities to let God work in the lives of those who do not know God?