The Evangelical Universalist Forum

Jonah

Theology Soteriology
#1

I’m enjoying Robin Parry’s new book *All shall be well. * (hot off the press.)

One essay covers the French sociologist and theologian Jacques Ellul. He went from double predestinion to universalism over the course of some years. In a study of Jonah, Ellul said, “Hell, like everything else, obeys God… Hell not only obeys this almighty Lord, it is also open to him. As we enter it, God also enters with us so as not to leave us alone… Hell is no longer closed. It is no longer the stronghold where Satan guards his triumphs. Hell is robbed of its certainties.” “God will bring him out of this situation from which there is no exit.”

Chapter 2 is a magnificent passage. Jonah is cast into Sheol (hell) forever because of his sins. He is lost in the deep, the OT symbol for primeval chaos. God has cast him away. But lo and behold! God is with him still. As soon as Jonah comes to his senses, hell, at God’s command, spits him out. Brilliant.

Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the fish’s belly.
And he said:

“ I cried out to the LORD because of my affliction, and He answered me.
“Out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and You heard my voice. For You cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the floods surrounded me; all Your billows and Your waves passed over me.
Then I said, ‘I have been cast out of Your sight; Yet I will look again toward Your holy temple.’
The waters surrounded me, even to my soul; the deep closed around me; weeds were wrapped around my head.
I went down to the moorings of the mountains; the earth with its bars closed behind me forever;
Yet You have brought up my life from the pit, O LORD, my God.
“ When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the LORD, and my prayer went up to You, into Your holy temple.
“ Those who regard worthless idols forsake their own Mercy, but I will sacrifice to You with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay what I have vowed.
Salvation is of the LORD.”

So the LORD spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

#2

Thanks Dad, I think that the Jonah passage is a great find for EU. It’s good to see such a clear biblical example where being “cast out forever”, isn’t permanent (only a few days in this case!) :sunglasses:

Glad you’re enjoying the book too.

#3

Sometimes I think every prospective Christian should start with Jonah and not be allowed to proceed until they get it. :smiley:

The church I’m attending has been running a Wednesday night women’s group series on Jonah for the last three months or so. I’m terribly curious what the hell (so to speak) is being taught in there. But, y’know, women only. It’s a mystery. :mrgreen:

(It tickles me immensely to imagine they’re being trained in universalism because men aren’t sensible and/or charitable enough to ‘get it’, and so women are being secretly passed the torch. This would be especially amusing in a Southern Baptist church, where women aren’t allowed to authoritatively teach men–which is why men can’t attend this class, of course. :laughing: Okay, I’m probably imagining too much. But then again, who is by far the #1 attended Southern Baptist lecturer?–so vastly popular she has HER OWN BUTTON on the menu bar at LifeWay? And what did she end up evasively saying after doing a study on Romans? Incidentally–or perhaps not–her most recent music leader for her conferences was recently hired as the music director for our church… Ah, I can dream anyway… :slight_smile: )

#4

You know the Veggie Tales song, right? “Jonah was a prophet, ooh ooh, but he never really got it, sad but true…he did not get the point!” :laughing:

So what** did** Beth Moore say about Romans??

Sonia

#5

Calvinists and Arminians are both right in what they affirm, and both wrong in what they deny.

In other words, a classic universalist formulation.

(Also something about God being greater than we expect Him to be, and about her coming away from her Romans study very confused and unsure of things.)

#6

Also, I meant to add this morning (but had to leave for a 10 hour road trip):

I recently discovered an interesting rabbinic factoid while reading JPHolding’s recently released book on the Resurrection. Many rabbis believed that what the pagans in the boat were praising YHWH about, was not for calming the storm, but because God had revealed to them that Jonah was still alive in the belly of the sea monster at the bottom of the sea and would eventually be saved.

#7

We are going through Jonah at church at the moment. It’s such a great book, full of accessible, memorable, imagery for both young & old alike, humour too. Anyway, one of the things I took away from the 1st sermon, is the similarities between Jonah & Jesus. I think the NT picks this up too.

]Jonah 3 days “buried” in the fish under the sea
Jesus 3 days buried/]

]Jonah 3 days in “Hell”
Jesus 3 days in Hell/]

]Jonah freed from “Hell”
Jesus breaks free of Hell/]

]Jonah sent to save a lost city
Jesus sent to save a lost world/]

]The entire***** city spared because of Jonah’s faithful actions
The entire****** world spared because of Jesus’ faithful actions/*]

]God’s universal mercy upset people
God’s universal mercy still upsets people/]

]God pities people because they are largely ignorant “Yet for My part, can’t I pity Nineveh, … people who can’t tell their right hand from their left”
Jesus pities people because they are largely ignorant “Forgive them Father for they know not what they do!”/]

******The following verses show no one in the city perished, so equally we should expect no one in the world to perish.

#8

Love love love Jonah for all the reasons you just described Alex.

I hope to name our baby Jonah if it turns out to be a boy! Wife is 7 weeks pregnant so still early, but Lord willing! Strong heartbeat detected on sonogram yesterday!

On the surface people may think Jonah was just some prophet who ran from
God, but if they look a little deeper they find a story ripe with blessed truths regarding the scope of Gods love!

#9

That would be a good name choice. Very glad it’s going well! :sunglasses:

Amen!

#10

Great observations, Alex! It’s interesting that it says God was planning to destroy them, but when they repented, He stopped and did not do it.

Sonia

#11

*Love *those Jesus / Jonah parallels, Alex.

There’s so much good stuff in the Bible I realise I know so little about. Need to study more! :smiley:

Shalom

Johnny