lectionary.com

Epiphany Season · Third Sunday after the Epiphany · Year B

Jonah 3:1-5, 10

Jonah Goes to Nineveh

January 24, 2027

Jonah Preaching to the Ninevites, Salvator Rosa
Jonah Preaching to the Ninevites, Salvator Rosa, c. 1650Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen
Rosa, who liked wildness and disorder, puts the prophet high on a block of stone shouting down at a city crowd that is already in motion.Forty days more and Nineveh shall be overthrown: it is the shortest sermon in scripture and the only one that worked completely.Salvator RosaA Neapolitan painter, poet and satirist who cultivated a wild reputation and painted banditti, storms and witches.Statens Museum for Kunst, CopenhagenDenmark's national gallery, grown from the royal collection begun in the sixteenth century.Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen
Revised Common Lectionary
GospelMark 1:14-20Mk 1:14-20
Epistle1 Cor. 7:29-311 Cor 7:29-31
Old TestamentJonah 3:1-5, 10Jon 3:1-5, 10
PsalterPs. 62:5-12Ps 62:5-12

Overview & Insights

“Should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people?” (Jonah 4:11)

Though undeserving, Jonah has been delivered from death by God’s merciful working through a fish. The book of Jonah is, before all else, a lesson concerning God’s free grace. But it is also a portrayal of God’s incredible patience. As Jonah confesses in 4:2, Yahweh is a God who is “slow to anger,” and it is amazing that God says nothing to Jonah in 3:1–2 by way of rebuke or admonition. Instead, God simply calls Jonah again, using the same words that he used in 1:1: “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city . . .” (RSV).

From Sermons.com: Join Today to access the most scholarly & well written preaching resources anywhere.

Take it further: Jonah 3:1-5, 10

Commentary

Jonah 3:1-5, 10Jon 3:1-5, 10 Working Preacher

On Jonah's reluctant second call and Nineveh's outsized repentance, with attention to God relenting.

Jonah 3:1-5, 10Jon 3:1-5, 10 Center for Excellence in Preaching

On the half-hearted prophet whose short message still takes hold by God's doing.

Jonah 3:1-5Jon 3:1-5 Enduring Word · David Guzik

An accessible verse-by-verse commentary, widely used across evangelical churches.

Background & Word Study

Summary of JonahSummary of Jon Enter the Bible

A summary that orients the reader to the book's satire and mercy theme behind chapter 3.

Jonah 3 in Hebrew, with Jewish commentaryJon 3 in Hebrew, with Jewish commentary Sefaria

The Hebrew and English of Jonah 3 with classical Jewish commentaries.

Overview: JonahOverview: Jon BibleProject

An animated overview framing chapter 3's repentance within the book's argument about God's compassion.

The Church Fathers

Jonah 3, patristic commentaryJon 3, patristic commentary Catena

Patristic comment on Jonah 3, including readings of Nineveh's repentance.

Sermons & Reflections

When they actually listen (Jonah 3:1-5, 10)When they actually listen (Jon 3:1-5, 10) Christian Century

Reflects on Nineveh actually heeding Jonah's forty-day warning and turning from its evil ways.

Questions preachers ask

Why is Jonah angry?

After Nineveh repents and God relents, Jonah sulks and would rather die than see his enemies spared (Jonah 4). God appoints a plant to shade him and a worm to wither it, then asks whether he should not pity a city of a hundred and twenty thousand. It is Scripture’s sharpest lesson on mercy reaching beyond our borders, paired here with the parable of the generous vineyard owner.

Prep at sermons.com

Ready to write?

  • Full sermons on Mark 1:14-20
  • Illustrations cleared for use in worship
  • Commentary, quotes, and Bible dictionary
Open it at sermons.com →

Trusted by pastors since 1995.

Free every Tuesday

Illustrations & Sermon Prep in your inbox

The coming Sunday’s readings, a cleared-for-use illustration, and a sermon-prep head start. One email, free.