Courage and Mercy
Many years ago, there lived a prophet of Jehovah (God's name). He had a long brown beard and lived in a small house with his brothers and father. One night as he was sleeping, he heard a voice say to him: "Jonah, go to Nineveh, the Great City. Tell them all that my judgement is coming. I have noticed how violent they are."
Nineveh, the Great City, was a city of violence and idol worship. They worshipped gods of war and they took pleasure in torturing people. Their violence was very... very extreme.
"No wonder then that Jehovah has told me to go there and announce a judgement message..." Jonah thought.
Jonah didn't sleep well that night. He had anxiety. He'd heard about Nineveh and its violence. The next day, Jonah was in great stress. He left early, without alerting his family that he was leaving. He didn't take the food and provisions that they'd made for him.
"What are you doing, Jonah?" his sister asked. "Aren't you going to say goodbye?"
"I'm not like Isaiah, sister. Not anymore." Jonah replied.
"No!" she said as Jonah walked out of the house and into the distance.
Jonah was leaving his home, not to go to Nineveh, but rather, to go to Tarshish. He was going in the complete opposite direction. What would Jehovah do? Would he become angry and have his prophet killed?
Some days later, Jonah was on a ship, heading far away from Nineveh where he was told to go and far from home. He kept thinking about his father and his brothers and sister. And most of all, about Jehovah his God.
"What have I done... Can I run from even Jehovah?"
Suddenly, a violent storm hit the ship. It was surely going to capsize and kill everyone on board, the sailors as well as Jonah himself. Then, Jonah confessed to the sailors.
"Its my fault that this is happening. The True God has brought this storm. You must throw me overboard and the storm will end." he said.
So the sailors threw him overboard reluctantly. Then the storm ended and the sailors thanked Jehovah the God of Israel.
"Surely, I will now drown in this ocean as punishment." Jonah thought to himself. "Its over."
Then, as if it couldn't get worse, a great fish of a kind never seen before, swallowed him whole. Now he was inside the slimy stench filled guts of a fish, shouting out for help. Three days passed and Jonah kept praying.
"If I am to die in the belly of this fish, how will I ever gaze upon your temple again? No. What I have vowed I will pay. Salvation is from Jehovah." Jonah prayed.
Suddenly the fish ejected him onto a beach. There he was rescued by some men who took him to their home. He ate and was refreshed. Some weeks later, Jonah was home once more.
"Jehovah was merciful to me even though I disobeyed him and ran from him. I wonder why he was so kind to me, a sinner, a coward." Jonah thought as he lay down to sleep in his bed for the first time in months.
"Jonah." whispered the air as he was dozing off into sleep. Startled, he opened his eyes.
"Jonah." it repeated.
"Yes?" Jonah replied immediately, sitting up in excitement.
"Go to Nineveh, the Great City. Tell them that my judgement is coming. I have noticed just how violent they are." Jehovah said.
"Yes! Of course. Thank you! Thank you!" Jonah replied, amazed that Jehovah had given him another chance!
NINEVEH - THE GREAT CITY
"In just 30 days more, the city Nineveh will be overthrown by Jehovah, the God of Israel, the only true God!" Jonah announced as he stood in the city square.
Despite being nervous, Jonah was able to say out loud the message because Jehovah was helping him.
30 days passed. The unthinkable happened! The people, the violent people, of Nineveh were listening! They stopped being violent and put on sack cloth and begged Jehovah God to forgive them!
But Jonah was not happy. He wanted his message of judgement to come true. He could not understand why Jehovah would forgive such wicked and violent people.
SO Jonah waited. And waited. But nothing happened. No destruction. No fire from heaven. Just peace and quiet. So Jonah said:
"Jehovah, take my life away. I'd rather die than live now." Jonah said out of great anger and emotion.
"Is it right for you to be so angry?" Jehovah asked him.
"I have a right to be angry! So angry that I want to die!" Jonah said.
So Jehovah made a plant grow next to Jonah where he was sitting outside of the city. The sun was so hot but that plant that God made grow was shielding him from the scorching sun. Jonah was happy in the shade as he slept.
The next morning, the plant had suddenly died. A worm of Jehovah had eaten the plant! Jonah was very upset. He even cried for the plant which he had enjoyed for so short a time. Now it was gone, decaying into the dust.
"You felt sorry for the plant that I made grow. It grew in one night and perished in one night. So should I not feel sorry for Nineveh, the great city, in which there are more than 120,000 men who do not even know right from wrong, as well as their many animals?" Jehovah said.
https://www.jw.org/en/bible-teachings/questions/gods-name/