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(continued from 'Son of Amattai - 1 of 2')

in the belly of the fish
Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord, his God,
Deep from the belly of leviathan.
“I cried out to you, Lord, in my distress,
For I am at the mercy of your plan.

I cried from Sheol, and you heard my voice,
For you cast me into the deep abyss.
Your sea, a flood of waves passed over me.
It drove me from your precious sight, remiss.

Yet I shall see your temple once again.
The waters closed to take away my breath.
The deep surrounded me; weeds wrapped my head,
Imprisoned behind bars of certain death.

And yet you brought my life up from the deep;
When life was fainting, failed, I called your name.
My prayer came to you, your hallowed halls,
For those who pay regard to idols vain

Forsake their hope of constant, steadfast love,
But I give thanks and sacrifices true.
And what I’ve vowed, I certainly will pay.
Yes, sweet salvation sole belongs to You.”

Thus, Jonah was contrite, and he confessed
That God was sovereign, supreme, in command.
God whispered to the fish on that third day;
It vomited our Jonah on dry land.

Jonah’s recommission
“Son of Amittai, to Nineveh go
And tell them of their great impending woe.
You bear my message; you are not alone.”

This time, ‘twas straight to Nineveh, he went,
Delivering the word the Lord had sent,
“In forty days, you will be overthrown!”

So great a city, Nineveh, so wide,
A three-day journey to traverse in stride,
And as he went, he called them to atone.

Down from the greatest to the very last,
They all donned sackcloth and prepared to fast,
All Nineveh believed the word that day.

The word came to the king upon his throne,
In ash and sackcloth, he as well bemoaned
Their wretched state and issued forth a writ:

“No man nor beast, no herd nor flock shall eat,
Instead, in ashes mightily entreat
The LORD, his evil way forgive, acquit.

For, if contrite in heart, we now repent,
Who knows, God may yet turn his wrath, relent,
Not banish us down deep within the pit.”

When God saw what they did and how they turned,
He then relented from their judgment earned;
God’s gracious act: salvation on display.

chastisement
Then Jonah was much angered and dismayed,
“Is this not why to Tarshish that I strayed,
For I knew then you were a God of grace?

Your anger, slow, your steadfast love abounds.
Your graciousness, replacing wrath, confounds;
Please take my life, for death’s a welcome place.”

God said, “Your anger suits you well, forsooth.”
So, pouting, Jonah left and made a booth,
That it might shade the sun from on his face.

From there, he hoped to see the city fall,
But God then grew a plant up broad and tall
To spare poor Jonah from the sun’s hot rays.

Upon the plant, he cast a thankful eye,
But when the sun arose, it withered, died,
For God had sent a worm to gnaw its root.

Then, from the east, God sent a scorching wind,
And Jonah, faint, sought there to make an end,
Despairing at the loss of his green shoot.

Then God said, “Are you angry for the plant?”
“Angered enough to die!” did Jonah rant.
This humored Him, “Dear Jonah, you’re a hoot!”

“You pitied for a plant you did not grow;
Shall I not pity Ninevites who know
Not left from right, or cattle that there graze?”

(from the book of Jonah)
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