Whale of a Story 被大鱼吞下的故事
Dexu Xia
The Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land. Jonah 2:10
Michael was diving for lobster when a humpback whale caught him in its mouth. He pushed back in the darkness as the whale’s muscles squeezed against him. He thought he was done. But whales don’t prefer lobstermen, and thirty seconds later the whale spit Michael into the air. Amazingly, Michael had no broken bones—only extensive bruises and one whale of a story.
He wasn’t the first. Jonah was swallowed by “a huge fish” (Jonah 1:17), and he stayed in its belly for three days before being vomited onto land (1:17; 2:10). Unlike Michael, who was caught by accident, Jonah was swallowed because he hated Israel’s enemies and didn’t want them to repent. When God told Jonah to preach in Nineveh, he caught a boat going the other way. So God sent a whale-sized fish to get his attention.
I appreciate why Jonah hated the Assyrians. They’d harassed Israel in the past, and within fifty years they’d carry the northern tribes into captivity where they’d vanish forever. Jonah was understandably offended that Assyria might be forgiven.
But Jonah was more loyal to the people of God than to the God of all people. God loved Israel’s enemies and wanted to save them. He loves our enemies and wants to save them. With the wind of the Spirit at our backs, let’s sail toward them with the good news of Jesus.
Who do you know that needs to follow Jesus? How might you increase your love for them?
Jesus, please show me how to love my enemies as You love them.
耶和华吩咐鱼，鱼就把约拿吐在旱地上。—约拿书2章10节
迈克正在潜水捕龙虾，没想到却被一条座头鲸一口吞下。在黑暗中，迈克感觉到鱼嘴的强大肌肉挤压着他，以为自己就要命丧于此。其实鲸鱼对他根本没兴趣，30秒后，鲸鱼将迈克吐出去。迈克也奇迹似地一根骨头都没有折断，只是身上有大片的瘀青，以及被大鱼一口吞下的奇特经历。
类似的事早有先例。约拿就曾被“一条大鱼”吞下肚，在鱼腹中待了三天，才被大鱼吐到陆地上（约拿书1章17节，2章10节）。但两者却有不同之处，迈克是遭鲸鱼误吞，而约拿被大鱼吞下是因他恨恶以色列的仇敌，不愿他们悔改。当上帝要约拿去尼尼微宣讲真理时，他竟坐船朝相反方向而去。最后上帝差派了一条如鲸鱼般的大鱼，要将约拿唤回。
我明白约拿为何憎恨亚述人。亚述人在过去不断侵扰以色列人，甚至在五十年内他们会将北国的以色列民掳走，以至以色列北国从此消亡。约拿不愿意看到亚述人罪得赦免的心理，是可以理解的。
但这也显示约拿忠于上帝的选民，更胜过忠于那位万民的上帝。上帝爱以色列人的仇敌，想要拯救他们；祂也爱我们的仇敌，想要拯救他们。让我们靠着圣灵的帮助，放下仇恨，将耶稣的福音带给他们吧！
你知道有谁需要来跟随耶稣吗？你要如何更爱他们？
耶稣，求祢教导我，能像祢一样去爱我的仇敌。