SPIRITUAL
DIARY FOR 8/25/2025 9:32 AM
My
Worship Time Focus: “Historical
Context”
This
morning I continue to look at the different things that John MacArthur has
written at the beginning of his commentary on the book of Jonah, and today’s SD
will be about “Historical Context.” My
prayer is that all who read these SD’s from the beginning of the study of Jonah
will receive a blessing.
“Jonah
ministered during the reign of Jeroboam II (ca. 793-758 BC), a time when Israel
enjoyed peace and prosperity. While
Assyria had previously subjugated Israel and required tribute during the reign
of Jehu (841-814 BC), Jeroboam II succeeded in establishing autonomy and
security. Under the prophetic direction
of Jonah, the king restored Israel’s territory up to Lebo-hamath in the north
and the Sea of Arabah in the south (2 Kgs. 14:25). With such expansion, the northern and
southern kingdoms of Israel regained all the northern and southern kingdoms of
Israel regained all the territory that Israel had possessed in the days of
Solomon (1 Kgs. 8:65; cf. Num 34:7-9; Josh 13:4). The nearly forty-year reign of Jeroboam II
represented a second golden age for the nation.
“This
time of success, however, would be short-lived because Israel did not repent
but continued to live in rebellion against the Lord. Along with Jeroboam II, Israel did what was
evil in the sight of Yahweh (2 Kgs. 14:24).
God nonetheless restrained judgment because He had promised that Jehu
would have four sons to sit on the throne (15:12), providing continuity and stability
for the northern kingdom. But once that
period was over, Amos, along with other prophets, declared that Israel would be
exiled by Assyria (Amos 5:27; cf. Isa. 7:17-18, 20; Hos. 9:3; 11:5, 11). Since Jeroboam II was the third of Jehu’s
four sons, the time of stability was approaching the end. Jehu’s fourth son, Zechariah, ruled for only
six months (2 Kgs. 15:8), and over the subsequent three decades the stability
of the northern kingdom waned until it fell to Assyria in 7:22 BC.
“Since
oppression by Gentile nations was a historical reality and exile was a
prevailing threat (cf. Deut 4:25-31; 28:64-67), Israel was characterized by an
anti-Gentile sentiment. While many of
the prophets rightly condemned the nations for their wickedness (cf. Isa. 13-27;
Joel 3; Mic. 7:16-17) and prophesied that God’s judgment would fall on them
Obad. 17), the Israelites became self-righteous and assumed they were innately
superior to the people groups around them (Amos 1-2).
“Of
the nations Israel hated, perhaps the most detested was Assyria, given its military
prominence and reputation for cruelty.
The empire had a long history of brutal conquest and expansion. Early on, various kings, including Adad-nirai
I (ca. 13th c. BC), aggressively conquered territory in Mesopotamia
to establish the kingdom of Assyria.
After a period of instability, Assyria returned to dominance under
Ashur-dan II (ca. 10th c. BC), giving rise to the Neo-Assyrian
Empire under the auspices of Adad-nirari II (ca. 911-859 BC) and Ashurnasirpal
II (ca. 883-859 BC). Having consolidated
power in Mesopotamia, Shalmaneser III (ca. 859-824 BC) ruled from Nineveh,
turning his attention toward other nations, notably at the bottle of Qarqar
(853 BC), also fighting Israel during the reign of King Ahab (ca. 874-853 BC; 1
Kings 16:28-33; 22:1). Shalmaneser III
later subjugated the Israelite king Jehu.
His victory is depicted on the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III, which
records that Israel paid tribute to Assyria (ca. 841 BC; cf. 2 Kings 9-10; Hos.
1:4).
“Assyria
was barbaric to every nation at that time.
An image from the reign of Shalmaneser III portrays the king with piles
of dismembered heads, hands, and feet around him along with bodies impaled on
stakes. Such brutality would have been
well-known to the Israelites when God called Jonah to minister to Nineveh. Roughly fifty years after Jonah’s ministry,
Israel’s suspicions about Assyria were confirmed when the Assyrian army
conquered Israel and exiled the people in barbaric fashion (722 BC). Ancient reliefs from the conquests of
Sennacherib (ca. 701 BC), depicting a pile of decapitated heads or even
soldiers skinning their captives, reveal the kind of graphic violence for which
Assyria was known. The Assyrians also
attempted to conquer the southern kingdom of Judah, only being halted by the
Angel of Yahweh who killed 185,000 enemy soldiers (2 Kings 19:35 -37; Isa.
37:36-38). Without question, Assyria was
a bloodthirsty nation, eager to dominate by force.
“Because
Assyria was so violent, the fact that its aggression against Israel subsided
during the reign of Jeroboam II is significant.
This was due, in part, to internal unrest and the rise of a rival
kingdom named Urartu, which put pressure on the Assyrian empire. But a major
reason that peace between Israel and Assyria continued during Jeroboam II’s
reign was that Jonah’s preaching led to Nineveh’s repentance. The continued lull in Assyria’s aggression was
evidence of the mercy of God and the genuineness of Nineveh’s conversion.”
I
have to say that I am learning a lot about history around the time when Jonah
was a prophet, things I never really knew before.
Spiritual
Meaning for My life Today:
After reading this section of John MacArthur’s introduction to the book
of Jonah I am reinforced in my faith that God is, and always will be in
control, even though at times like this morning I had a truly bad experience.
My
Steps of Faith for Today:
Continue to trust the Lord with the upcoming results of my wife’s MRI
tomorrow.
8/26/2025 9:50 AM
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