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Speaker 1: Let us pray arise, go to Nineveh, that great city,

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Speaker 1: and cry against it for their wickedness is come up

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Speaker 1: before me Jonah one two, My God. When I hear

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Speaker 1: the whisper of your voice like a cool breeze, I

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Speaker 1: will heed your commands and come into alignment with your

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Speaker 1: heart's desire. I will not take the position of Jonah

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Speaker 1: in my life by looking out for myself and ignoring

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Speaker 1: the plans you have for me. Through my obedience, I

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Speaker 1: am securing myself from being thrown overboard in the storm

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Speaker 1: of life and from causing others to suffer as a

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Speaker 1: result of my disobedience. No matter how reluctant I might feel,

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Speaker 1: through my faithfulness to you, no fish will be needed

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Speaker 1: to get me to the place You've called me to go.

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Speaker 1: Instead of being thrown up, I will grow up and

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Speaker 1: acknowledge that you are in control of my life, and

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Speaker 1: as I submit to your ways, deliverance and purpose will follow.

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Speaker 1: Instead of being thrown up, I will grow up and

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Speaker 1: acknowledge that you are in control of my life, and

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Speaker 1: as I submit to your ways, deliverance and purpose will follow.

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Speaker 1: In Jesus' name, Amen, thanks for making prayer a priority

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Speaker 1: in your life to hear the Bible come to life.

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Speaker 1: Stay tuned for the Bible in a Year, brought to

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Speaker 1: you by Bible in a Year.

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Speaker 2: Dot Com Jonah and the Fish.

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Speaker 3: In our last story, we said goodbye to the Elisha

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Speaker 3: along with the prophet. Was the end of the era

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Speaker 3: of kings. The nations of Judah and Israel continued to

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Speaker 3: wrestle with God. Their hearts were in a continual state

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Speaker 3: of drawing near and far from Him. Soon a great

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Speaker 3: threat would arise to take Israel captive. This was a

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Speaker 3: threat they were not prepared for. Now we learn about

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Speaker 3: the prophet Jonah. Unlike the prophets before him and after him,

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Speaker 3: Jonah was a prophet that actively ran away from the

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Speaker 3: Lord's calling on his life. Soon Jonah would be consumed

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Speaker 3: by his own disobedience and learn the true meaning of

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Speaker 3: closeness to God in the belly of a giant fish.

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Speaker 3: Inspired by the Book of Jonah.

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Speaker 4: Hello, this is Jack Graham with today's episode of the

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Speaker 4: Bible in a Year. In yesterday's scripture, we heard of

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Speaker 4: the downward spiral of Israel, who, under King Jehoahs and

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Speaker 4: later his son Jehoash, continued to turn to foreign gods.

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Speaker 4: Facing defeat after defeat from outside enemies, Israel would soon

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Speaker 4: face a great fall like they had never seen before,

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Speaker 4: as God judged them for their stubbornness and sinful behavior.

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Speaker 4: Today we'll hear about an unwilling prophet by the name

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Speaker 4: of Jonah who was sent to a wicked people to

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Speaker 4: call them to repentance. God's call for Jonah to preach

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Speaker 4: in Nineveh will highlight just how merciful our God is,

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Speaker 4: not only to the Jewish people, but to everyone. Let's

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Speaker 4: listen now to the reading of God's word.

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Speaker 3: Jonah watched as the gentle tide rolled in from the sea.

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Speaker 3: The morning breeze was cool on his face and filled

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Speaker 3: his lungs with fresh air. He watched the water rise

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Speaker 3: and fall to the rhythm of the tide. Jonah was

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Speaker 3: a man who valued his peace. Although he was a

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Speaker 3: prophet of God, he was not like Elijah or Elisha.

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Speaker 3: Jonah valued harmony above all. During the crisis of King Jeroboam,

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Speaker 3: Jonah prophesied that he would win all of his battles

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Speaker 3: and bring victory to his kingdom. He did this because

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Speaker 3: he did not want to tell the king something he

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Speaker 3: did not want to hear. Jonah saved his own reputation

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Speaker 3: and safety. The prophet Amos eventually rebuked him and told

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Speaker 3: the king that he would certainly lose his battle and

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Speaker 3: his kingdom. Jonah was not ashamed of these things. He

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Speaker 3: knew that he must look out for his own peace

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Speaker 3: and his own comfort first. So Jonah sat staring out

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Speaker 3: at the sea, enjoying his blissful mourning without quarrel or stress.

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Speaker 3: Jonah closed his eyes and allowed the morning sun to

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Speaker 3: shine on his face. He could hear the waves slowly

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Speaker 3: crashing on the shore and the sound of birds chirping

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Speaker 3: in the air. With his eyes still closed, Jonah could

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Speaker 3: hear another peculiar sound. A whisper came in with the breeze.

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Speaker 3: The voice was gentle, but clear and strong. Jonah could

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Speaker 3: sense the presence of God drawing closer. Arise, God said.

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Speaker 3: Jonah's forehead began to wrinkle as he listened to the words,

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Speaker 3: go inland to the great city of Nineveh. They have

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Speaker 3: fallen into a great deal of wickedness. Go and point

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Speaker 3: out their evil so they can repent. Then the voice

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Speaker 3: of the Lord trailed off with the breeze. Jonah opened

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Speaker 3: his eyes and stood to his feet. No Jonah thought

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Speaker 3: to himself, absolutely not. Jonah would not help the wicked

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Speaker 3: people of Nineveh. Jonah had a deep seated hatred for them.

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Speaker 3: Pain and contempt harbored in his heart like an old

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Speaker 3: ship without a sail. He would not preach the word

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Speaker 3: of God to them. He would not help them. He

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Speaker 3: would not allow them to be spared. Jonah knew they

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Speaker 3: deserved to die, and he wanted no part in whatever

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Speaker 3: redemptive plan he had in store. So Jonah boarded a

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Speaker 3: ship to Joppa that was setting sail for Tarshish. He

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Speaker 3: paid the fare and ventured off with a crew of

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Speaker 3: gentile sailors. Tarshis was the furthest city from Nineph. There

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Speaker 3: he would seek safety from the uncomfortable and dangerous call

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Speaker 3: of God. Jonah watched Israel become smaller and smaller as

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Speaker 3: they sailed away. Jonah sighed and decided to go down

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Speaker 3: and sleep. As Jonah slumbered, clouds were rolling in from

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Speaker 3: the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. The waves began to

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Speaker 3: chop at the side of the boat. The clouds grew darker,

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Speaker 3: and thunder echoed across the waters. Lightning struck dangerously close

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Speaker 3: to the ship, and the wind began to howl with

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Speaker 3: great fools. Jonah could not outrun God. The sailors tugged

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Speaker 3: at the ropes, trying to keep the sails from tearing

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Speaker 3: to shreds. The boat was taking on water and the

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Speaker 3: waves were threatening to destroy the entire vessel. Each sailor

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Speaker 3: grew more and more fearful. They had never experienced such

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Speaker 3: a storm. Each man prayed to his own God, desperately

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Speaker 3: asking for mercy. As the frightened mariners prayed for their lives.

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Speaker 3: Jonah was fast asleep in the brig, content in his

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Speaker 3: disobedience to God. The captain burst open the doors and

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Speaker 3: awoke Jonah. How could you be sleeping, the captain wailed,

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Speaker 3: Get up. You better be praying to your God as

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Speaker 3: we are praying to ours. Perhaps yours were actually answered.

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Speaker 3: Jonah rose from his cart and walked up to the deck.

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Speaker 3: He fell forward as the waves shook the boat. Jonah

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Speaker 3: looked up and saw a mighty tempest surrounding him. The

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Speaker 3: cold wind felt like a razor blade on his face,

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Speaker 3: and the rain drummed against the wood of the ship.

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Speaker 3: Jonah knew what was happening. God had found him. There

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Speaker 3: would be no escape. The crew gathered lots to see

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Speaker 3: who was responsible for the unprecedented story. They cast them

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Speaker 3: on to the deck, and the lot fell on Jonah.

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Speaker 3: They looked at him in disgust. Who are you, they shouted,

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Speaker 3: tell us why this evil has come upon us? Where

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Speaker 3: do you come from? And why are you here. Jonah's

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Speaker 3: lips quivered slightly. He looked at the men and said,

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Speaker 3: I am a Hebrew. You worship gods of water, wind

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Speaker 3: or land, But I worshiped the God who has made

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Speaker 3: the water, wind and land, and I am running from him.

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Speaker 3: The men were exceedingly afraid they were harboring a man

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Speaker 3: who was fleeing the almighty creator of the sea. Even they,

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Speaker 3: in their limited knowledge of God, knew that Jonah made

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Speaker 3: a big state. Joining then, what are we supposed to

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Speaker 3: do with you?

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Speaker 4: They asked.

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Speaker 3: Jonah looked out at the vast sea raging. It was

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Speaker 3: growing more violent by the minute. These sailors would be

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Speaker 3: under water in less than an hour unless Jonah did something.

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Speaker 3: He took a deep breath and said, throw me in.

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Speaker 3: The men gasped for a moment. Pick me up and

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Speaker 3: hurl me into the sea. The storm should quiet after that,

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Speaker 3: Lord forgive us and do not hold this man's life

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Speaker 3: against us, the men cried out as they threw Jonah

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Speaker 3: into the water. Jonah was hurled into the air and

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Speaker 3: then surrounded by the raging sea. The men repented and

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Speaker 3: bowed before God. They worshiped him and made vows of

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Speaker 3: devotion to him. The gentile men had more repentant hearts

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Speaker 3: than Jonah himself. The waters continued to thrash in every direction.

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Speaker 3: Jonah swam to the best of his ability, but was

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Speaker 3: eventually consumed by the dark and vast ocean. He fell

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Speaker 3: deeper and deeper into the depths. Jonah closed his eyes,

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Speaker 3: embracing his inevitable demise. Even now surrounded by a storm,

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Speaker 3: Jonah was happy he wasn't in Nineveh. As Jonah was

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Speaker 3: ready to welcome death, a large shadow loomed over him.

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Speaker 3: He opened his eyes in terror. A gargantuan fish was

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Speaker 3: swimming towards him. Jonah screamed, but the sound was trapped

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Speaker 3: by the water surrounding him, and in an instant he

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Speaker 3: was consumed by the scaly gray. Jonah awoke in darkness.

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Speaker 3: He could barely move and could see nothing around him.

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Speaker 3: The stench of rotting fish and stomach acid filled his nostrils.

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Speaker 3: He could hear nothing but his own panicked breathing. For hours,

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Speaker 3: he lamented his own undoing. He tried to escape, with

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Speaker 3: no success. He was trapped in an underwater tomb. Hours passed,

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Speaker 3: then a day. Hunger and thirst consumed him, and he

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Speaker 3: could feel his joints beginning to cramp in place. Yet

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Speaker 3: there was this peace that Jonah felt. During the second day,

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Speaker 3: surrounded by darkness, Jonah began to feel the presence of God.

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Speaker 3: Joy welled up inside Jonah and he began to sing

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Speaker 3: to the Lord. I called to God in my time

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Speaker 3: of need, and he answered me. From the belly of

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Speaker 3: the grave, I cried, and he heard. You cast me

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Speaker 3: into the depths. O Lord, you threw me into the

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Speaker 3: heart of the seas, and your waves crashed over me.

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Speaker 3: I am driven away from you, but I will set

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Speaker 3: my eyes upon your temple. The waters have closed in

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Speaker 3: to kill me. The deep has surrounded me, the weeds

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Speaker 3: are wrapping around my neck. Yet I will praise and

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Speaker 3: give thanks to you, my God. On the third day,

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Speaker 3: as Jonah accepted his place with God and the sea,

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Speaker 3: he felt a surge come through the belly of the fish,

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Speaker 3: rumbling surrounded Jonah, and he looked up to see a

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Speaker 3: faint light. The fish threw Jonah up, and once again

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Speaker 3: he found himself surrounded by water. It consumed him, but

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Speaker 3: he could still see a light above him. He swam

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Speaker 3: towards it. His bones were sore and his body was weak,

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Speaker 3: but he swam with all his might. Then Jonah emerged

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Speaker 3: out of the water. He gasped for air. The sun

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Speaker 3: was shining brightly, and Jonah could see the soft sand

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Speaker 3: only a few yards away. He clawed his way to

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Speaker 3: shore and basted in freedom. A tired laughter came across

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Speaker 3: Jonah as he allowed the gentle breeze to tickle his face.

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Speaker 4: Again.

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Speaker 3: He was spared for a purpose, a purpose he was

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Speaker 3: still reluctant to accept.

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Speaker 4: Today's scripture is a very familiar story to so many people.

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Speaker 4: It is God's work about a prophet by the name

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Speaker 4: of Jonah. We discovered very quickly that not all prophet

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Speaker 4: were as obedience or quick to obey as great men

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Speaker 4: like Nathan or Elijah or Elisha, who spoke God's truth

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Speaker 4: to people powerfully, knowing very well that it could even

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Speaker 4: cost them their lives. These were faithful men from the start,

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Speaker 4: but Jonah was nothing like these men. So when God

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Speaker 4: called him to go to a gentile land, a very

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Speaker 4: violent and wicked city called Nineveh, and to call the

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Speaker 4: people there to repent and to revival, what did he do?

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Speaker 4: Did he object or ask God why, or share his

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Speaker 4: fears or frustrations with God? No? He ran. He was

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Speaker 4: a runaway, would be prophet? Now, before we judge him

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Speaker 4: too quickly. How many times have some of us run

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Speaker 4: from the will of God in our lives? How many

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Speaker 4: times have we refused to obey God? But Jonah wasn't

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Speaker 4: acting just out of self preservation calling this man to

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Speaker 4: go to the gentiles. They were enemies, very violent enemies

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Speaker 4: of Israel. Surely they deserve whatever judgment and devastation was

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Speaker 4: coming their way. Why would God want to save the

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Speaker 4: wicked Ninevites anyway? So instead of obeying God, Jonah headed

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Speaker 4: to the nearest port and caught a ship in the

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Speaker 4: opposite direction of Nineveh, a boat headed to Tarshis. It,

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Speaker 4: of course, was a very feutile attempt to run from God,

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Speaker 4: because it is impossible to run from God, and it

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Speaker 4: wasn't long before the Lord came after him. His boat

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Speaker 4: ride away from God's will soon hit rough seas. The

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Speaker 4: vessel was tossed about in a storm in the waves,

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Speaker 4: terrifying the sailors, who began praying to their false gods.

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Speaker 4: They woke up Jonah, who somehow managed to sleep through

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Speaker 4: the terra and urged him to pray to his own

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Speaker 4: god lest they all die. But pray as they might,

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Speaker 4: the seas just got rougher and rougher. Desperate, the sailors

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Speaker 4: decided to cast lots to decide who was responsible for

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Speaker 4: their situations, someone to blame, and of course, by that time,

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Speaker 4: Jonah most certainly knew it was all his fault. He

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Speaker 4: was the runaway and he was the problem. And when

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Speaker 4: they cast lots, this was confirmed. So Jonah confessed. He

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Speaker 4: came clean and said that he served the Hebrew God,

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Speaker 4: the creator of the sea and the dry land, and

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Speaker 4: he was fleeing from him. Jonah knew that there was

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Speaker 4: only one solution. He was to be thrown overboard to

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Speaker 4: save the men and satisfy God's judgment. The sailors at

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Speaker 4: first resisted this suggestion, doing all they could do to

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Speaker 4: row the boat to safety and calm, but all of

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Speaker 4: their efforts were in vain. Finally, they gave in, and

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Speaker 4: they threw Jonah into the sea. Immediately the waters were still,

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Speaker 4: all was calm. Even in this moment, God had shown

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Speaker 4: these pagan sailors that he was indeed God of heaven

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Speaker 4: and earth, of the land, and the seas, of the soul,

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Speaker 4: and the storms. They fell before God, offering sacrifices and

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Speaker 4: vows to this one God who could calm the raging seas.

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Speaker 4: One day the disciples of Jesus would witness this same

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Speaker 4: God in the person of Jesus Christ, calming the seas

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Speaker 4: and stilling the storm when he said peace be still. Jonah,

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Speaker 4: of course, would have been lost, drowned in the deep waters,

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Speaker 4: had God not mercifully provided a rescue. Jonah one point

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Speaker 4: seventeen says this, And the Lord appointed a great fish

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Speaker 4: to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly

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Speaker 4: of the fish three days and three nights. You might

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Speaker 4: think that being swallowed by a giant fish was God's punishment,

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Speaker 4: when in reality it was God's rescue plan. Was it terrifying,

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Speaker 4: of course, was it very unpleasant, yes, without a doubt.

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Speaker 4: But what was the alternative for Jonah being swallowed by

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Speaker 4: the deep, dying alone and never having fulfilled his purpose

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Speaker 4: in life or to find in God a rescue plan.

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Speaker 4: The fish was a second chance for Jonah, and as

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Speaker 4: he awoke in the belly of the fish, he sang

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Speaker 4: a song of praise and adoration to God. Just like

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Speaker 4: the Ninevites, Jonah did not deserve to be spared his

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Speaker 4: gruesome fate, and yet as he worshiped God, he sang

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Speaker 4: to the Lord, Salvation belongs to the Lord. And that

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Speaker 4: is a great truth that we always must remember, that

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Speaker 4: salvation always comes from God. At God's command, the fish

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Speaker 4: through Jonah up on the shore. Perhaps now this reluctant

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Speaker 4: prophet was ready to announce to the people of Nineveh

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Speaker 4: that they also could repent and find salvation in God.

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Speaker 4: That's what we'll find out in tomorrow's reading. Dear God,

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Speaker 4: we thank you that you are always the God of

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Speaker 4: the second chance and as many chances as we need

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Speaker 4: when we truly confess our sins and come to you.

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Speaker 4: We thank you for the Cross and the promise of salvation.

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Speaker 4: We know that salvation comes from you, and you only

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Speaker 4: thank you for your son Jesus Christ, who died, who

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Speaker 4: was buried and on the third day rose again, so

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Speaker 4: that this good news message could be delivered to the

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Speaker 4: whole world. Amen. Thank you for listening to today's Bible

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Speaker 4: in a Year podcast. I'm Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas.

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Speaker 4: Download thepray dot com app and make Bible study and

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Speaker 4: prayer the priority of your life. And if you enjoyed

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Speaker 4: this podcast, share it with someone you love because by

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Speaker 4: sharing the Word of God, you can make a huge

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Speaker 4: difference in someone's life. And let me encourage you to

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Speaker 4: go to Jack Graham dot org. That's Jack Graham dot

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Speaker 4: org to find multiple resources, many resources for your Christian

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Speaker 4: walk and life. God bless you and have a great day.