Sign of Jonah

[Jesus said], “This generation is an evil generation. It seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.

Luke 11:29-32

Jesus has seen the crowds, increasing in number, coming to hear Him. He speaks with an Authority that no man has ever spoken. But, His words alone are not enough for some people and He addresses that here with this crowd and with all humanity who will read God’s Holy Word. Jesus uses Jonah, a familiar prophet of old, to make the comparison that, if Jonah spent 3 days in the belly of a fish and came out alive, then He would do the same by dying, being buried 3 days and, then, rising from the dead to live again. Jesus, also, speaks of the Queen of Sheba coming from “the ends of the earth” (a long way away) to hear the wisdom of Solomon and declaring Solomon’s greatness and his wisdom. After declaring that one greater than Solomon is among them, Jesus continues to convict the people who reject Him, saying they are worse off, eternally, than either the Queen of Sheba or the people of Nineveh. For, if the Queen of Sheba and the people of Nineveh, including its royalty, repented of their sins and were spared destruction, what will happen to those who reject Jesus, the Lord of Creation! The answer was clear that all who reject Christ will be condemned and consigned to the fires of hell created by God for Satan and his demons! Christians, pray to our Lord, Jesus, that we may be bold in our efforts to spread the gospel around the world and that God will bring many more into salvation that they may not experience the eternal death of hell that awaits unbelievers.

Source: S C Ball February 14, 2023