When we picture most biblical towns we think of smaller, maybe walled areas that people traveled to from distant farms and ranches for goods or to pay taxes. However, Nineveh was huge. Scripture says that it was a three-day trip from one end to the other; that’s a lot of people!

Jonah 3 says that as Jonah passed through, the people quickly began to respond to his warning. When the king heard, he proclaimed a fast for the entire city's people; they were even told to put their animals on a fast. The king also said they should “cry mightily to God.” He told them to turn from their evil ways and their violence. In Jonah 3:9 it states, “Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger?” The king was not fooling around; he was moved to action.

Christians must make sure to always hold strong to the truth, so as not to end up overthrown by Satan or anything else that might draw us back into our sinful lives.

Ultimately God relented from the disaster He had planned for the city, due to their great response. But I have often thought about the city of Nineveh and how the people reacted. We all know how difficult it is for even a small group of individuals to agree on anything, so how did they come together, and why did the whole city respond so quickly?

They surely saw what was happening to their city. They knew it had become unsafe and was an intolerable place. According to Scripture, their society was violent. It is likely there were still some partially good people who surely saw some of that violence creeping into their own lives. They were apt to be angry and apprehensive in such an environment.

We see this happening in our own society today. When we look at the world around us, we may feel like the people of Nineveh. Violence, outside threats, anger, and a general feeling of being unsafe. It's part of the world we live in. It could overwhelm us if we dwell on it too long. We also know how easy it is to be influenced by those around us. Have you ever met someone with anger issues? Violent people are often upset with their own actions and character and want to change.

Jonah’s warning was probably timed exactly right for a community in chaos. The people wanted to change, and this warning gave them a good reason. They were being told God was fed up, and they made haste to try to get back in His good graces. They obviously didn't like the way they were living or they would not been so willing to change.

What lessons can we learn from the Ninevites?

We need to be aware of our sin. Nineveh had to know what they were doing wrong before they heard the warning, so they could act quickly.

We must be quick to turn from our evil ways. Nineveh rushed to do as the king had ordered.

We must be willing to humble ourselves before God with fasting and prayer. The Ninevites fasted and cried out to God for forgiveness and God issued a reprieve.

We must be completely submissive to God. Part of fasting and prayer is a giving up of self—recognizing we are weak and can do nothing without God.

Because of Christ’s sacrifice, we are able to have a different relationship with our Creator today. We can reach out in prayer, fast and repent just like Nineveh did. However, unlike Nineveh, we don’t have to say as their king did: “Who can tell if God will turn and relent?”

We have the knowledge that, if we repent and turn from our evil ways, we will be forgiven. Through God’s Holy Spirit we have that special access they did not. Christ said that with the faith of a mustard seed we could move mountains. That’s amazing information! Nineveh had no such faith and yet were sincere in their cries to God.

Both we and the Ninevites have hope. Merriam Webster's Dictionary says that the simple definition of hope is to "want something to happen or be true and think that it could happen or be true." This was Nineveh’s hope. They were unsure of the outcome.

Webster’s full definition includes: "1: to desire with expectation of obtainment. 2: to expect with confidence—trust." Our hope lies in the promises of Jesus Christ.

The story of Jonah is far more than that of a big fish and a warning given by God. It is also a story of a great multitude of people who for at least a time, stopped everything, listened to God and then submitted themselves before Him in order to find redemption. A people no one—especially Jonah—would believe could change.

Nineveh did well in this instance, but the city and its people did not retain the favor they had claimed with God during that time. Nahum 2 tells us that they were ultimately overthrown. Christians must make sure to always hold strong to the truth, so as not to end up overthrown by Satan or anything else that might draw us back into our sinful lives.