They blamed him while he was sleeping, what a jip (jonah 1:4-5)
But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. 6 The captain went to him and said, "How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us, and we will not perish."
7 Then the sailors said to each other, "Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity." They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.
2006-10-20 05:05:11 · 10 answers · asked by ? 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
The key to this passage is the fact that the sailors "cast lots" to ascertain the guilty party. In the OT, God permitted His people to cast lots as a way of understanding His will in a given situation. This is explained in the Book of Numbers (Numbers 26:55; 33:54; 34:13; 36:2). See also Joshua 18:6-10; 1 Chronicles 24:5,31. Since God told the sailors that Jonah was to blame, they tossed him overboard.
Remember, Jonah was on the boat in an attempt to run away from the mission God gave him: to preach to the Ninevites. So Jonah WAS guilty!
Good question.
Peace.
2006-10-20 05:11:33 · answer #1 · answered by Suzanne: YPA 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Chapter 1 completes the story of Jonah's rebellious flight from his duty as a prophet. A great storm arose on the sea and the mariners became fearful that the ship was about to sink. When all their efforts seemed of no avail they cast lots to determine who was being punished by the gods through the instrument of this great storm. The lot fell upon Jonah who at that time was asleep in the inner part of the ship. Jonah confessed that he was fleeing from the presence of the Lord and, though the mariners tried to spare him, eventually they felt they had no choice but to cast him into the sea. Immediately upon doing this the storm quieted and the sailors were impressed by the power of Jonah's God and offered sacrifices to Him.
Highlights of the Bible by Ray C. Stedman
Chapter Twenty-two
2006-10-20 12:22:05 · answer #2 · answered by Bruce 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Lots were similar to dice (the sailors said, "throw them bones!"). Ancient cultures believed that casting lots would reveal God's will - He would control which way they landed.
They probably assigned a symbol to each person from the faces of the dice, and Jonah's symbol showed up, so they knew it was his fault.
2006-10-20 12:08:06 · answer #3 · answered by dansweaza 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
God revealed this to the sailors, in order to save them, and in order to get Jonah to do what God commanded him to do.
2006-10-20 12:20:07 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
They were instruments of God to get Jonah back into his calling to go to Ninivah. It's not a whale of a tale, but a true tale of a whale.
2006-10-20 12:10:17 · answer #5 · answered by John 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
God used them to help get Jonah on with what he was supposed to do.
2006-10-20 12:09:20 · answer #6 · answered by RB 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Read the Qur'an for more detail on Jonah
2006-10-20 12:06:30 · answer #7 · answered by abdulaziiz 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Cos he was the shortest.
2006-10-20 12:06:50 · answer #8 · answered by David 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
he was the scapegoat
2006-10-20 12:08:03 · answer #9 · answered by NO delusions 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
read the muslim bible
2006-10-20 12:07:31 · answer #10 · answered by monique... 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋