deep insight into the human heart. We cannot how- ever stop to enter minutely into his character, or into the diversified lessons which his history would teach us. We shall confine ourselves to two observations, which are of a general nature and of universal im- portance :
1. Rebellion against God will surely bring upon us his heavy displeasure —
[Jonah might think lightly perhaps of the sin he had com- mitted, when refusing to execute the commission he had re- ceived : and he certainly was unmindful of the danger he had brought upon himself, even while all who sailed with him in the ship were in the utmost terror. But God was visiting him for his iniquity ; and, in order to the discovery of it, suggested to the minds of the mariners to ascertain, by a lot, who the guilty person was, for whose sake the storm was raised. The lot fell on Jonah : and he, being impeached thus by God himself, con- fessed his crime; and prescribed, as the only means of pacifying the Deity, that he himself should be cast into the sea. Thus did vengeance overtake him. And shall ive sin with impunity ? What though we think light of our sins, and sleep in security when we should be praying to our God ; does God estimate sin by our standard ? or is danger at all more remote, because we do not see it? Of this we may be assured, that " evil will hunt the wicked man, to overthrow him ;" and, however long we may elude its pursuit, it will seize upon us at last, as its legitimate prey. The declaration of God to every impenitent person is, " Be sure your sin will find you out."]
2. Whatever effects of his displeasure we may now feel, the prayer of penitence and faith will deliver us from them —
[A more desperate condition than that of Jonah cannot well be conceived a. Yet from thence was he brought by the efficacy of fervent prayerb. Be it so then; we have sinned against the Lord in a very grievous manner ; and we are at this moment under his chastising hand ; still " Has the Lord for- gotten to be gracious ? hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies?" No: the Lord is merciful and gracious: and, if only we have a heart to pray, we need not doubt but that he has an ear to hear. Were we at the bottom of the sea, yet if we were able to look unto his holy Temple, we should not look in vain. We might not be delivered with respect to the body ; but the soul should find acceptance at God's hands, and be made a monument of his sparing mercy.]
a See his description of it, ver. 2, 3, 5. b ver. 2, 4, 7.