Jonah prophets—those prophets who would rather see a nation destroyed because they are bitter in spirit—are pontificating and prophesying about doom, gloom, cataclysmic disasters, catastrophic calamities, foreboding horrors and the like.
And these Jonah prophets are gaining quite a following—and putting a pretty penny in their pockets with petty fear-mongering campaigns.
But God is about to deal with the Jonah prophets.
1. Jonah prophets are disobedient to God, bucking and fighting against his will.
Just like Jonah fled to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord because he did not want to see Nineveh come to repentance (Jonah 1:1-2), modern-day prophets run the opposite direction when God is calling them on a mercy assignment. All they hear, see and say is doom and gloom because they carry judgment in their heart.
2. Jonah prophets say they fear the Lord (see Jonah 1:9), but inwardly their actions do not line up with their words—and their prophecies are not in line with the Father’s heart.
I can just hear the Lord saying, “I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran. I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in My counsel and had caused My people to hear My words, then they would have turned them from their evil way and from the evil of their deeds” (Jer. 23:21-23).
3. Jonah prophets think their way is better than God’s way.
After God spared Nineveh, Jonah had the nerve to say to His Creator, angrily no less: “O Lord! Is this not what I said while I was still in my own land? This is the reason that I fled before to Tarshish, because I knew that You are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, abundant in faithfulness, and ready to relent from punishment. Therefore, Lord, take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live” (Jonah 4:1-3).
4. Jonah prophets are self-centered drama queens.
Twice more, Jonah expressed to the Lord he would rather be dead (see Jonah 4:8-9). We don’t know what happened to Jonah after that incident. All we know is we don’t see God using him any more.
Don’t get me wrong. I'm sober. My eyes are wide open. I see the conditions in America. I hear the cries of legitimate prophetic voices that are warning us of the destruction they see in the days ahead.
Yes, I do believe that we're reaping what we've sown. But I absolutely, positively refuse to buy into the notion that God is not going to pour out His Spirit once again. I reject the idea that widespread transforming revival that sees a great harvest of souls is not possible in America.
Yes, I believe God does send warnings through prophets. I receive many of these warnings myself and I believe they should be trumpeted with clarity, humility, and weeping. I believe we need to lift up our voices and speak the hard truths so that we don't end up with the blood of lost souls on our hands.
But I refuse to lose hope for a Third Great Awakening. After all, even Isaiah, who offered plenty of prophetic words about judgment, was known as the prophet of hope.
Let’s pray for the “Jonah” prophets, showing them the mercy they are trying so hard to withhold from the nation. Let’s stand in the gap for the “Jonah” prophets, who are blinded by their own bitterness. Let’s cry out on behalf of the “Jonah” prophets, petitioning God to help them step into their true calling, refusing to filter what He is saying through the anger in their own he arts. Let’s move in the opposite spirit of the “Jonah” prophets, and bless those who are cursing our nation.
