Judaism Understanding of God's Generosity
Tim O’Donnell
Mr. Moleski
RST101D
Essay #2, 4/21/13
One main concept that can be taken from the Bible is the Jewish understanding of God’s generosity. Scriptures that describe how generous God really is include Genesis 1 and 2 and the book of Jonah. In the book of Jonah it states that, “…the Lord sent a great fish to swallow Jonah, and he remained in the belly of the fish for three days and three night.” (Jonah 2:1) This kind of information cannot be taken literal, but the message sent by the book of Jonah, and all of the scriptures are what should really be accounted for. In the book of Jonah it is apparent that God is just and good to all people no matter if they are enemies or allies. In these scriptures God can be looked at as generous for the way he gave Jonah many chances to make up for his sins. When God asked Jonah to travel to Nineveh and preach against their ways,
“…Jonah made ready to flee…away from the Lord” (Jonah 1:3). Even though Jonah should know there is no way to flee from the Lord, he did anyway. For this he was punished for his actions, and God’s generosity and mercy is shown when he gives Jonah a second chance. Another part of the story of Jonah also shows God’s mercy and understanding. This part is when Jonah arrives to Nineveh to preach against their evil ways. The people of Nineveh listened to the word of God and the king of the great city even ordered that everyone “…turn from their evil way and from the violence of their hand…God may again repent… so that we will not perish.” (Jonah 3:8-9) As God watched the people of Nineveh repent and turn from their old evil ways. He showed mercy for them and “…repented for the evil he had threatened to do to them.” (Jonah 3:10) This truly shows the generosity, patience, and justice God gives to everyone. Even though the people of Nineveh were barbaric and showed no respect to God and his creation, through their repentance God showed mercy and did not carry out his wrath that he first
Mr. Moleski
RST101D
Essay #2, 4/21/13
One main concept that can be taken from the Bible is the Jewish understanding of God’s generosity. Scriptures that describe how generous God really is include Genesis 1 and 2 and the book of Jonah. In the book of Jonah it states that, “…the Lord sent a great fish to swallow Jonah, and he remained in the belly of the fish for three days and three night.” (Jonah 2:1) This kind of information cannot be taken literal, but the message sent by the book of Jonah, and all of the scriptures are what should really be accounted for. In the book of Jonah it is apparent that God is just and good to all people no matter if they are enemies or allies. In these scriptures God can be looked at as generous for the way he gave Jonah many chances to make up for his sins. When God asked Jonah to travel to Nineveh and preach against their ways,
“…Jonah made ready to flee…away from the Lord” (Jonah 1:3). Even though Jonah should know there is no way to flee from the Lord, he did anyway. For this he was punished for his actions, and God’s generosity and mercy is shown when he gives Jonah a second chance. Another part of the story of Jonah also shows God’s mercy and understanding. This part is when Jonah arrives to Nineveh to preach against their evil ways. The people of Nineveh listened to the word of God and the king of the great city even ordered that everyone “…turn from their evil way and from the violence of their hand…God may again repent… so that we will not perish.” (Jonah 3:8-9) As God watched the people of Nineveh repent and turn from their old evil ways. He showed mercy for them and “…repented for the evil he had threatened to do to them.” (Jonah 3:10) This truly shows the generosity, patience, and justice God gives to everyone. Even though the people of Nineveh were barbaric and showed no respect to God and his creation, through their repentance God showed mercy and did not carry out his wrath that he first