JONAH
Mercy · Repentance · God’s Compassion for Nations
Expanded Museum Poster · Timeline Theme Table
1 · Core Story & Meaning
Jonah shows God’s mercy reaching outsiders and exposes the prophet’s resentment; the story ends with God’s question about compassion.
Core Sentence · Jonah in One Line
God’s mercy reaches outsiders, and the prophet learns that compassion is the point.
Jonah
├─ runs
├─ rescued
├─ preaches
└─ resents mercy (God asks a question)
Emotionally: resistance → rescue → surprise → heart-check.
Four Major Movements
How the book actually flows:
1. RUNNING (1): flight and storm
2. PRAYER (2): mercy in the deep
3. MISSION (3): Nineveh repents
4. MIRROR (4): Jonah exposed; compassion questioned
This is the “museum walk path” you can follow as a clean narrative rail.
2 · Key Scenes & Emotional Gestures
Four scenes that carry the book’s emotional and spiritual load-bearing moments.
Scene · Storm & Sleep (Jon 1)
Running doesn’t outrun God.
Jonah
└─ flees
Storm
└─ wakes the truth
Denial meets consequence.
Scene · Fish Prayer (Jon 2)
Depth becomes a sanctuary.
Down → down → down
└─ then deliverance
Rescue after surrender.
Scene · Nineveh Repents (Jon 3)
Unexpected response.
Warning
└─ heard
Repentance
└─ city-wide
Mercy surprises everyone.
Scene · Plant & Question (Jon 4)
God presses compassion.
Jonah
└─ angry at mercy
God
└─ “Should I not pity…?”
A mirror held to the heart.
3 · Timeline of Themes by Story Order
Rows follow story order (top = early, bottom = late). Columns track our six museum themes.
| Story Order |
Section Block |
Creation |
Fall |
Covenant |
Promise |
Faithfulness |
Exile |
| 1 · Jon 1 |
Flight & Storm |
|
disobedience |
|
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God pursues |
|
| 2 · Jon 2 |
Prayer in the Deep |
|
|
|
second chance |
deliverance |
|
| 3 · Jon 3 |
Mission & Repentance |
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|
nations included |
mercy |
|
| 4 · Jon 4 |
Prophet’s Anger |
|
resentment |
God’s character |
|
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| 5 · (Theme) |
Mercy Beyond Borders |
|
|
|
compassion widened |
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| 6 · (End) |
Open-Ended Question |
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God invites heart change |
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Jonah is the museum’s ‘mercy shock’ tile: God’s compassion is bigger than our comfort zone.