Jonah 3:1 says, “And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time.” Jonah did not like the assignment God gave him. God directed him to leave his homeland and go to the enemy city of Nineveh. There Jonah was to warn the people of God’s impending judgment and urge them to repent. The Hebrews hated the people of Nineveh, so the rebellious prophet fled in the opposite direction. God was determined that his word to Jonah would be obeyed (Isaiah 55:11). He spoke to Jonah again. His second message was the same as the first. However, during the interval, Jonah had been buffeted by storms and had traveled in the stomach of a fish for three days. This time, he was prepared to hear God again and do His will.
God also spoke to the prophet Jeremiah two times (Jeremiah 33:1-3). But Jeremiah accepted God’s word to him the first time. The second time God spoke to him was to give him a fuller revelation of what He had first told him.
The beauty of having the physical word is that we have God’s completed will. The only question is what will you do with it? Is the Lord still waiting for your obedience? If you want to be a “good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:23), listen and follow. “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear” (Luke 14:35).
Kyle Campbell
