Daily Devotions
Jonah
"Come, let us cast lots"
Text: Jonah 1:7
DESPERATE PRAYING
All on board the ship were deeply concerned that they might lose their lives. They had already done all that was expected of them. They had thrown away anything that weighed down the ship. But that had not availed much.
They determined that they would go one step further. They would practice something commonly done by ancient worshippers- the casting of lots.
“And they said to one another,
‘Come, let us cast lots, that we may know
for whose cause this trouble has come upon us.’
So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah.
Then they said to him, ‘Please tell us!
For whose cause is this trouble upon us?
What is your occupation? And where do you come from?
What is your country? And of what people are you?'”
Jonah 1:7-8
1. “Come, let us cast lots”
a) This was an ancient practice among many religions.
b) This was now used to find out who among those on-board ship could have been the cause of the tempest that had arisen.
2. “The lot fell on Jonah”
a) We are not told exactly how the casting of lots was done.
b) But the lot fell on Jonah.
c) Ponder this ancient word from the book of Proverbs.
“The lot is cast into the lap,
But its every decision is from the LORD.”
Proverb 16:33
d) The ultimate answer is from the Lord.
i) In His mercy He hears and answers.
ii) The casting of lots in this instance saw God involved.
ACTING UPON THE RESULTS
The ancient mariners turned their attention to Jonah. They raised a barrage of questions.
1. “For whose cause is this trouble come upon us”
a) They figured that this was not an ordinary storm.
b) They had weathered many storms but none like this one!
c) They believed that the God of Jonah must have caused this unusual but terrifying storm.
2. They wanted to find out all they could about the identity of Jonah
They figured that the knowledge obtained would help them determine their next course of action.