In Matthew 12:38-42, 16:1-4 and Luke 11:29-32 is the account where the leadership of Israel asked Jesus for a sign to confirm that He is the Messiah. Their request for a sign to prove that Jesus is the promised Messiah of Israel is somewhat ludicrous when Jesus throughout the span of His ministry has healed all that have come to Him for healing.

Jesus has also performed the three Messianic Miracles that the rabbis and the leadership of Israel had determined sometime before the advent of Christ that only the Messiah could perform. The rabbis had separated miracles into two categories; the ones that anyone could perform if empowered by the Holy Spirit and those only the Messiah could perform. Of the ones that only the Messiah could perform; there are three.

The first of the Messianic Miracles is the cleansing of someone with leprosy. Now even though Naman Captain of the host of the King of Syria was healed of his leprosy by the Prophet Elisha; he was a Syrian and not an Israelite. Miriam was stricken and healed of leprosy but this was before the Law was completed, so there has never been in Israel’s history any Jew healed of leprosy since the completion of the Law; in fact, although the rabbis had cures for many ailments they did not have any cure for leprosy. This is very interesting since in the Law of Moses there are specific things one must do if one has been healed of leprosy. Jesus fulfilled this teaching when he healed a man with leprosy in Matthew 8:1-4; Mark 1:40-45 and Luke 5:12-15.

The second of the Messianic Miracles is the casting out of a dumb or mute demon. Although there is a Pharisaic process for casting out demons in general which involves asking for the demons name and then casting out the demon using their name; the one demon this did not work on was a demon that did not speak. Therefore, the leadership of Israel taught that the casting out of this type of demon could only be done by the Messiah Himself. The casting out of a mute demon by Jesus is recorded in Matthew 12:22-37 and Mark 3:19-30.

The third of the Messianic Miracles is healing someone that was born blind which was different from healing someone that had gone blind. Once again in the history of Israel since the completion of the Mosaic Law there has never been a case where someone that was born blind was healed of his blindness. Therefore, the people were taught that only the Messiah could perform this miracle. Jesus healed a man born blind in John 9:1-41.

You will notice that when the people saw these three miracles there was a murmur among the people, an excitement, and questions of, “is this the Son of David?,” were asked. This is a messianic title and therefore the people were asking, is this the Messiah? Even though Jesus told the man healed of leprosy not to tell anyone but to go to the priests and fulfil the requirements of the Law for someone healed of leprosy; the man went and told everyone and broadcast it wide, so much so, that it now became difficult for Jesus to even enter the city, Mark 1:45. Then after this, all the leadership of Israel heard about this miracle and all came out to see Jesus in action, Luke 5:12-17.

Ever since the first Messianic Miracle of healing a leper was performed by Jesus, the leadership of Israel has watched, listened, and questioned Jesus to confirm He is the Messiah; but even though Jesus performed the miracles they deemed only the Messiah could do, they rejected Jesus’ claim of messiahship instead of confirming it. Therefore, their request for a sign seems incredulous seeing Jesus had performed all three of the messianic miracles along with all the other miracles that He performed in the sight of the people.

So, Jesus’ response to their request for a sign is that no other sign will be given them except the sign of Jonah; just as Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Jesus also says that the men of Nineveh would stand in judgment with this generation because they repented at the preaching of Jonah and one greater than Jonah is here; meaning Himself.

So, Jesus points to Jonah as the sign of His death burial and resurrection. Most people have an understanding that Jonah was alive while in the belly of the fish and that Jesus’ reference is for the time that Jonah was in the belly of the fish; – three days and three nights. However, the story of Jonah in the belly of the fish fits much closer and points to Jesus’ death burial and resurrection, and that is why Jesus points to Jonah as the only sign he will give this wicked generation.

The background is that Jonah was commissioned by God to go to Nineveh and to cry against it because their wickedness has come before God and they were given 40 days to repent or they would be destroyed. But instead, Jonah disobeys and runs away from his commission because he knew God would be merciful to Nineveh if they repented and Jonah wanted their destruction and not their salvation.

Jonah then catches a ship to Tarshish which is in the opposite direction to Nineveh thinking he could escape God’s calling and therefore secure the destruction of Nineveh but God sends a tempest that threatened to break the ship apart. Those on the ship were panicked and wondered which of their gods were angry with them that this storm has come upon them. Meanwhile Jonah had gone down to the bowls of the ship and was fast asleep.

The shipmaster finds Jonah asleep and is angry with him and tells him to get up and call upon his God. The men then drew lots to see who is at fault and the lot fell upon Jonah. They ask Jonah what they need to do so that the sea may be calm. Jonah tells them to throw him into the sea. The men did not want to, and tried to find another escape but in the end they did as Jonah advised and threw him into the sea; immediately the sea became calm and the mariners were converted to the God of Israel, fearing Him, offering sacrifice to Him, and making vows.

The point of Jesus giving Jonah as the only sign that would be given to this wicked generation is because not only would Jonah be in the belly of the fish three days and three nights but Jonah actually dies and is resurrected on the third day.

Jonah in chapter 2:1 after drowning and being in the belly of the fish three days and three nights, prays to God but in verse two he is calling out to God from the belly of hell (sheol). The words translated “belly” in reference to the fish and “belly” in reference to hell are two different words in the Hebrew, therefore although Jonah’s body is in the belly of the fish, his spirit is in the belly of hell or “sheol” in the Hebrew. Sheol in Hebrew is the same as Hades in the Greek and this is the place of the dead for the righteous and unrighteous before Jesus’ death, burial, resurrection, and ascension.

Jonah begins to describe the account of his drowning in verse five; The waters compassed me about, meaning he began to sink deeper; even to the soul; an idiom which implies death. The deep was round about me; The weeds were wrapped about my head. Jonah sinks deeper down to the level where there are weeds which wrapped around his head. Chapter 2:6 describes what happens after Jonah drowns; which states that he went down to the bottoms of the mountains, being this deep means he has already drowned, no one survives at the depth where you are at the bottoms of the mountains in the ocean.

Verse 6b speaks of Jonah’s resurrection and it states: Yet hast thou brought up my life from the pit, O LORD God. The word “pit,” here is synonymous with Sheol or Hades, so this shows that Jonah after three days and three nights in Sheol, prays out to God from the belly of Sheol. God then resurrects Jonah and his spirit is brought out of the place of the dead to be reunited with his body. In verse ten, God spoke to the fish and it vomited out Jonah alive, resurrected from the dead to go and fulfil his commission as a prophet of the Living God.

This part of Jonah’s story fits perfectly as a sign of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus the Messiah and therefore is a shadow of the cross.

God bless and shalom

The Bible

The Book of Jonah by Arnold Fruchtenbaum

The Three Messianic Miracles by Arnold Fruchtenbaum