There is something greater than Jonah here

15 OCTOBER (Lk 11,29-32)

Jonah is a pretty singular prophet. He refuses to go to preach in the great city of Nineveh because he is strongly convinced about the power of salvation which is the Word of God, when it is uttered in its entirety of truth, wisdom, and divine intelligence: “The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: “Set out for the great city of Nineveh, and announce to it the message that I will tell you.” So Jonah made ready and went to Nineveh, according to the Lord’s bidding. Now Nineveh was an enormously large city; it took three days to go through it. Jonah began his journey through the city, and had gone but a single day’s walk announcing, “Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed,” when the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth. When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in the ashes. Then he had this proclaimed throughout Nineveh, by decree of the king and his nobles: “Neither man nor beast, neither cattle nor sheep, shall taste anything; they shall not eat, nor shall they drink water. Man and beast shall be covered with sackcloth and call loudly to God; every man shall turn from his evil way and from the violence he has in hand. Who knows, God may relent and forgive, and withhold his blazing wrath, so that we shall not perish.” When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out” (Jonah 3,1-10).

Solomon is David’s successor in the kingdom of Israel and Judah. He was the man that God filled with great wisdom and intelligence. He ruled the world. He did not rule himself. His disobedience to God led him to become idolatrous.

Moreover, God gave Solomon wisdom and exceptional understanding and knowledge, as vast as the sand on the seashore. Solomon surpassed all the Cedemites and all the Egyptians in wisdom. He was wiser than all other men – than Ethan the Ezrahite, or Heman, Chalcol, and Darda, the musicians – and his fame spread throughout the neighboring nations. Solomon also uttered three thousand proverbs, and his songs numbered a thousand and five. He discussed plants, from the cedar on Lebanon to the hyssop growing out of the wall, and he spoke about beasts, birds, reptiles, and fishes. Men came to hear Solomon’s wisdom from all nations, sent by all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom” (1Kings 5,9-14).

The Queen of the South is a women conquered by the wisdom of Solomon. She came from the far ends of the earth to hear a man believed to be the wisest of his time.

The queen of Sheba, having heard of Solomon’s fame, came to test him with subtle questions. She arrived in Jerusalem with a very numerous retinue, and with camels bearing spices, a large amount of gold, and precious stones. She came to Solomon and questioned him on every subject in which she was interested. King Solomon explained everything she asked about, and there remained nothing hidden from him that he could not explain to her.” (1Kings 10,1-3).

Jesus is greater than Solomon, more than Jonah, more than any other man, more than the Angels of Heaven. Jesus is God himself come in the flesh to speak to man with a human voice and love him with a human heart. Jesus is the Only Son of the Father, the Eternal Word who became flesh and came to dwell among us in order to give us grace and truth.

While still more people gathered in the crowd, he said to them, “This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it, except the sign of Jonah. Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. At the judgment the queen of the south will rise with the men of this generation and she will condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and there is something greater than Solomon here. At the judgment the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it, because at the preaching of Jonah they repented, and there is something greater than Jonah here.

Jonah did not make any miracles. Not even Solomon made signs and wonders. Yet the world was astonished, amazed by his wisdom. We possess eternal Knowledge, uncreated Intelligence, divine Wisdom, and Omnipotence that act and work and we remain insensitive. We do not let ourselves be drawn by Him. We remain in our own foolishness.

Virgin Mary, Mother of the Redemption, Angels, and Saints convert our hearts.