"The Word of Jehovah Came to Jonah," poetry

Revised Edition: LukivPress (Victoria, BC), 2022. Introduction Jehovah told Jonah to "go to Nineveh the great city, and proclaim judgment against her, for [her] wickedness." How did Jonah respond to this command to speak such things to these infamously bloodthirsty, warmongering, sadistically cruel Assyrians? Jonah made haste in the opposite direction! To Tarshish (Spain?), he sailed by ship, from Joppa! Jehovah used a great storm at sea and a great fish to teach Jonah that he could not simply abandon his assignment. Do we sometimes feel we cannot measure up to demands Jehovah places upon us? This Bible book describes events that reveal Jehovah's patience with disobedient Jonah, even with self-centred, self-absorbed, sulking, unmerciful Jonah (chapter four). The implication: just as Jehovah exercised great patience with this prophet, he does likewise with all his servants. He understands we may have anxiety over assignments he gives us. As a loving father, then, he provides "power beyond what is normal" (2 Corinthians 4:7), helping us fulfil his will, just as he helped Jonah prophecy to such a dangerous crowd (of more than 120,000 men [Jonah 4:11])-just as once upon a time he had helped David face Goliath. An excerpt 2. O Sheol,

Belly of vapours-

Jeremiah Would have died

In cistern muck,

In that pit of future Kings and thorns

Of grassy time,

If Ebed-melech had Not handed down

Ropes of life and rags

Of comfort; Jonah, Fellow prophet,

Kinsman to wisdom

Of lips that fail, Did you wish for

A strong saviour,

A sling Such as David used to

Release himself from

Goliath? O Sheol,

Dark place of vipers,

Did you fight against That vomit

Prophet, by pursing

Your lips? So many helplessly

Fall into you,

You trap of blood and flesh And fragmented dreams,

But an only begotten son,

Removed from your Moist grave

(A prophet that sailed

Towards ending day, A prophet who

Tired to purse his lips,

But couldn't) Gives men hope

That Adam almost

Spoiled; Jonah, Vomit man,

Did you laugh

And cry? The author Dan Lukiv, published in 19 countries, is a poet, novelist, columnist, short story and article writer, and independent education researcher (hermeneutic phenomenology). As a creative writer, he apprenticed with Canada's Professor Robert Harlow (recipient of the George Woodcock Achievement award for an outstanding literary career), the USA's Paul Bagdon (Spur Award finalist for Best Original Paperback), and England's D. M. Thomas (recipient of the Cheltenham Prize for Literature, Orwell Prize [biography], Los Angeles Fiction Prize, and Cholmondeley award for poetry). He attended The University of British Columbia (creative writing department), the acclaimed Humber School for Writers (poetry writing program), and Writer's Digest University (novel writing program).