Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1911-05-05

Some one has said:
Miss Thomas. am surprised that you
take the story OF Jonah literally. that
has been accepted as an allegory so long
that Il never entered my head that any
educated woman would consider II IN any
other light"
II we were as eager to confirm the BIZ
bic as we are to find discreancies In
Il I believe we would be a long way
nearer the millennium. But ! am happy
to say that as the years roll along more
things come up TO show the critics that
wisdom viii not die with them" once
heard aSman say he would not walk
across the street to hear the smartest man
on earth tell OF the mistakes OF Moses.
but Il would be worth the money and
time OF a life to hear Moses. Unfortun-
ately we read the story Of Jonah with
the same little mind that so many Of
Us spend on our neighbors' affairs. We
pick flaws instead OF accepting the Won
derfuI things that can be done. God
made the earth and all that IN them Is.
whether the days" referred 10 mean cy-
cles or "A hours, and when the Bible says
He prepared a fish for Jonah" I am
not here to dispute Il. The Bible lessons
are always a pleasure 10 me and l am
glad that we are this year studying just
what we are: next year you may expect
to hear me make that remark again.
a. you have heard IL many times In
the past, but IL i fine to come back 10
these things and ind out how much has
been learned since the last time we went
over that portion
Now the word OF the Lord came unto
Jonah the son Of Ammittai" How that
word came Il not for US to say, the word
came unto Samuel. God took the form
Of a burning bush when he talked to
Moses. all we are TO remember is that
.sthe wordN of the Lord came to Jonah
II You or should write book we would
have the principle character as fiawless
a. the average individual at any rate;
but when we read the Bible we ind the
good and the bad about as equally mixed
as Il is in our own hearts Jonah was
contrary. TO say the least we can about
him. He made up his mind that he would
not 60 to Ninevah. God had great
work for him TO do there and when he
tried 20 run away he was stopped most
enectualiy II does not matter 70 us how
much he was swallowed. the word tells
Us that God had prepared whale for
HIM and as God has not made any 9TH
er failures I am led 10 believe therwhaie
swallowed him Do you know that the
mouth OF the whale is from six to ten
feet7 We are told that whales often get
grass IN their mouths and DO not throw
il out for days. II so why could not
Jonah have been in that room In the
whale for three days with his head wrap
ped IN weeds2
Nfnevah was a wonderful city, its
walls were a hundred feet high and its
turrets a hundred and fifty feet high,
three charsots could ride abreast on the
tons OF the walls Why do you not dis
pute THAR Because the pen OF man has
transcribed it, Why not believe the b.
ble9 The city was % miles long and y
miles wide. and when Jonah had gone IN
= days Journey be cried unto the citivens
and told them OF the calamity that threat
ened them They were alarmed. the KING
heard the prophecy and menoed
his ways. he had all the citizens put on
sack cloth and ashes and even the AMI
mails we're made TO fast God saw their
repentance and had compassion on them
s,sst as he has on US when we repent
what did Jonah do7 He was again con-
trarv. and he went OF ito pout. don
You hate TO see q man act so foolishlyz :
~ thought IL was time for him 70 die
because his prophecy was not e De inter-
ally carried out.