Jonah: The Prophet Who Couldn't Understand God's Love

This is a very brief play designed for a specific group of children I will be working with this summer, for whom English is a second language. We needed very simple language and something that can be brought to a pleasing level of performability with very little rehearsal time.  The play is also designed to be performed by three different groups of children, with each group rehearsing one of the acts.  The narrator does not have to memorize lines.  This is a musical, because I think it's easier to memorize songs than random lines.  We also have a lot of chorus parts, because previous experience with similar groups suggests that while we will have some students willing to do a solo speaking part, we will have more students who are very uneasy about speaking alone in this sort of performance.

The Youtube links are there just to give an idea of the tunes.

About using this play.  I would love to have you use the play, but please don't steal it.  Let me know about it, and give me credit.  (c) Rebecca Howell 2017

Although this whale could not possibly have swallowed Jonah (it is a baleen whale), I thought he would make a cheerful title page.  The whale was painted by my sister Mattie Wheeler, is used by permission, and here is a link to her webpage.

Jonah 

The Prophet Who Couldn’t Understand God’s Love

Act 1

Narrator: This is the story of Jonah, the prophet who couldn’t understand God’s love.  Jonah was a prophet.

Questioner: What is a prophet?

Narrator (Or possibly Chorus): A prophet is a person who speaks for God.

God speaks and a prophet listens.

Then a prophet tells what he heard.

A prophet is a person who speaks for God.

Narrator: And God spoke to Jonah.

Questioner: What did God say?

Narrator:  God said, “Go to Nineveh.  God said:

Chorus Song:

Nineveh is a big city, and the people that are there are doing bad bad things.  

If they don’t change their ways I’ll destroy that city.

Go and let the people know that they have to change.”

Go to Nineveh, Jonah go

Go to Nineveh, go, go, go

Questioner: So Jonah went to Nineveh, right?

When God says to do a thing, well of course, you do it.

Narrator:  Not quite. Let’s look at what Jonah did.

Jonah Song:

I want to run from God.

Not go to Nineveh.

No, No way!

I won’t obey!

Those are bad people there 

and I don’t want to talk to them.

I’m going to run just as far as I can.

Chorus Song:

He wants to run from God

Not go to Nineveh.

No, No Way

He won’t obey!

Those are bad people there

And he won’t talk to them

He’s going to run just as far as he can.

Jonah:  Here’s a boat.  Ahoy there, Captain—Where is your boat going?

Captain: My sailors can tell you that:

Chorus Song: 

We are sailors big and brave

We are sailors bold and true

We are sailing off to Tarshish

Far across the blue

We are sailors bold and true

We are sailors big and brave

We are sailing off to Tarshish

Far across the wave

Jonah:  Hmm.  Tarshish.  That’s a long, long way from Nineveh.  That sounds like the perfect place for me.

Chorus Song: 

Running from God is a bad idea

Running from God is a big mistake

Running from God won’t make things better

Jonah here’s the road that you ought to take

Go to Nineveh, Jonah, go

Go to Nineveh, go, go, go

Narrator:  God caused a big storm to come on the sea.  The boat was in danger of breaking up, and the sailors were very scared.  All the men were praying to the different gods that they believed in, but nothing helped.

Captain:  Wake up, Jonah.  Help us to pray!  Maybe your God will help us.

One Sailor:  I have an idea.  Let’s draw straws to see who is causing this problem.  

(Men draw straws and Jonah is the clear loser.) 

Jonah:  I’m the problem.  I thought I could run away from God.  

Captain:  Who is this God that you serve? 

Jonah:  I serve the LORD who made the land and the sea.

Sailors:  Yikes!  He made the land and the sea?  That’s a pretty powerful God.  What should we do?

Jonah:  Throw me overboard and the storm will stop.

Sailors: That doesn’t sound like a good idea.  We could get in trouble for murdering him.

Yes, but the storm is getting even worse.  May God forgive us, we’ll have to do it.

Narrator:  The storm stopped, and the sailors worshiped God

Act 2

Narrator: Meanwhile, Jonah was drowning, going down for the last time.  And God sent a fish to swallow Jonah.

Chorus Song:

Running from God was a bad idea

Running from God was a big mistake

Running from God didn’t make things better

Now there’s a fishy path that you’ll have to take.

Fish swallows Jonah.

Narrator:  Inside the fish, Jonah finally started to pray.

Jonah Song:

I was in trouble,

very bad trouble

I was in trouble 

And I cried to You, God

I was in trouble

very bad trouble

I was in trouble

And you heard my cry.

Chorus Song: 

Jonah you were in trouble

very bad trouble

you were in trouble

Drowning in the sea

Jonah you’re still in trouble

very bad trouble

you’re still in trouble

in the belly of a fish.

Jonah: Hey, God, I’m sorry.  I should have done what you told me to do.

Narrator:  And after three days and three nights, God made the fish vomit Jonah back onto the land. And God said:

Chorus Song: 

Go to Ninevah, Jonah, go

Go to Ninevah, go, go, go

Nineveh is a big city and the people that are there are doing bad, bad things

If they don’t change their ways I’ll destroy that city.

Go and let the people know that they have to change.

Jonah: Shucks, I thought I could get out of doing this job.

Narrator: So Jonah went to Nineveh.  The city was so big that it took him three days to walk through it.  Jonah walked everywhere saying:  

Jonah:  God says that in 40 days Nineveh will be destroyed.  (repeat several times, with Jonah walking to different parts of the stage and talking to different people).

Chorus Song:

 But the people listened.  The people believed.

The people began to pray.

The people heard the message, the people changed.

The people lived a brand new way.

Stop doing bad things. Start being good.

Maybe God will change his mind.

Pray, pray pray.

Narrator:  And God changed his mind.

Act 3:

Narrator:  God changed his mind because the people of Nineveh changed.

Chorus Song:

Jonah didn’t like it.

Not one bit.

Jonah didn’t like it

Jonah threw a fit.

Jonah: 

God I knew you’d do this.

You’re just too kind.

I knew that you’d forgive them

That you’d change your mind

(Spoken:)That’s why I ran away to Tarshish.

You should have destroyed this evil city.

God you make me very angry,

And I want to die.

Chorus Song:

God, you make him very angry,

And he wants to die.

Narrator:  Jonah went up on a hill to see what God would do to the city.

Jonah:  I hope God changes his mind again and wipes that city out.

Narrator: God sent a gourd plant that grew up quickly and protected Jonah from the sun.

Jonah was happy about the gourd.

Jonah: Thank you, God, for protecting me from the sun.

Narrator: The next day, God sent a worm to eat the gourd plant and it died.

The sun was hot and Jonah was angry about it.

Chorus Song: 

Jonah didn’t like it.

Not one bit

Jonah didn’t like it.

Jonah threw a fit.

Jonah Song: 

God you make me very angry,

and I want to die

Chorus Song:

God you make him very angry

and he wants to die.

Narrator: God said, “Do you have a right to be angry about the gourd?”

Jonah:  Yes I do.  I am so angry that I want to die.

Narrator:  God said, “You feel sorry for a plant that you didn’t grow or care fo

Can’t I feel sorry for a city that is filled with people and animals, a city that has more than 120,000 people that don’t know right from wrong?

Chorus Song:

Nineveh was a big city and the people that were there stopped doing bad bad things.

They changed their ways, and they prayed for mercy

God let the people live because they changed their ways.

God is merciful, God is love

God is merciful, God is love

Everyone:

God is merciful, God is love

God is merciful, God is love