The sign of Jonah points to Jesus by typologically foreshadowing his death, burial, and resurrection.

Just as Jonah was in the belly of a great fish for three days and three nights before being "resurrected"

Jesus spent three days and nights in the heart of the earth before rising. 

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Jonah 3:1-10

The word

Of Yahweh came to Jonah a second time: "Go to Nineveh,

the great city, and announce to them the message I give you."

In obedience to the word of Yahweh, Jonah went to Nineveh.

It was a very large city, and it took three days just to cross it.

So Jonah walked a single day's journey and began proclaiming,

"Forty days more and Nineveh will be destroyed."

 

The people of the city believed God. They declared a fast,

and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.

Upon hearing the news, the king of Nineveh got up from his throne,

took off his royal robe, put on sackcloth and sat down in ashes.

 

He issued a proclamation throughout Nineveh:

"By the decree of the king and his nobles, no people or beasts, herd or flock, will taste anything;

neither will they eat nor drink. But let people and beasts be covered with sackcloth.

Let everyone call aloud to God, turn from his evil ways and violence.

Who knows? God may yet relent, turn from his fierce anger and spare us."

When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways,

he had compassion and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened upon them.

 

Ps 51:3-4, 12-13, 18-19

A heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.

 

＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊      

Luke 11:29-32

As the crowd increased, Jesus spoke the following words: "People of the present time are troubled people.

They ask for a sign, but no sign will be given to them except the sign of Jonah.

As Jonah became a sign for the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be a sign for this generation.

The Queen of the South will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them,

for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and here, there is greater than Solomon.

The people of Nineveh will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them,

for Jonah's preaching made them turn from their sins, and here, there is greater than Jonah."

 

Gospel Reflection ：

The sign of Jonah.

One of the lines that struck me most from the movie "Conclave" was from the homily of Cardinal Lawrence,

which states, "If there were only certainty and no doubt, there would be no mystery.

And therefore, no need for faith." Jesus' rejection of the demand for a sign resonates with the same message-faith.

In today's Gospel, the demand for a sign is a concrete testament to the lack

of faith stemming from disobedience to God's word as Jesus preached it.

The reference to the prophet Jonah was Jesus's way of convincing them,

hoping they would welcome Him-the "Word made flesh."

 

The sign of Jonah in the Old Testament was the proclamation of God's word,

which saved Nineveh when they obeyed it. In today's Gospel,

Jesus presents Himself as the proclaimed word, whose wisdom surpasses even Solomon's,

yet the people reject him. Obedience is a key virtue in our Christian faith.

To obey is to listen attentively and respond appropriately. In this Lenten season,

let us welcome Jesus as we listen more closely to Him and read the scripture daily with a humble heart.