The Rebel Prophet - Jonah 1:1-3

The hero of the story of this great book is the living God. Jonah, on the other hand, is depicted as a rebel, running from God. We can identify with Jonah as we too often run from from God and experience death, not life. However, God relentlessly and lovingly pursues Jonah and brings him to the end of himself. Similarly, God seeks to bring us to an end of ourselves and (through his grace) offers himself to us. 

The book of Jonah ultimately displays the good news (gospel). While Jonah ran from God, God ran after Jonah in order to rescue him and through him (Jonah) rescue others.