"And He sighed deeply in His spirit, and saith, Why doth this generation seek after a sign?" "There shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas." As Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, Christ was to be the same time "in the heart of the earth." And as the preaching of Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so Christ's preaching was a sign to His generation. But what a contrast in the reception of the word! The people of the great heathen city trembled as they heard the warning from God. Kings and nobles humbled themselves; the high and the lowly together cried to the God of heaven, and His mercy was granted unto them. "The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation," Christ had said, "and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here." Matt. 12:40, 41.

Og han sukkede dybt i sin ånd og siger: Hvorfor forlanger denne slægt et tegn? Der skal ikke gives den andet tegn end Jonas tegn. Ligesom Jonas var tre dage og tre nætter i havdyrets bug, sådan skulle Kristus være lige så længe i jordens skød. Og ligesom Jonas prædiken for ninevitterne var et tegn, sådan var Kristi prædiken et tegn for hans slægtled. Men hvor var der stor forskel på den måde, hvorpå de modtog ordet! Indbyggerne i den store hedenske by skælvede, da de hørte de advarende ord fra Gud. Konger og stormænd ydmygede sig, rige og fattige råbte sammen til Himmelens Gud, og han skænkede dem barmhjertighed. Mænd fra Nineve skal stå op ved dommen sammen med denne slægt, havde Kristus sagt, og bringe fordømmelse over den; thi de omvendte sig ved Jonas prædiken; og se, her er mere end Jonas. Matt. 12,40-41.