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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Mat_12:38-42
38Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." 39But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; 40for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold something greater than Jonah is here. 42The Queen of the South will rise up with this generation at the judgment and will condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here."
Mat_12:38 "scribes"
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▣ "we want to see a sign from You" They had heard Jesus' teachings and had seen the healings and exorcisms performed by Him, but they wanted some ultimate sign to convince them to believe on Him. This is exactly the temptation of Mat_4:5-7 to which Jesus would not succumb. However, in reality, He had given them sign after sign but they would not or could not see (i.e., Isa_6:9-10)!
Mat_12:39 "adulterous" Adultery became a metaphor for spiritual unfaithfulness (cf. Lev_20:5; Num_25:1; Hos_1:2; Hos_4:10; Hos_4:18; Hos_5:3; Mat_16:4; Mar_8:38; Jas_4:4).
▣ "the sign of Jonah the prophet" As Jonah was in the great fish three days, Jesus was three days in the grave (Hades). We must remember that this is three days by Jewish reckoning, not three twenty-four hour periods. Any part of a day, which for them was evening to evening (cf. Genesis 1), was reckoned as a full day.
Jesus' allusion to Jonah confirms strongly the historicity of the book of Jonah. It is precisely the experience in the great fish that was used as an analogy (cf. Mat_16:4).
Mat_12:40 "three nights" See note at Mat_16:21.
▣ "in the heart of the earth" This referred to descending into Hades (cf. Mat_11:23), the realm of the dead, the grave, or the metaphorical place of unborn children (cf. Psa_139:15-16). This is phenomenological language: the language of observation and of common human description. The Jews, like us, buried their dead; therefore, they "lived" in the ground. See hyperlink at Mat_5:22.
Jesus' words would not have been understood by His contemporary hearers until after His resurrection. Matthew has structured the sayings of Jesus for theological purposes, not chronological sequence (cf. Mat_7:21-23, also could not have had meaning until a much later date).
Mat_12:41 "the men of Nineveh" This also relates to Mat_11:20-24, as does Mat_12:42. Nineveh repented due to Jonah's preaching and consequently was spared the wrath of God's judgment. This also implies that the Ninevites of Jonah's day were alive in an afterlife.
▣ "repented" See hyperlink at Mat_3:2 and see note at Mat_4:17.
Mat_12:42 "The Queen of the south" This was a way of referring to the Queen of Sheba (cf. 1Ki_10:1-15), who is still alive and will appear to testify in the eschaton.
▣ "something greater than Solomon is here" This is another clear Messianic claim. It reveals Jesus' self-understanding. He saw Himself as greater than the wisest man of the ancient East (cf. 1Ki_3:12; 1Ki_4:19-34). See full note at Mat_12:6.