Jonah
The prophet who fled God's call, was swallowed by a great fish, and reluctantly preached to Nineveh.
What we know — and how we know it
Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin FRCP(Glasg) — CC BY-SA 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)
ArchaeologyNineveh was indeed a great city of the Assyrian empire; its ruins have been excavated across the Tigris from modern Mosul.
Where in scripture
2 KingsJonahMatthewLukeHe restored the border of Israel from the entrance of Hamath to the sea of the Arabah, according to Yahweh, the God of Israel’s word, which he spoke by his servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was from Gath Hepher.
2 Kings 14:25
Now Yahweh’s word came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,
Jonah 1:1
But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of Yahweh. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid its fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of Yahweh.
Jonah 1:3
Then the mariners were afraid, and every man cried to his god. They threw the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone down into the innermost parts of the ship, and he was laying down, and was fast asleep.
Jonah 1:5
They all said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots, that we may know who is responsible for this evil that is on us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah.
Jonah 1:7
So they took up Jonah, and threw him into the sea; and the sea ceased its raging.
Jonah 1:15
Yahweh prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Jonah 1:17 — Swallowed by the fish
Then Jonah prayed to Yahweh, his God, out of the fish’s belly.
Jonah 2:1
Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, a public-domain translation.
Family
In their own words — 7 recorded sayings
“And he said to them, I am a Hebrew, a worshipper of the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” — Jonah 1:9
“And he said to them, Take me up and put me into the sea, and the sea will become calm for you: for I am certain that because of me this great storm has come on you.” — Jonah 1:12
“In my trouble I was crying to the Lord, and he gave me an answer; out of the deepest underworld I sent up a cry, and you gave ear to my voice. For you have put me down into the deep, into the heart of the sea; and the river was round about me; all your waves and your rolling waters went over me. And I said, I have been sent away from before your eyes; how may I ever again see your holy Temple? The waters were circling round me, even to the neck; the deep was about me; the sea-grass was twisted round my head. I went down to the bases of the mountains; as for the earth, her walls were about me…” — Jonah 2:2-9
“And Jonah first of all went a day's journey into the town, and crying out said, In forty days destruction will overtake Nineveh.” — Jonah 3:4
“And he made prayer to the Lord and said, O Lord, is this not what I said when I was still in my country? This is why I took care to go in flight to Tarshish: for I was certain that you were a loving God, full of pity, slow to be angry and great in mercy, and ready to be turned from your purpose of evil. So now, O Lord, give ear to my prayer and take my life from me; for death is better for me than life.” — Jonah 4:2-3
“Then when the sun came up, God sent a burning east wind: and so great was the heat of the sun on his head that Jonah was overcome, and, requesting death for himself, said, Death is better for me than life.” — Jonah 4:8
“And the Lord said to Jonah, Have you any right to be angry about the vine? And he said, I have a right to be truly angry.” — Jonah 4:9
Speaker attribution: Clear Bible MACULA (CC BY 4.0). Wording: Bible in Basic English (public domain).
Journeys
The flight and mission of Jonah
Told to go east to Nineveh, Jonah fled west by sea — until a storm, a great fish, and God's mercy turned him around.
- Joppa — Takes ship to flee from the Lord
- Tarshish — The far-western port he sailed toward
- Joppa — Cast into the sea and swallowed by the great fish
- Nineveh — Finally preaches; the great city repents
Events
Places in their life
Photo: Godot13 — CC BY-SA 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)
Photo: Omar Siddeeq Yousif — CC BY-SA 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)
In art
