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Teaching the Bible
JONAH
Theological Issues
Story
Biblical material needs to be interpreted according to the nature of the writing. Here the writer compiles a story in order to present the truth about God and the human condition. When concepts are new and controversial, as here, the packaging in story form allows the reader gentler access to challenging ideas. These can be taken on board gradually; the full force of the revelation can come with time. Meanwhile, the story will work away in the imagination and sub-conscious in preparation. So beware of thinking the fish is the central character! It is only a means of 'transport' for the truth about God in relation to creation and humankind.
Prophecy
Prophets proclaimed messages from God. Later in the Old Testament / Hebrew Bible, individuals appear who believed that God had called them to transmit God's messages to Israel. They often prefaced the messages with, 'Thus says the Lord...' The prophets were merely intermediaries: They
- had a special relationship with God even though they themselves sometimes did not want to co-operate with God;
- were often very unpopular because what they had to say usually condemned Israel for her behaviour. God's messages often related to the immediate political situation where Israel was getting muddled up in politics rather than trusting in God to see her through;
- challenged the social situation where injustice and bad behaviour prospered. Prophets regularly appealed to Israel for less hypocrisy in worship and more social concern.
- tried to convey a deeper understanding of what God was like and what God expected from them. Jonah had the unusual task of challenging a foreign nation. Prophets usually spoke to the Israelites, not foreigners. But Jonah had that task because the author of the narrative wanted the Jews (a later name for the Israelites) to know that God was God of all peoples.
The Nature of God
- Creator
The Book of Jonah shows that God is in control of the natural world: hurricane, stormy seas, fish and plant-life contribute to the realisation of God's purposes.
- All-powerful, the Universal
Just as nature is directed by God, so the nations of the earth, however great and powerful are accountable to God. God is the overlord. It had been believed that the many gods each had power over their own territory. Only gradually did Israel come to realise that their God was not just the God of Israel but of all nations. This was a challenging belief because it meant a change in attitudes towards all other nations: God was as interested in them and their well-being as he was in Israel. Everyone was of equal value before God. That was a hard truth for the Israelites to swallow!
- God's will
The narrative emphasizes that in spite of people's ability to choose through their own free-will, God's will must ultimately triumph. However wayward human behaviour is, there is no escaping God's will. In the long run it is futile to stand against it or run away. But God's will is not so fixed or stubborn that it cannot change if the situation requires a different response (Jonah 3:10). God is not an arbitrary God, detached from his creation but fully engaged in every struggle.
- God's mystery
The narrative presents a God who cannot be manipulated by humankind. God does not merely react to human activity but acts according to his will and in his way. Even the mighty Ninevites are forced to humble themselves before the mystery of God and forced to wonder just how God would respond to their repentance from their evil ways (Jonah 3:9).
- God the deliverer
Throughout the Old Testament / Hebrew Bible God is portrayed as a God of action, intervening in history and changing events through his involvement with certain characters e.g. Moses, Elijah etc.. God's action is primarily seen in deliverance from the enemy e.g. the Exodus from Egypt, the Canaanites, the Philistines etc.. In this story of Jonah, God delivers the pagan sailors from the storm, Jonah from the fish and finally the Ninevites from their wickedness and destruction.
- God's justice
God's nature combines the paradox of both justice and mercy. God's justice has to respond in anger when confronted with the evil of the Ninevites (Jonah 3:9). That anger demands the destruction of Nineveh's wickedness (Jonah 3:4). Humans are accountable for their own behaviour; ultimately it is God who judges. This belief about God is also emphasised in another Minor Prophet, Amos (Amos 1-2).
- God's mercy
In the Book of Jonah, God's justice is tempered with mercy. Throughout the Old Testament / Hebrew Bible, especially in the Psalms, God is prepared to relinquish his anger and set aside his justice if there is a radical change and a repentance which seeks forgiveness (Jeremiah 18:7-8).
- God's compassion and love
Jonah acknowledges God's compassion (Jonah 4:2). It was once believed that this compassion applied exclusively to Israel (Joel 3:1-21). But here it applies to everyone. Jonah 4:11 poignantly explains why this must be so. God has made a big investment in the creation of the people of Nineveh and their destruction is not what he wants for them at all! God's pity and love must extend to the whole of his creation. The New Testament develops this theme in all its fullness.
The Human Condition
This narrative highlights human vulnerability to sin. The individual, Jonah, freely chooses to go against God's wishes and discovers the wretchedness of the consequences. In desperation he repents and obeys but even then he ends up sulking and feeling hard done by.
In contrast, the whole city of Nineveh is immersed in evil living and its bad reputation has travelled far. But encouraged by its king, the city acknowledges its wrong-doing. This may be through fear of God's intended destruction or a genuine repentance when the king realises just how seriously corrupt their state was. It is the antidote to the Noah narrative, in which humankind does not heed the warnings and therefore does not repent. So human potential for both evil and repentance are highlighted. Just as God can change his mind, so human beings can change their behaviour. They are not robots but free autonomous people with choices for better and worse.
The Sign of Jonah - a Christian commentary
Jesus refers to this Old Testament / Hebrew Bible story of Jonah. There are three references which are basically similar but with differing emphases regarding Jonah's story.
- Matthew 12:39
Jesus has been asked to perform a miracle. He uses this request to refer to the miracle of the prophet Jonah, who spent three days and nights in the big fish; likewise the Son of Man will spend three days and nights in the depths of the earth and survive. The Ninevites repented of their sins as a result of Jonah's preaching but the teachers of the Law and Pharisees have failed to accept the message of the Kingdom of God.
- Matthew 16:4
Again a miracle is requested. Jesus refers to the wickedness of the people; the only miracle that they will be given is that of Jonah which was the repentance of the evil Ninevites, which saved them from being destroyed.
- Luke 11:29
In reponse to the request for a miracle, Jesus replies that even evil pagans responded to Jonah's message when he was a sign to them of their potential destruction. Likewise the Son of Man is a sign to the people to accept the greater message of the Kingdom of God.
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