“The book commences with God’s order to Jonah, the son [ben] of Amitai, to march to Nineveh – ‘the Great town’ – and ‘cry against it’ because its wickedness had come to His attention. Far from obeying this order, Jonah seeks to flee to Tarshish.”
“Where is Tarshish?”
“We cannot be certain about the exact location. It is, at the same time, clear that Tarshish is located to the West of Palestine whilst Nineveh is to its East. Jonah seeks to travel in the opposite direction.”
“Which means that he tries to distance himself from the place to which he was directed to proceed,” observed Theophil. “Jonah’s intention to rebel is beyond doubt.”
“It is,” I approbated. “So, Jonah ‘goes down’ [descends] to the port of Yafo [Jaffa], boards a ship sailing to his destination and pays the required fare. God thereupon hurls a massive wind which causes a tempest. To prevent the ship from capsizing, the sailors jettison all articles, and each prays to his own deity. Jonah does not join them but goes down to the aft of the ship and falls asleep. He is woken up by the ‘shipmaster’ [captain], who asks him to pray to his own God, with the hope that God will listen, will think of them and so they will not perish.”
“So, Peter’le, Jonah takes things easy. Notwithstanding the storm and the impending doom, he goes aft and slumbers. The captain wakes him up and requests him to pray to his own God. Well, carry on.”
“As the storm continues, the sailors decide to cast lots to ascertain who is the cause of the disaster. When Jonah is caught, he reveals that his attempt to flee is the cause of the catastrophe and advises the sailors to throw him overboard. Initially, they try to row back to land but the storm gains strength. Thereupon, they cast Jonah into the sea whereupon the tempest abates. Recognising Jehovah’s might, the sailors make sacrifices to him and take vows.”
“What happens to Jonah?”
“He is swallowed by a large fish tasked by God. On his third day in the fish’s belly, Jonah prays to God.”
“A prayer for help?” asked Theophil.
“Not really. He avers that in adversity he remembers Jehovah and fixes his eyes on His temple. He then thanks God for deliverance and undertakes to carry out his vows.”
“Does he make any whilst in the belly of the fish?”
“Not expressly. Contextually, though, he would appear to vow to carry out God’s commands.”
“Does he then repent? Does he regret his rebellion and his attempt to escape?”
“He does not. It is a thanksgiving prayer rather than a call for help. Further, it differs in style from the rest of the book, which is expressed in neat and concise prose: it is poetic.”
“I assume you will come back to this later. Please continue to narrate the story.”
“At God’s instruction, the fish ‘vomits’ Jonah onto land.”
“Does the narrator describe where?”
“He does not. He tells us that, once again, Jehovah instructs Jonah to proceed to Nineveh and deliver his message. This time Jonah obeys. He proceeds to Nineveh and predicts that it will be ‘overturned’ [destroyed] in forty days.”
“Does he ask the inhabitants to repent? And how long is his sermon?”
“No, Maestro. Jonah does not preach repentance. In his short message, he just predicts doom. However, the people of Nineveh, its king and noblemen repent, fast and discontinue their evil ways. Thereupon, God reconsiders his stand, has mercy and does not destroy the city.”
“Does this outcome please Jonah?”
“It does not. He is aggrieved and, in a fresh prayer (expressed in prose), explains that he knew all along that God was merciful and forgiving, and that for that very reason he, Jonah, sought to flee to Tarshish. He then asks God to take his soul because he prefers death to his life.”
“But is this not a strange stand, Peter’le? Most prophets would have been pleased when people repented and mended their ways.”
“Undoubtedly. But prophets like Hoshea, Isiah and Jeremiah castigated their own people: the Hebrews. In Jonah, God accepts the repentance of gentiles – the fierce Assyrians – and shows his mercy even to them. Whilst Nahum and even Amos predicted that God was going to punish Israel’s enemies, Jonah shows that God’s mercy, like God himself, is universal.”
“Is this the traditional stand of Judaism, Peter’le?”
“The consensus amongst scholars is to regard Jehovah as tribal – the God of the Hebrews. Ezra and Nehemiah, in particular, are adamant. The Hebrews (or Jews) must keep apart from other people. Leaders of the Jews returning from the Babylonian exile even rejected the gentiles’ offers for help in the construction of the second (post exilic) temple. Jonah’s emphasis on the universality of God is innovative, perhaps even unorthodox.”
“You really analyse the message of the Book of Jonah, Peter’le. We’ll come back to it later. Currently let us continue our discussion of the narrative.”
“Jonah erects a shelter for himself east of the town and waits to see what would take place. God gives rise to a plant – called Kikayon – which shelters Jonah from the sun. Jonah is pleased with the shade it provides. On the very next day, a worm, tasked by God, attacks the Kikayon, which thereupon withers. God then triggers a fierce dry east wind. Jonah, who is exposed to it and to the sun, faints and, once again, wishes to be dead. God thereupon asks Jonah whether he is vexed on account of the Kikayon. Jonah affirms that he is ‘vexed to death’.”
“What is a Kikayon?” asked my counterparty.
“The word is not used in any other Biblical Book. It is unique: a hapax legomena. It is understood to refer to a castor oil plant or some sort of a weed.”
“I assume the meaning of the word was clear when the book was written. Well, please continue.”
“God points out that Jonah is concerned for the Kikayon, for which he did not labour and which appeared one night and perished on the very next day. He then asks rhetorically: ‘Should I [then] not be concerned for Nineveh, the great city, in which are more than hundred and twenty thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand, and also much cattle.’ The narrative concludes on this note.”
“An abrupt ending,” augmented Theophil.
“If the object of the book was to narrate the story of Jonah, this would, indeed, be a strange ending. But I believe that the object of the author was to convey a message!”
“Let us, then, turn to it; but before discerning it, we ought to consider the historical background of the book.”