An unwilling prophet and a wicked city discover the depths of God’s mercy.
The extraordinary story of Jonah being swallowed by a great fish is one of the most well-known stories in the Old Testament and, indeed, in all of ancient literature. Although many modern readers struggle with the historicity of the account, the New Testament accepts the reality of Jonah’s journey in the belly of a fish. Jesus used the dark voyage as an illustration of His own passage through death and resurrection (Matt. 12:39–41), and also referenced Jonah’s preaching in Nineveh in one of His sermons (Luke 11:29–32).
The Book of Jonah has much to teach us about sin, forgiveness, and the astonishing lengths God goes to in order to bring us into right relationship with Him. God never relishes judgment. His love reaches to the farthest corners of the earth, extending compassion to sinful people no matter who they are or where they live. He is a “gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm” (Jon. 4:2).
When the Lord commanded Jonah to preach repentance to the people of Nineveh, Jonah fled fast and far in the opposite direction (see “Why Jonah Ran” at Jon. 1:10). But a deadly storm and subsequent journey inside a fish convinced Jonah to head in the right direction. Nineveh was the capital of Assyria, a violent pagan nation despised by the Israelites. Yet the Ninevites repented when they heard Jonah’s warnings of God’s impending judgment, while the Israelites continued to ignore similar messages sent to them. Thus the Book of Jonah challenged the self-righteous and self-important attitudes of the Israelites. And it continues to prompt us today to look beyond ourselves and practice God’s compassion with everyone we meet.
Scholars are unsure whether Jonah wrote the book that bears his name. The book’s events date to the eighth century B.C., perhaps during the reign of Jeroboam II over the northern kingdom of Israel.
Key Events in Jonah
• Jonah is swallowed by a great fish (Jon. 1:17).
• Jonah preaches to Nineveh, and the city repents (Jon. 3:1–10).
• God teaches Jonah about compassion (Jon. 4:1–11).
The Geography of Jonah
The Lord told Jonah to preach in the Assyrian capital of Nineveh (Jon. 1:2), about 550 miles northeast of Israel. Jonah instead boarded a ship bound for Tarshish, a destination that may have been as far as 2,500 miles in the opposite direction.
1. Tarshish (Jon. 1:3), believed by many to have been a seaport or region in southern Spain.
2. Joppa (Jon. 1:3; see the site’s profile at Acts 9:42), the only natural harbor in Israel south of Acco and probably the closest one available to the fleeing prophet.
3. Nineveh (Jon. 1:2), capital of the Assyrian Empire in Jonah’s time.
4. Jerusalem, capital of Judah.
5. Samaria, capital of Israel.