The book of jonah is an example that will be used to determine if this particular story describes an accurate recount of history, or if it teaches the readers a lesson. Regardless of ones position on the historicity of jonah, though, most readers can hopefully agree that the main focus of the story is. Analysis of the book of jonah essay 2162 words bartleby. There is also no known author for the book of jonah. There are many ways to interpret the jonah narrative and the character of jonah. In his article, he attacked the book of jonah by stating. The book of jonah is narrative history and a prophetic book which some commentators believe jonah wrote personally in roughly 786760 b. The book of jonah is narrative history and a prophetic oracle. As with any good narrative, the story of jonah has a setting, characters, a plot, and themes. Book of jonah, also spelled jonas, the fifth of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, embraced in a single book, the twelve, in the jewish canon. Ironically, the book of jonah is filled with irony, parody and exaggeration that are often overlooked by many interpreters. First of all we may justifiably point out that the bible does not speak of a whale. The book of jonah has all the marks of a prophetic narrative, like those about elijah and elisha found in 1 kings, which set out to report actual historical events.
What is the books literary genrestyle parody, satire, humor, etc. Considers the book of jonah as a parable designed to teach a lesson in which jonah represents israel, and the fish which swallowed him as israels captivity. The historical events of naaman the syrian or the widow of zarephath are simple. It is said to be about the prophet jonah of gathhepher in zebulon, who lived in the eight century during the reign of israels king jeroboam ii. Book of jonah overview insight for living ministries. Nachtigal 1799 contended that there were three different authors of widely different periods. How to read historical narrative christian research institute. Jonah, book of webbible encyclopedia christiananswers. This debate has made the book of jonah one of the most visible outposts along the liberalconservative battle. Unlike other old testament prophetic books, jonah is not a collection of the prophets oracles but primarily a. Nov 06, 2017 the gospel authors, for example, or the authors of the. This book is different from the other prophetic books because it tells the story of the prophet and does not center on his prophecies. Nov 21, 2012 the most difficult and troubling passages often open their meaning and significance in the most beautiful way when the historical and cultural background of the text is grasped.
As jonah was three days and three nights in the whales belly, so shall the son of man be three. The chapter divisions mark the natural divisions of the book. For over 2,000 years most christians and jews have viewed the book of jonah as an historical narrative such unanimity of tradition cannot be easily dismissed. It differs from them in that while they for the most part contain prophetic discourses, with a minimum of narrative material, the book of jonah is mainly occupied with a narrative, and the prophetic message in it is almost incidental. Jan 22, 2011 a specific example the author drew on was the story of jonah, which features the unlikely event of a man being swallowed by a giant fish and living in the fishs digestive tract for three days before being vomited up on land.
It is believed to be reflective of the yahwist or jahwist tradition. The historicity of the book of jonah, and why it still. Listen to chuck swindolls overview of jonah in his audio message from the classic series gods masterwork. In the book of jonah, jonah the prophet is instructed to go to a pagan city nineveh to preach to the ninevites, hoping that they will repent for their sins. And some have pointed out that the poem in chapter 2 cannot possibly be a historical account of jonah s experience in the fish. The book of jonah was written in the fifth century during the postexilic era. The text of jonah lacks typical indications that would call for an allegorical understandingthe text is presented in the form of historical narrative. So myth is utilized, but it is obvious in this poetic context that a historical meaning isnt intended this is a different genre, a different game with different rules.
The book of jonah is anonymous, and we really do not know who the author was or when he lived. This article does not attempt to resolve all issues regarding the genre and background of the book. Jonah, ruth, and esther cliffsnotes study guides book. Book of jonah, the fifth of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, embraced in a single book, the twelve, in the jewish canon. Free jonah essays and papers free essays, term papers. Most modern bible scholars view the book of jonah as a myth or legend, not as a true historical narrative. Jonah, a jew, in contrast, hates the people who live in nineveh. Old testament narrative as history in contrast with a nationalistic myth, old testament narrative is a truthful recording of history, with the goal of revealing and glorifying god. A specific example the author drew on was the story of jonah, which features the unlikely event of a man being swallowed by a giant fish and living in the fishs digestive tract for three days before being vomited up on land. The book of jonah is peculiar because it names a historical person, but theres no. Is the book of jonah is factual, allegorical, mythical or. Some critics have sought to interpret the book as a parable or allegory, and not as a history.
Because it was not necessary to report accurate historical events in every detail of the story, the author was free to construct the characters and events in a way that would illustrate precisely the lesson he wanted to teach. Unlike the other prophets, the book of jonah is almost entirely narrative, with the exception of the poem in chapter 2. The purpose of this book is to show that god is a merciful and gracious god. The purpose of the book of jonah is to show gods people that his plan is exceedingly compassionate god is gracious and exceedingly certain god is sovereign. Discuss what you think each of these three parties learned about gods nature and character especially his mercy. The analysis of the various imaginative genre classifications of the book of jonah shows that scholars have viewed the book as an allegory, parable, mashal, prophetic legend, midrash, novella, or. However as adults we see that there is more to the story. The jonah narrative is a story often told to children to emphasize that it is wrong to run from god and there is no way to escape from god. One must appreciate the brutality of the assyrians had meant for all who had suffered so mightily under that merciless war machine. Dec 08, 2016 for example, the book of job takes the ancient myths related to leviathan and recasts them in a poetic context. Midrash refers to a type of interpretation of scripture that is basically expository in nature.
Jonah, the book of definition and meaning bible dictionary. Fifth in the canonical order of the minor prophets. This book professes to give an account of what actually took place in the experience of the prophet. The significance and import of those narratives are provided by jesus himself within the historical narrative of jesus early teaching in the synagogue luke 4. While some read jonah as a historical narrative, there are a number of reasons for thinking that this is a misunderstanding of jonahs genre. Jonah, satire and literal interpretation theopolitical. This includes not only critical scholars, but also an increasing number of evangelical christian scholars. The book of jonah cannot be accepted as history settle, b4. Jonah lived and ministered in israel during the 8th century bc, during the reign of king jeroboam ii 2 kings 14. The simple answer to the question before us is to read historical narrative as it was intended to be read, as it presents itself, and as other witnesses corroborate.
Yhwh, redemption and the narrative history of jonah and. It is incredible that one could be alive for three days in a fishs belly. First, the vast majority of jewish and christian interpreters up to the nineteenth century have regarded jonah as historical. The reader will mark that our lord referred to the miraculous preservation of jonah, and his deliverance, as a historical event, recorded in the first and second chapters of the book of jonah, not as a myth or allegory, but as a historical fact. Yhwh, redemption and the narrative history of jonah and the. It would be presumptuous to think that one could, in a brief article, speak the final word on the questions in debate. The most difficult and troubling passages often open their meaning and significance in the most beautiful way when the historical and cultural background of the text is grasped. The actual prophetic word against nineveh is given only in passing through the narrative. Historical study of jonah the book of jonah demonstrates the scope of gods mercy as he receives other nations and the. One other obvious hyperbolic element in the book is the repentance of animals together with the ninevites, which influenced a number of scholars to challenge the historical level of the book. If we are clear about what the historical narrative is reporting, we might find comment within. In a wellauthenticated historical narrative there is always to be found a number, greater or less, of historical particulars, which serve as indirect proof of the truth of the narrative.
Therefore, as in most historical narratives one key component of the story would be lost if the historical referent were dropped. The text of jonah lacks typical indications that would call for an allegorical understanding the text is presented in the form of historical narrative. For the purposes of this discussion, lets assume that the book of jonah is a historical narrative of an actual event. The following structure is based on a careful analysis of the content of jonah in the hebrew text. For example, in the book of jonah, the author selected a person who reportedly lived during the times of the prophet amos. How can i apply narrative criticism on the book of jonah. In galatians 4, paul explains how the history of abraham and his family is indicative of any persons experience as a sinner under the law or as redeemed by christ. The title of the studysalvation belongs to the lordcomes directly from jonah 2. Jonah, the sailors on the boat, and the people of nineveh. In fact, only one verse summarizes his message to the people of nineveh 3. The historical view considers the book of jonah as a true and literal narration of facts which occurred exactly as they were related in the book.
Nov 12, 2017 the bible instructs on how to read historical narrative in several places. It becomes necessary to inquire into the purpose and teaching of the book, because of the fact that it is not a historical narrative, but a midrash, and also because of its conclusion. Intro to jonah biblica the international bible society. The traditional view, that jonah is the author and the narrative is historically true, is supported by a number of considerations. The view that jonah wrote the story of his own disobedience and his debate with the merciful god has not been made wholly untenable. Jonahs displeasure at gods merciful decision, and the rebuke tendered to the impatient prophet. Nineveh was spared after jonahs mission for more than a century. This little roll of four short chapters has given rise to almost as much discussion and difference of opinion as the first four chapters of genesis. It is also mentioned ny jesus as a picture of his death and resurrection matthew 12. Professor settle listed several alleged inaccuracies contained in the book. Everyone in this account seems to be learning about gods nature and character.
In contrast with a nationalistic myth, old testament narrative is a truthful recording of history, with the goal of revealing and glorifying god. However, to my knowledge this is the first attempt to present an overall literary analysis of the book as a whole. The book of jonah, written primarily in the third person, does not explicitly name the prophet as the author of his own account, but we have no reason to doubt either the inspiration or the historical veracity of the book. Proper interpretation and application of old testament narrative is built on the principle that such scripture is historical, theological and literary in nature. At times, the odd structure and ending of the book have been used to support this theory, since the book does not follow a normal form for historical narrative. Nonetheless, we suggest that jonah is best read as a stylized historical narrative. The book of jonah merely mentions a great fish jonahi, 17, and although the english version in matthewxii, 40 uses the word whale, the greek original has katoj, which is a general word meaning a huge seamonster. The historical view considers the book of jonah as a true and literal narration of facts. Many have questioned whether the book of jonah is historical. Key personalities include jonah, the captain and the ships crew and the people of nineveh. Literary analysis of jonah chiasmus in jonah has been noted by numerous biblical scholars. The gospel authors, for example, or the authors of the. And some have pointed out that the poem in chapter 2 cannot possibly be a historical account of jonahs experience in the fish. The book before us, it is claimed, exhibits but few of these particulars.
For example, the book of job takes the ancient myths related to leviathan and recasts them in a poetic context. Much of the bible requires little or no interpretation, especially when it comes to historical narrative in contrast with parables, for example. Unlike other old testament prophetic books, jonah is not a collection of the prophets oracles but primarily a narrative about the man. The supposed legendary character of some of the events e.