Jonah, Book of, is one of a group of books of the Bible called the Prophets. The Book of Jonah is the only book in the group that tells a story about a prophet. The other books consist of statements by prophets. The Book of Jonah was probably written in the 400’s B.C.
The Book of Jonah begins with God’s calling upon Jonah to prophesy against the wicked people of the city of Nineveh. But Jonah tries to flee from God’s mission in a ship. During the voyage, God creates a great storm. The sailors decide that Jonah is the reason for the storm, and they throw him into the sea. God orders a “great fish,” traditionally considered a whale, to swallow Jonah. Jonah lives in the fish for three days before God orders the fish to spit Jonah onto land.
God again tells Jonah to go to Nineveh, and this time Jonah obeys. Jonah’s prophecy frightens the Ninevites into changing their sinful ways, and God spares them. God’s mercy angers Jonah. Jonah goes outside Nineveh and waits to see what will happen to the city. God causes a plant to grow so that Jonah will have shade from the sun. But the next morning, God causes a worm to destroy the plant. God contrasts Jonah’s sympathy for the plant with his lack of sympathy for Nineveh. According to one interpretation, the story contrasts the narrow concerns of Jonah with the universal concerns of God. The story calls on the Jews to reject narrow nationalism and return to their mission of preaching God’s forgiveness and mercy to all people.
