Varghese Mathai
21/1/13
Is Jonah and Salvation of Nineveh a Historical event or a Parable?
Jonah (782 BC) was an actual figure in history. The of authenticity being an Historical man can be verified by II Kings 14.25 “He [Jeroboam II] was the one who re-conquered all the territory that had belonged to Israel from Hamath Pass in the north to the Dead Sea in the South. This was what the Lord the God of Israel, had promised to his servant the prophet Jonah son of Amittai from Gath Hepher.
Another very important evidence to consider Jonah as an historic man is the words of Jesus Christ himself in St. Mathew Ch.12:38-39. “Then some teachers of the law and some Pharisees spoke up ‘Teacher’ they said ‘we want to see you perform a miracle’”. How evil and godless are the people of this day? Jesus exclaimed. ‘You ask me for a miracle’? No! The only miracle you will be given is the miracle of the prophet Jonah. Jesus called him as a prophet and further confirmed that it is a miracle of God!
Jonah is highly important in Islam as a prophet who was faithful to God and delivered His message. In Islam Jonah is also called Dhul-Nun in Arabic means ‘The One of the Whale’. Chapter 10 of Qur’an is named Jonah although directly refers only in verse 98.According to their tradition Jonah comes from the tribe Benjemin.
According to Judaism the book of Jonah is one of the 12 Minor Prophets included in the Tanakh. According to their tradition Jonah was the boy brought back to life by Elijah the prophet and hence shares some his characteristics. But it is not considered I Christian Tradition.
Western analysts claim that the book of Jonah is fictitious. Those who are more open-minded say that Jonah represents the eldest son (in the parable of the lost son), because when Nineveh was saved Jonah was sad like the eldest son who would not enter the house. The profound truth could be that, Jonah refused to go to Nineveh because even though he proclaims its destruction, he was sure that God is patient and slow to anger and would inevitably forgive them in the end. Hence, he wished to avoid two pains. First to prophesy destruction, extremely difficult for a kind soul and secondly the Merciful God who would relent from His anger and Jonah would appear to be the one criticising a foreign people. According to Church Fathers, Jonah could not be the eldest son, who was sad at Nineveh’s redemption, but he is a type of Christ. He is the outstanding prophet of salvation, who is not less than other Old Testament prophets, but probably greater than them in gentleness and finesse, one comparable to Job, who also, like Jonah, was wronged.
But for an Atheist the most unbelievable miracle in the Bible is the event when Jonah was in the belly of a great fish for three days and nights. The one who accept Him and his dominion over His creation, they will believe Him even though above to human understanding or even unproven by any one. God, the creator, has power and with His command, the sea can make the waves rough and high or make it calm. The whales will obey its creator’s command, swallow a man or vomit him. By God’s mighty power the impossible is possible to keep a man alive in the belly of the whale for three days and three nights. Nothing is impossible for God for there is no proof, only Faith is required.
Now let us compare Jonah with us who are the generation of the day.
Jonah resembles in many aspects Moses. Moses doubts about God’s plan on him and his doubt was whether the people of Israel will accept him as a Messenger sent by the Lord of hosts. Ex.4.1. Then Moses answered the Lord.”But suppose the Israelites do not believe me and will not listen to what I say. What shall I do if they say that you did not appear to me” Here as a symbol a stick has been provided to him. The difference is Moses plight was for the deliverance of Gods own people the Israelites, where as for Jonah was for the people who doesn’t know God of hosts and who were the main enemies of his own people the Israelites. The difference in the case of Jonah, Lord Almighty God made Jonah himself, as a symbol for the people of Nineveh. His transformation occurs in the belly of the big fish is the symbol, which made the people of Nineveh, who were not knowing the Lord Almighty God, to believe the Almighty’s warning, sent to them through His messenger Jonah.
1. Jonah was called by God and said Arise and Go to Nineveh; He wished not to go. Are we not of disobedient like Jonah and desperate for our wish to be done and not of His?
Prophet Jonah was commanded by God to go to Nineveh, capital of Assyria, the historic enemy of Israel, to warn the sins of its people, the city is doomed to destruction. Jonah was unhappy with the assignment, because of the fear that he might be too successful, that people of Nineveh may repent and thus escape destruction. And so he takes passage on a ship travelling westward, bound for Tarshish on the coast of Spain, at the opposite end of the then known world. Are we not of the same character? Despite His wishes goes in the opposite direction and keeps on praying for the success of our own wish but recognize it very late? Are we not having the same attitude to see the end of those who we hate or count them as our opponents or enemies? When any perils or disaster comes in their lives are we not judging or are not reluctant to say that, it happened to them as a reward for their evil deeds?
2. Jonah recognises that it is not so easy to evade the Divine charge. Do we recognize it in our life?
Jonah, hearing God’s directive to announce the imminent destruction, fled to the harbour city of Jaffa and there boarded a ship going in the opposite direction. We can understand Jonah’s concern and reaction. The mission would be thankless and difficult; the chances were that he would at best be ignored or at worst ridiculed. Why me? What do I need this for?” And so he tried to flee from the presence of God, to escape from the responsibility of serving God as He wished. No one knows when, like Jonah, he may be singled out to do God’s work. A supernatural storm arises; the ship is sinking all the sailors of the boat start calling their gods, while Jonah try to hide himself from God and fell asleep in the bottom of the ship; the heathen mariners cast lots to see who is to blame for the danger that has come upon them? Now in the hand of the heathen people he was subjected accusation and the finger of accusation points at the mysterious stranger, Jonah. He requests that they cast him into the sea and, sadly, they do so. Here we can see a man of despair who wished to die and flee away from God, Further incidents made him to understand, how deep is the plan of Lord?
3. At the belly of the whale Jonah understood that even he wished to put an end of his life it is in the safe hand of God and Nothing can happen beyond the plant of Almighty God.
The storm abates and Jonah is swallowed by a great fish. There he turns in prayer to God, a prayer of repentance. Just imagine being in side of a whale for three days and nights we can understand his suffering. God was teaching him a lesson to learn that he is helpless and he cannot die or live without the mercy of God. Inside the whale, Jonah started praying, his repentance and confession about his disobedience to the Lord. The merciful God answered his prayer and asked the whale to vomit him onto the land. As God commanded, the whale vomited Jonah.
Here also Jonah did not understand or ignored the miraculous acts of Almighty as the Whale swallowed him unhurt. Similarly at the time of troubles we become upset and allow these problems to monopolize our thoughts and drain away our emotional energy until something happen which bring us to a situation to re think at the sudden tragic death of a dear one or a friend, an automobile accident which leaves someone permanently disabled, an incurable disease discovered in an acquaintance. Then suddenly our problem which had seemed so important begins to evaporate. We feel foolish and ashamed.
4. Jonah understood God’s universal concern His Mercy and compassion on all living things, despite his eagerness to witness the destruction of Nineveh.
Jonah’s failing was not only that he permitted himself to be entrapped in self pity, but also he could not identify with the plight of other human beings, and became angry with God for sparing their lives. Once again, God had to teach him of the concern for others. Lord asked Jonah to preach in Nineveh. Now Jonah knew that he had to obey God even though he had his reasoning’s before. The salvation is for the Jew, only the people of God not for the Gentiles. The City of Nineveh was a walking distance of three days. . He was supposed to walk three days towards the city of Nineveh, but after the first day, he cried out to the people that in forty days the city will be destroyed by God. He had no compassion or mercy in his speech to the people in the City of Nineveh. He just followed the order of the Lord even though he did not want to do so. The ordinary citizens of Nineveh heard Jonah’s preaching and they began to change from their wickedness and repent their sins. The word reached the king, and he proclaimed fasting for the whole nation. Everyone did the fasting and prayer without any food or beverages. It started from the king’s palace, the rich and poor, babies and even the animals. The cry from the city reached to the Lord and God had compassion on the city and changed His decision to destroy the city and decided to save it.
Jonah waited to see what would happen to the city. When he discovered that God had forgiven the people and did not destroy the city, Jonah was very angry at God and he wished to be dead than to witness the salvation of gentile nation. The closing verse has that marvellous, ironic ending: “You have had pity on the gourd, for which you have not laboured, neither made it grow; which came up in a night and perished in a night; should not I have on Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than six score thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left, also much cattle?”Like Jonah, we seem to have lost some of the basic human qualities of concern, compassion and love for men and women we do not personally know.
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