Jonah
Jonah: A Story for All Times OVERVIEW Jonah as Understood in the Past Ishmael, in Herman Melville s 1851 classic novel Moby Dick, tells of his visit to Whaleman s Chapel in New Bedford (Mass.) in the company of other fisherman about to set off to sea. Ishmael watched as a robust chaplain, Father Mapple, mounted the lofty pulpit and began preaching. The prophet Jonah served as the biblical text for the sermon. Father Mapple proceeded to tell the story of Jonah s departure for sea and subsequent misfortune in far more detail than one finds in the biblical narrative itself. Finally the preacher reached the main point of the sermon, which for him was the lesson from Jonah: Shipmates, I do not place Jonah before you to be copied for his sin, but I do place him before you as a model for repentance. Sin not, but if you do, take heed to repent of it like Jonah. (Melville: 46) The story of Jonah fits well Melville s novel of a whaling ship with a captain obsessed by the desire to kill the huge sperm whale, Moby Dick. In fact, the story of Jonah has captured the imagination of the earliest church, even of believers who have never stepped aboard a ship. In spite of its popularity, Christians through the centuries have never agreed on a single interpretation of this four-chapter narrative placed in the middle of the Bible s twelve minor prophets. As a char- 94
Jonah Overview 95 acter, Jonah seems to model disobedience and stubbornness rather than the traditional prophetic virtues of obedience and responsiveness. Indeed, Jonah seems to be the only biblical book named for a rogue. Hence, like Father Mapple in Whaleman s Chapel, preachers to this day have struggled to agree on the teachings the church should take from the story of Jonah. The Christian church did not originally look on Jonah as a negative figure. Stimulated by Matthew 12:40-41, many of the early church writers saw Jonah as a type of Christ (Bowers: 21). These early Christian interpreters found in many OT events and persons models that they construed as foreshadowing particular events or attributes of Christ. The story of Jonah, as swallowed by a great fish and then resurrected after three days and nights, functioned frequently as a type of Jesus death and resurrection. Current Christian interpreters connect Jonah with the NT in a variety of ways, but few follow the christological path of the early church scholars. Jacque Ellul is one whose approach does have clear continuity with this past. He sees the whole drama as a parallel of Christ and the world, with Jonah playing a type of Christ (26-37, 100-103). Early writers were not alone in turning to Jonah as a positive model. Prior to Emperor Constantine s acceptance of Christianity as one of the permitted religions in the Roman Empire, Jonah appeared frequently in Christian art (Snyder: 45-9). However, the emphasis of this art falls not on prefiguring the resurrection, but on God s action to deliver Jonah from danger and provide him peaceful rest under a vine. Many ancient Christian pictures show a sequence of three scenes: Jonah handed into the jaws of a sea monster, Jonah vomited out on shore, and Jonah reclining peacefully under a tree or vine. Of course, Jonah s unsavory reputation did not entirely escape early interpreters in the church. Origen (ca. 182-251) noted that Jonah was swallowed for his disobedience, whereas Jesus was swallowed for obedience. Jerome (340-420), the ablest biblical scholar in the ancient church, scolded Jonah for some of his behavior; yet he sought to preserve a positive image for the prophet by insisting that Jonah s actions reflected his love of his people, whom Assyria threatened to destroy (Bowers: 24-7). Apparently Jonah s reputation steadily deteriorated as later generations reread the story. Luther reflected the opinion of Jonah as it had developed through the Middle Ages to his day, an interpretation influential even in our day. For Luther, this is the story of the patience of God and the disobedience and obstinacy of Jonah. This story reminds
96 Jonah Overview us, Luther insisted, that God permits His children to blunder and err greatly and grossly (92). About the only thing Luther could say in the prophet s behalf is that Jonah is God s dear child, and he chats so uninhibitedly with God. Visual artists, however, did not follow the lead of their literary counterparts. The focus of the artists throughout the centuries continued to pick up the perspective of the early Christian writers and the pre-constantinian artists. Some of these early artists preserved the tradition of Jonah as a type of Christ, one who was resurrected after three days. This artistic interpretation has continued even to the contemporary portrayal of Jonah in the Cologne Cathedral (Limburg, 1990:22-3). Other artists revisited Jonah as one delivered from the dangerous seas of life. Some later artists turned away from Jonah as the center of attention. In a seventeenth-century window at Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford, England, the Van Linge brothers focused instead on Nineveh as the city that repented (Limburg, 1990:25). They reflected the concern of preachers and writers who compared Nineveh s repentance with the persistence of evil in the cities of their day. In general, the paintings, etchings, and stained glass preserved from the past several centuries seem to indicate that visual artists have consistently evaluated Jonah more favorably than did their contemporary literary interpreters. Current interpreters continue to use Jonah as an example of what we ought not do. Educational material for children insists that Jonah did what a Christian ought never to do: he ran away from God. Along with that emphasis, educational material for adults focuses on the unchristian attitude to the foreigner, Jonah s desire that Nineveh be destroyed. Scholars, frequently following the same interpretive line, identify Jonah as an antiprophet, an example of everything a prophet is not supposed to do and be (Payne: 131-4). Calvin (144) articulated a position similar to many current interpreters: while we may understand Jonah, perhaps even appreciate the prophet s zeal, we dare not emulate him. We may arrive at a similar negative view of Jonah as we reread the narrative. Nevertheless, we need to recall that the Christian church has not always held the prophet in low regard. It may serve us well as we restudy this familiar story to remember the early church s positive regard for Jonah, as well as the contemporary portrayal of him as an anti-hero. Such memory may enable us to experience more depth in the story s main human character. Indeed, this commentary will expect us to look at Jonah as one whom God takes seriously, not as a clown and an object of ridicule.
Jonah Overview 97 What Manner of Narrative? It may seem obvious and unnecessary to identify Jonah as a short story. Yet the definition of its genre has been much discussed, for good reason. Proposals of genre ranging all the way from historical account to allegory have created so much debate that the narrative itself has sometimes been lost in the process. To call this a historical account turns attention away from the narrative itself, in an effort to locate the names and places in history (Simon, 1999:xv). Chapter 2 in particular has become a battleground for argument about the large fish (1:17). Can a fish swallow and then vomit a person without physical harm to the individual? The debate usually stalls, with one side insisting that the digestive processes of the sea animal make such an adventure impossible, and the other side countering that with God nothing is impossible (cf. Mark 10:27). The genre designation of allegory marks the other extreme. In an allegory, the characters and events of the narrative do not have importance in themselves but only for what they symbolize in hidden or figurative meanings. In such an approach, the great fish may represent Satan swallowing the sinner, Jonah. The Ninevites stand for a group of sinful pagans, usually a group who should repent in the interpreter s own world. The literary characteristics point to short story as the genre of this narrative [Short Story]. Even that designation does not settle the matter. Scholars continue to discuss the kind of short story we find in Jonah: perhaps a parable, a fable, or maybe satire. The term parable suggests to most readers that we should look for a single teaching in Jonah. The history of the church s interpretation warns us against trying to reduce the story to a single moral. The term fable points to certain elements in the story, such as the great fish and the vine. Yet the story itself centers on the interaction between God and Jonah; the fish and the vine are simply agents of divine action. Throughout the narrative, we find irony, perhaps even satire. But to call the story irony or satire predisposes the reader to view the main character in a one-sidedly negative way. The genre short story asks that each reader be open to enjoy, experience, and learn from the narrative. That learning is not prescribed ahead of time. Its discernment and application is entrusted to the community of faith. Indeed, candid and careful listening to Jonah s story may open our ears, perhaps enabling us to hear voices in our midst that have been quiet or overlooked.
98 Jonah Overview Message and Meaning Readers have discovered a wide variety of messages from their study of Jonah. In part, these different messages arise from different interpretative approaches. Scholars who decide on a specific date for the origin of the narrative, usually relate the message of Jonah to events in that particular era. Other scholars read the book from a particular doctrinal or theological perspective. They frequently experience the story as illustrating or reinforcing a doctrine of the church, such as repentance/forgiveness. The more recent literary approach to the narrative has yielded still other interpretations. An interpretation of Jonah as protest literature has a long history, especially with scholars who have connected the narrative to the religious reforms of Ezra and Nehemiah (fifth-fourth centuries B.C.). With that backdrop, they interpret the narrative as a protest against religious and ethnic exclusivity frequently ascribed to that reform. That interpretation, however, has become problematic in several respects. Not only is the dating difficult [Jonah and Historical Analysis], but the narrative itself does not portray Jonah as a ethnic zealot or a religious bigot. The story certainly does portray God as anxious to extend mercy beyond boundaries frequently enforced by religious communities. Yet the focus of Jonah is not on combating religious bigotry (Simon 1999:viii-x). Other interpreters place the story in an earlier era, connecting Jonah with the prophetic theme of repentance and forgiveness (Dyck, 1986:249). The narrative pictures God as merciful, anxiously awaiting repentance so as to forgive and turn away judgment. Without doubt, Jonah 3 features the theme of repentance. In response to Jonah s announcement of judgment, the citizens of Nineveh repent, and God turns away from the declared destruction. The language of repentance, however, only appears in chapter 3 and in 4:2 (Trible, 1996:490). God s final speech (4:10-11) insists that Nineveh s continued existence is grounded squarely in divine compassion. As Uriel Simon notes, there is no mention in 4:11 of the repentance of the citizens of Nineveh as the reason for the divine action, simply that they do not know their right hand from the left (Simon, 1999: vii-viii). Repentance constitutes a thread in the narrative, but it does not define the message of Jonah. Other readers interpret Jonah as concerned about his own vocation as a prophet. Deuteronomy 18:22 defines a false prophet: If a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD but the thing does not take place or prove true, it is a word that the LORD has not spoken. Perhaps Nineveh s continued existence taints Jonah s prophetic cre-
Jonah Overview 99 dentials (Bickerman: 38-45). But Jonah does not complain to God about his image as a prophet. Jonah connects his anger to God s character: You are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing (4:2). Increasingly, scholars advise against quickly assigning Jonah a single message or meaning. Our inability to define the exact era in which the narrative was first told, makes us reluctant to interpret the book in light of particular historical events or a single cultural milieu. The character of biblical narrative alerts us to expect a variety of interpretive possibilities [Short Story]. We have been entrusted with the responsibility of listening carefully to the story, anticipating that various threads and themes will speak to different readers and to us at different times. Among those threads of meaning and message in Jonah, many readers discover the compassion of God reconciling and restoring life reaching out not only to the sailors, the citizens of Nineveh, and Jonah, but also in behalf of all for whom Christ died. Sometimes this divine compassion blesses us, releasing us from the tyranny of evil that controls our direction and destiny. Other times God s compassion irritates us, extending mercy to those whose sin has damaged or destroyed us or those we love. Jonah expresses his rage at God s apparently indiscriminate compassion. The concluding question suggests that only through compassion can we understand God s undying devotion to the world and all who dwell therein. A Glance at the Whole Even a quick glance at the narrative reveals several strands that connect the various parts to the whole. Let us look at some of those strands. Perhaps most noticeable is the nearly identical wording found in Jonah 1:1-3 and 3:1-3a. In both of those units, the word of the LORD comes to Jonah, instructing him to go to Nineveh (1:2; 3:2). These two speeches of God divide the narrative into two parts. For both part 1 (1:1 2:10) and part 2 (3:1 4:11), Jonah s response to the divine instruction determines the following action. After the first divine speech, Jonah heads to Tarshish rather than Nineveh. After the second, he goes to Nineveh. We can discern other threads weaving the narrative fabric together. The location of action in various parts of the story reveals additional symmetry. Jonah s decision to go to Tarshish by ship places the following action on the sea (1:4ff.). The scene changes to under the sea when Jonah leaves the ship (2:17ff.). Correspondingly, Jonah goes to Nineveh the second time around (3:3a). Hence, the action in
100 Jonah Overview this section takes place in the city (3:3bff.). Then the scene switches to outside the city (4:1ff.). Plot involves the establishment of a tension in the narrative and its later resolution [Short Story]. Jonah 1:1-3, with its parallel in 3:1-3a, establishes the tension in the story. God directs Jonah to go to Nineveh with a message. That tension is resolved at the end of chapter 3. Jonah has gone to Nineveh and delivered a message. The Ninevites have repented, and God has decided not to carry out the planned destruction. In terms of plot, the story is over. Nevertheless, the book has yet another scene, outside the city and beyond the main plot. While the story is over for God and the Ninevites, it is not over for Jonah. The affect of this narrative movement startles the reader, who has already relaxed with a happy ending. The flow of the narrative isolates chapter 4, emphasizing the isolation expressed by Jonah s wish for death (4:3, 9). Readers who have been similarly victimized by such isolation, will doubtless feel with Jonah. With the drama over, the concerns of one person remain unanswered. Jonah sits alone. An Outline of the Major Units Any outline of Jonah forfeits some of the complexity and depth in the story. No matter how carefully chosen to fit the narrative, an outline selectively emphasizes some elements and relegates others to the background. Be that as it may, such organization assists us as we move through the story, enabling us to interpret the individual parts in relation to the whole: The Unfulfilled Prophetic Mission, 1:1 2:11 1:1-3 The Commissioning of Jonah 1:4 2:10 The Drama at Sea On the Sea, 1:4-16 Under the Sea, 1:17 2:10 The Unfulfilled Prophet, 3:1 4:11 3:1-3a The Recommissioning of Jonah 3:3b 4:11 The Drama on Land In the City, 3:3b-10 Outside the City, 4:1-11 The short story of Jonah asks to be read in one sitting. Before we look in detail at each piece in turn, take time to read the whole narrative, preferably more than once. With each reading, experience the
Jonah Overview 101 adventure from the perspective of different characters in the drama: God, Jonah, the sailors, the Ninevites, and even the king of Nineveh. Try to sense what is going on in each character. You will find it easy to identify with some. Many listeners struggle to sympathetically experience the drama from Jonah s perspective, except as he acts out our dark side. While the character of Jonah may provide the most challenge, such sympathetic identification may be the most important and finally the most rewarding.