1. Now the word of YHWH came to Yonah the son of Amittai, saying,
2. "Get up, go to Nin'weh, the great city, and make a proclamation in regard to it, because their wickedness has come up to My face."
Proclamation: in this case, a warning.
3. And Yonah did get up--[but] to run away from the presence of YHWH--to Tharshish. That is, he went down to Yafo and found a ship [that was] going to Tharshish, and he paid [the] fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tharshish.
Yafo (or Joppa; see photo) is on the coast of Israel, which is on the west--the opposite direction from Nin'weh, which is to the east via the fertile crescent--overland. No ships could take him from Yafo to Nin'weh. Tharshish is thought to, at least idiomatically, mean, the farthest known land to the west. At certain times it was considered to be Spain, but as more lands were discovered, the reference "moved" further west. "Tharshish-class ships" in King Shlomoh's day would circumnavigate the globe, returning to Israel in three-year cycles, and evidence has been found of Hebrew-language-based trade in North America, so it could be that he was aiming to go that far west! Why was Yonah so hesitant to do what YHWH told him to do? Because Nin'veh was the capital of the Assyrian empire, which was on the rapid rise at this time. Israel, on the other hand, was heavily involved in idolatry, and Yonah, being a prophet, knew his nation was ripe for correction. He knew that if Assyria repented, it would be more righteous than his own homeland, and YHWH might even use it to punish and chasten Israel. Assyria could also be very cruel. So he was not eager for that nation to be in a better position before YHWH than his own. In fact, the only other place Yonah is mentioned in Scripture is in 2 Kings 14:25, where we are told Yonah is from Gath-hefer, which may be the same as the Gitah-hefer on the border of Z'vulun (Y'hoshua 19:13), but it may relate instead to the Heferites, the Gil'adite descendants of Makhir, son of M'nasheh (Num. 26:32), who lived east of the Yarden River--the very first place the Assyrians would attack first (1 Chron. 5:26) fewer than 50 years after this. John Hulley writes, "This is the obvious reason why the prophet was so aghast at the task [YHWH] had assigned him...He could hardly fail to recognize that the success of his mission...would put his own people in peril."
4. But YHWH hurled a great wind into the sea, and there was a frightfully-great [storm] in the sea, and it seemed the ship seemed [would] be broken up.
5. Now the sailors were afraid, and [each] man called out to his own elohim, and they threw the cargo that was on the ship into the sea to lighten it from over them. But Yonah had gone down into the recesses of the hold and lain down, and he was sound asleep.
They wanted to cover all bases, but notice that this group of sailors was very multiethnic. This was an international shipping line.
6. Then the chief sailors approached him and said to him, "What's with you, heavy sleeper? Get up and call out to your Elohim! Maybe the elohim will take notice of us, and we won't be lost!"
7. And [each] man said to his fellow, "Let's go ahead and cast lots, so we can know on whose account this trouble [has come] upon us." So they cast lots, and the lot fell to Yonah.
8. So they said to him, "Please tell us on whose account this trouble is upon us! Who do you work for? What is your country? And from which people do you come?"
Work for: literally, represent.
9. So he told them, "I am a Hebrew, and I fear YHWH, the Elohim of the Heavens, who made the sea and the dry [land]."
Hebrew: He does not say "Israelite", because Israel was not currently the best example of being fearers of YHWH, and, in John Hulley's words, "in very poor condition to be a light to anyone"; he would rather disconnect from the sins of his own nation, and identifies instead with a more ancient ancestor, Ever, the father of all Hebrews.
10. Then the men were terribly afraid, and they said to him, "What is this that you have done?!" (Because the men knew that he was "running away from the presence of YHWH", since he had told them.)
11. And they said to him, "What should we do to you, so the sea can calm down from [being] on top of us?" Because the sea was becoming more and more stormy.
Stormy: literally, frightening.
12. So he said to them, "Pick me up and throw me out into the sea. Then the sea will become calm, because I know that this great storm is on top of you on my account."
13. But the men rowed [hard] to return to the dry land, but they were not able, because the sea continued to grow stormier against them.
They did not want to be responsible for the death of a man who served the Elohim of the sea!
14. So they cried out to YHWH and said, "We beg You, O YHWH, please do not let us perish on account of this man's life, and do not make us responsible for innocent blood, because You, O YHWH, have done as it pleased You!"
15. Then they picked Yonah up and hurled him into the sea, and the sea stopped its raging.
16. Then the men feared YHWH with a great fear, and they slaughtered their offering to YHWH and made vows.
Despite their reputation for being profane, sailors are often very religious, even superstitious, probably because they more than any other group face life-threatening danger almost constantly. Notice how even ships are "christened". These men had an altar on the deck of the ship! Ships of Tharshish were plenty large enough to accommodate such accessories.
CHAPTER 2
1. Now YHWH had appointed a large fish to swallow Yonah. When Yonah had been in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights,
At left: The "Yonah Memorial" in Yafo today!
2. then Yonah prayed to YHWH his Elohim from inside the fish,
Notice that he waited until he had been there three days before he prayed--unless he only then awoke from unconsciousness. As we will see later as well, he seems to have hoped to die rather than have to go to Nin'weh; now that he see that YHWH will just not let that occur, he grudgingly concedes that YHWH has won.
3. and he said, "From my dire straits I called out to YHWH, and He answered me; from the belly of the underworld I cried out for help, and You heard my voice.
Dire straits: literally, narrow or tight spots--exactly what Yonah would be experiencing in the stomach of a fish!
4. "When You threw me into the depths--into the heart of the seas--and the current enveloped me, Your breakers and Your waves passed over me.
5. "And I said, 'I am driven away from before Your eyes, yet I will again pay regard to Your holy Temple.'
How could he tell which direction the Temple was, when amidst the churning billows, let alone turn his body toward it?
6. "Waters encompassed me, to the point of [threatening my] life! The abyss [closed in] around me; seaweed bound up my head!
Bound up: i.e., was wrapped his head around like mummifying bandages, constricting his breathing and ability to move.
7. "I sank down to the very bases of the mountains; the earth--her bars [were shut] behind me forever! But You brought my life up from the pit, O YHWH, my Elohim!
8. "When my life grew feeble upon me, I remembered YHWH, and My prayer came to You in Your holy Temple.
Or, when my motivation to live was waning.
9. "Those who hold onto vain hopes abandon what is [most] favorable for themselves,
10. "so with the voice of thankfulness I will slaughter [an offering] to You; whatever I have vowed, I will fulfill."
Here again is the tone of resignation to do what he was told, though reluctantly, as a last resort. I does not wish to surrender, and does not think he should, for he does not think what YHWH is asking him to do is right, but he will do what he promised when he agreed to be YHWH's prophet.
11. And YHWH spoke to the fish, and it vomited Yonah onto the dry land.
CHAPTER 3
1. Then the word of YHWH came to Yonah the second time, to say,
2. "Get up, go to Nin'weh, the great city, and call out to it aloud the proclamation that I Myself am speaking to you."
3. So Yonah got up and went to Nin'weh, just like what YHWH said. Now Nin'weh was a huge city--to [the point of being in the] Elohim [class]--a walk of three days!
Or, a great city to Elohim. This may mean it was important to YHWH. A walk of three days: Not that it took that long to encircle its circumference, but that it would take that long for him to traverse every part of it.
Rebuilt gate of Nin'weh >>
4. When Yonah had begun to enter one day's walk into the city, he called out and said, "Yet forty days, and Nin'weh will be overthrown!"
Overthrown: a clear allusion to what did occur at S'dom and 'Amorrah.
5. And the men of Nin'weh believed Elohim, and they proclaimed a fast and put on [burlap] sacks, from the greatest of them to the least of them.
Believed: the term has the undercurrents of not just trusting but affirming and concurring with the analysis he had rendered about their condition. This fast correlates with the forty days leading up to Yom haKippurim, which we especially spend judging ourselves and repenting. In fact, this whole book is traditionally read on that day.
6. The word even reached the king of Nin'weh, and he got up off his throne, took off his and laid aside his majestic [robe], covered himself with a [burlap] sack, and sat in ashes.
7. And he made a proclamation and [had it] said throughout Nin'weh, "By the choice of the king and his nobles, and I quote: 'Neither man nor beast, herd or flock [animal], is to taste anything; let them neither pasture nor drink water!
Choice (or decision) ... taste: The same word in Hebrew. In other words, it suited the king's tastes that it was inappropriate to taste food on such an occasion, as is the case for us on Yom Kippur. Man nor beast: This may indicate that the sin of the Nin'wites had something to do with their animals.
8. "'And let both human and beast be covered with burlap, and let them call out to Elohim with forcefulness, and let [each] man turn back from his evil way and from the violence that is in the palms of their [hands]!
9. "'Who knows? The Elohim may turn back from the heat of His anger, and have mercy, so that we may not be obliterated!'"
Al Maxey writes of the Assyrians, "During the reign of Adad-nirari III (811-783 BC) there was a swing toward monotheism. However, at his death the nation entered a period of national weakness and even greater moral decay." At this time, Assyria was engaged in a life-and-death struggle with the mountain tribes of Urartu, and its northern allies, Mannai and Madai, who had been able to push their frontier to within less than a hundred miles of Nineveh". (Expositor's Bible Commentary, Vol. 7) Two plagues, in 756 and 759 BCE and an eclipse of the sun four years later, may have predisposed the Assyrians to hear Yonah's message, as these were "events of the type regarded by ancients as evidence of divine judgment". (Ryrie Study Bible) Maxey continues, "There is some historical evidence that during the reign of Ashurdan III (771-754 BC) a religious awakening occurred. This may have been the result of Jonah's preaching. In 745 BC, Tiglath-pileser III (745-727 BC) came to the throne and Assyria again became a major power." He is the one who first attacked Israel due to the idolatry of the eastern half-tribe of M'nasheh. (1 Chron. 5)
10. When Elohim saw their actions--since they turned from their evil way--then Elohim relented from the calamity that He had said [He would] cause for them, and did not brig it about.
Relented: more literally, was moved to compassion. This shows that a prophetic threat is not absolutely set in stone, but is contingent on how the hearers respond to it.
CHAPTER 4
1. But in Yonah's eyes, it was a great calamity, and he started to become angry.
Angry: literally, had his heat kindled.
2. And he prayed to YHWH and said, "I beg You, O YHWH, isn't that what I said while I was still on my own ground? That's the very reason I hurried to Tharshish to prevent [this], because I knew that You are a considerate and compassionate El, slow to anger and abounding in mercy--One who can be moved to pity in regard to calamity.
Slow to anger: literally, long of nostrils. The nostrils flare to allow one to breathe more rapidly and calm the rush of adrenaline anger causes. Hebrew is a language which had a deep understanding of physiological processes long before science "proved" such connections.
3. "So now, O YHWH, please take my life from me, because it's better for me to die than to live!"
Why was his reaction so strong? Hulley writes, "According to some commentators he--as an Israelite--was jealous about [YHWH's] concern for a city of the Gentiles. But the explanation seems inadequate to account for such extreme emotion. As a prophet he must have been familiar with [YHWH's] repeated promise that a;; the families of the earth would be blessed through Abraham and his seed. Could the prospect of being such a blessing lead to so much misery? ...His horror at aiding the greatest military threat to Israel makes more sense." Because a people YHWH did not even have covenant with had made Israel look very bad. Apparently they had made such a stench in the earth that He decided to see what they would do with a warning, and when he saw their actions, He relented. This nation was to be commended for their response, but now it was a mirror into which Israel, which even destroys its own prophets, had to look. The Nin'wites were now shown to be holier than Israel, and so made Israel look very bad. Yonah, who knew their condition, had not wanted to make this so obvious before YHWH. YHWH calls such nations His servants (Yirmeyahu 27:6; 43:10).
4. But YHWH said, "Is it right for you to be angry?"
Yonah had to judge this for himself. YHWH asked Qayin a similar question. (Gen. 4:6)
5. So Yonah went out of the city and sat down to the east of the city, and made a temporary shelter there for himself, and sat under it in the shade until he could see what would occur in the city.
Temporary shelter: sukkah in Hebrew, and being just after Yom T'ruah (the day of alarm) and Yom Kippur (the "judgment day" on which atonement was indeed found), it was the time to sit in the sukkah. But the command is to be joyful at that time (Lev. 23:40), so the answer to YHWH's question in verse 4 is a very clear "no".
6. And YHWH appointed a vine, and it [grew] up over Yonah to become shade over his head, to rescue him from his misery. And Yonah was glad about the vine--very glad!
Now he was finally in season. Appointed: or assigned, prepared. Vine: specifically a plant of the gourd or squash family, which have very large leaves, producing ample shade.
7. But when the dawn began to rise the next day, YHWH appointed a worm, and it attacked the plant, and it withered.
8. Then when the sun rose, Elohim appointed a harsh east wind, and the sun beat [down] on Yonah's head so that he was growing faint, and he asked his soul to die, and said, "It is better for me to die than to live."
Growing faint: or, enwrapping himself (so as to shield his skin from the scorching, blistering heat).
9. And Elohim said to Yonah, "Is it right for you to get angry about the plant?" And he said, "My anger is kindled rightly--to the point of death!"
Elohim: This time it is His judging side that is emphasized.
10. But YHWH said, "You had pity on the plant on which you did not labor and which you did not make grow, which was the product of one night, and being one night old, it perished.
Product: literally son.
11. "So shouldn't I have pity on Nin'weh, the great city in which there are more than 120,000 human beings who do not know [the difference] between their right hand and their left--[not to mention] many cattle?"
120,000: literally 12 myriads. Pity: Heb, khus, seemingly related to khesed. But Hulley sees the word as having a different root. He writes, "The customary translation...for the relationship [between YHWH and Nin'weh] is questionable. The word [hasah] does not normally carry such meanings as 'to pity' or 'to spare'...The primary meaning of the word is 'to take shelter', and this fits exactly with the preceding text...the plant offering Jonah a shelter from the sun, which turned out to be temporary. By analogy...in this case it refers to [YHWH's] use of Nineveh as a sort of shelter (or, more precisely, an enforced stopping-place) for an important part of His people, Ephraim, on its way into exile among the Gentiles... The implication is that [like the plant], Nineveh too will be destroyed, after it has served [YHWH's] purpose." YHWH called Assyria His instrument of correction for His people, but He would indeed later punish them for enjoying their job too much, being cruel about it, and for taking pride in what He allowed them to do. And He would--possibly even in part because of this attitude--allow a remnant of His people to return to full restoration. (Yeshayahu 10:5-24)