Jonah

This article is about the biblical figure. For other uses, see Jonah (disambiguation).

Jonah
יוֹנָה‎
The Prophet Jonah (c. 1508–1512)
by Michelangelo (the Sistine Chapel ceiling)
Prophet
Born9th century BCE
Gath-hepher, Kingdom of Israel
Died8th century BCE[1]
Venerated inJudaism
Christianity
Islam
Baháʼí Faith
Major shrineTomb of Jonah (destroyed), Mosul, Iraq
FatherAmittai
Feast21 September (Catholicism)[2]

Jonah the son of Amittai or Jonas (Hebrew: יוֹנָה Yōnā, lit. 'dove')[a] is a Jewish prophet in the Hebrew Bible hailing from Gath-hepher in the Northern Kingdom of Israel around the 8th century BCE. He is the central figure of the Book of Jonah, one of the minor prophets, which details his reluctance in delivering the judgment of God to the city of Nineveh (near present-day Mosul) in the Neo-Assyrian Empire. After he is swallowed by a large sea creature (Hebrew: דג גדול, romanized: dāḡ gāḏol, lit. 'large fish') and then released, he returns to the divine mission.

In Judaism, the story of Jonah represents the teaching of repentance in Judaism, the ability to repent to God for forgiveness. In the New Testament of Christianity, Jesus calls himself "greater than Jonah" and promises the Pharisees "the sign of Jonah" when referring to his resurrection. Early Christian interpreters viewed Jonah as the type of Jesus. Jonah in Islam is regarded as a prophet and the narrative of Jonah appears in a surah of the Quran named after him, Yūnus.

Many modern Bible scholars suggest the Book of Jonah is fictional,[3][4][5][6] and at least partially satirical.[7][8] The character of Jonah son of Amittai may have been based on the historical prophet of the same name who prophesied during the reign of King Amaziah of Judah, as mentioned in 2 Kings.[9]

Although the creature that swallowed Jonah is often depicted in art and culture as a whale, the Hebrew text uses the phrase "large fish". In the 17th century and early 18th century, the species of the fish that swallowed Jonah was the subject of speculation by naturalists, who interpreted the story as an account of a historical incident. Some modern scholars of folklore, on the other hand, note similarities between Jonah and other legendary religious figures, like the Indian yogi Matsyendranatha "Lord of the Fishes", the Sumerian king Gilgamesh, and the Greek hero Jason.

  1. ^ Levine 2000, p. 71.
  2. ^ The Roman Martyrology. Westminster, Maryland: Newman Bookshop. 1944. p. 327.
  3. ^ Tawfeeq, Dana Ford,Mohammed (24 July 2014). "Extremists destroy Jonah's tomb, officials say". CNN. Retrieved 3 March 2024. Biblical scholars are divided on whether the tomb in Mosul actually belonged to Jonah. In the Jewish tradition, he returns to his hometown of Gath-Hepher after his mission to Nineveh. And some modern scholars say the Jonah story is more myth than history.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ^ Kripke 1980, p. 67.
  5. ^ Jenson 2009, p. 30.
  6. ^ Chisholm 2009, p. unpaginated: "Despite the modern scholarly consensus that the book is fictional, [...]"
  7. ^ Band 2003, pp. 105–107.
  8. ^ Ben Zvi 2003, pp. 18–19.
  9. ^ Hebrew-English Bible 2 Kings 14:25


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