Jonah

Old Testament: minor prophets

Jonah

About this book

The book of Jonah is different from the other prophetic books, because it gives only one sentence of what the prophet Jonah preached. Instead, this book tells how Jonah disobeyed the Lord and refused to warn Nineveh that it was going to be destroyed. Jonah even wanted the city to be destroyed, because it was the capital city of Assyria, a hated enemy of Israel. But the Lord corrected Jonah; then Jonah went to Nineveh and preached the Lord's message.

When many people think about the book of Jonah, they think only of Jonah being swallowed by a huge fish. However, the message of this book is that the Lord wants to have mercy on everyone; as Jonah says to him:

You are a kind and merciful God, and you are very patient. You always show love, and you don't like to punish anyone, not even foreigners.

(4.2b)

A quick look at this book

1. Jonah runs from the Lord (1)

2. Jonah prays to the Lord (2)

3. Jonah goes to Nineveh, and its people believe God's message (3)

4. Jonah is angry because the Lord showed mercy (4)