The Book of Jonah: God and Humanity Don’t Understand Each Other

Upon receiving his commission to prophesy the coming destruction of Nineveh, instead of traveling toward the city, Jonah takes a ship heading in the opposite direction, toward Tarshish.^[1]

^{יונה א:ג} וַיָּקָם יוֹנָה לִבְרֹחַ תַּרְשִׁישָׁה מִלִּפְנֵי יְ־הוָה וַיֵּרֶד יָפוֹ וַיִּמְצָא אָנִיָּה בָּאָה תַרְשִׁישׁ וַיִּתֵּן שְׂכָרָהּ וַיֵּרֶד בָּהּ לָבוֹא עִמָּהֶם תַּרְשִׁישָׁה מִלִּפְנֵי יְ־הוָה.

^{Jonah 1:3} But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from before YHWH and he went down to Joppa and he found a ship bound for Tarshish. And he paid its fare, and he went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from before YHWH.

After YHWH has Jonah swallowed by a big fish, Jonah reluctantly agrees to complete his mission. When YHWH decides to spare Nineveh, however, Jonah becomes angry (4:1), and it is then that we learn the reason for his earlier reluctance:

‏^{יונה ד:ב} וַיִּתְפַּלֵּל אֶל יְ־הוָה וַיֹּאמַר אָנָּה יְ־הוָה הֲלוֹא זֶה דְבָרִי עַד הֱיוֹתִי עַל אַדְמָתִי עַל כֵּן קִדַּמְתִּי לִבְרֹחַ תַּרְשִׁישָׁה כִּי יָדַעְתִּי כִּי אַתָּה אֵל חַנּוּן וְרַחוּם אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד וְנִחָם עַל הָרָעָה.

^{Jonah 4:2} And he prayed to YHWH and he said, “I beseech you, YHWH, is this not what I said when I was still on my land? For this reason I rushed ahead to flee to Tarshish, because I know that you are a gracious God and compassionate, slow to anger, and full of loving-kindness, and regretful about sending evil.

Jonah is a rather unusual prophet: Not only does he run away from YHWH, but he does so because he apparently does not want YHWH to have mercy. Moreover, he argues with YHWH. While in this respect, he is similar to Job, Jonah’s issues are not about his own unjust and undeserved suffering; yet he still wishes for death:

‏^{יונה ד:ג} וְעַתָּה יְ־הוָה קַח נָא אֶת נַפְשִׁי מִמֶּנִּי כִּי טוֹב מוֹתִי מֵחַיָּי.

^{Jonah 4:3} So now, Yahweh, take please my life from me, because better is my death than my life.”

To be sure, other prophets, such as Moses, Jeremiah, and Elijah, have doubts about their divinely assigned missions and express these thoughts to YHWH. Elijah even seeks to die (1 Kgs 19:4), and Jeremiah’s laments reveal a deeply depressed divine emissary.^[2] None of these prophets, however, are as petulant as Jonah.

Jonah Disobeys YHWH for Israel’s Sake

The Tannaitic midrash Mekilta de-Rabbi Yishmael explains that Jonah’s attempt to avoid warning Nineveh was for Israel’s sake:^[3]

^{מכילתא דרבי ישמעאל שמות יב:א} כָּךְ אָמַר יוֹנָה: אֵלֵךְ לִי חוּצָה לָאָרֶץ, מָקוֹם שֶׁאֵין שְׁכִינָה נִגְלֵית, שֶׁהַגּוֹיִם קְרוֹבֵי תְּשׁוּבָה הֵן, שֶׁלֹּא לְחַיֵּב אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל.

^{Mekilta de-Rabbi Yishmael Exod 12:1} Thus, Jonah said: “I will take myself outside the land [of Israel], a place where the divine presence is not revealed.” For the gentiles are close to repentance (this, so as not to render Israel liable by invidious contrast.)^[4]

In the view of the writer, Jonah reasons that if foreigners are inclined to repent, Israel will appear even more guilty of sin and unrepentant by comparison. Thus, Jonah is not a petulant anti-hero but a champion and protector of his people, who does not want them to be morally outdone up by foreigners, disreputable Assyrians at that!

The book of Jonah is concerned with God’s creation broadly defined and his and our obligations to all humans, prodding its audience to contemplate fundamental issues concerning “us versus them.” As a late biblical composition,^[5] this would surely have been an important theme to an audience living under the colonialist rule many, or increasingly most, of whom live outside the land of Israel.

For the Mekhilta, however, gentiles really are the “Other,” whose repentance puts enormous pressure on Israel. Thus, the rabbis are sympathetic to what they portray as Jonah’s good intentions.

Implicit in this interpretation may be a suggestion that the deity is not fully upholding his end of the eternal promise to Israel, for he takes care to warn and rehabilitate Ninevites, but what about the salvation of his people now living under Rome or Persia, members of a diaspora even within their own land?^[6]

Jonah Tells His Shipmates to Throw Him Overboard

Mekilta de-Rabbi Yishmael further sees Jonah as a martyr who is ready to die rather than complete his mission:

^{מכילתא דרבי ישמעאל שמות יב:א} רַבִּי נָתָן אוֹמֵר: לֹא הָלַךְ יוֹנָה אֶלָּא לְאַבֵּד אֶת עַצְמוֹ בַיָּם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: (יונה א,יב) "וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵיהֶם: שָׂאוּנִי וַהֲטִילֻנִי אֶל הַיָּם, וְיִשְׁתֹּק הַיָּם מֵעֲלֵיכֶם, כִּי יוֹדֵעַ אָנִי כִּי בְשֶׁלִּי הַסַּעַר הַגָּדוֹל הַזֶּה עֲלֵיכֶם." אַתְּ מוֹצֵא, שֶׁהֲרֵי הָאָבוֹת וְהַנְּבִיאִים נָתְנוּ נַפְשָׁם עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל.

^{Mekilta de-Rabbi Yishmael Exod 12:1} R. Natan said: Jonah went (on that voyage) only to cast himself into the sea, as it is written (Jonah 1:12) “And he said to them: Lift me up and cast me into the sea and the sea will calm down for you; for I know that this terrible storm came upon you on my account.” All this do you find with the ancestors and the prophets, that they gave their lives for Israel.

Jonah is thus like other great leaders—prophets, kings, and patriarchs—who come to be regarded as martyrs in the rabbinic tradition, willing to sacrifice themselves for the sake of Israel.^[7]

Jonah Agrees to Obey, but Does Not Repent

The Rabbis were not the first to try to rehabilitate Jonah. Pseudo-Philo (2^nd–4^th centuries C.E.) reimagines him as a sinner who supplicates God for forgiveness. Having been tossed into the sea, YHWH sends a fish to swallow Jonah, at which point Jonah finally prays to YHWH:

^{יונה ב:ג} וַיֹּאמֶר קָרָאתִי מִצָּרָה לִי אֶל יְ־הוָה וַיַּעֲנֵנִי מִבֶּטֶן שְׁאוֹל שִׁוַּעְתִּי שָׁמַעְתָּ קוֹלִי.

^{Jonah 2:3} And he said, “I call out from my distress to YHWH, and he answers me. From the belly of Sheol I cry out for help, and you hear my voice.”

He continues with a description of his trials and a prayerful request for release. Jonah makes no explicit mention of sin or repentance, but in Pseudo-Philo’s version of the account, he acknowledges the extent of his sins, using the mouth of the fish to convey his words:^[8]

^{Pseudo-Philo, De Jonah, 18} It opened its mouth in order to allow the prayer to ascend, allowing its tongue to be used to articulate words. The prophet operated it [i.e. the tongue] just as a musician plucks an instrument with his finger.¹⁹ His invocation was as follows: “If it was your intention to have me suffer comprehensive retribution, then I (clearly) see that the extent of my sins would have deserved an even graver castigation.

Yet because you wanted to repay the sins only so far as I learned from you the impulse for human kindness—for I was not supposed to disappear entirely from view, rejected and far from your eyes, nor was my mouth supposed to be sealed toward you or toward others—I now look toward you with the eyes of my heart and activate my tongue, over which you have granted me freedom to pray for myself. Thus do you answer the prayers of sinners!”

Jonah Is Angry that YHWH Spares the Ninevites

Another problematic reaction from Jonah occurs when YHWH decides to spare Nineveh:

^{יונה ג:י} וַיַּרְא הָאֱלֹהִים אֶת מַעֲשֵׂיהֶם כִּי שָׁבוּ מִדַּרְכָּם הָרָעָה וַיִּנָּחֶם הָאֱלֹהִים עַל הָרָעָה אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר לַעֲשׂוֹת לָהֶם וְלֹא עָשָׂה.

^{Jonah 3:10} And see did God their actions, that they turned back from their evil way, and God was regretful about the evil that he had declared to do to them, and he did not do it.

Jonah is angry:

^{יונה ד:א} וַיֵּרַע אֶל יוֹנָה רָעָה גְדוֹלָה וַיִּחַר לוֹ.

^{Jonah 4:1} And it seemed evil to Jonah, a great evil and he was burning angry.

After expressing his frustration to YHWH—הֲלוֹא זֶה דְבָרִי עַד הֱיוֹתִי עַל אַדְמָתִי, “Is this not what I said (would happen) when I was still on my land?”—Jonah leaves the city:

^{יונה ד:ה} וַיֵּצֵא יוֹנָה מִן הָעִיר וַיֵּשֶׁב מִקֶּדֶם לָעִיר וַיַּעַשׂ לוֹ שָׁם סֻכָּה וַיֵּשֶׁב תַּחְתֶּיהָ בַּצֵּל עַד אֲשֶׁר יִרְאֶה מַה יִּהְיֶה בָּעִיר.

^{Jonah 4:5} And go forth did Jonah from the city, and he sat down east of the city, and he made for himself there a hut, and he sat under it in the shade, until he might see what would become of the city.

Reading the verb וַיֵּצֵא as a pluperfect, “he had gone,” Rabbi Eliezer of Beaugency, a 12^th century French exegete, interprets Jonah’s departure as occurring before the Ninevites repented. He thus suggests that Jonah did not in fact know that the Ninevites had repented:

^{רבי אליעזר מבלגנצי יונה ד:א} ויחר לו – כי לא ידע תשובתם כי יצא לו מן העיר כמו שאמר למטה (יונה ד:ה).

^{Rabbi Eliezer of Beaugency Jonah 4:1} And he was troubled: (This was so) because Jonah had not known about their repentance, for he had gone out of the city, as it is said below (in 4:5).^[9]

This lack of knowledge helps to explain Jonah’s negative response to God’s not destroying them.^[10] For Rabbi Eliezer, YHWH only later reveals to Jonah that the Ninevites had repented when he explains to Jonah why he spared the city:

^{רבי אליעזר מבלגנצי יונה ד:יא} אשר לא ידע {בין ימינו לשמאלו} – בין טוב לרע ולא להכעיס ולא להזיד הם חוטאים ושאינן חוטאים כלום, כגון תנוקות ובהמה רבה. ובשבילם אשא לכל המקום אף אם לא עשו תשובה כדבריך. אבל על ידי תשובה חסתי עליהם. וכאן הגיד לו תשובתם.

^{Rabbi Eliezer of Beaugency Jonah 4:11} Who do not know (to distinguish between right and left): i.e., between good and evil. And they do not sin out of spite or willfully; in any event, they only sin like babies and much cattle. And on their behalf, I would have pardoned the entire place, even if they hadn’t repented, according to your (i.e., Jonah’s) words. However, on account of (their) repentance, I had compassion on them. And here, (God) told him of their repentance.^[11]

Jonah Is Also Angry That YHWH Did Not Spare the Qiqayon Plant

Jonah’s final angry outburst is the most puzzling. After delivering his message, Jonah sets up a hut to the east of Nineveh, from which he can observe what will happen next. As he is sitting there, YHWH causes a קִיקָיוֹן [qiqayon] plant to grow in Jonah’s location, delighting him with its cooling shade. The next day, however, YHWH sets a worm to attack the plant, causing it to dry up, so that Jonah is no longer protected by it:

^{יונה ד:ח} וַיְהִי כִּזְרֹחַ הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ וַיְמַן אֱלֹהִים רוּחַ קָדִים חֲרִישִׁית וַתַּךְ הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ עַל רֹאשׁ יוֹנָה וַיִּתְעַלָּף וַיִּשְׁאַל אֶת נַפְשׁוֹ לָמוּת וַיֹּאמֶר טוֹב מוֹתִי מֵחַיָּי.

^{Jonah 4:8} And it was at the rising of the sun, and God assigned a cutting east wind, and the sun struck down on the head of Jonah, and he grew faint and asked that his life-force just die. And he said “better is my death than my life.”

YHWH responds by asking about Jonah’s concern for the plant:

^{יונה ד:ט} וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים אֶל יוֹנָה הַהֵיטֵב חָרָה לְךָ עַל הַקִּיקָיוֹן וַיֹּאמֶר הֵיטֵב חָרָה לִי עַד מָוֶת.

^{Jonah 4:9} And said God to Jonah, “Is it good for you to be angry about the qiqayon?” And he said, “It is good for me to be angry unto death.”

The medieval Midrash Jonah has Jonah learn from the life and death of the qiqayon. The narrative ends with Jonah no longer angry about YHWH’s sparing of the Ninevites, but rather asking YHWH to continue to act with compassion in his dealings with the world:

^{מדרש יונה ,נוסחסא א} באותה שעה נפל על פניו ואמר הנהג עולמך במדת רחמים דכתיב לה׳ אלקינו הרחמים והסליחות (דניאל ט:ט).

^{Midrash Jonah, version 1} At that time, he fell on his face and said, “May you conduct your world with a measure of compassion,” as it is written “To the Lord, our God, belong mercy and compassion” (Dan 9:9).^[12]

YHWH, God of All

Yet in the biblical narrative, Jonah does not get the last word. The story ends with YHWH accusing Jonah of caring more for qiqayon than for either humans or animals:

‏^{יונה ד:י} וַיֹּאמֶר יְ־הוָה אַתָּה חַסְתָּ עַל הַקִּיקָיוֹן אֲשֶׁר לֹא עָמַלְתָּ בּוֹ וְלֹא גִדַּלְתּוֹ שֶׁבִּן לַיְלָה הָיָה וּבִן לַיְלָה אָבָד. ^ד:יא וַאֲנִי לֹא אָחוּס עַל נִינְוֵה הָעִיר הַגְּדוֹלָה אֲשֶׁר יֶשׁ בָּהּ הַרְבֵּה מִשְׁתֵּים עֶשְׂרֵה רִבּוֹ אָדָם אֲשֶׁר לֹא יָדַע בֵּין יְמִינוֹ לִשְׂמֹאלוֹ וּבְהֵמָה רַבָּה.

^{Jonah 4:10} And said YHWH, “You, you take pity on the planting, for which you did not labor and which you did not grow, that over one night came to be and over the next night was lost. ^4:11 But I, should I not take pity on Nineveh the great city that has within it more than twelve myriad human beings who cannot distinguish between their right and their left, and many animals?[13]

The message of YHWH’s parable is a benevolent one, namely that all living things matter, are valuable, and this ecological care includes plants, animals, and human beings, whether or not they are under the canopy of the covenant. The parable has universalistic implications, and care for all life, including even plants, is at the center of YHWH’s orientation as ruler of the universe.

An Unpredictable and Unknowable God

Yet the book contains a deeper message: Jonah as human and YHWH as deity are on completely different planes. Jonah does not understand YHWH and YHWH does not understand him.^[14] From YHWH’s perspective, Jonah avoided the divine charge to prophesy to Nineveh and is angered by YHWH’s forgiveness of the Ninevites because Jonah lacks empathy. The real reason, however, is that Jonah cannot deal with YHWH’s capacity to change his mind.^[15]

As prophet, Jonah feels that he has been made to play the fool, and that his mission has been a waste of time as he had initially feared. From his human perspective, Jonah wants clear boundaries, definite consequences.^[16] Thus, YHWH’s utter autonomy and explosive unpredictability make the deity impossible to work for, frustrating to death.

In this respect, the book of Jonah takes its place among the complex reflections of late biblical writers upon matters of life and death, good and evil, human and divine. Jonah’s lack of response to YHWH’s final speech sends a message akin to the final words of Job after YHWH calls him to account for questioning divine justice: ^[17]

^{איוב מב:ו} עַל כֵּן אֶמְאַס וְנִחַמְתִּי עַל עָפָר וָאֵפֶר.

^{Job 42:6} “For this reason I am in a state of rejection, and I am consoling myself on dust and ashes.”

Job is cowed, for he has experienced YHWH with his own eyes. He accepts that YHWH is god and he is a mere human, but he is not comforted. The abyss between mortal and immortal only seems the wider by the end of the book.^[18] Qohelet shares this sad acknowledgment, for all the conventional rules are mere “vanity” or “absurdity,” or “vapor.”^[19] YHWH controls what happens and his choices are not fully comprehensible.^[20]

Jonah’s folk motifs—the emphasis on journeys; confrontation with a life-threatening situation or character; rescue by a helper who is also an antagonist—and folkloristic elements—the gigantic fish who swallows Jonah, the magical plant that suddenly sprouts to provide shade, the attribution of human characteristics to animals—reads as lighter in tone than Job and Qohelet. Like these works, however, it deals with issues of personal identity and the individual’s relationship to a demanding and inscrutable deity.

Postscript

Reading Jonah on Yom Kippur

The efficacy of repentance and God’s capacious capacity to grant forgiveness in the book of Jonah informed its reception and interpretation and help explain the book’s place at Yom Kippur, a communal setting that marks the process of atonement.^[21] As suggested by Robert C. Gregg:

Perhaps many early hearers of Jonah on Yom Kippur so registered its force as scripture telling of a pardoning God that they did not suffer undue cognitive dissonance about Jonah’s characterization in the text; they may have found his aggravated behavior overshadowed by the interaction between God and Nineveh—penitence rewarded by forgiveness.^[22]

Gregg points to an excerpt from Pseudo-Philo, preserved only in an Armenian translation, that places special emphasis on the genuineness of the Ninevites’ repentance, having them model “what devout atonement and the celebration of the forgiveness of sins is like.”^[23]

The transformation of Jonah’s worldview in post-biblical interpretations, so that both the story and the character of the prophet comport with the themes of repentance and forgiveness, further connect it to the holy day’s central themes. They present Jonah also as asking God for forgiveness, emphasizing God’s capacity to forgive compassionately, and allowing Jonah to become a positive exemplar on the Day of Atonement.

In this way, both the Ninevites and Jonah himself become models of and models for the behavior of Jews, who can petition a compassionate God in hopes of forgiveness if they genuinely repent of the evil they have done. This message not only informs the liturgy of Yom Kippur itself but has traditionally reflected and shaped the worldview of Jews throughout the year.