Neither The Book Of Jonah

Introduction Jonah is one of the most relatable prophets in the Bible; nevertheless, during Jonah 1:17-2:9 questions start to arise. Such questions are: Why did God appoint a Fish to swallow Jonah? Why was he cast out? What did he vow to God? In Jonah 1:17-2:9, Jonah starts to have questions about his faith in God but then becomes oddly optimistic for someone who was in the belly of a fish for three days and nights. However, as readers continue to read, more questions arise, such as, How could Jonah keep an optimistic view while in the belly of a fish? How could God allow a fish to swallow Jonah? How come Jonah does not want to try and escape?

Translation

The Bible has many different translations; for example, the King James Version sounds

"Neither the Book of Jonah itself nor other Scripture ever asserts that Jonah himself wrote it" (Lutheran Bible Companion 906), so there is no definitive answer as to who the author is. Some argue Jonah is a "parable, sage, fiction, folklore, legend or fable" (Prepare the Way of the Lord 489). Nevertheless, there is no evidence showing that Jonah was a parable, or else the book would have the word parable in it and not start with, and it came to pass, which often indicates a historical account (Prepare the Way of the Lord 489). If Jonah never survived the belly of the fish, how can Jesus have risen from the dead; because of this, Jonah should not be considered a legend. Jonah can be inferred as a recalcitrant prophet by how he runs away from God and is infuriated with God for loving his

In chapter one, God calls upon Jonah to go to Nineveh, but because he does not want to follow God, he runs toward Tarshish. While running away, he boards a boat to take him to Tarshish, but God has other plans. God sends a big storm to send a message to Jonah telling him to turn back. While the storm is brewing, Jonah is taking a nap while the pirates on the ship are repenting to God for their sins. Instead of repenting or telling the pirates to turn back, Jonah tells them to throw him overboard to "sacrifice" himself. When Jonah was thrown into the sea, the pirates started to pray that they should not die due to them throwing Jonah overboard. After they threw him overboard, the storm calmed, and a big fish swallowed up Jonah for three days and nights. Chapter two is Jonah's prayer to God. He describes the waters compressing him and promises to listen if he calls upon him again. While Jonah's life is filled with corruption, God brings him up from that, and Jonah responds with gratitude and starts to look toward God's holy temple. God hears his prayer, and the fish spits him out. In chapter three, God tells Jonah to return to Nineveh and share God's message that Nineveh will be destroyed if they do not repent, which Jonah does. The Ninevites immediately repented with ashes and sackcloth when he shared God's message. When God sees the Ninevehites' repentance, he changes his mind and