College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

Jonah 1:11-17

GOD'S MESSENGER RUNNING FROM GODTHE CHASTENING OF JEHOVAH

Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea grew more and more tempestuous.

And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you.

Nevertheless the men rowed hard to get back to the land; but they could not: for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them.

Wherefore they cried unto Jehovah, and said, We beseech thee, O Jehovah, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood; for thou, O Jehovah, hast done as it pleased thee.

So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea; and the sea ceased from its raging.

Then the men feared Jehovah exceedingly; and they offered a sacrifice unto Jehovah, and made vows.

And Jehovah prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

QUERIES

How did Jonah know God wanted him thrown into the sea?

Would God hear the prayers of these heathen?

What sort of fish swallowed Jonah?

PARAPHRASE

Then the mariners said, Either you pronounce your own sentence or tell us what your god would have us do to you that this stormy sea may be calmedwe are not going to be responsible for guessing at what should be done. The sea and the storm grew worse and worse. Then Jonah, knowing from God's revelations of the severity of His justice, said, Throw me out into the sea and then the sea will become calm again. I know that this terrible storm has come because of my rebellion and I deserve to die for it, But the mariners do not at once throw Jonah into the sea and try harder to row the boat to the land and safety but they are not able to do so because the storm grew even more fierce than before. Then they raised a prayerful cry to Jehovah, Jonah's God; O Jehovah, do not make us die for this man's sindo not hold us responsible for his death. In the sending of the storm and the falling of the lot upon him, you have ordained that we must cast him into the seait is your doing and not ours. Then they picked up Jonah and threw him overboard into the raging seaand the storm stopped suddenly! The seamen were gripped with fear of Jehovah and they immediately offered a sacrifice and made vows to Jehovah. As for Jonah, the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow him; and Jonah was in the belly of this fish for three days and three nights.

SUMMARY

Jonah knows that this raging storm is God's chastening hand against him. He surrenders to God's justice and commits himself to death for his rebellion. As he is cast into the sea, the storm ceases, and he is swallowed by God's providentially prepared fish.

COMMENT

Jonah 1:11-12. WHAT SHALL WE DO UNTO THEE. TAKE ME UP, AND CAST ME FORTH INTO THE SEA. The lot having fallen upon Jonah, coupled with Jonah's confession of fleeing from the presence of Jehovah, the men correctly conclude that Jonah must somehow be made to atone for his sin. They have seen enough and Jonah has told them enough to make them very reluctant in presuming to pronounce sentence upon this Hebrew themselves. They know Jonah is a prophet of his God and so they ask him what shall be done.

Jonah's reply is that he should be cast into the raging sea because I knowthat for my sake this great tempest is upon you. K & D say, He pronounces this sentence, not by virtue of any prophetic inspiration (direct revelation from God), but as a believing Israelite who is well acquainted with the severity of the justice of the holy God, both from the law and from the history of his nation. This is correct. Every Hebrew would know from such historic incidents as Achan, Uzzah, Korah and others of the severity of the justice of the holy God. Pusey says, In that he says, I know, he marks that he had a revelation;. Whichever be the case, the subsequent calm of the storm shows Jonah's pronouncement to be God's will.

Jonah 1:13 NEVERTHELESS THE MEN ROWED HARD TO GET THEM BACK TO THE LAND; Even though Jonah asked the crew to throw him overboard, they were reluctant to do so. Not because of any feeling of mercy towards Jonah, but probably they hesitated to lay hold of a man after whom a god would chase and raise such a storm. This Hebrew was a chosen servant of a most powerful god. They may have reasoned that this powerful god would be more pleased if they could deliver the runaway prophet safe to the land. But row as hard as they might, the storm only increased in fury. This would be a final demonstration to them that only the life of Jonah would satisfy his god.

Jonah 1:14-15. WE BESEECH THEE, LET US NOT PERISH FOR THIS MAN'S LIFE, AND LAY NOT UPON US INNOCENT BLOOD. SO THEY TOOK UP JONAH, AND CAST HIM FORTH INTO THE SEA These heathen seamen saw that there was no possibility of rowing to land against this storm whose raging increased by the moment, so they began to shout a prayerful cry to Jonah's god. If, as the circumstances seemed to dictate, Jonah must be cast into the sea, they wanted to be sure it was all right with Jonah's god. They did not want to be found in rebellion against such a god as this. If such a god could pursue a reluctant prophet to the middle of the sea and bring on such a storm as this, what might he do to these sailors who had never even prayed to him before? Their prayer contained two requests. First they prayed, Do not let us perish along with and because of this man. Secondly they prayed, Do not hold us guilty of willful murder in the case of this manwe are innocent of his blood. It is all between this man and his godwe are innocent bystanders. We had no control over Jonahhe did what he did of his own free will; we had no control over the falling of the lot upon him and we are not therefore guilty when we throw him overboard. The circumstances leading to the present predicament were not of their own choosing, but, rather, Jonah's god had done as it pleased him. As Calvin suggests, We see, therefore, that although they had never enjoyed the teaching of the law, they had been so taught by nature, that they knew very well that the blood of man was dear to God, and precious in His sight. All heathen races have enough of the revelation of God's character through Nature to condemn them under sin (cf. Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:11-16). What they now need is God's special revelation in Jesus Christ in the New Testament to save them by His grace! This revelation they can never know unless it be preached to them, and how shall preachers go to them except the churches send them (cf. Romans 10:13-17),

Having prayed to Jonah's god, the seaman lifted Jonah up and hurled him into the sea. Repentance was beginning to have its way in Jonah's heart. He did not resist, He surrendered to God's will and God's way. And with fearful, awe-inspiring suddenness, the sea ceased its tossing and churning and became calm! It was a miracle! This, among other things, is one of the unique characteristics of the book of Jonah.

Jonah is the only minor prophet in whose career the miraculous plays a prominent role.

Jonah is the only minor prophet whose major activity is on foreign soil.

The only minor prophet who preaches exclusively to a foreign people.

The book is the only latter prophet cast in narrative form.

Jonah is the only Old Testament character represented as taking a trip on the Mediterranean.

Jonah is also the only minor prophet mentioned by Jesus by name.

Jonah is the only Old Testament character likened by the Lord to Himself.

The book stresses universalism more than any other minor prophet.

Jonah 1:16-17. THEY OFFERED A SACRIFICE UNTO JEHOVAH, AND MADE VOWS. AND JEHOVAH PREPARED A GREAT FISH TO SWALLOW UP JONAH, AND JONAH WAS IN THE BELLY OF THE FISH THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS The sudden calming of the sea proved conclusively to the sailors that the storm had come on Jonah's account and that they had not shed innocent blood by casting him into the sea and that Jonah's god had been pleased with their actions. So they sacrificed, Perhaps they had retained an animal or two on board during the storm for just such an occasion. They not only worshipped Jonah's god then but made vows, presumably to do so at a later date also. Pusey thinks these heathen sailors were converted and became, perhaps. the first preachers among the heathen, and their account of their own wonderful deliverance prepared the way for Jonah's mission to Nineveh. W. L. Banks in his book, Jonah, The Reluctant Prophet, is skeptical and says, Fear is a great inventor. Many things are done and many vows are made under stress and strain which, when conditions become more favorable, are soon forgotten. This characteristic of human nature creates doubt in our minds that these men abandoned their own gods to fully serve Jehovah, the God of Jonah and Israel. On the other hand, remember the conversion of a great heathen king, Nebuchadnezzar, who experienced the mighty hand of God (cf. Daniel 4:28-37).

Be that as it may, the significant portion of this section is Jonah 1:17 concerning the great fish and the three days and three nights. First, let us take a look at the fish story. The word in Hebrew is dag gadol (fish, great). Dag may be a fish of any species, including the whale (cf. Genesis 9:2; Numbers 11:22; Nehemiah 13:16). The continuous debate over whether there are fish in the Mediterranean, or any other ocean, that could swallow a man is actually beside the point since it is said that the Lord prepared the fish. There are certain species of sharks in the Mediterranean capable of swallowing a man. K & D, Lange, Pusey and others have documented evidence that these sharks (squalus carcharias) have swallowed horses later found whole, inside them. In the year 1758, according to Muller, a sailor fell overboard from a frigate in very stormy weather, into the Mediterranean Sea, and was immediately taken into the jaws of a great fish and disappeared. The captain, however, ordered a gun, which was standing on the deck, to be discharged at the shark, and the cannon-ball struck it, so that it vomited up again the sailor that it had swallowed, who was then taken up alive, and very little hurt. The miracle is not so much the fact that there was a fish large enough to swallow a man but in the fact that the fish was at the right place at the right time and in the fact that Jonah survived for three days and three nights. The event is unequivocally, a miracle. Besides, the issue is not taken to be decided on a basis of whether it is possible or notbut on a basis of did it actually happen or notare there enough witnesses to the veracity of the book to establish it as a record of an actual event or not! See our Introduction to this book for proof of its historicity and veracity.

Now, let us deal with the phrase, three days and three nights. Jesus, we know, used this incident to refer to His own death and resurrection as a sign (Matthew 12:40). Jesus-' use of this incident form what is alleged to be a contradiction in view of the fact that Jesus, being crucified and buried late on Friday and resurrected on Sunday morning early could not have been in the tomb 72 hours. Lange says, Three days and three nights is a Hebrew expression, which does not describe, with chronological exactness, the space of seventy-two hours, but corresponds to our mode of designating time by such phrases as -the day after to-morrow,-' -the day before yesterday,-' (1 Samuel 30:1; 1 Samuel 30:12; Esther 4:16). K & D say, The three days and three nights are not to be regarded as fully three times twenty (four) hours, but are to be interpreted according to Hebrew usage, as signifying that Jonah was vomited up again on the third day after he had been swallowed (cf. Esther 4:16 with Jonah 1:1 and Tob. 3:12-13). McGarvey, in Jesus and Jonah, says, It was the invariable custom of Hebrew writers to count a fraction of a year, or a day, at the beginning of a series and at the end of it, as each a year, or a day. This can be demonstrated by many examples. (1 Kings 15:1-2; 1 Kings 15:8-9; 1 Kings 15:25; 1 Kings 15:28; 1 Kings 15:33; 1 Kings 16:6; 1 Kings 16:8, for years, and cf. Genesis 42:17-18; Esther 4:16; Esther 4:1; Acts 10:3; Acts 10:7-9; Acts 10:23-24; Acts 10:30; Matthew 27:63-64 for days). McGarvey points out that After three days, and on the third day, were simply equivalent colloquialisms of the Hebrew people (cf. Mark 8:31; Mark 9:31; Mark 10:34 with Matthew 16:21; Matthew 17:23; Matthew 20:19; Luke 9:22; Luke 18:33; Luke 24:7; Luke 24:46). If, then, Jesus could at one time say in strict compliance with Jewish usage, that he would rise after three days, He could with precisely the same meaning say that He would be in the grave three days and three nights. Neither assertion, says Mr. McGarvey, would be true according to modern usage, but both would be strictly true according to the usage of the Hebrews. For more study on this question see The Gospel of John, Vol. II, pg. 405-408, by Paul T. Butler, pub. College Press.

QUIZ

Where did Jonah get the idea that he should be cast into the sea?

Why didn-'t the seamen thus throw Jonah into the sea immediately?

What finally persuaded the seamen to throw him into the sea?

Make a list of the unique characteristics of the book of Jonah.

What did the sudden calming of the sea prove to the sailors?

Is the account of Jonah being swallowed by a great fish incredible? if not, why not?

What is the meaning of the phrase three days and three nights?

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