Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.
4 But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up. 5 Then the mariners were afraid, and each cried out to his god. And they hurled the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone down into the inner part of the ship and had lain down and was fast asleep. 6 So the captain came and said to him, “What do you mean, you sleeper? Arise, call out to your god! Perhaps the god will give a thought to us, that we may not perish.”
Jonah Is Thrown into the Sea
7 And they said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, that we may know on whose account this evil has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 Then they said to him, “Tell us on whose account this evil has come upon us. What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?” 9 And he said to them, “I am a Hebrew, and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 10 Then the men were exceedingly afraid and said to him, “What is this that you have done!” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them.
11 Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you, that the sea may quiet down for us?” For the sea grew more and more tempestuous. 12 He said to them, “Pick me up and hurl me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you, for I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you.” 13 Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to dry land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them. 14 Therefore they called out to the Lord, “O Lord, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not on us innocent blood, for you, O Lord, have done as it pleased you.” 15 So they picked up Jonah and hurled him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging. 16 Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows.
A Great Fish Swallows Jonah
17 And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Jonah 1 ESV
Jonah 1: 1-2 The Commission
38Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” 39 Jesus replied, “A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.… Matthew 12: 38-40
1-6 Jonah the son of Amittai - Though written much in the third person this was not unusual for the time and place, so it is probable that Jonah is the author of the book bearing his name. He is called the son of Amittai here and these names are also together in 2 Kings, during the reign of Jeroboam II. This would make him a contemporary of Amos and Isaiah. There is an old Jewish tradition that places him as the son of the widow of Zarephath, which is interesting considering the story, but we don't know this for certain. Elijah and Elisha did have a School of the Prophets which it is possible that he attended. He was from Gath-hepher, son of the prophet, Amittai. His name means dove, oddly enough, this is the sign of peace.
…24And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and did not turn away from all the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit. 25This Jeroboam restored the boundary of Israel from Lebo-hamath to the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word that the LORD, the God of Israel, had spoken through His servant Jonah son of Amittai, the prophet from Gath-hepher. 26For the LORD saw that the affliction of the Israelites, both slave and free, was very bitter. There was no one to help Israel,… 2 Kings 14: 24-26
One more important mention that I missed while reading through the gospels, this place, Gath-hepher, is actually in Galilee, near Nazareth. When the Pharisees are trying really hard to find anything to discount Jesus, one thing they think of meaning and holding weight, is saying, "no prophet has risen out of Galilee", which we can see is not the case. They did have a bigoted view of Nazareth though, and later, at Pentecost, the people marvel that the Apostles, who were preaching in different languages, were also from Galilee. It was apparently not known as a place of higher learning, these were the hicks and country bumpkins to the Pharisees and Sadducees.
…51“Does our law convict a man without first hearing from him to determine what he has done?” 52“Aren’t you also from Galilee?” they replied. “Look into it, and you will see that no prophet comes out of Galilee.” 53Then each went to his own home.… John 7: 51-53
…45Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the One Moses wrote about in the Law, the One the prophets foretold—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46“Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip. 47When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, He said of him, “Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is no deceit.”… John 1: 45-47
…6And when this sound rang out, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking his own language. 7Astounded and amazed, they asked, “ Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? 8How is it then that each of us hears them in his own native language?… Acts 2: 6-8
Arise, go to Nineveh - God has given the prophet a direct command. Nineveh is a city in Assyria, a very ancient one, founded long ago by Nimrod, who was also the founder of Babel. Historians say that the cities inner wall was about 8 miles around and its outer wall about 60 miles, or three days journey walking.
Nineveh was settled on the banks of the Tigris River approximately five hundred miles northeast of Israel. According to historians, magnificent walls almost eight miles long enveloped the inner city, with the rest of the city and surrounding district occupying an area with a circumference of some sixty miles. The name Nineveh is thought to derive from ninus (for Nimrod, the city’s founder) and means the residence of Nimrod or nunu, which is Akkadian for fish. Thus, the city’s name could be reduced to “fish town.” Moreover, the people worshipped the fish goddess Nanshe (the daughter of Ea, the goddess of fresh water) and the fish god Dagon, a statue of a man with a fish head. As these examples indicate, fish were of particular significance to the Ninevites—which likely explains why they took such great interest in Jonah and his fish story when he first arrived in the city. (It has even been suggested that acids from the fish’s stomach bleached Jonah’s skin so that he arrived in Nineveh with a distinctly white, almost ghostly appearance.) - J Mac
And call out against it - He is to preach repentance, an ancient art of preaching that confronts sin and beckons the sinner to humble themselves and turn from their wickedness, a form mostly lost in our day, where we petition the culture and then preach to feelings and wants, offer self help advice and so on.
For their evil has come up before me - I think Matthew Henry describes this well, it is not as though God is finding out that there is evil in the world, for He even knows the thoughts of men, but this is like the outcry against Sodom, the cup of wrath is getting close to the brim.
Their wickedness has come up before me (their malice, so some read it); their wickedness was presumptuous, and they sinned with a high hand. It is sad to think what a great deal of sin is committed in great cities, where there are many sinners, who are not only all sinners, but making one another sin. Their wickedness has come up, that is, it has come to a high degree, to the highest pitch; the measure of it is full to the brim; their wickedness has come up, as that of Sodom, Gen. 18:20, 21. It has come up before me-to my face (so the word is); it is a bold and open affront to God; it is sinning against him, in his sight; therefore Jonah must cry against it; he must witness against their great wickedness, and must warn them of the destruction that was coming upon them for it. God is coming forth against it, and he sends Jonah before, to proclaim war, and to sound an alarm. - Matthew Henry
…4Or do you disregard the riches of His kindness, tolerance, and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you to repentance? 5But because of your hard and unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed. 6God “will repay each one according to his deeds.”… Romans 2: 4-6
Wake yourself, wake yourself,
stand up, O Jerusalem,
you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord
the cup of his wrath,
who have drunk to the dregs
the bowl, the cup of staggering.
18 There is none to guide her
among all the sons she has borne;
there is none to take her by the hand
among all the sons she has brought up.
19 These two things have happened to you—
who will console you?—
devastation and destruction, famine and sword;
who will comfort you?
20 Your sons have fainted;
they lie at the head of every street
like an antelope in a net;
they are full of the wrath of the Lord,
the rebuke of your God.
21 Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,
who are drunk, but not with wine:
22 Thus says your Lord, the Lord,
your God who pleads the cause of his people:
“Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;
the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;
23 and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,
who have said to you,
‘Bow down, that we may pass over’;
and you have made your back like the ground
and like the street for them to pass over.” Isaiah 51: 17-23
…21“What do you want?” He inquired. She answered, “Declare that in Your kingdom one of these two sons of mine may sit at Your right hand, and the other at Your left.” 22“ You do not know what you are asking,” Jesus replied. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” “We can,” the brothers answered. 23“You will indeed drink My cup,” Jesus said. “But to sit at My right or left is not Mine to grant. These seats belong to those for whom My Father has prepared them.”… Matthew 20: 21-23
…41And He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, where He knelt down and prayed, 42 “Father, if You are willing, take this cup from Me. Yet not My will, but Yours be done.” 43Then an angel from heaven appeared to Him and strengthened Him.… Luke 22: 41-43
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