Jonah Versus Historical Jonah

Introduction When we read and consider Jonah, its important to know about the historical Jonah in 2nd Kings as well. The historical Jonah was known to be an adviser to king Jeraboam II. He was responsible for expanding the boarders of Israel from the Euphrates river to the Red sea. Not only was he known of expanding the boarders in Israel, he was also known for making Israel a very prosperous nation. When you consider all that the historical Jonah did for his time, he would have been well known by the people of Israel in a positive light. It is possible that the writer of Jonah is using the historical Jonah's name so that the people of Israel can connect this fictional character back to the historical figure. The writer is doing this 1). to catch audiences attention using a well know figure of Israel and 2). show that the people of Israel are behaving like the historical Jonah. Although Jonah (who represents prophetic Israel) is connected to YHWH, the mariners (who are pagans) are more ethical than

We learn that the mariners are polytheists and they each possess a piousness. What we are supposed to see in the text is the contrast between Jonah (who represents prophetic Israel) and the mariners. One observation to make is the difference in response of the mariners and Jonah. When the storm started beating against the boat the mariners responded by calling on their gods to save them whereas Jonah is found in the lower level of the ship. Since there is a constant them of Jonah's suicidal tendencies in the later chapters of the book, it is possible that Jonah is looking to commit suicide by being unresponsive in the bottom of the ship. Another observation to make is the mariners idea to throw their cargo off of the ship. The idea behind that action was to preserve the life of those on the ship. The difference we are supposed to see between Jonah and the mariners in this moment is their concern for