Book 32 of 66 · Old Testament

Jonah

A reluctant prophet flees God's call to Nineveh, is swallowed by a great fish, and learns about mercy.

4 chapters48 versesWritten in HebrewSet Israel and Nineveh, the 8th century BC

Overview

Jonah is unusual among the prophetic books: it is a story about a prophet rather than a collection of his sermons. Told to preach to the great enemy city of Nineveh, Jonah runs the other way, is thrown overboard in a storm, and is swallowed by a great fish. Freed, he preaches, the city repents — and Jonah is angry that God spares it. The book is about the reach of God's mercy.

Book facts

Author: UnknownThe book tells Jonah's story in the third person; it does not say who wrote it.
Date written: c. 780 BC or laterJonah lived in the 8th century BC; the book may have been written well afterward.
Original language: HebrewA short Hebrew narrative, with a psalm in chapter 2.
Setting: Israel and Nineveh, the 8th century BCA prophet sent, unwillingly, to Israel's enemy.

How it came to be

Jonah tells its prophet's story in the third person, and names no author. Jonah son of Amittai is mentioned as a real prophet in the book of 2 Kings; this book is a story built around him.

It reads less like the other prophets and more like a parable about mercy toward enemies.

What is arguedWhether it is history or a teaching story, and when it was written. The debate turns on how to read the great fish and the swift repentance of Nineveh.

The whole book, chapter by chapter

Chapter	What happens	Where it takes place
The reluctant prophet — flight, rescue, and a lesson in mercy, chapters 1–4
Chapter 1The storm	Told to preach to Nineveh, Jonah sails the opposite way; a storm rises, and the sailors throw him overboard.	,
Chapter 2The prayer from the fish	Swallowed by a great fish, Jonah prays, and after three days is spat out onto dry land.	—
Chapter 3The word to Nineveh	Jonah preaches in Nineveh, and the whole city — king and all — repents, so God spares it.
Chapter 4The gourd	Angry that Nineveh is spared, Jonah sulks under a gourd; God uses it to teach him about mercy.

All 4 chapters. Start reading →

Worth knowing

Key people

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Key places

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Known for

The book's best-known moments — tap the verse to read it.

Jonah flees to TarshishJonah 1:3
Swallowed by a great fishJonah 1:17
Nineveh repentsJonah 3:5
The gourd, and God's mercyJonah 4:11