Now the word of the LORD was to Jonah, son of Amattai, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and call upon her, because her evil has come up before my presence.” So Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Jappa and found a ship going to Tarshish. And he gave [exorbitant] wages to commandeer the ship and he went down in it to go with them to Tarshish away from the presence of the LORD. – Jonah 1:1-3
The beginning of a story almost always sets the stage for the rest of the plot, and few stories, especially short stories, do as good a job setting the stage, the plot, and capturing our attention as the author who gives us the account of the prophet Jonah. In the opening paragraph we have the protagonists – the LORD, Jonah and Nineveh. We have the plot – the LORD’s command to Jonah, Jonah’s disobedience of the command, and in the background the fate of Nineveh sits in the balance. We have the intrigue or the problem – Nineveh, the wicked Gentile city is “up before [the] presence [of the LORD]” and Jonah, the chosen prophet is “down” and “away from the presence of the LORD”; twice! We also have intrigue – who is Jonah really? Why is Tarshish mentioned three times? Why does God care about Nineveh? What is the purpose of Jonah going to Nineveh? Yes, in three short verses, just over 40 Hebrew words, the author has created an attention grabbing scenario that begs us to read and ask more questions. His goal, to capture the heart of God through the actions of the disobedient prophet.
1:1a – The word of the LORD was to Jonah…
Just as I’ve translated the phrase here, “was to Jonah” in English and Hebrew doesn’t seem to make a lot of grammatical sense. It is idiomatic. However, Sasson mentions that even the idiom is out of place here (Sasson, p. 67). In most other contexts the prophet and his mission are already established when the idiom appears, here it is before both. The phrase serves three purposes in establishing the story of Jonah. First, the “word of the LORD” is going to command the action of the book – often the author will do this in very creative ways, and here it is what initiates the action of Jonah. Second, due to the fact that “the word of the LORD” is used so often in the contexts of other prophets, it does serve to imply that Jonah is a prophet (notice, our text doesn’t give him that title). Third, the nature of the idiom builds the intrigue of the story. So much of the story is design to set religious norms on their heads that the author is setting you up for a less than usual set of circumstances.
One other note about this phrase – Jonah is the only person, other than “the LORD,” that is named in the entire book. His name literally means “dove,” which does have some symbolic implications. However the fact that the only two characters named are “the LORD” and Jonah it implies that God is more interested in the plight and his relationship with Jonah than He is the message or even the plight of the people of Nineveh. The author takes care to demonstrate this, by relating this relationship in such a way that we follow Jonah’s plight in relationship to “the LORD.” Indeed by the way the author relates the story we could say that Nineveh, while ultimately proving to be very significant in the mind of God, is almost the excuse for the interaction between the LORD and Jonah.
1:1b — … the son of Amattai…
This is the only biographical information we have about Jonah in the story. We have of course seen his appearance in 2 Kings 14, but even that information is short and gives us about the same amount of information. This demonstrates that the story is less interested in the background to Jonah as it is the story of Jonah. Why? No certain reason is given. However, if you’ll allow me to muse, when the lack of biographical information is combined with the fact that the title “prophet” is never used in this book, it might imply that the author wants us to see Jonah as any other person – a person who is ultimately just as responsible as we are to obey “the word of the LORD.”
There is a legend told by the Rabbi’s that identifies Jonah as the son of the widow in Zeraphath that Elijah raises from the dead (1 Kings 17). Essentially the link between the widow’s son and Jonah comes in the link between the root word for “truth” and the name of Jonah’s father “Amattai.” Amattai is built off the Hebrew word for “truth” and when the boy is raised from the dead the widow explains, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the LORD is in your mouth is truth (1 Kings 17:24).” The Rabbi’s saw “word of the LORD,” a prophet, “truth,” and an unnamed person at the right historical moment, and they declared the boy “Jonah” (Sasson p.86). While there is no real reason to doubt the Rabbis, there is also no reason to believe them. Since, as stated above, the biography of Jonah doesn’t seem to be the focus of the author, his connection to the widow as Zerephath is simply a fascinating speculation.
1:1c — … saying,
While simple, we should not forget that the “word of the LORD” is forcing that action. This has been the way God has worked since He spoke creation into existence. He is a God that is about the business of spoken revelation – wanting to be known and experienced. Our story begins with such a revelation.
1:2a – “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call upon her…”
There are several things that are worthy of recognition in this section. First is the three-fold command to Jonah – “Arise, go… call upon…” This will both be echoed verbatim in chapter 3, but will also become constant play on words that will be used as a depiction of obedience. The word “arise” in this particular Hebrew construction implies an urgency in the matter (NAC 224) and the three-fold command, as with most three-fold repetitions in Hebrew, also imply urgency and immediacy in the message from God.
The second thing to notice is the phrase “call upon her.” It is different that the phrase used in chapter 3 (“to her”). The Hebrew implies an impending judgment (Sasson 74-75). However, while judgment is implied, it is also important to note that God does not actually tell Jonah what He will do to Nineveh. This will make Jonah’s flight in verse 3 all the more mysterious. All Jonah knows is that Nineveh has sinned greatly in the eyes of the LORD, and God wants a declaration of judgment pronounced against the city.
Finally, the rare phrase “that great city” that is only seen in this form in the book of Jonah and in Genesis 10 appears for the first time here. For the key issues of the origins of Nineveh, see my entries about the background to Jonah. For now, it is sufficient to note the phrase and watch its usage – especially in the relation to the word “great.” We will discuss its meaning later in the book.
1:2b – … because her evil has come up before my presence.”
Here we see the only reason that the LORD gives Jonah for going to Nineveh – “because” of the fullness of her evil. The intriguing thing is where the evil is, “in the my presence” literally “before me” in the Hebrew. The idea is almost “in my face” or “in front of me.” This phrase is certainly an expression of concern and is probably a faint allusion to intimacy. It shows the concern that the LORD has for the fate of Nineveh. We see here yet another mystery in the plot of the story – Nineveh, a Gentile city, is before the LORD because of His concern for her sin. This is a concern that typically is reserved for His covenant people, Israel.
1:3a – So Jonah arose to flee…
Jonah’s initial reaction, “he arose,” implies obedience to God’s command to “arise.” However, that is the extent of the obedience. The rest of the verse is designed to emphasize Jonah’s blatant rebellion to God’s command. First, we see the intention of the “rising” – “to flee.” The Hebrew here is a purpose statement. The reason Jonah “arose” was “to flee.” It is also important to note that the intensity in which God commanded Jonah to “rise” is matched with Jonah’s intention “to flee.” Mysteriously, the prophet is rebelling against God’s command and doing so with fervency.
1:3 – … to Tarshish… and found a ship going to Tarshish … to go with them to Tarshish…
After seeing the intention of Jonah’s plan, we see the direction – “to Tarshish.” Again, the three-fold use of this phase in the verse is there for emphasis. The city is less important than what it represents. Tarshish was most likely located in Spain (NAC 100). But Biblically, it also represented the farthest extremities of the West. Insightful, since Nineveh is east of Israel. The point, not only is Jonah fleeing God and Nineveh, he is going the opposite direction – west instead of east. Tarshish was also a three year round trip journey (2 Chron. 9:21/Sasson 82). In light of the urgency of God’s command in verse 2, it seems as if Jonah is hoping that his extended trip will cause a just God to pour out His wrath on the wicked city before the prophet could return. Thus, the trip to Tarshish is both an attempt to both flee and control God.
1:3 – … and went down to Jappa … and he went down in [the ship]…
It is true that because Jappa was a port town, you had to go “down” in altitude to get to it from pretty much every point in Israel. It is also true that you have to go “down” directionally to go into the hold of the ship. However, there is also a play on words going on here with the author. Remember, Nineveh’s sin has gone “up” to God. Jonah has now gone the opposite direction, twice. Not only is Jonah going the wrong way geographically, he is going the wrong way with regard to his position before God. Achtemeier discusses the fact that these are just the first few steps in Jonah’s “downward” spiral. He will eventually end up in the depths of Sheol (2:6). She rightly says, “To flee the LORD requires death” (p. NIBC 260).
1:3b – And he gave [exorbitant] wages to commandeer the ship…
Most English translations simply say that Jonah “paid the fare” (ESV) and boarded the ship. It implies that he simply bought a ticket and joined a ship that may have had other passengers. However, Sasson successfully argues that the word in Hebrew more likely implies that Jonah rented the entire ship to himself to go to Tarshish. This would imply two things. First, Jonah was a man of considerable means because, especially in that day, to rent a ship for a potentially three year journey would be very expensive. Second, it shows the hardness of heart and intentionality of Jonah’s actions. Those were not the days of ATMs and banks. Liquidizing enough wealth to commandeer a ship would have been a considerable task. This action demonstrates the hardness of Jonah’s heart towards the LORD’s command.
1:3 – … away from the presence of the LORD… away from the presence of the LORD.
The phrase “presence of the LORD” is the same phrase used of Nineveh’s sin. Here again we see the problem. Nineveh, the wicked, Gentile city, is depicted in these opening verses as having a more intimate connection with the LORD than the chosen, covenant prophet of Israel. The city has captures the concern of God because of her disobedience, the prophet completely lacks concern for God by his disobedience. Jonah has now successfully fled God in every sphere possible – geographically: west instead of east; directionally: down instead of up; financially: he’s liquidized his wealth to purchase a ship; and relationally: he’s fleeing God’s presence. Wherever Jonah is not, Nineveh is – up in the presence of God.
There are many things to take away from this opening paragraph, but let me just highlight two. First is God’s sovereignty, which will become a major component in the story of Jonah. Prior to the opening lines, neither Jonah nor the Ninevites had any knowledge of God’s desires or concerns for them. It is God who initiates the action for both parties – for the calling of Jonah to Nineveh, and the concern to proclaim a warning/judgment upon Nineveh. While Jonah’s actions by the end of verse 3 seems to imply a bunch of independent decision making outside of the sovereignty of God, we are going to see God win the day and the argument against the rebellious prophet.
The second thing to notice is the heart and mission of God in light of the covenant of Abraham. God is concerned for the salvation of a Gentile city. Indeed, the cities fate and position by the end of verse 3 is more favorable than His chosen prophet. Jonah is rebelling against God’s most basic command to Israel to be a “light to the Gentiles.” And it is, at least in part, faithfulness to the covenant of Abraham that will keep the LORD hot on the trail of Jonah until His message is delivered.
