CONTENTS. INTRODUCTION BY LYMAN ABBOTT, D.D., LL.D................ I. THE HISTORICAL JONAH AND THE STORIES TOLD OF HIM. THE Book of Jonah, the fifth of the twelve Minor Prophets, has always been an enigma to Biblical students, conservative and liberal alike. The trusting Christian, whose faith in the truth and infallibility of Scripture is absolute, passes over the book in silence, as if to question its historicity would be sacrilege. Other Christians, with more liberal views, believe that Jonah and his story are creations of legend; or, if Jonah was a historical character, the story related of him is but a nursery tale told by the mothers to the children of more than two mil lenniums ago. Between these two extremes every shade of opinion has been expressed. The author, in a most earnest search for the truth, and with all reverence for the sanctity in which the book is held, would first ask what is known of Jonah as a historical personage, and what is told of him in the legends of early times. To refresh the reader's memory, the translation of the book as given in the Revised Version of the Bible is added here; the variants are in parentheses. I 3 "Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah, the 2 son of Amittai, saying: Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me. But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord; and he went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the 4 Lord. But the Lord sent out (hurled) a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, 5 so that the ship was like to be broken. Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god; and they cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it unto them. But Jonah was gone down into the innermost parts of the ship; and he lay, 6 and was fast asleep. So the ship-master came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? Arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think 7 upon us, that we perish not. And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they 8 cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah. Then said they II 12 unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; what is thine occupation? and whence 9 comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou? And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, which IO hath made the sea and the dry land. Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him, What is this that thou hast done? For the men knew that he had fled from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them. 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. 13 Nevertheless the men rowed hard to get them back to the land; but they could not; for the sea grew more 14 and more tempestuous against them. Wherefore they cried unto the Lord and said, We beseech thee, Lord, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, 15 Lord, hast done as it pleased thee. So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea; and the sea 16 ceased from her raging. Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly; and they offered a sacrifice unto the Lord, 17 and made vows. And the Lord prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of II. the fish three days and three nights. Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly. 2 And he said, 3 I called out by reason (out) of mine affliction unto the Lord, And He answered me; Out of the belly of hell (Sheol) cried I, And thou heardest my voice. For thou didst cast me into the depth, in the heart of the seas, And the flood was round about me; 4 All thy waves and thy billows passed over me. 5 The waters compassed me about, even to the soul; 6 The weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains ; The earth with her bars closed upon me for ever: |