Tuesdays Are for the Old Testament
8/13/24
Lessing, R. Reed, & Steinmann, Andrew E. (2014). "Chapter Thirty-Two: Jonah." In Prepare the Way of the Lord: An Introduction to the Old Testament. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House. (487-496).
Jonah is arguably one of the best known characters in the Bible, with broad cultural familiarity even among people who are not very familiar with the Bible. Lessing and Steinmann note that the events in Jonah are easily dated in the middle of the 8th century B.C. (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 487). However, the date of composition may be later, as late as the third century B.C., when it is cited in other works. The earliest possible limit would be in the first half of the 8th century, if the author is the prophet mentioned in 2 Kings 14:25. Some would place the composition in the post-exilic period, when there may have been a tendency toward universalism and against xenophobia. However, Lessing and Steinmann find no strong evidence for such a movement (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 488). Linguistic evidence based on use of Aramaic terms is inconclusive, as both languages were broadly used even in the earlier period.
The genre of Jonah is unclear, as the work can be viewed as fitting into numerous categories. Lessing and Steinmann do note that Jonah is quite different from other prophetic books (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 488). The opening is very like a factual, historical account (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 489). The use of irony suggests a satire of some sort. Chief among the ironies is Jonah's repeated pattern of being the only character to fail to act like a faithful Israelite. He simply doesn't fit into our conception of a prophet.
Lessing and Steinmann find the structure of Jonah to be straightforward. In the first two chapters we have Jonah at sea, and in the last two chapters he is at Nineveh (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 490). The narrative repeatedly refers to evil, which is gradually taken away, except for the evil which is upon Jonah. Yahweh appears unsuccessful at saving Jonah from his evil.
Skeptics focus on Jonah as "just another fish story" (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 491). There are historical issues which are not dealt with effectively. For instance, the Assyrian king is not named. Assyrian annals have no record of the work of Jonah. However, Assyria was in a period of turmoil during this period. It was a time of volatility in which there may have been sudden positive responses to a prophetic call to repentance. Lessing and Steinmann observe that both Jesus and the Pharisees are recorded as taking Jonah as a clear account of historical events (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 492).
While Jonah is a brief work and easily approached, Lessing and Steinmann observe it is theologically rich, with a history of inclusion in liturgical calendars (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 493). A challenging issue is the idea of divine repentance. In 3:9 there is the hope that God will change his plan. In 3:10, that is exactly what God does. Lessing and Steinmann see this as evidence of the primacy of "grace, mercy, patience, and covenant-loyalty (Jonnah 4:2)" in God's character (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 493). They observe a number of other instances in the Old Testament where he moves from judgment to grace. In five passages, the Old Testament says clearly that God does not change his mind. Lessing and Steinmann suggest this may be related to a distinction between conditional and unconditional promises (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 493).
The force of God's word serves as a second important theological theme in Jonah (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 494). God's words are the mover behind all the events. On the contrary, in 4:2 Jonah suggests it would have been better for God to heed Jonah's word.
Three times the Gospels use the "sign of Jonah" to describe Christ's death, burial, and resurrection. This sign includes "both judgment and salvation" (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 494). The issue of sin and grace is prominent in Jonah, as God's grace is applied to all who repent of sin (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 495). God is seen as the one who rejects sin and provides salvation.
8/13/24
Lessing, R. Reed, & Steinmann, Andrew E. (2014). "Chapter Thirty-Two: Jonah." In Prepare the Way of the Lord: An Introduction to the Old Testament. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House. (487-496).
Jonah is arguably one of the best known characters in the Bible, with broad cultural familiarity even among people who are not very familiar with the Bible. Lessing and Steinmann note that the events in Jonah are easily dated in the middle of the 8th century B.C. (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 487). However, the date of composition may be later, as late as the third century B.C., when it is cited in other works. The earliest possible limit would be in the first half of the 8th century, if the author is the prophet mentioned in 2 Kings 14:25. Some would place the composition in the post-exilic period, when there may have been a tendency toward universalism and against xenophobia. However, Lessing and Steinmann find no strong evidence for such a movement (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 488). Linguistic evidence based on use of Aramaic terms is inconclusive, as both languages were broadly used even in the earlier period.
The genre of Jonah is unclear, as the work can be viewed as fitting into numerous categories. Lessing and Steinmann do note that Jonah is quite different from other prophetic books (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 488). The opening is very like a factual, historical account (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 489). The use of irony suggests a satire of some sort. Chief among the ironies is Jonah's repeated pattern of being the only character to fail to act like a faithful Israelite. He simply doesn't fit into our conception of a prophet.
Lessing and Steinmann find the structure of Jonah to be straightforward. In the first two chapters we have Jonah at sea, and in the last two chapters he is at Nineveh (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 490). The narrative repeatedly refers to evil, which is gradually taken away, except for the evil which is upon Jonah. Yahweh appears unsuccessful at saving Jonah from his evil.
Skeptics focus on Jonah as "just another fish story" (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 491). There are historical issues which are not dealt with effectively. For instance, the Assyrian king is not named. Assyrian annals have no record of the work of Jonah. However, Assyria was in a period of turmoil during this period. It was a time of volatility in which there may have been sudden positive responses to a prophetic call to repentance. Lessing and Steinmann observe that both Jesus and the Pharisees are recorded as taking Jonah as a clear account of historical events (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 492).
While Jonah is a brief work and easily approached, Lessing and Steinmann observe it is theologically rich, with a history of inclusion in liturgical calendars (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 493). A challenging issue is the idea of divine repentance. In 3:9 there is the hope that God will change his plan. In 3:10, that is exactly what God does. Lessing and Steinmann see this as evidence of the primacy of "grace, mercy, patience, and covenant-loyalty (Jonnah 4:2)" in God's character (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 493). They observe a number of other instances in the Old Testament where he moves from judgment to grace. In five passages, the Old Testament says clearly that God does not change his mind. Lessing and Steinmann suggest this may be related to a distinction between conditional and unconditional promises (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 493).
The force of God's word serves as a second important theological theme in Jonah (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 494). God's words are the mover behind all the events. On the contrary, in 4:2 Jonah suggests it would have been better for God to heed Jonah's word.
Three times the Gospels use the "sign of Jonah" to describe Christ's death, burial, and resurrection. This sign includes "both judgment and salvation" (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 494). The issue of sin and grace is prominent in Jonah, as God's grace is applied to all who repent of sin (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 495). God is seen as the one who rejects sin and provides salvation.
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