A word list at the end explains words with a star by them. The book is replete with irony, wherein much of its humor lies. The name jonah means dove in hebrew, but jonahs character is anything but dovelike. The book of jonah, written primarily in the third person, does not explicitly name the prophet as the author of his own account, but we have no reason to doubt either the inspiration or the historical veracity of the book. The book of jonah appears as one of twelve small books of scripture known as trei asar the twelve. The commentary on hosea within this volume is 220 pages of the total.
Commentary on the book of jonah jonah 1 1the word of the lord came to jonah the son of amittai saying, 2arise, go to nineveh the great city and cry against it, for their wickedness has come up before me. Aug 10, 2010 and one of the synagogue readings for yom kippur is the book of jonah in hebrew, sefer yonah. Many critics however want to lower the book of jonah to an allegory, a parable or a legend because of the miracles described in it especially the appearing of the great fish devouring jonah. It is the custom in some communities to ask a stranger to offer a commentarycalled a dvar torah.
This commentary has been through advanced theological checking. The honour god put upon jonah, in giving him a commission to go and prophesy against nineveh. Their wickedness, as that of nineveh, is a bold and open affront to god. Jonah chapter 1 coffmans commentary of the new testament. The book of jonah is the most beautiful story ever written in so small a compass, only 28 english words. Running from god chapter 1 running to god chapter 2 running with god chapter 3 running ahead of god chapter 4. The discovery of him, and his disobedience, to be the cause of the storm v. The book of jonah, written primarily in the third person, does not explicitly name the prophet as the author of his own account, but we have no reason to doubt. Jonah 1 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. Hugh martins commentary on jonah is a devotional commentary that not only meditates deeply on jonah the prophet, but also on how jonah is a type, parallel, and sign pointing to christ. F2 but, of course, such criticisms are apparently founded in ignorance of the truth that, this is a common formulary linking together revelations.
Jonah lived during jeroboam iis reign over the northern kingdom of israel 793753 b. Determining date and authorship of jonah remains problematic, as explicit references do not exist within the narrative. The gospel according to jonah the gospel according to the old testament by bryan estelle. All of nature obeys god in this book but a prophet of god does not. You can find the best commentary on jonah for you using the tools on the right side. Jonah therefore is the only prophet of the ot revealing the grace of god towards the heathen. The book of jonah demonstrates the sovereignty of the almighty as he employs his creation to accomplish the divine plan. One could describe kimchis commentary as psychological.
The word of the lord came to jonah and jonah refused. Commentary on the book of jonah relevant bible teaching. Listen to chuck swindolls overview of jonah in his audio message from the classic series gods masterwork. Stuart deals with the details of the text as well as the big picture. This did not mean, however, that jonah remained the same. This book of jonah, though it be placed here in the midst of the prophetical books of scripture, is yet rather a history than a prophecy. The broad variety of opinions on this subject from the talmudic sages through modem commentaries can be subsumed under four basic headings.
Outline of the book of jonah one popular outline of jonah, which could be used in a sermon series, is. Nov 11, 2012 but god is not finished with jonah, as 1. The whole commentary was very insightful with its picture of what god is saying in the book of jonah. Jonah 2 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole.
The book of nachum speaks almost entirely of the sinful city of nineveh and its final destruction. Jonahs prophecy about israels boundaries being extended may indicate that he made that prophecy early in jeroboams reign. Best jonah commentaries updated for 2020 best bible. How the rebirth of tribalism, populism, nationalism, and identity politics is destroying american democracy, as well as from his 2010 commentary piece what kind of socialist is barack obama. Jonahs experiences form the main contents and purpose of the book. Top 5 commentaries on the book of jonah ligonier ministries. Every chapter stepped through each verse of the book and provided a clear presentation of various view points throughout history as well as the authors own.
But the book of jonah is not meant to be a historical account. Gods ministry to jonah chapter 4 the bible exposition commentary, cook communications, colorado springs, 2002, p. David guzik commentary on jonah 1, where jonah receives a call from god, but decides to run from him, which god prevents by sending a storm. Jonah 1 commentary albert barnes notes on the whole bible. This summary of the book of jonah provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of jonah. He examines jonahs inner process, telling us what jonah must have. Jonah with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. He quotes his father in his commentary to the book of jonah. He was gods instrument to carry out gods will on earth. The book of jonah, therefore, is a statement made through the wonderful medium of the story of jonah of gods compassion even of a pagan people like the ninevites who were enemies of the jews. The pursuit and arrest of him for that disobedience by a storm, in which he was asleep v. Jonahs reluctance to bring that message mirrors the israelites equally stubborn disinterest in the relation of the assyrians to god.
The book of jonah is followed by michah micah, which in turn is followed by nachum. Consequently, scholars must consider linguistic and historical factors to approximate such information. Jonah free bible commentary in easy english easyenglish bible. And one of the synagogue readings for yom kippur is the book of jonah in hebrew, sefer yonah. The prophet jonah a dove is already mentioned in 2 kings 14. Jonah 1 commentary, one of over 110 bible commentaries freely available, this commentary by albert barnes, a dedicated student of the bible, continues to be very popular even today.
The prophecy of jonah to jeroboam conveys some important background material to enhance our understanding of this book. Passing over the brief prophecy of obadiah, with its veiled reference to the messiah in saviours who will go up on mount zion, under the leadership of the jehovahsaviour, for the kingdom shall be the lords obadiah 1. The story of jonah and the whale the book of jonah. Jonah signifies a dove, a proper name for all gods prophets. This was strange, because usually the preacher is pleased when the congregation repents, but jonah wasnt. It is particularly difficult to identify the central theme that unites all the elements of the story in the book of jonah into a literary and conceptual whole. But who then wrote the book and where do those intimate details of the story come from. The book of jonah is simultaneously pathetic and hilarious. The information presented covered context, dating, purpose, and interpretation of jonah. An easyenglish 2800 word vocabulary commentary on the book of jonah. Jonah was the son of amittai, of gathhepher in zebulun called gittahhepher in jos 19. We left jonah in the belly of the fish, and had reason to think we should hear no more of him, that if he were not destroyed by the waters of the sea he would be consumed in the bowels of that leviathan, out of whose mouth go burning lamps, and sparks of fire, and whose breath kindles coals, job. The witness of jonah max reich the messianic hope of israel.
The bible knowledge commentary adds some thoughts here. The single best commentary on the first five minor prophets is the commentary by douglas stuart in the word biblical commentary series. Jonah goldberg holds the asness chair in applied liberty at the american enterprise institute. Jonah is commanded to go east to nineveh but flees toward the westernmost possible point, only to be swallowed by a great fish and dumped back at this starting point 2. So if you are interested in studying jonah, bookmark this page, and check back soon. As the grace commentary on jonah is written, posts will be added to the chapters below. I am currently writing commentary on the book of jonah. However, the book of jonah is presented in a nonhistorical setting. The book of jonah relates how god told jonah to go to the major assyrian city of nineveh and there prophecy that after 40 days it would be overturned. We read nowhere in the book that jonah confessed his sin and received a new heart. This meant according to the understanding of jonah that nineveh would be destroyed. Jonah signifies a dove, a proper name for all gods prophets, all his people, who ought to be harmless as doves, and to mourn as doves for the sins and calamities of the land. But god brings his people through fire, and through water.
The events recorded in the book probably covered only a few months or years at the most. He was the son of amittai and was of gathhepher in galilee north of nazareth. So based on the date and message of the book of jonah, the view of this commentary is that jonah is the originator of the story, but it was passed down orally for several hundred years, being modified and changed over time, until it was eventually recorded by a later author who lived in judea during the postexilic time period, and was using the. But it displeased jonah exceedingly, and he became angry. Book of jonah overview insight for living ministries. Set in the reign of jeroboam ii 786746 bc, it was probably written in the postexilic period, some time between the late 5th to early 4th century bc.
Verse 1 now the word of jehovah came unto jonah the son of amittai, saying, now enemies of this book do not hesitate to take the ax to the very first word in it, affirming that, jonah is a fragment, the continuation of a larger work. F2 but, of course, such criticisms are apparently founded in ignorance of the truth that, this is a common formulary linking together revelations and histories. The books of joel, obadiah, jonah, and micah the new international commentary on the old testament by leslie c. This essay builds on themes and ideas from his latest book, suicide of the west. Minor prophets study guide questionslessons learned. The prophetic significance of this book not only lies in the short message in nineveh but also in the entire history of jonah described in his book. A free bible commentary on the book of jonah in simple english. David kimchi was an important scholar of hebrew grammar and wrote michlol, an early comprehensive study of it. Douglas stuart hoseajonah word biblical commentary, 1987. Aside from portions of the book of jeremiah and daniel, all of the other.
The style of the book of jonah is distinctive among the prophetic books. As the sections are completed, this is where they will get posted. It does seem safe to conclude that this jonah is the same person as the jonah who is the subject of the book of jonah, especially since both are identified as the son of amittai 2 cp. Top 5 commentaries on the book of jonah by keith mathison. Jonah s experiences form the main contents and purpose of the book. The only reference to jonah in a historical context is found in 2 kings 14. Study jonah using john calvins bible commentary to better understand scripture with full outline and verse meaning. T he book of jonah is an old testament story which tells about how the prophet jonah refused to follow the lord. Jonah did not want to go on this mission and attempted to flee to tarshish in spain. While there are a few chapters that are tangential to these two poles of martins focus, the work as a whole is deeply enlightening, thought provoking, and.
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