The Book of Jonah
A reluctant prophet, a great fish, and a mercy wider than expected.
Jonah tells the story of a prophet who fled God's call to preach to Israel's feared enemy, Nineveh, and was swallowed by a great fish before finally obeying. Its 4 chapters read as narrative rather than oracle, following Jonah from flight to reluctant obedience to Nineveh's mass repentance. Read from Jonah chapter 1.
About Jonah
Jonah is the thirty-second book of the Bible and the fifth Minor Prophet, written around 760-750 BC and spanning 4 chapters. Unlike most prophetic books which are collections of oracles, Jonah is primarily a narrative -- the story of a reluctant prophet whom God called to preach to Israel's feared enemy, the mighty Assyrian city of Nineveh. Jonah famously ran in the opposite direction, boarded a ship to Tarshish, was thrown overboard in a storm he had caused by his disobedience, swallowed by a great fish, prayed from inside the fish's belly, and was vomited onto dry land -- after which he went to Nineveh and, to his own amazement and irritation, saw the entire city repent in response to his brief message. The book concludes with God gently confronting Jonah's anger at God's mercy toward Israel's enemies. Major themes include the universal scope of God's compassion, the futility of running from God's call, the power of genuine repentance, and the struggle of the religious with God's grace toward outsiders. Key chapters include Jonah 1 (Jonah's flight and the storm), Jonah 2 (Jonah's prayer from the fish), and Jonah 4 (Jonah's anger at God's mercy). Jesus referenced Jonah's three days in the fish as a sign of His own death and resurrection. Jonah KJV Bible reading presents a God whose mercy always exceeds our expectations. Read the Book of Jonah online here in full.