Jonah

A prophet runs from God’s call to preach to Nineveh, Israel’s enemy. After a storm and a great fish, he goes, the city repents, and Jonah is angry. The book ends with God asking him why he shouldn’t care about such a city.

Author

Unknown

Written

Set about 780 BC

Chapters

1. 1Jonah 1God tells Jonah to preach to Nineveh, but he runs the other way on a ship. A storm rises, Jonah is thrown overboard, and a great fish swallows him.
2. 2Jonah 2From inside the fish, Jonah prays a psalm of thanks: “Salvation belongs to the Lord.” The fish spits him out on dry land.
3. 3Jonah 3Jonah preaches in Nineveh, and the whole city, from the king down, repents in sackcloth. God relents from the disaster.
4. 4Jonah 4Jonah is angry that God is merciful. God grows a plant to shade him, then takes it away, and asks: should I not care about this great city?