Written By Lesallan – August 6, 2023
Jonah 1:1-16 (ESV): Detailed Analysis (Final)
Version: ESV
INITIAL OBSERVATIONS & QUESTIONS
• The passage begins with the word of the Lord coming to Jonah, the son of Amittai (Jonah 1:1, ESV).
o Who is Jonah (Jonah 1:1, ESV)?
o Who is Amittai (Jonah 1:1, ESV)?
o What does it mean for the Word of the Lord to come to someone (Jonah 1:1, ESV)?
o How did Jonah receive this Word of the Lord (Jonah 1:1, ESV)?
• The Lord tells Jonah to go to Nineveh, a great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before him (Jonah 1:2, ESV).
o What kind of evil did they do (Jonah 1:2, ESV)?
• Jonah disobeys the Lord, goes to Joppa, boards a ship, and tries to flee to Tarshish from God’s presence (Jonah 1:3, ESV).
o Why did Jonah choose the destination of Tarshish (Jonah 1:3, ESV)?
o What does it mean to flee from the presence of the Lord (Jonah 1:3, ESV)?
• Upon the sea, the Lord sends a great wind causing a mighty tempest that threatens to break up the ship (Jonah 1:4, ESV).
o Why did the Lord cause such a violent storm (Jonah 1:4, ESV)?
o How did the sailors react (Jonah 1:5, ESV)?
• Jonah is sleeping in the inner part of the ship. He is woken by the captain asking him to call out to his God (Jonah 1:5-6, ESV).
o Why did the captain tell Jonah to call out to his God (Jonah 1:6, ESV)?
o Did the captain know who Jonah’s God was?
• Because of the calamity, the sailor cast lots trying to find the responsible person (Jonah 1:7, ESV).
o How did lots fall on Jonah (Jonah 1:7, ESV)?
o Was it because of luck or by divine intervention that the lots fell on Jonah?
o What does Jonah tell the sailors to do (Jonah 1:12, ESV)?
o What happens after Jonah is thrown to the sea (Jonah 1:15, ESV)?
o Do the sailors now acknowledge and fear Jonah’s God (Jonah 1:16, ESV)?
• How does this passage (Jonah 1:1-16, ESV) relate to the rest of the book of Jonah and the whole Bible?
• What does Jonah 1:1-16 (ESV) teach us about God’s character, attributes, and actions?
• What does Jonah 1:1-16 (ESV) teach us about human nature, sin, and repentance?
• What are some personal applications or the implications of Jonah 1:1-16 (ESV) for our lives today?
STRUCTURE
Jonah 1:1-16 (ESV) is a powerful reminder of the sovereignty of God over all events on earth. It sets the stage for the rest of the Book of Jonah (ESV), introducing key themes such as repentance from sin and God’s compassion, which are not limited to just “us” but also available to “them.” Throughout the passage (Jonah 1:1-16, ESV), we see how the Lord can control the wind and the sea and direct the casting of lots. The Lord will prevail despite Jonah’s attempts to flee from His presence. This serves as an inspiration for us to trust in God’s plan and to have faith in His unwavering love and compassion.
Jonah 1:1-16 (ESV) can be divided into five parts, highlighting key themes such as Jonah’s commission, his flight from the Lord (Jonah 1:1-3, ESV), the Lord’s response in the form of a storm, dialogue between sailors and Jonah, and the sailors’ fear and prayer to the Lord (Jonah 1:4-16, ESV). The passage ends with the sea calming and the men fearing the Lord (Jonah 1:15-16, ESV).
I. Jonah’s Commission and Flight (Jonah 1:1-3, ESV).
A. The Word of the Lord and Jona’s response (Jonah 1:1-2, ESV).
B. Jonah’s attempt to escape from God’s presence (Jonah 1:3, ESV).
II. Jonah and the Pagan Sailors (Jonah 1:4-16, ESV).
A. The Lord’s sovereign control over the storm (Jonah 1:4, ESV).
B. The sailors’ fear and futile efforts (Jonah 1:5, ESV).
C. The captain’s rebuke and Jonah’s indifference (Jonah 1:6, ESV).
D. The sailor uses lots and Jonah’s exposure (Jonah 1:7-8, ESV).
E. Jonah’s confession and the sailors’ terror (Jonah 1:9-10, ESV).
F. Jonah’s advice and the sailors’ dilemma (Jonah 1:11-12, ESV).
G. The sailors attempt to save Jonah and themselves (Jonah 1:13-14, ESV).
H. The sailors’ obedience and the Lord’s intervention (Jonah 1:15, ESV).
I. The sailors’ worship and commitment to the Lord (Jonah 1:16, ESV).
III. Jonah’s Deliverance (Jonah 1:17, ESV).
A. The Lord appoints a great fish (Jonah 1:17, ESV).
B. Jonah’s experience in the belly of the fish (Jonah 1:17, ESV).
WORDS & PHRASES
“to flee” (Jonah 1:3, ESV).
What is the significance of Jonah’s attempt to flee from the presence of the Lord by going to Tarshish (Jonah 1:3, ESV)?
Jonah’s attempt to flee from the presence of the Lord by going to Tarshish represents his disobedience and lack of faith in the Lord’s plan for him. Instead of obeying the Lord’s command to go to Nineveh and call out against it, Jonah chose to try and escape from the Lord’s presence by going in the opposite direction. This act of disobedience sets off a chain of events that leads to Jonah being swallowed by a great fish and eventually being given a second chance to fulfill the Lord’s command.
What do the translation details say about the phrase and meaning of “to flee” (Jonah 1:3, ESV)?
Strong’s Concordance (1890) states that to flee means to “chase away; drive away, fain, flee away, put to flight, make haste, reach, run away, shoot” (Strong’s Concordance, 1890).
“Great Wind” (Jonah 1:4, ESV).
What is the significance of the great wind that the Lord hurled upon the sea (Jonah 1:4, ESV)?
The great wind represents the Lord’s power and sovereignty over nature. By hurling a great wind upon the sea, the Lord demonstrates His control over the elements and His ability to intervene in human affairs. The great wind also serves as a means of getting Jonah’s attention and bringing him back to the path that the Lord had intended for him. The tempest caused by the great wind forces Jonah to confront his disobedience, eventually leading him to repent and fulfill the Lord’s command.
What does the phrase “great wind” (Jonah 1:4, ESV) mean in the Hebrew translation details?
The phrase “great wind” is broken down into two parts, the first being “great,” which means “aloud, elder, exceedingly, far, man of great man, matter, thing, high” (Strong’s Concordance, 1890). The second part finds “wind” written in Hebrew originally as ruwach, which means wind, breath, [the] exhalation, life, anger, unsubstantiality, a region of the sky, and spirit. Strong’s Concordance (1890) defines wind as “air, anger, blast, breath, cool, courage, mind, quarter,
From ruwach; wind; by resemblance breath, i.e. A sensible (or even violent) exhalation; figuratively, life, anger, unsubstantiality; by extension, a region of the sky; by resemblance spirit, but only of a rational being” (Strong’s Concordance, 1890).
“They cried out” (Jonah 1:5-1:14, ESV).
What is the significance of the sailors crying out to their gods and to the Lord?
The sailors’ cries represent their fear and desperation in the face of the tempest on the sea. In Jonah 1:5 (ESV), the sailors are afraid because of the storm, and each sailor cries out to his own god for help. This shows their belief in the power of their gods to intervene and save them from danger. In Jonah 1:14 (ESV), after discovering that Jonah is responsible for their predicament, the sailors cry out to the Lord, asking Him not to hold them accountable for taking Jonah’s life. This shows their recognition of the Lord’s power and sovereignty and their desire to do what is right in His eyes.
What does the phrase “cried out” (Jonah 1:5-1:14, ESV) mean according to Strong’s Concordance (1890)?
According to Strong’s concordance (1890), this term or phrase means, “assemble, call together, make a cry out, come with such a company, gather together. A primitive root; to shriek (from anguish or danger); by analogy, (as a herald) to announce or convene publicly — assemble, call (together), (make a) cry (out), come with such a company, gather (together), cause to be proclaimed” (Strong’s Concordance, 1890).
“Feared the Lord exceedingly” (Jonah 1:16, ESV).
What do the sailors’ cries and fears represent in the face of the tempest on the sea?
The sailors’ fear of the Lord represents their recognition of His power and sovereignty. After throwing Jonah into the sea, the sailors see that the sea ceases from its raging, and they realize that it was indeed because of Jonah that this great tempest had come upon them. This realization causes them to fear the Lord exceedingly, recognizing His power over nature and His ability to intervene in human affairs. The sailors’ fear of the Lord also leads them to offer a sacrifice to Him and make vows, showing their reverence and respect for Him.
What are the translation details for the word “feared” (Jonah 1:16, ESV) mean according to Strong’s Concordance (1890)?
Strong’s Concordance (1890) has written, “affright, be make afraid, dreadful, put in fearful reverence, terrible act, to fear; morally, to revere; caus. To frighten — affright, be (make) afraid, dread, (put in) fear, (be had in) reverence” (Strong’s Concordance, 1890).
SUMMARY, CORRELATION, & APPLICATION
Jonah 1:1-16 (ESV) tells the story of how Jonah, a prophet of God, disobeys the Lord’s command to go to Nineveh and instead flees to Tarshish, but the Lord sends a great storm that threatens to sink the ship he is on, leading the sailors to eventually throw Jonah overboard, at which point the storm subsides.
The main point of Jonah 1:1-16 (ESV) arises from the events described in the passage. At the beginning of the chapter, the word of the Lord comes to Jonah, commanding him to go to Nineveh and call out against it because their evil had come up before Him (Jonah 1:1-2, ESV). Instead of obeying the Lord’s command, Jonah rises to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He goes down to Joppa, finds a ship going to Tarshish, pays the fare, and goes down into it Jonah 1:3, ESV). In response, the Lord hurls a great wind upon the sea, causing a mighty tempest that threatens to break up the ship (Jonah 1:4, ESV). The mariners on the ship are afraid, and each sailor cries out to his god (Jonah 1:5, ESV). They eventually cast lots to determine on whose account this evil has come upon them, and the lot falls on Jonah (Jonah 1:7, ESV). Jonah confesses that he is fleeing from the presence of the Lord and tells the sailors to pick him up and hurl him into the sea so the sea can quiet down for them (Jonah 1:12, ESV). The sailors reluctantly do as Jonah says, and after throwing him into the sea, they see that it ceases its raging (Jonah 1:15, ESV). The men then fear the Lord exceedingly, offer a sacrifice to Him and make vows (Jonah 1:16, ESV). These events show how Jonah’s disobedience sets off a chain of events that ultimately leads him back to the path the Lord intended for him.
The story of Jonah teaches us important lessons that we can apply in our lives, our local churches, denominations, and the church as a whole. We must always strive to obey God’ will and follow His plan for our lives, for true fulfillment and peace can only be found through Him. Even if we have strayed from His path, God’s grace and mercy are always available to us if we repent and seek His forgiveness. We must also remember that God’s love and compassion extend to all people, regardless of their background or beliefs. By embracing these lessons, we can grow in our relationship with God and fulfill our calling as His followers.
FURTHER QUESTIONS
• What is the significance of Nineveh, and why did God command Jonah to go there?
• How does Jonah’s experience in the belly of the fish relate to the book’s larger themes?
• What is the role of prayer and repentance in the story of Jonah?
• How does the book of Jonah portray God’s character and His relationship with humanity?
• What lessons can we learn from Jonah’s interactions with the sailors and the people of Nineveh?
• How does the book of Jonah fit into the larger context of the Bible and its message?
References:
STRONG’S CONCORDANCE. (1890). Www.kingjamesbibleonline.org.https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/strongs-concordance/
