The prophet Jonah (at least as his story is told in the book that bears his name) is perhaps the most orthodox if perhaps the most heteropractic1 prophet in the Bible! Yet this book perhaps better than any other in the Old Testament encapsulates the essential truths of Scripture. [For more on the "Perspicuity of [...]
Browsing Posts in Jonah
I’ve already a podcast on Jonah 1:7-8 Direct speech in biblical narratives if you want a fill in between the last podcast and this one. Had you noticed? We were eight verses into the book and Jonah had not said one word. In Jonah 1:1-8 not a peep out of Jonah the prophet, so 1:9 [...]
In this short series (of two podcasts) I’ll describe two things I think I know, two stakes in the ground when I come to think about the topic of “universalism” that has been much discussed (and even more an excuse for slanging matches) recently around the Bible-focused blogs. Let’s start by admitting there are many [...]
These four chapters tell the story of God’s prophet Jonah (who attentive Bible students know from 2 kings 14:25: He restored the border of Israel from Lebo-hamath as far as the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the LORD, the God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant Jonah son of [...]
There are many ways in which the story-tellers of the Bible ensure that their tellings are lively and engaging. One is through the way they report speech. There is usually more “direct speech” (where the words of a character are “quoted”) then “indirect speech” (where the teller tells us the gist of what the character [...]
Juxtaposition: putting things together to make something “more than the sum of the parts” is a common artistic skill, it is common (but often unrecognised) in the Bible. As my least favourite book of the Bible helps reveal! Right-click here to save the podcast for this audio
The puzzle of Jonah’s actions, and other strange goings-on don’t stop in Jonah 1:3, but deepen (pun intended) as we begin to read on… we meet the ship that had plans of its own and hear echoes of Santa Claus in the telling of Jonah’s story… Right-click here to save the podcast for this audio
Continuing the series on Jonah, we rush ahead into the second verse of the book, only to spot yet again possibly more than one meaning. Jonah’s task however is clear. By the way I am sorry about the long delays recently, I hope to post more regularly again, but not till after enjoying a two [...]
Spotting the exaggerations and humour in the book can help us understand, but it also acts as a warning! Right-click here to save the podcast for this audio
