The Message of Jonah: Presence in the Storm

The Bible Speaks Today: Old Testament

by Rosemary A. Nixon

The book of Jonah is mostly remembered for its oddity―a runaway prophet swallowed by a whale! But there must be more to the book than that. And indeed there is. For one thing, it is a book artfully constructed, with one chapter devoted to a psalm. It is a book that will reward careful reading and meditation. But more than that, in the drama of Jonah we find charted the course not just of this angular prophet but of Israel's attitude toward its most despised neighbor in the Mediterranean world. Jonah refuses to answer God's call to go and proclaim judgement because he knows God is just the kind of God who respond in mercy and grace should the Assyrians repent. Jonah will have no part of it―until he is compelled. And even then he pities himself. The irony of this prophet's story is amusing―but it reaches out and touches us where we are today. Rosemary Nixon's exposition explores the book in its own right and helps us make the connections with our view of God and his world today.

Genres: Old Testament, Biblical Studies, Theology, Christian

220 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2003

Reviews

[curtis · Rating 2 out of 5]

By far the most difficult commentary for me to assess, even as it’s one of the easiest (and in many ways most pleasurable!) to read. This is either a two-star or a five-star commentary, and I’ll admit that even now I’m wavering about whether or not to rate it higher somehow. In favor of doing so, I’ll say that Rosemary Nixon, in addition to writing engagingly with great warmth and accessibility, is frankly superb in a number of areas. Both in the ways that she brings strands of traditional Jewish thinking about the Book of Jonah into conversation with the text, and in the way she (with great reverence and faithfulness, it must be said) consistently provokes the reader into wrestling with the realities of the text through a relentless gaze upon the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Nixon greatly excels. Her discussion and treatment of the overall genre of the Book and of prophetic writing more broadly is also extremely well done, even if one doesn’t necessarily agree with her overall conclusions. And therein lies one of two reasons I don’t feel that I can rate this book more highly (although I confess again that part of me really does WANT to): Nixon’s own conclusions far too often attempt to straddle the fence, suggesting too great a concern for offending one class of reader. She seems to want to pursue a sort of minimalist literalism (which would naturally appease more liberal readership), while at the same time insisting upon the timeless authority of the Book of Jonah as divine Scripture (perhaps so as not to alienate more conservative readers). In the end, I *THINK* Nixon falls toward the more conservative end of the spectrum, but it’s really difficult to be certain at a number of important points. Near the end, for example, she uses language that can readily be understood as an outright denial of Christian exclusivism whatsoever, yet with just enough vagueness so as to leave it unclear whether that’s exactly what she believes. In the end, the failure to really draw a line in the sand and determinedly argue for one conclusion or another is one recurring weakness that prevents me from grading this more highly. The other weakness (which is, perhaps, in some ways related to the first) is the way that Nixon seems to occasionally lose sight of what Jonah’s problem in the Book really is. At one juncture, for example, she argues that perhaps Jonah’s resistance to Yahweh’s call is the consequence of his taking “belief in God’s sovereignty just a little too far…God did not really need Jonah to save Nineveh. Jonah knew the Lord was sovereign over all. He would do what was right without any need of Jonah” (p. 118). This is emphatically NOT the rationale that Jonah himself provides, nor is it one that any part of the narrative ever encourages us to believe; Jonah’s problem is very specific: he is aware of Yahweh’s magnificent, limitless capacity to be merciful to those who repent and put their trust in his grace, and he HATES the idea that this should include his (and Israel’s) enemies as well. It seems to me that out of all the many difficulties this Book naturally encounters to interpretation, this at least is something that should be fairly obvious to any reader—yet Nixon seems to lose sight of this too often for my taste. (In fairness, let me be clear that she’s not UNAWARE that this is Jonah’s position; rather, it seems that in order to advance other ideas she too often allows it to be eclipsed by far less likely readings of the situation.) So in the end, I can’t in good conscience give this a higher review. Strangely, however, this is a book that I very much commend to the more serious, disciplined, discerning student of Scripture. It’s an odd position I find myself in saying this, but despite this commentary’s significant shortcomings, it has nonetheless tremendously served me and will doubtless forever affect (in a good and godly way) my understanding and appreciation for this Book.

[Dora SisoEvA Theo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know biblical commentaries are great, but this one is special and beyound great.

It is a marvelous, excellent analysis of Jonah. It is a true diamond rendition and masterpiece on seeing the diamant complex beauty of God reflected in the Bible.

It is academic but accessible.

My only problem with it is that I keep underlining absolutely everything.

[Rachel Dasher · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5/3 ⭐️ ??? Really enjoyed some parts of this commentary, really disliked others. Maybe this was partially because I read this right after reading a Tim Keller Jonah book, which was 5 ⭐️

[Emily Gifford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nixon’s “The Message of Jonah” has been one of my favorite books yet in this series, probably because it was full of provocative questions to get my mind and heart thinking. This is why I enjoy integrating these books into my morning Bible study.

From my experience, the book of Jonah has been taught from an outside-looking-in type perspective—a ‘how ridiculous is this guy?’ type of mentality. But this book dives deeper into the heart of this reluctant messenger and reveals how we too are just as guilty of refusing to accept God for who He is—a God who is loving and forgiving to all those who would come to Him, even if they are our enemies.

The only reason I didn’t give the book five stars is because I think I would recommend it only selectively. For those who are looking for a more theologically conservative approach that exegetes each verse/passage, this would not be the book for you. I believe the author took a few interpretive leaps in her writing, but in grappling with the text itself the reader can draw their own conclusions on the accuracy of some of her points. Ultimately, still a very thoughtful and engaging book!

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent, popular-level commentary. The introduction is especially good in helping to understand the literary features and context of the book of Jonah. Nixon interacts with Jewish and Christian commentators and scholars. Sometimes she gets off track on rabbit trails. But this book is great for appreciating and really enjoying the book of Jonah.

[Lesley Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really helped understand the book iof Jonah

[Emily Knudsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This commentary was insightful and helpful, although I didn't agree with all of the content, it did expand and deepen my study of the book of Jonah

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super commentary