Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Prophecy throughout the old and new testament
Paper timeline of the old testament
Prophecy throughout the old and new testament
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
The book of Jonah is an adventurous story of a prophet chosen by God to go preach denouncement to a heathen nation. With the exception of stating that Jonah is the son of Amittai, the book itself fails to reveal any background information. Nevertheless, a plorthea of scholars have attempted to provide us with some insight to the, who, when, where, and what of the book. This paper will utilize four scholarly commentaries in a quest to determine the author or authors of the book, the time when it was written, the original audience it spoke to, the occasion, the historical, social and cultural context in which it was written. It will also address the historical, social and cultural context of the book and that of the pericope of 3:1 – 10. …show more content…
There are those of the thought that Jonah is postexilic period literature. One reason for this theory is the assumption that Jonah depends on Jeremiah and Joel. Jonah and Jeremiah share similar concepts. Jonah and Joel use similar words. Garland and Longman does not mention this theory. Sasson, Stuart, and Trible reject this theory. Similar concepts do not constitute “dependency of concepts.” There are similar concepts throughout the Old Testament. Likewise, the use of similar words is not an indication of Jonah’s dependency on Joel. There are a few scholars who propose Jonah was a source for …show more content…
Even attempts to locate the book within the pre-exilic, exilic or postexilic period by various scholars have beenen to be a xxxxxx. With the exception of placing the writing between the eight century and third century BCE, none of the commentaries voice their opinions on the possible dating. Therefore, neither will we speculate on this topic. There seem to be no known method that has conclusively proven the date.
AUDIENCE
It is impossible to determine the intended audience of the book of Jonah without knowing when the book was written. This is evident by the fact that none of the commentaries directly discusses the topic. However, the intended audience is alluded to or assumed based on the proposed purpose for the writing. Hence, where applicable, the intended audience will be noted in the next section.
In Vonnegut’s novel, readers can notice that there are numerous religious references such as names and terms throughout it. In the opening of the novel it can already be seen. Vonnegut starts his novel off with the narrator introducing himself, “Call me Jonah. My parents did, or nearly did. They called me John.” (Vonnegut 1). From this opening line you can already see a biblical reference, that reference being “Jonah”. The name Jonah derives from the Hebrew bible, it’s known to be the name of a prophet who disobeyed God. Already early on in the novel it can be seen that a parallel between religion and the post-war world which the story take place in are intertwining. It can be assumed that by the author uses of the reference Jonah, a disobedient prophet of god, that the novel also revolves around the theme of deception among people in society. Deception implicated among person to another can lead to creating destruction in society. If one such as a writ...
There is much debate over the historical accuracy of the Hebrew Bible and The Epic of Gilgamesh. Some claim that to understand a work of literature requires extensive knowledge of the background of this work. The contrary position is that a work of literature can be interpreted solely on it’s content. The meaning of the term classical literature is that it can be applied during any period of time, it is eternal. Yet the conditions surrounding the author might still be of interest to the reader, and of importance to the work. As with many cases, the truth is somewhere in between the two extremes. Both sides have valid arguments about the importance of historicity.
In the book “The Art of Biblical Narrative” by Robert Alter, there is one chapter (Chapter 3) titled “Biblical Type-Scenes and the Uses of Convention” (Alter 47). Alter describes several different stories (but similar in some ways) in the Old Testament that can be difficult to interpret in today’s culture. Alter describes how reading any book (more specifically the Bible), requires use of conventions, which he describes as “… an elaborate set of tacit agreements between artist and audience about the ordering of the art work is at all times the enabling context in which the complex communication of art occurs” (Alter 47). In other words, an agreement of how the writing is done; it can be pretty complex as well. He states that there are stories in the Bible that have the same stories of narrative, but there are different characters, they often are told several times in the Bible. Alter uses several of examples, like how patriarch is driven by famine; or where someone is found and is invited to eat with them, or a betrothal (engagement) near a well/body
Among Jewish peasantry at the time of Jesus were two distinct types of prophets: the action prophets, who "led sizable movements of peasants from the villages of Judea in anticipation of God's new, eschatological act of liberation," and the oracular prophets, who delivered oracles of either judgment or deliverance (185). The former, as illustrated by the case of Theudas, appea...
This essay will attempt to exegete, the passage from Jonah chapter one. This is a common passage in the Old Testament known as the call of Jonah to Nineveh. It is widely believed that Jonah was a prophet of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, in about the 8th century BC. The available evidence seems fair to suggest that Jonah is the main character in the book named after his name. First thing to remember is that Johan’ popularity is based on his story of being swallowed by a fish.
External evidence indicates the epic poem was written no earlier than 1060 and no later than the second half of the twelfth century with the generally accepted time begin 1098-1100 which coincides with the time of the First Crusade (Bur...
(4:6) After Jonah has sat down outside the city to see whether God would destroy it, God “appoints” מָנָהָ a plant to grow up over Jonah and his shelter to deliver him from רָָעָה. Many translate this as “trouble” or “distress,” but it seems most prudent to allow terms to remain consistent in meaning throughout the text.10 The best translation for the author‟s purpose seems to be “evil.” The author utilizes the repetition of the verbal root רָָעָה for an express reason, especially in Jonah 4. Though the term describes Nineveh, in 1:7, in 4:1 and 4:6 they describe
Robinson, B. A. (2008, March 30). Books of the Hebrew Scripture . Retrieved May 7, 2011, from Religious Tolerance: http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_otb3.htm
While Jeremiah is interpreted from many perspectives, some early Christian apologists proof-texted his words as an indication that the Jews had been cast aside by God because they had not remained faithful to Him and his Mosaic covenant. Jesus of Nazareth was the fulfillment of Jeremiah's prophesies, so some claimed, and the Jews would remain shunned and doom...
Specifically, it taught about how His mercy could not be restricted by a person’s preconceptions. Jonah was a prophet of God but was ruled by his unrelenting hatred towards sinners. Despite his loathing, God was more than capable of using him in the salvation of the corrupted. When Jonah was commanded by the Lord to preach to the Ninevites, he resisted. Nineveh was a pagan society and epitomized “everything evil that the Israelites hated” (MacArthur, Jonah 112), Seeing that his enemies would be forgiven if he delivered the message, Jonah fled from his duty. However, he would not be able to elude from the will of God and, after some precarious situations in the sea, would reluctantly prophesied to the Ninevites and inspired their faith in the Lord. This came to show that while “Jonah was filled with resentment … [and his] wrath was aroused, … the Lord [could still extend His] grace” (MacArthur, Jonah
LaSor, W., Hubbard, D., Bush, F., & Allen, L. (1996). Old Testament survey: The message, form, and background of the Old Testament (2nd ed.). Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans
...e Biblical story weighs heavily on Joseph’s divine dream interpreting ability and the story it provides, focusing on the theme of God caring for His people and fulfilling his divine plan. The Qur’an appreciates this but sees it as a means to the end of the spread of faith to non-believers. The Christian and Jewish version of Joseph’s trials serves a greater literary purpose than the Qur’an’s version, advancing belief by showing God’s abilities and the way they may be manifested in others in order to fulfill his divine plan. However, the Qur’an expands upon the Biblical version by including additional plot points and explicitly portraying Joseph’s goals and how they align with Islamic theology. The accounts differ in functionality, but both are crucial to the holistic understanding of the story of Joseph and some of the fundamental differences between the religions.
However, Bruce Theodore Dahlberg cites Robert Lowth, who had offered the following judgment relating to the Book of Malachi and its possible claims to a poetic style: Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi are the only remaining prophets. The first of these is altogether prosaic, as well as the greater part of the second. . . The last of the prophetical books, that of Malachi, is written in a kind of middle style, which seems to indicate that the Hebrew poetry, from the time of the Babylonish captivity, was in a declining state, and, being past its prime and vigour, was then fast verging towards the debility of age. The Hebrew Bible (BHS) which is commonly used portrays the book in poetic format.
Collins, John J. A Short Introduction to the Hebrew Scriptures. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2007.
The following paper examines a close reading of the figure of Moses in Exodus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy with respect to the issue of why he is barred from entering the Promised Land of Canaan as well as in the Quran. Moreover, after considering the stories and character of Moses in these respective texts, I will then analyze the two accounts in order to examine their similarities and differences.