Preaching Jonah

MCMASTER DIVINITY COLLEGE

Fall 2023

Instructor

August H. Konkel, Affiliate Professor of Old Testament (Ph.D.)

konkela@mcmaster.ca; 905 525 9140 x 23505
https://mcmasterdivinity.ca/faculty-and-administration/august-h-konkel/

Course Designation

OT 3XJ3

Course Specializations

Biblical Studies
Pastoral Studies

Recommended texts and the final assignment are dependent on the choice of major. These are
to facilitate the goals of the respective program.

Course Schedule

Format: classes will be in person and livestream

Time: Monday 9:00 a.m. – 10:50 a.m.
Dates: September 11 – December 4

No Class: October 9 (Thanksgiving Day / Reading Week)

OT3XJ3 Preaching Jonah: Fall 2023

Course Description

Why is there a book of Jonah, and what should it do for you when you read it? Jonah is unique
among prophetic books. It is a book about a prophet rather than the message God has given the
prophet; only a few of Jonah’s own words are recorded, and most of these are his objections to
the results of preaching in Nineveh. In the historical notice of Jonah in kings, unlike other
prophets, Jonah has positive words for an idolatrous king. In the book, Jonah is reluctant to
declare the message he has been given.

This course will probe the intentions and purpose of the author of this prophetic composition, his
method of accomplishing his goals, and how ministers can further these goals in preaching.
Though a very short book, it provokes a lot of questions about prophecy, about justice and
forgiveness, and the way God deals with his people. It is a deceptively simple narrative; the more
it is probed, the more profound it becomes.

Course Objectives

Knowing

• Become familiar with the text of Jonah, including translation (exegetical) questions.
• Understand Jonah in relation to the latter prophets and the scroll of the twelve.
• Appreciate diverse perspectives of literary analysis of Jonah in Jewish and Christian
traditions.
• Become familiar with interpretations of Jonah from pre-Christian times to the present.

Being

• Becoming Christ-like in forgiving others because they know not what they do.
• Responding to injustice and wrong without hate and a quest for revenge.
• Practicing love as Christ loved us and gave himself for us (Eph. 5:2).
• Dealing with anger in a mature and responsible manner.

Doing

• Preach and teach Jonah to challenge vengeful attitudes and inspire Christian perspectives.
• Correct false emphases on what is important in the book of Jonah.
• Demonstrate forgiveness with help from examples like those of Sokreaksa Himm (see
below).

Course Texts

Required Texts

Kevin J. Youngblood. Jonah, God’s Scandalous Mercy. Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on

the Old Testament 28. 2nd edition. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2019.

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Ehud Ben Zvi. The Signs of Jonah: Reading and Rereading in Ancient Yehud. JSOTSup 367.
Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2003.

Biblical Studies Specialization

Susan Niditch. Jonah: A Commentary. Hermeneia. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2023.

Pastoral Studies Specialization

Janet Howe Gaines. Forgiveness in a Wounded World: Jonah's Dilemma. Atlanta/Leiden:

Society of Biblical Literature/Brill, 2003.

Course Topics

September 11

Introduction to Prophecy and the Scroll of the Twelve (The Minor Prophets)

September 18

Textual History of Jonah (Masoretic, Qumran, Septuagint)

Jonah Among the Twelve Prophets

September 25

Historical Jonah and Jonah the Hebrew

October 2

The Book of Jonah (Genre, Purpose, Function)

October 16

Jonah at Sea (Jonah 1:1–2:1)

October 23

Prayer of Jonah (Jonah 2:2–11)

October 30

What is evil? (Jonah 3:1–4:3)

November 6

Is it Good for You to be Angry? (Jonah 4:4–11)

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November 13

Theology of Mercy and Judgment (Jonah 4:2, Ex. 34:6; Ps. 103:8)

November 20

Practice of Forgiveness (Story of Sokreaksa Himm)

Himm was left for dead with his family in a mass grave in the Cambodian killing fields in 1975;
he went back to forgive his killers, begin a school, and a church. More recently he visited the
scene of the grave. His book is called After the Heavy Rain. If possible, he will join in person for
this session to tell his story.

November 27

Jonah and Jesus: The Sign of Jonah

December 4

Jonah and the Church

Course Assignments and Grading.

1. Discussion questions posted on Avenue to Learn (20%)

The following are sample topics that might serve for threads of discussion that will lead
off each week. Others will be added as issues are brought up in discussions that take
place during class times. Students are required to initiate threads as well as respond to
them. Students may introduce new topics. Interaction with the discussion is expected
each week. The requirement is that each student initiate at least six threads over the
semester and that there be at least one response each week.

a. Literary Genre of Jonah

b. Mercy and Justice
c. Jonah and the Day of the Lord

2. Jonah as a Prophet (1000–1500 words, due Sept. 25, 20%)

Jonah the prophet preached restoration to Jeroboam in 2 Kings 14:25–27, who by

prophetic standards was as wicked as any of the kings of Assyria, but Jonah in the
prophetic book preached judgment against Nineveh. The book of Jonah would be read
with reference to the historical Jonah. Describe the times of the historical Jonah and what
other prophets had to say about those times. Evaluate how knowledge of this background
impacts a reading of the book.

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3. Genre and Intent of Jonah (2000 words, due Oct. 30, 25%)

Ehud Ben Zvi believes the book of Jonah was written by literati of Jerusalem in the
Persian period as a means of discussing their concept of God and related questions. This
discussion also reveals a lot about them, not just what they might have thought about
other groups. Evaluate Ben Zvi’s analysis of Jonah and defend your own position the
genre of Jonah and the purpose of the composition.

4. Research Papers (2500 words, due Nov. 27, 35%)

a. Pastoral Studies Major

Forgiveness is a discounted value in a world obsessed with political correctness.

Every pastor needs to have a biblical theology of forgiveness. Can one forgive those
that think they have done no wrong? How does one forgive an abuser and terminate
the abuse? How does one forgive wrongs of the past committed collectively?

Janet Howe Gaines focuses on the lessons Jonah has for the importance of
forgiveness. Evaluate the way in which Gaines develops the topic of forgiveness in
the book of Jonah. From your own research of Jonah, in connection with other
scriptures including the New Testament, explain how you would address the complex
questions of forgiveness using the message of the book of Jonah.

This paper should be an example of practice led research. Everyone has experience in
dealing with wrongs. Research the topic of forgiveness to explain how a pastor or
teacher can deal with the question of forgiveness in the various ways it must be
exercised.

b. Biblical Studies Major

Using the commentaries of Niditch and Youngblood, develop a theology of Jonah in

which you defend what you believe to be the message of the book for the
contemporary reader. This research must include a theology of the justice and mercy
of God as understood by the author of Jonah and the way other scriptures are alluded
to in developing this theology.

Summary of Assignments

1. Weekly discussion on Avenue to Learn, 20%.

2. Jonah as a prophet, Sept. 25, 20%.
3. Genre and Intent of Jonah, Oct. 30, 25%.
4. Research paper, Nov. 27, 35%.

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Course Policies

Academic Honesty

Academic dishonesty is not qualitatively different from other types of dishonesty. It consists of
misrepresenting the ownership of written work by deception or by other fraudulent means. In an
academic setting this may include any number of forms such as: copying or using unauthorized
aids in tests, examinations; plagiarism, i.e., submitting work that is not one’s own (regardless of
the means of its production) but passing it off as if it is; submitting work for credit in a course for
which credit is being or has already been given, unless the previously submitted work was
presented as such to the instructor of the second course and has been deemed acceptable for
credit by the instructor of that course; aiding and abetting another student’s dishonesty; giving
false information for the purposes of gaining admission or credit; giving false information for the
purposes of obtaining deferred examinations or extension of deadlines; forging or falsifying
McMaster University or McMaster Divinity College documents.

AODA

In accordance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), the content of
this course is intended to be accessible to all students who are enrolled in the course, including
those with disabilities. If a student requires accommodation to participate fully in this course,
that student is to contact SAS at McMaster University, who will then work directly with the
McMaster Divinity College Registrar to negotiate reasonably appropriate accommodation for the
student. The MDC Registrar will communicate with faculty regarding necessary
accommodations. Please note that an accommodation is not retroactive and must be requested in
advance to allow sufficient time for implementation.

Gender Inclusive Language

McMaster Divinity College uses inclusive language for human beings in worship services,
student written materials, and all its publications. It is expected that inclusive language will be
used in chapel services and all MDC assignments. In reference to biblical texts, the integrity of
the original expressions and the names of God should be respected, but you will need to use
gender-inclusive language for humans, and you will need to quote from a gender-inclusive
version such as, for example, the following: NRSV (1989), NCV (1991), TEV/GNB/GNT
(1992), CEV (1995), NLT (1996), NIV (2011), and the CEB (2011).

Bookstore

All required textbooks for this class are available from the Hurlburt Family Bookstore located
beside the entrance to the Nathaniel H. Parker Memorial Chapel of McMaster Divinity College.
To purchase in advance, you may contact the bookstore manager, Bernice Quek, by phone at
416.620.2934 or 416.668.3434 (mobile); or by email at books@readon.ca. The Hurlburt Family
Bookstore also carries other books and merchandise and is open throughout the academic year
during posted hours.

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Bibliography

Commentaries

Allen, Leslie C. The Books of Joel, Obadiah, Jonah and Malachi. NICOT. Grand Rapids:
Eerdmans, 1978.

Baldwin, Joyce. “Jonah.” In The Minor Prophets: An Exegetical and Expository Commentary,
edited by Thomas Edward McComiskey, 543–90. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2009.

Boice, James Montgomery. “Jonah.” In The Minor Prophets, Vol 1: Hosea–Jonah, 261–301. 2
vols. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2006.

Bruckner, James K. Jonah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah: The NIV Application Commentary
from Biblical Text to Contemporary Life. NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 2004.

Cary, Phillip. Jonah. Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible. Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2008.

Chisholm, Robert B. “A Wayward Prophet Learns a Lesson (Jonah).” In Handbook on the

Prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Minor Prophets, 406–16.
Grand Rapids: Baker, 2009.

Dempsey, Carol J. “Jonah: ‘Out of the Belly of Sheol I Cried, and You Heard My Voice.’”
In The Prophets: A Liberation–Critical Reading, 121–8. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2000.

Erickson, Amy. Jonah: Introduction and Commentary. Illuminations Commentary Series. Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 2021.

Fretheim, Terence E. The Message of Jonah: A Theological Commentary. Minneapolis:

Augsburg, 1977.

Havea, Jione. Jonah: An Earth Bible Commentary. London: T&T Clark, 2020

Hunter, Alastair G. The Judgment of Jonah: Yahweh, Jerusalem and Nineveh. LHBOTS 642.
London: T&T Clark, 2022.

Jenson, Philip Peter. Obadiah, Jonah, Micah: A Theological Commentary. LHBOTS 496. New
York: T&T Clark, 2008.

Limburg, James. Jonah: A Commentary. OTL. Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster/John Knox

Press, 1993.

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Mitchell, Hinckley G., et al. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Haggai, Zechariah,
Malachi, and Jonah. ICC. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1980.

Niditch, Susan. Jonah: A Commentary. Hermeneia. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2023.

O’Day, Gail R., and David L Petersen. Theological Bible Commentary. Louisville: Westminster
John Knox, 2009.

Patterson, Richard D. and Andrew E. Hill. Minor Prophets: Hosea–Malachi. Cornerstone

Biblical Commentary 10. Carol Stream: Tyndale House, 2008.

Roop, Eugene F. Ruth, Jonah, Esther. Believers Church Bible Commentary. Scottdale: Herald,
2002.

Salters, Robert B. Jonah & Lamentations. OTG. Sheffield: JSOT, 1994.

Sasson, Jack M. Jonah: A New Translation with Introduction, Commentary, and Interpretation.
Anchor Bible 24B. New York: Doubleday, 1990.

Southwell, Peter J. M. “Jonah” In The Oxford Bible Commentary, edited by John Barton et al.,
593–94. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.

Shepherd, Michael B. A Commentary on the Book of the Twelve: The Minor Prophets. Kregel
Exegetical Library. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2018.

Simon, Uriel. Jonah. The JPS Bible Commentary. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society,
1999.

Smith, Billy K., and Franklin S Page. Amos, Obadiah, Jonah. NAC 19B. Nashville: Broadman &
Holman, 1995.

Sweeney, Marvin A, et al. “Jonah.” In The Twelve Prophets, 314–43. Berit Olam. Collegeville:
Liturgical, 2000.

Tucker, W. Dennis. Jonah: A Handbook on the Hebrew Text. Waco: Baylor University Press,
2006.

Watts, John D. W. The Books of Joel, Obadiah, Jonah, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah. CBC.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1975.

Wolff, Hans W. Obadiah and Jonah: A Commentary. Minneapolis: SPCK, 1986.

Youngblood, Kevin J. Jonah, God’s Scandalous Mercy. Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on

the Old Testament 28. 2nd edition. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2019.

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OT3XJ3 Preaching Jonah: Fall 2023

Textual and Linguistic Studies

Andersen, Francis I., and A. Dean Forbes. A Linguistic Concordance of Ruth and Jonah: Hebrew
Vocabulary and Idiom. The Computer Bible 9. Wooster: Biblical Research Associates,
1976.

Bazzana, Giovanni B. “Cucurbita super caput ionae Translation and Theology in the Old Latin
Tradition.” VT 60 (2010) 309–22.

Bergen, Robert D. “A Textual–Linguistic Approach to the Biblical Hebrew Narrative of Jonah.”

In Biblical Hebrew and Discourse Linguistics, edited by Robert D. Bergen, 221–45.
Dallas: Summer Institute of Linguistics, 1994.

Cross, Frank Moore. “The Prosody of Lamentations 1 and the Psalm of Jonah.” In From Epic to
Canon: History and Literature in Ancient Israel, 99–134. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins
University Press, 1998.

Dogniez, Cécile. “The LXX translation of Jonah 1:6: Text–Critical and Exegetical
Considerations.” In Die Septuaginta–Orte und Intentionen: 5, edited by Siegfried
Kreuzer et al., 645–54. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2016.

Dyck, Elmer H. “Canon and Interpretation: Recent Canonical Approaches and the Book of
Jonah.” PhD diss., McGill University, 1988.

–––. “Jonah Among the Prophets: A Study in Canonical Context.” JETS 33 (1990) 63–73.

Feldman, Louis H. “Josephus’ Interpretation of Jonah.” AJSR 17 (1992) 1–29.

Gordon, R. P. “The Targum to the Minor Prophets and the Dead Sea Texts: Textual and
Exegetical Notes.” RevQ 8 (1974) 425–29.

Guillaume, Philippe. “The Unlikely Malachi–Jonah Sequence 4QXIIa.” JHS 7 (2007) 1–10.

Harper, Joshua L. “Shall I Surely Translate This? The Hebrew Infinitive Absolute in the Greek
Twelve Prophets.” JSCS 49 (2016) 81–96.

Holmstedt, Robert D. “Word Order and Information Structure in Ruth and Jonah: A Generative–
Typological Analysis.” JSS 54 (2009) 111–39.

Holmstedt, Robert D. and Alexander T. Kirk. “Subversive Boundary Drawing in Jonah: The
Variation of ‫ אשׁר‬and ‫ שׁ‬as Literary Code–Switching.” VT 66 (2016) 542–55.

Houk, Cornelius B. “Linguistic Patterns in Jonah.” JSOT 77 (1998) 81–102.

Jones, Barry Alan. 1995. The Formation of the Book of the Twelve: A Study in Text and Canon.
SBLDS 149. Atlanta: Scholars, 1995.

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Kamp, Albert H. Inner Worlds: A Cognitive–Linguistic Approach to the Book of Jonah. BibInt
68. Boston: Brill, 2004.

Kim, Yoo Ki. “The Function of HYṬB in Jonah 4 and its translation.” Bib 90 (2009) 389–93.

Love, Nathan Patrick. “Translating Jonah 2.9: Looking for a Breath of fresh air.” BT 64 (2013)
266–83.

Marx, A. “Syntax and Style in the Book of Jonah.” In Prophecy: Essays Presented to Georg
Fohrer on His Sixty–Fifth Birthday, 6 September 1980, edited by Georg Fohrer et al.,
121–30. BZAW 150. Berlin: de Gruyter, 1980.

McKenzie, Steven L., et al. “Underwater Archaeology: The Compositional Layers of the Book
of Jonah.” VT 70 (2020) 83–103.

Meier, Samuel A. Themes and Transformation in Old Testament Prophecy, Downers Grove:
InterVarsity, 2009.

Muraoka, Takamitsu. “A Case of Diglossia in the Book of Jonah?” VT 62 (2012) 129–31.

Thompson, J. David. A Critical Concordance to the Septuagint: Jonah. The Computer Bible 81.
Lewiston: Mellen, 2000.

Ulrich, Eugene, et al. Qumran Cave 4. X: The Prophets. DJD 15. Oxford: Clarendon, 1997.

Literary Studies

Alfaro, Joshua. “The Old Greek of Jonah and Its Revisions.” Biblische Notizen 190 (2021) 87–
99.

Barré, Michael. “Jonah 2:9 and the structure of Jonah’s Prayer.” Bib 72 (1991) 237–48.

Benckhuysen, Amanda W. “Revisiting the Psalm of Jonah.” CTJ 47 (2012) 5–31.

Bolin, Thomas H. Freedom beyond Forgiveness: The Book of Jonah Re–Examined. JSOTSup
236. Sheffield: Sheffield, 1997.

Bosma, Carl J. “Jonah 1:9–An Example of Elenctic Testimony.” CTJ 48 (2013) 65–90.

Craig Jr., Kenneth M. A Poetics of Jonah: Art in the Service of Ideology. Columbia: University
of South Carolina Press, 1993.

Cerone, Jacob N. Into the Deep: A Comparative Discourse Analysis of the Masoretic and
Septuagint Versions of Jonah. Glossahouse Thesis Series 2. Wilmore: GlossaHouse,
2016.

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Christensen, Duane L. “The Song of Jonah: A Metrical Analysis.” JBL 104 (1985) 217–31.

Claassens, L. Juliana. “Surfing with Jonah: Reading Jonah as a Postcolonial Trauma narrative.”
JSOT 45 (2021) 576–87.

Cook, Stephen Derek. ““Who knows?” Reading the Book of Jonah as a Satirical Challenge to
Theodicy of the Exile.” PhD diss., The University of Sydney, 2019.

Crouch, Walter B. “To Question and End, To End A Question: Opening the Closure of The Book
of Jonah.” JSOT 62 (1994) 101–12.

Dozeman, Thomas B. “Inner–Biblical Interpretation of Yahweh’s Gracious and Compassionate

Character.” JBL 108 (1989) 207–23.

Edelman, Diana. “Jonah Among the Twelve in the MT: The Triumph of Torah over Prophecy.”
In The Production of Prophecy: Constructing prophecy and prophets in Yehud, edited by
Diana Edelman et al., 150–67. Abingdon: Routledge, 2014.

Ferguson, Paul. “Who was the ‘King of Nineveh’ in Jonah 3:6.” TynBul 47 (1996) 301–14.

Golden, Kevin S. “The Waves of the Deluge Breaking on Jonah: The Intertextual Use of the
Noachic Narrative in Jonah.” PhD diss., Concordia Seminary, 2010.

Good, Edwin M. Irony in the Old Testament. 2nd ed. BLS 3. Sheffield: Almond, 1981.

Gordon, R. P. “Jonah from the Perspective of its Audience.” In “The Place Is Too Small for
Us”: The Israelite Prophets in Recent Scholarship. Sources for Biblical and Theological
Study 5. Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 1995.

Goswell, Gregory. “Jonah among the Twelve Prophets.” JBL 135 (2016) 283–99.

Guillaume, Philippe. “The End of Jonah is the Beginning of Wisdom.” Bib 87 (2006) 243–50.

Gunn, D. M., and Danna Nolan Fewell. Narrative in the Hebrew Bible. Oxford Bible Series.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993.

Habib, Sandy. “Who Converts Whom?: A Narrative—Critical Exegesis of the Book of Jonah.”
BTB 44 (2014) 67–75.

Harrison Jr., C. Robert. “The Unity of the Minor Prophets in the Septuagint.” BIOSCS 21 (1988)
55–72.

van Heerden, Schalk Willem. “Shades of Green or Grey?: Towards an Ecological Interpretation
of Jonah 4:6–11.” OTE 30 (2017) 459–77.

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Kahn, Pinchas. “The Epilogue to Jonah.” JBQ 28 (2000) 146–55.

Kaltner, John, et al. “Jonah in the Book of the Twelve.” In The Book of the Twelve, edited by
Lena-Sofia Tiemeyer and Jakob Wöhrle, 164–75. Leiden: Brill, 2020.

Kaplan, Jonathan. “Jonah and Moral Agency.” JSOT 43 (2018) 146–62.

Kelly, Joseph Ryan. “Joel, Jonah, and the YHWH Creed: Determining the Trajectory of the
Literary Influence.” JBL 132 (2013) 805–26.

Keiter, Sheila Tuller. “Noah and the Dove: The Integral Connection between Noah and Jonah.”
JBQ 40 (2012) 261–64.

Kelsey, Marian. “The Book of Jonah and the Theme of Exile.” JSOT 45 (2020) 128–40.

Kennedy, John. On the Book of Jonah: A Monograph. Whitefish: Kessinger, 2010.

Kim, Hyun Chul Paul. “Jonah Read Intertextually.” JBL 126 (2007) 497–528.

Kozlova, Ekaterina. “Jonah 2: A Death Liturgy for the Doomed Prophet.” The Journal of
Hebrew Scriptures 20 (2020) 1–20.

Tiemeyer, Lena–Sofia. “Attitudes to the Cult in Jonah: In the Book of Jonah, the Book of the
Twelve, and Beyond.” In Priests and Cults in the Book of the Twelve, edited by Lena–
Sofia Tiemeyer, 115–30. ANEM 14. Atlanta: SBL, 2016.

Lacocque, André and PierreEmmanuel Lacocque. Jonah: A Psycho–Religious Approach to the

Prophet. Studies on Personalities of the Old Testament. Columbia: University of South
Carolina Press, 1990.

Landes, George M., et al. On the Way to Nineveh: Studies in Honor of George M. Landes. ASOR
Books 4. Atlanta: Scholars, 1999.

Lasine, Stuart. “Jonah’s Complexes and Our Own: Psychology and the Interpretation of the
Book of Jonah.” JSOT 41 (2016) 237–60.

LeCureux, Jason T. The Thematic Unity of the Book of the Twelve. Hebrew Bible Monographs
41. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix, 2012.

–––. “Reading Jonah as ‘History’?: The Implications of Canonical Location for Jonah and the
Book of the Twelve.” Pacifica 28 (2015) 68–78.

Lovelace, Vanessa. “Jonah.” In The Oxford Handbook of the Minor Prophets. edited by Julia M.
O’Brien, 449–69. New York: Oxford University Press, 2021.

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Tervanotko, Hanna and Kyle Schofield. “‘Let us Cast Lots, So That We May Know’ (Jonah 1:7):
Oracle of Lot as a Ritual-Like Activity in Ancient Jewish Texts." Biblical Interpretation
30 (2022) 329–50.

Tiemyer, Lena-Sofia. “Jonah in 20th Century Literature.” Religions 13 (2022) 661.

Tillema, Aron. “The Book of Jonah in Recent Research.” CBR 21 (2023) 145–77.

Troyer, Kristin De, et al. Prophecy After the Prophets?: The Contribution of the Dead Sea
Scrolls to the Understanding of Biblical and Extra–Biblical Prophecy. CBET 52.
Leuven: Peeters, 2009.

Magonet, Jonathan. Form and Meaning: Studies in Literary Techniques in the Book of Jonah.
BLS. Sheffield: Almond, 1983.

Mann, Steven T. “Performative Prayers of a Prophet: Investigating the Prayers of Jonah as

Speech Acts.” CBQ 79 (2017) 20–40.

McNinch, Timothy C. “‘Who Knows?’: A Bakhtinian Reading of Carnivalesque Motifs in

Jonah.” VT 72 (2022) 699–715.

Meredith, Christopher. “The Conundrum of ḥtr in Jonah 1:13.” VT 64 (2014) 147–52.

Merrill, Eugene H. “The Sign of Jonah.” JETS 23 (1980) 23–30.

Muldoon, Catherine L. In Defense of Divine Justice: An Intertextual Approach to the Book of

Jonah. CBQMS 47. Washington: Catholic Biblical Association of America, 2010.

Pede, Elena Di, and Donatella Scaiola. The Book of the Twelve – One Book or Many?: Metz
Conference Proceedings 5–7 November 2015. FAT 2. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2016.

Person Jr., Raymond F. In Conversation with Jonah: Conversation Analysis, Literary Criticism,
and the Book of Jonah. JSOTSup 220. Sheffield: Sheffield, 1996.

Peters, Kurtis. “Jonah 1 and the Battle with the Sea: Myth and Irony.” SJOT 32 (2018) 157–65.

Perkins, Larry. “The Septuagint of Jonah: Aspects of Literary Analysis Applied to Biblical
Translation.” BIOSCS 20 (1987) 43–53.

Polak, Frank. Discourse, Dialogue, and Debate in the Bible: Essays in Honour of Frank H.
Polak. Edited by Athalya Brenner–Idan. Hebrew Bible Monographs 63. Sheffield:
Sheffield, 2014.

Redditt, Paul L, and Aaron Schart. Thematic Threads in the Book of the Twelve. BZAW 325.
Berlin: de Gruyter, 2003.

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Robinson, Bernard P. “Jonah’s Qiqayon Plant.” ZAW 97 (1985) 390–403.

Robson, James. “Undercurrents in Jonah.” TynBul 64 (2013) 189–215.

Ron, Zvi. “Jonah Chapter 2 as a Prophetic Vision.” The Jewish Bible Quarterly 50 (2022) 174–
80.

Ryu, Chesung Justin. “Silence as Resistance: A Postcolonial Reading of the Silence of Jonah in
Jonah 4.1–11.” JSOT 34 (2009) 195–218.

Saldivar, Samuel. “A Literary, Theological, and Canonical Analysis of the Book of Jonah.” PhD
diss., Bob Jones University, 2006.

Schart, Aaron. “The Jonah–Narrative within the Book of the Twelve.” In Perspectives on the
Formation of the Book of the Twelve: Methodological Foundations, Redactional
Processes, Historical Insights, edited by Rainer Albertz et al., 109–28. BZAW 433.
Berlin: de Gruyter, 2012.

Schellenberg, Annette. “An Anti–Prophet among the Prophets?: On the Relationship of Jonah to
Prophecy.” JSOT 39 (2015) 353–71.

Sherwood, Yvonne. “Cross-Currents in the Book of Jonah: Some Jewish and Cultural Midrashim
on a Traditional Text.” BibInt 6 (1998) 49–79.

Seidler, Ayelet. ““Fasting,” “Sackcloth,” and “Ashes”—From Nineveh to Shushan.” VT 69

(2019) 117–34.

–––. “Cross–Currents in the Book of Jonah: Some Jewish and Cultural Midrashim on a
Traditional Text. BibInt 6 (1998) 49–79.

–––. “‘For He Had Told Them’: Mordecai the Jew and Jonah the Hebrew.” Scandinavian
Journal of the Old Testament 34 (2020) 283–301.

Strawn, Brent A. “On Vomiting: Leviticus, Jonah, Ea(a)rth.” CBQ 74 (2012) 445–64.

–––. “Jonah’s Sailors and Their Lot Casting: A Rhetorical–Critical Observation.” Bib 91 (2010)
66–76.

Stordalen, Terje. “Jonah and the other: a discourse on interpretative competence.” In Imagining
the Other and Constructing Israelite Identity in the Early Second Temple Period, edited
by Ehud Ben Zvi et al., 201–18. LHBOTS 456. London: T&T Clark, 2014.

Trible, Phyllis. Rhetorical Criticism: Context, Method, and the Book of Jonah. Guides to Biblical
Scholarship: Old Testament Series. Minneapolis: Fortress, 1994.

Trumbull, H. Cray. “Jonah in Nineveh.” JBL 11 (1892) 53–60.

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Turner, Mary Donovan. “Jonah 3:10–4:11.” Int 52 (1998) 411–14.

Vaillancourt, Ian J. “The Pious Prayer of an Imperfect Prophet: The Psalm of Jonah in its
Narrative Context.” JESOT 4 (2015) 171–89.

Vermeulen, Karolien. “Save or Sack the City: The Fate of Jonah’s Nineveh from a Spatial
Perspective.” JSOT 42 (2017) 233–46.

Watts, James W. Psalm and Story: Inset Hymns in Hebrew Narrative. JSOTSup 139. Sheffield:
JSOT, 1992.

Weitzman, Steven Phillip. “Sing to the Lord a New Song: The Role of Songs Within Biblical
Narrative and Their Resonance in Early Biblical Interpretation.” PhD diss., Harvard
University, 1993.

Wendland, Ernst R. “Text Analysis and the Genre of Jonah (Part 1).” JETS 39 (1996) 191–206.

–––. “Text Analysis and the Genre of Jonah (Part 2).” JETS 39 (1996) 373–95.

Wöhrle, Jakob. “A Prophetic Reflection on Divine Forgiveness: The Integration of the Book of
Jonah into the Book of the Twelve.” JHS 9 (2009) 2–17.

Wilson, Robert R., et al. Thus Says the Lord: Essays on the Former and Latter Prophets in
Honor of Robert R. Wilson. LHBOTS 502. New York: T&T Clark, 2009.

Wiseman, Donald J. “Jonah’s Nineveh.” TynBul 30 (1979) 29–51.

Yates, Gary. “The “Weeping Prophet” and “Pouting Prophet” in Dialogue: Intertextual
Connections Between Jeremiah and Jonah.” JETS 59 (2016) 223–39.

Theological Studies

Anderson, Joel E. “Jonah in Mark and Matthew: Creation, Covenant, Christ, and the Kingdom of
God.” BTB 42 (2012) 172–86.

Andrews, Michael W. “The Sign of Jonah: Jesus in the Heart of the Earth.” JETS 61 (2018) 105–
19.

Barrett, Rob. “Meaning More than They Say: The Conflict between YHWH and Jonah.” JSOT
37 (2012) 237–57.

Bolin, Thomas M. “‘Should I Not Also Pity Nineveh?’ Divine Freedom in the Book of Jonah.”
JSOT 67 (1995) 109–20.

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Chow, Simon. The Sign of Jonah Reconsidered: A Study of its Meaning in the Gospel Traditions.
Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell, 1995.

Ellul, Jacques. The Judgment of Jonah. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1971.

France, R. T. Jesus and the Old Testament: His Application of Old Testament Passages to
Himself and His Mission. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1971.

Forti, Tova. “Of Ships and Seas, and Fish and Beasts: Viewing the Concept of Universal
Providence in the Book of Jonah through the Prism of Psalms.” JSOT 35 (2011) 359–74.

Fretheim, Terence E. “Jonah and Theodicy.” ZAW 90 (1978) 227–37.

Gaines, Janet Howe. Forgiveness in a Wounded World: Jonah's Dilemma. Atlanta: SBL, 2003.

Green, Barbara. Jonah's Journeys. Collegeville: Liturgical, 2005.

Handy, Lowell K. Jonah's World: Social Science and the Reading of Prophetic Story. London:
Equinox, 2008.

Hannan, Sean. “Nineveh Overturned: Augustine and Chrysostom on the Threat of Jonah.”
Journal of Early Christian Studies 28 (2020) 61–87.

Human, Dirk J. “Prayers in the Book of Jonah: Reflections on Different ‘Israelite’ Identities?” In
Prayers and the Construction of Israelite Identity, edited by Susanne Gillmayr–Bucher
and Maria Hausal, 33–53. AIL 35. Atlanta: SBL, 2019.

Jenks, Gregory C. “The Sign of Jonah: Reading Jonah on the Boundaries and from the
Boundaries.” In Bible, Borders, Belonging(s): Engaging Readings from Oceania, edited
by Jione Havea et al., 223–40. Atlanta: SBL, 2014.

Kaiser, Walter C. Mission in the Old Testament: Israel As a Light to the Nations. 2nd ed. Grand
Rapids: Baker, 2012.

Keller, Timothy. The Prodigal Prophet: Jonah and the Mystery of God's Mercy. New York:
Viking, 2018.

Koch, Timothy R. “The Book of Jonah and a Reframing of Israelite Theology: A Reader–
Response Approach.” PhD diss., Boston University, 2003.

Lacocque, André, and Pierre–Emmanuel Lacocque. The Jonah Complex. Atlanta: John Knox,
1981.

Lasine, Stuart. Jonah and the Human Condition: Life and Death in Yahweh’s World. LHBOTS
688. London: T&T Clark, 2020.

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Levine, Etan. “Jonah as Philosophical Book.” ZAW 96 (1984) 235–45.

Martin, Lee Roy. “Jonah.” In The Book of the Twelve: A Pentecostal Commentary, edited by J.
C. Thomas, 259–98. Leiden: Brill, 2020.

Nixon, Rosemary A. The Message of Jonah: Presence in the Storm. The Bible Speaks Today.
Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2003.

Marcus, David. From Balaam to Jonah: Anti–Prophetic Satire in the Hebrew Bible. Atlanta:
Scholars, 1995.

Millgram, Hillel I. Defiant Prophets: Jonah, Balaam, Jeremiah and Their Rebellion Against
God. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2022.

Perry, T. A. The Honeymoon is Over: Jonah's Argument with God. Peabody: Hendrickson, 2006.

Sauter Gerhard. “Jonah 2: A Prayer out of the Deep.” In A God So Near: Essays on Old
Testament Theology in Honor of Patrick D. Miller, edited by Brent a Strawn et al., 145–
52. Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 2003.

Scialabba, Daniela. Creation and Salvation: Models of Relationship between the God of Israel
and the Nations in the Book of Jonah, in Psalm 33 (MT and LXX) and in the Novel
‘Joseph and Aseneth.’ Forschungen zum Alten Testament 2. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck,
2019.

Smith–Christopher, Daniel L. Jonah, Jesus, and Other Good Coyotes: Speaking Peace to Power
in the Bible. Nashville: Abingdon, 2007.

Sweeney, Marvin A. Tanak: A Theological and Critical Introduction to the Jewish Bible.
Minneapolis: Fortress, 2012.

Tiemeyer, Lena-Sofia. Jonah through the Centuries. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2022.

Timmer, Daniel C. A Gracious and Compassionate God: Mission, Salvation and Spirituality in
the Book of Jonah. New Studies in Biblical Theology 26. Nottingham, England: Apollos,
2011.

–––. “Jonah and Mission: Missiological Dichotomy, Biblical Theology, and the via tertia.” WTJ
70 (2008) 159–75.

Wolff, Hans W. Studien zum Jonabuch. Neukirchen–Vluyn, Germany: Neukirchener Verlag,

1965.

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Preaching

Achtemeier, Elizabeth. “Preaching from the Prophets.” In Preaching from the Old Testament,
109–36. 1st ed. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1989.

–––. “Preaching from the Book of Jonah.” In Preaching from the Minor Prophets: Texts and
Sermon Suggestions, 55–63. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998.

Brueggemann, Walter. “Preaching from the Prophets.” In Preaching from the Old Testament,
71–110. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2019.

Byas, Jared. Jonah for Normal People: A Guide to the Most Misunderstood Prophet in the Bible.
Perkiomenville, PA: The Bible for Normal People, 2022.

Kim, Matthew. “Jonah’s shady Outlook from His Sunny Lookout: Jonah 1–4.” In Models for
Biblical Preaching: Expository Sermons from the Old Testament, edited by Haddon W.
Robinson et al., 159–72. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2014.

Lawson, Steven J. “The Power of Biblical Preaching: An Expository Study of Jonah 3:1–10.”
BSac 158 (2001) 331–46.

Lo, Alison. “Preaching the Minor Prophets.” In He Began with Moses: Preaching the Old
Testament Today, edited by Grenville J. R. Kent et al., 197–214. Downers Grove: IVP,
2010.

Moberly, R. W. L. “Preaching for a Response? Jonah’s Message to the Ninevites Reconsidered.”

VT 53 (2003) 156–68.

Rutledge, Fleming. “Nineveh “R” Us.” In And God Spoke to Abraham: Preaching from the Old
Testament, 103–7. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2011.

Sailhamer, John H. “Preaching from the Prophets.” In Preaching the Old Testament, edited by
Scott M. Gibson, 115–36. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2006.

Sherwood, Yvonne. A Biblical Text and its Afterlives: The Survival of Jonah in Western Culture.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.

Walsh, Carey. “Between Text and Sermon: Jonah 3.” Int 69 (2015) 338–40.

Disclaimer: This syllabus is the property of the instructor and is prepared with currently available information. The
instructor reserves the right to make changes and revisions up to and including the first day of class.

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