Jonah & Nineveh: Beyond the Great Fish

By Erbey Valdez

The book of Jonah is one of the best-known yet most misunderstood books of the Bible. Although widely known for its story of the great fish, many would miss the much greater story contained within its pages. Is the story of Jonah just a fable? Should we dismiss its message as simply an outdated childrens story? Although numerous works have been written on the subject, Jonah & Nineveh will challenge the reader in a variety of ways. Who was Jonah, and why did God choose such a rebellious prophet to fulfill his mission? If the big fish is not the main focus of the story, then what is its message? Is there a hidden meaning contained within Gods choice to save the notoriously hated people of Nineveh? Whether the reader is novice or seasoned, Jonah & Nineveh is sure to enhance the understanding of any student of the book of Jonah and the Bible.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Sep 18, 2017
• ISBN: 9781543450439

Erbey Valdez

Erbey Valdez (MDiv, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary; MTS, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary; MA Ed., Angelo State University; BA Ed., Stephen F. Austin State University) serves as an ordained Baptist Minister and Bible Study teacher in San Antonio, Texas, where he resides with his wife, Maricruz, and his two children, Marco and Cayla. Mr. Valdez has taught biblical studies, done public lectures, and served as pastor and preacher for over 12 years and has over 15 years experience as a public school teacher and school administrator. He and his wife established Possible Marriage Ministries in 2010 and currently serve in marriage ministries throughout the area. Mr. Valdez has two prior publications, Possible, and 101 Tough Christian Questions. He is also an active member of the Evangelical Theological Society and American Mensa Association.

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Copyright © 2017 by Erbey Valdez.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Foreword

Introduction

Chapter 1     A Book Like No Other

Chapter 2     The Lord Calls Jonah

Chapter 3     The Rebel Prophet

Chapter 4     Jonah’s Storm

Chapter 5     The Point Of No Return

Chapter 6     From The Depth Of Sheol

Chapter 7     The Sign Of Jonah…

Chapter 8     Jonah’s Second Chance

Chapter 9     A Wicked City Repents

Chapter 10   A Gracious God Relents

Chapter 11   Where’s Your Compassion?

Conclusion

Bibliography

This book is dedicated to my beautiful wife, Maricruz, a gift of God like no other.

Your love and

support has completed me these past twenty one years.

FOREWORD

How could a man be swallowed by a fish, live inside that fish for three days, and survive? If you think that’s the biggest issue found in the book of Jonah, you really need to read this book. Theologians give attention to the authenticity, theological difficulties, technical concerns, and themes of biblical material. Writers engage readers and transport them to other times and places. Pastors care for the people in their congregations through compassionate ministry and biblical application. Erbey Valdez handles the book of Jonah with a theologian’s mind, a writer’s vision, and pastor’s heart.

It has been my joy over the past fifteen years to teach biblical hermeneutics (interpretation) for a large seminary. Few students have impressed me as much as Erbey Valdez. I’m not the least bit surprised he has written this book. He simply loves the Bible. The events detailed in the prophecy of Jonah took place more than 2,500 years ago. Yet, the major themes of the book are as relevant today as ever. People still struggle with surrendering their personal agenda and assuming God’s agenda. Erbey skillfully examines the text of Jonah but doesn’t leave it there. His explanation of the text leads to application.

The book of Jonah is quite unique. It is both prophecy and narrative. As prophecy, it contains a message from God to a people. As narrative, it has characters, a plot, and a theme. Hybrid genres present unique challenges to interpreters. Erbey navigates the hermeneutical obstacles and never loses sight of the interpreter’s goal; discovering the author’s intended meaning. Whether you are studying the book of Jonah in personal devotion, for biblical exposition, or for academic reasons, your study will be enhanced by the contribution of this book.

Dr. Robert R. Welch, Teaching Pastor, Parkhills Baptist Church, San Antonio, Texas, Adjunct Faculty, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fort Worth, Texas

INTRODUCTION

Most people, if they had really learned to look into their own hearts, would know that they do want, and want acutely, something that cannot be had in this world. There are all sorts of things in this world that offer to give it to you, but they never quite keep their promise.

C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

When I was a sixth grader, growing up in the small West Texas town of Brady, a group of us started the Green House Club. In the back yard of my house, a small, green, wooden storage shed stood clumsily with little to no effective use other than to hold a few of my dad’s gardening tools. My older brothers had used it for a clubhouse and, after they had outgrown it, I decided to follow suit and invite some of my friends to join me. We brought in candles (it had no electricity), board games, an old sofa, and even brought in water guns just in case any defense was needed! At first, it was only three of us, but as word spread, others joined until there were over a dozen in the club. Each day after school, our group would meet at the clubhouse, play games, and tell stories. After a while, we began to feel so important that we began to reject and exclude others from entering. The privileged Green House Club continued for some time until a boy in our class was given a Nintendo game for his birthday and began to invite our friends over to play. Overnight, our club became obsolete! Eventually, only two of us were left to sulk silently in the clubhouse. Finally, we swallowed our pride, closed the doors on the Green House Club, and jumped on our bikes to go join the rest of our friends.

Through this experience I learned a valuable lesson…anything of real value is more enjoyable when we have others with which to share, and what can be of greater value than God’s eternal salvation? In my opinion, there is no OT book that treats the problem of election and exclusivity better than Jonah’s story. For a certain time, Israel was the privileged member of a sanctified club, and she relished in its exclusivity. As a representative of the elect of Israel, Jonah had no interest in sharing God’s election with others, much less the despised Assyrians, but the Lord had a plan that would change Jonah’s worldview. This book attempts to retell the Jonah story of God’s redemptive love with two recipients in mind: Jonah and Nineveh. This is the intent behind the book’s title, for both are equally important to the message of the story. Just as the Elder Son is often overshadowed by the character of the Prodigal, so often is Jonah treated in detail and Nineveh left forgotten. The story is dualistic, and both characters: Jonah, as representative of Israel, and Nineveh, as representative of the Gentiles, must be treated in unison…for the Father had two sons (Lk. 15:11).

There are two questions that have been presented to me in publishing this book, Why did you choose to write a book on Jonah? and "Why did you choose to write a book on Jonah?" In response to the former, it was in the midst of work on my book Second Chances that I developed a chapter uniquely dedicated to the story of Jonah. Immediately, I discovered a redemptive story so great that I soon realized it needed independent development. Although many presume the story highlights a great fish episode, Jonah’s story is actually about God’s redemptive love…for both a rebellious prophet and even a city as wicked as Nineveh.

In response to the former question, I will readily point to the caliber of scholars who have done brilliant work of expositing Jonah’s story and note there are some grand resources on the subject which contain a level of scholarship unmatched by its peers. This current work humbly seeks to join that noble conversation on Jonah, but by no means is intended to serve as a complete authority on the subject. My unique perspective on the topic is not based on my pastoral work nor in my theological training, although I do not minimize the impact of either in this book. Rather, my contribution lies in the wisdom I gained by living out many of the same experiences contained within the story of Jonah…at least metaphorically. I may not have been called to preach to Nineveh, but I was called to preach the Gospel nonetheless. I may not have boarded a vessel headed to Tarshish, but I also rejected the call and ran away. I may not have spent three days and three nights in the belly of a great fish, but I spent years facing the consequences of my rebellion. It is a wonderful thing to expound the biblical text and bring its theological meaning to the forefront, but often it is incomparable to experiential knowledge. Jeffrey D. Arthurs says it well…

Modern listeners tend to locate authority in personal experience. They are eager to listen to those who have been there, and they are skeptical of those who wield authority that comes only from position or "book learning.¹

How right Arthurs is! The comparison to Jonah is made to my shame and to God’s glory, for it is in the connection to all