The book of Jonah is read in its entirety during the afternoon service on the day of Yom Kippur, as the Haftorah, the prophetic reading, appended to the reading of the Law. Jonah is one of the twelve minor prophets. But as against all the rest, his book does not purport to be the prophecy or writing of a prophet: it is rather a portrait of the prophet from the outside, so to speak, revealing a variety of unpleasant (and human) characteristics that would presumably have been concealed had we the words of Jonah himself: and it is this which gives the book its distinctive fascination.

Various reasons are given in Jewish writings for the selection of this prophetic reading on the Day of Atonement: “The Book of Jonah is read . . . in order to teach us that no man may fly away from God. . . . Another reason why we read the Book of Jonah is because it informs us that God pardons and forgives those who turn in Teshuvah [repentance], as we are told in the case of Nineveh. . . . Another reason for reading the Book of Jonah is because the prophecy of Jonah purposes to teach us that the compassions of God extend over all that he has made, even idolaters—then how much more do they extend over Israel!” (Days of Awe, S. Y. Agnon).

A Jonah ben Amittai is mentioned in II Kings 14:25, as a prophet who was a contemporary of Jeroboam II, King of Israel in the 8th century B.C.E. There has been some inconclusive discussion among Biblical scholars as to whether this is the same Jonah, or a different one. In any case, from its style it is quite clear that the Book of Jonah was written centuries later.

Jonah has been a favorite subject for Midrashic commentary. We are told, for example, that the great fish that swallowed Jonah was specially created for this occasion when God created the world. The surprising reaction of Jonah to God’s command is explained by the story that he had previously been given a similar commission to perform in Jerusalem, and that the inhabitants had repented and “averted the evil decree.” Foreseeing a similar reaction in Nineveh, and fearful that his own reputation as a prophet would suffer thereby (or, more charitably, afraid that God himself would suffer in the eyes of the people), he decided to escape.

The version we print here is from the edition of the Holy Scriptures put out by the Jewish Publication Society of America.—Ed.

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Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying: “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim against it; for their wickedness is come up before Me.” But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord; and he went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish, from the presence of the Lord.

But the Lord hurled a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken. And the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god; and they cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it unto them. But Jonah was gone down into the innermost parts of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep. So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him: “What meanest thou that thou sleepest? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.”

And they said every one to his fellow: “Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah. Then said they unto him: “Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us: what is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou?” And he said unto them: “I am a Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who hath made the sea and the dry land.” Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him: “What is this that thou hast done?” For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them.

Then said they unto him: “What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us?” for the sea grew more and more tempestuous. And he said unto them: “Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you; for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you.” Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not; for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them. Wherefore they cried unto the Lord, and said: “We beseech Thee, O Lord, we beseech Thee, let us not perish for this man’s life, and lay not upon us innocent blood; for Thou, O Lord, hast done as it pleased Thee.” So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea; and the sea ceased from its raging. Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly; and they offered a sacrifice unto the Lord, and made vows.

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I

And the Lord prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish’s belly. And he said:

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I called out of mine affliction
Unto the Lord, and He answered me;
Out of the belly of the netherworld cried I,
And Thou heardest my voice.
For Thou didst cast me into the depth,
In the heart of the seas,
And the flood was round about me;
All Thy waves and Thy billows
Passed over me.
And I said: “I am cast out
From before Thine eyes”;
Yet I will look again
Toward Thy holy temple.
The waters compassed me about, even to
    the soul;
The deep was round about me;
The weeds were wrapped about my head.
I went down to the bottoms of the mountains;
The earth with her bars closed upon me for ever;
Yet hast Thou brought up my life from the
    pit,
O Lord my God.
When my soul fainted within me,
I remembered the Lord;
And my prayer came in unto Thee,
Into Thy holy temple.
They that regard lying vanities
Forsake their own mercy.
But I will sacrifice unto Thee
With the voice of thanksgiving;
That which I have vowed I will pay.
Salvation is of the Lord.

And the Lord spoke unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.

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II

And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying: “Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and make unto it the proclamation that I bid thee.” So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city, of three days journey. And Jonah began to enter into the city a day’s journey, and he proclaimed, and said: “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.”

And the people of Nineveh believed God; and they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. And the tidings reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying: “Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing; let them not feed, nor drink water; but let them be covered with sackcloth, both man and beast, and let them cry mightily unto God; yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands. Who knoweth whether God will not turn and repent, and turn away from His fierce anger, that we perish not?”

And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, which He said He would do unto them; and He did it not. But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. And he prayed unto the Lord, and said: “I pray Thee, O Lord, was not this my saying, when I was yet in mine own country? Therefore I fled beforehand unto Tarshish; for I knew that Thou art a gracious God, and compassionate, long-suffering, and abundant in mercy, and repentest Thee of the evil. Therefore now, O Lord, take, I beseech Thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.” And the Lord said: “Art thou greatly angry?”

Then Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city. And the Lord God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his evil. So Jonah was exceeding glad because of the gourd. But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gourd, that it withered. And it came to pass, when the sun arose, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and requested for himself that he might die, and said: “It is better for me to die than to live.” And God said to Jonah: “Art thou greatly angry for the gourd?” And he said: “I am greatly angry, even unto death.” And the Lord said: “Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for which thou hast not labored, neither madest it grow, which came up in a night, and perished in a night; and should not I have pity on Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than six score thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand, and also much cattle?”

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