The Book of Jonah has been on my mind for the past several weeks. I don’t know why one of the most popular Old Testament stories has been in my thoughts lately. I decided to embrace those thoughts rather than push them away; my plan was to first revisit the Book of Jonah, which superficially reads like a magical realist short story, and then to read a perspective on it from an individual I’ve held in high regard from afar. I came across Rediscovering Jonah by the late Reverend Timothy Keller.

“The Book of Jonah, then, indeed shows us that God is often a confusing, complex character. This is not to deny the historical Christian doctrine of the “simplicity” of God, namely, that God is not a composition of “parts” but rather that all the attributes of God are ultimately one with one another. God does not have a “love” part and a “righteousness” part that must be reconciled. What we see as being in tension is ultimately a perfect unity.”

This paragraph, written by Keller early in the book, establishes for me the tone of Jonah’s journey from evading God’s command to go to Nineveh to ultimately accepting it. Also, Keller examines through Jonah’s story how those who are religious and try to follow God correctly can become self-righteous, prideful, and even bigoted. This simple and popular Old Testament society reveals how religious certainty can backfire in a pluralistic society and provides surprising insight into our world today.

“Jonah’s love for his people and his patriotism—-which were good things–had turned sour. His love of his people had become bigotry, and now, without the hope that Israel would win this international power struggle, his life had lost all meaning. As long as serving God fit into his goals for Israel, he was fine with God. As soon as he had to choose between the true God and the god he actually worshipped, he turned on the true God in anger. Jonah’s particular national identity was more foundational to his self-worth than his role as a servant of the God of all nations. The real God had been just a means to an end. He was using God to serve his real god.” 

Keller expresses a significant point in the above paragraph near the book’s conclusion, detailing Jonah’s anger towards God for prioritizing the salvation of Nineveh’s inhabitants over their destruction, despite their wicked actions. God reveals Jonah’s true feelings as He was extending grace simultaneously. God intended to reveal His divine authority to him, demonstrating His sovereignty over all humanity—both believers who follow Him and non-believers who do not. We are all created in God’s likeness, and if that’s true, then God will act in any way necessary to connect with them. Jonah’s rigid religious beliefs prevented him from seeing God’s intricate character, and his sense of national belonging outweighed his devotion to God.

The dialogue between God and Jonah in Chapter 4 of the Book of Jonah is where Keller most powerfully argues for God’s intricate nature and His capacity to endure a paradox that few of us can grasp. We have to be one side or other, left or right, black or white, up or down…not for heaven’s sake in the middle. Keller shows in his book that God is perfectly fine with that kind of tension and as believers and followers in Him, we must live that tension too.

Rediscovering Jonah is an excellent examination of one of the Bible’s most popular stories and reveals Jonah the prophet’s story is so much more than being swallowed by a great fish and vomited out to go to Nineveh. This short Old Testament story speaks to the full nature of God and how man must accept He wants to have a relationship with everyone not just those who believe and follow him.