The dominant reading of the book of Jonah—that the hapless prophet Jonah is a lesson in not trying to run away from God—oversimplifies a profoundly literary biblical text, argues Amy Erickson. Likewise, the more recent understanding of Jonah as satire is problematic in its own right, laden as it is with anti-Jewish undertones and the superimposition of a Christian worldview onto a Jewish text. How can we move away from these stale interpretations to recover the richness of meaning that belongs to this short but noteworthy book of the Bible?
This Illuminations commentary delves into Jonah’s reception history in Christian, Jewish, and Islamic contexts while also exploring its representations in visual arts, music, literature, and pop culture. After this thorough contextualization, Erickson provides a fresh translation and exegesis, paving the way for pastors and scholars to read and utilize the book of Jonah as the provocative, richly allusive, and theologically robust text that it is.
The Illuminations Commentary Series is an innovative resource for all who are interested in engaging the Bible in depth. The author of each volume employs the full range of biblical scholarship to illumine the text from a wide variety of perspectives, including the engagement and impact of the text through the centuries.
The volumes are designed to be accessible and enjoyable. To that end, discussion of each portion of the text begins with the author’s introduction, written fluidly and with minimal use of foreign languages, technical jargon, reporting of alternative proposals, and citations of secondary literature. Most readers may find it sufficient to read this portion and turn to the following material only for reference.
The commentary that follows the introduction provides a thorough accounting of the text in its original language and an engagement with other scholars. With both the introduction and commentary sections, each volume in the Illuminations series offers a big-picture understanding of the biblical book in question without sacrificing scholarly depth.
