In 1891, James Bartley was swallowed by a sperm whale. He was rescued 15 hours later and was cut out of the stomach. His skin was white and he had no hair. It was all burnt away by the stomach acid.
This story is likely apocryphal. But if it were true, he would be a modern Jonah.
A Great Fish
The Bible describes the animal which swallows Jonah as a fish. In Hebrew, ‘whales’ tend to be translated from the word ‘Tanin’. This word is also translated as sea-monster. Whether Jonah was taken by a whale or something like a Great White shark is debatable. But the text says a fish and not a sea monster or a whale.
Belly of the Boat
After God speaks to Jonah, he makes the decision to run in the opposite direction to Nineveh. He boards a boat from Joppa and heads westward towards Spain.
A storm rises and Jonah hides beneath the deck. He goes into the ‘belly’ of the boat.
Much like when Adam and Eve hid after disobeying God, Jonah hides. And like when God called for Adam and Eve, the Ship’s Captain, the authority on the boat, calls for Jonah to come out of hiding.
Adam and Eve were thrown out of Eden into the wilderness. Similarly, Jonah is thrown out of the safety of the boat into the chaotic sea.
The Belly of Sheol
Jonah is swallowed by the Great Fish. He then spend three days and three nights in its belly and prays.
Jonah 2 v 2
“In my distress I called to the LORD, and He answered me. From the belly of Sheol I called for help.”
Jonah prays from the belly of Sheol. Sheol is Old Testament name for Hades, the Underworld or Hell. So in this story, Jonah actually dies and goes into Hell.
Jonah 2 v 6
To the roots of the mountains I descended; the earth beneath me barred me in forever! But You raised my life from the pit, O LORD my God!
God then gives life back to Jonah because of His great compassion.
Jonah and Baptism
There is a parallel between Jonah in the Great Fish and Baptism.
One of the signs of going through the waters of Baptism is to show a Christian’s old life has past and a new life in Christ has begun.
Romans 6 v 3-4
Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
This Was God’s Plan All Along
The name Nineveh means ‘Place of the Fish’ in Akkadian, the language of the Assyrians.
The origin of the name of Nineveh is unknown, though it is thought it’s related to a long forgotten fish goddess.
This is key, as if a prophet comes to this city and starts saying he was swallowed by a fish and tells the people to repent, they are more likely to accept it.
If Jonah had not run away and had not been taken by the fish, I wonder whether the people of Nineveh would have repented as quickly.
God uses our mistakes for His glory.