# Jonah

## Definition:

Jonah was a Hebrew prophet in the Old Testament.

* The book of Jonah tells the story of what happened when God sent Jonah to preach to the people of Nineveh.
* Jonah refused to go to Nineveh and instead got on a ship headed for a Tarshish.
* God caused a huge storm to overwhelm that ship.
* Jonah told the men sailing the ship that he was running away from God, and he suggested that they throw him into the sea. When they did that, the storm stopped and the sailors offered a sacrifice to Yahweh.
* Jonah was swallowed by a huge fish, and he was inside the belly of that fish for three days and nights.
* After that, Jonah went to Nineveh and preached to the people there, and the people stopped acting so violently toward others.
* Jonah became angry at God for not destroying Nineveh, and God used a plant and a worm to teach Jonah a lesson about compassion.

(Translation suggestions: [How to Translate Names](rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-names))

(See also: [disobey](../other/disobey.md), [Nineveh](../names/nineveh.md), [turn](../other/turn.md))

## Bible References:

* [Jonah 1:3](rc://en/tn/help/jon/01/03)
* [Luke 11:30](rc://en/tn/help/luk/11/30)
* [Matthew 12:39](rc://en/tn/help/mat/12/39)
* [Matthew 16:4](rc://en/tn/help/mat/16/04)

## Word Data:

* Strong’s: H3124, G24950
