Audio only
Length47m
About this audiobook
The Book of Jonah is generally considered by scholars to be a fictional tale written in the Persian era, however, the version in the Septuagint indicates the story likely dates back to the Assyrian era, between 720 and 612 BCE. There are several reasons why Jewish, Christian, and secular scholars have questioned the book’s origin, not the least of which is the fact that Jonah spent several days inside some sea creature and survived. As such, it reads more like a fictional tale, such as the Words of Ahikar and the book of Tobit, which was connected to Ahikar by its author.
The concept of free will is central to all Judeo-Christian religions. Although refusal to follow God’s directions will lead to some kind of negative consequences, the right nevertheless exists. However, in the book of Jonah, Jonah had no free will. He was forced to go to Nineveh, to tell the Assyrians that the Israelite God was going to destroy their city, three days after the prophecy. Naturally, no one would be enthusiastic about being told to do that, however, in the Greek translation, the issue is compounded by the fact that Jonah is a slave. In the Masoretic version, the expression “Slave of a master I am” was replaced with “Hebrew I am,” which makes no sense, as he was talking to the sailors of the ship he boarded in Jaffa, who would have known his ethnicity.
The fact that he was running away from his master’s face also proves in the original version of this text Jonah was running from his human owner, and not God, unless one accepts that he thought his god, who he claimed made the sea and the dryness, couldn’t find him in Tartessos (southwest Spain). In the Masoretic version, the term master’s face was replaced by “before Yahweh,” indicating that Yahweh didn’t know where Spain was, at least in the opinion of the author. The Masoretic reading is confirmed to date back as early as the Hasmonean dynasty by the Dead Sea Scroll 4QXIIᵃ, however, this scroll dates 40 to 140 years after the Book of Jonah was translated at the Library of Alexandria.
Audiobook details
GenreSpirituality and Religion
Length47 mins
Narrated byGoogle's Archie
FormatAudiobook
Publish dateApr 21, 2025
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1chapter
6chapter
2chapter
7chapter
3chapter
8chapter
4chapter
9chapter
5chapter
10chapter
Series
Septuagint - ObadiahScriptural Research Institute24m$3.50 · $0.00
Septuagint - DeuteronomyScriptural Research Institute3h 19m$5.80 · $0.00
Septuagint - AmosScriptural Research Institute1h 48m$3.50 · $0.00
Greek Apocalypse of EzraScriptural Research Institute27m$3.50 · $0.00
Septuagint - JoelScriptural Research Institute45m$3.50 · $0.00
Septuagint - NahumScriptural Research Institute51m$3.50 · $0.00
Septuagint - ZakharianScriptural Research Institute1h 21m$3.50 · $0.00
Septuagint - DodekaScriptural Research Institute10h 14m$29 · $0.00
Septuagint - ZephaniahScriptural Research Institute1h 6m$3.50 · $0.00
Judahite Apocalypse of EzraScriptural Research Institute2h 52m$4.10 · $0.00
Ge'ez 1st MaccabeesScriptural Research Institute4h 28m$4.70 · $0.00
Septuagint - NahumScriptural Research Institute34m$4.10 · $0.00
Words of AhikarScriptural Research Institute2h 21m$5.80 · $0.00
The Shapira ScrollsScriptural Research Institute2h 21m$3.50 · $0.00
The Life of WeniScriptural Research Institute29m$4.10 · $0.00
Septuagint - ShadrachScriptural Research Institute1h 4m$3.50 · $0.00
Septuagint - HoseaScriptural Research Institute1h 53m$3.50 · $0.00
Wisdom of AmenemopeScriptural Research Institute1h 20m$3.50 · $0.00
Tale of the Shipwrecked SailorScriptural Research Institute26m$3.50 · $0.00
Septuagint - ZakharianScriptural Research Institute56m$4.10 · $0.00
31 Decrees of Blessing for Your LifePatricia King2h 38m$10 · $0.00
Walk With Me JesusMarie Chapian6h 4m$10 · $0.00
The Book of Mormon (Annotated)Joseph Smith32h 58m$2 · $0.00
Prayers on Fire for WomenBrian Simmons, Candice Simmons8h 24m$10 · $0.00
Strong's Bible ConcordanceJames Strong136h 23m$2 · $0.00
365 Days of Hope and Healing for Your Body, Mind, and SoulJoan Hunter8h 48m$10 · $0.00
Rewrite the Mother CodeDr. Gertrude Lyons10h 55m$25
Loved BabySarah Philpott4h 51m$10 · $0.00
The QuranAllah23h 7m$1 · $0.00
The Secret of the RosaryLouis de Montfort6h 1m$2 · $0.00
Jesus SpeakingGabrielle Bossis4h 13m$15 · $0.00
The Holy Qur-an: Text, Translation and CommentaryAbdullah Yusuf Ali22h 16m$1 · $0.00
Historical Study of Jesus the Christ and His MissionJames E. Talmage33h 52m$1 · $0.00
All of Grace (Annotated)Charles Spurgeon5h 1m$2 · $0.00
Defying JihadEsther Ahmad8h 50m$20
PsalmsKing James Bible4h 2m$10
The Two Swords of ChristRaymond Ibrahim15h 55m$30
Steps to ChristEllen G. White3h 12m$2 · $0.00
Man and Woman He Created ThemJohn Paul II, Michael Waldstein33h 53m$21 · $0.00
Praying Grace for MenDavid Holland3h 24m$10 · $0.00
You may also like
Watson RefutedSamuel W. Francis3h 7m$1 · $0.00
The Literature of the Old TestamentGeorge Foot Moore7h 55m$2 · $0.00
The Heroes of Asgard (Annotated)Annie Keary, E. Keary6h 10m$2 · $0.00
David Cusick's Sketches of Ancient History of the Six Nations (Annotated)David Cusick2h 19m$2 · $0.00
Fenris, the WolfPercy MacKaye2h 52m$1 · $0.00
Gnostic John the BaptizerG. R.4h 29m$3.50 · $0.00
Principles Of TheologyEdivaldo Ascaneo1h 13m$6 · $0.00
Septuagint - DeuteronomyScriptural Research Institute3h 19m$5.80 · $0.00
The Historical Jesus: A Survey of PositionsJ. M. Robertson6h 12m$2 · $0.00
Bible — American Standard Version (Annotated)Philip Schaff93h 15m$2 · $0.00
The Truth About Jesus & The Bible Unveiled (Annotated)M. M. Mangasarian15h 9m$2 · $0.00
Alfred Edersheim: Collected Works (Annotated)Alfred Edersheim154h 39m$3 · $0.00
The King James Bible (Annotated)Various Authors83h 36m$2 · $0.00
The old paths, or the Talmud tested by Scripture (Annotated)Alexander McCaul23h 13m$2 · $0.00
Jesus for the Non-ReligiousJohn Shelby Spong12h 22m$29 · $0.00
Arguments of Celsus, Porphyry, and the Emperor Julian, Against the ChristiansCornelius Tacitus, Flavius Josephus, Emperor of Rome Julian, Siculus Diodorus, Porphyry, active 180 Celsus3h 40m$2 · $0.00
Holy Bible (Annotated)The Bible93h 19m$2 · $0.00
The Legends of the Jews (Vol. 1-4)Louis Ginzberg53h 17m$1 · $0.00
The Temple (Annotated)Alfred Edersheim12h 37m$2 · $0.00
The Grounds of Christianity Examined by Comparing The New Testament with the OldGeorge Bethune English8h 14m$2 · $0.00