A Gracious and Compassionate God: Mission, Salvation and Spirituality in the Book of Jonah (Volume 26)

New Studies in Biblical Theology #26

by Daniel C. Timmer, D.A. Carson (Editor)

The book of Jonah is arguably just as jarring for us as it was for the ancients. Ninevah's repentance, Jonah's estrangement from God and the book's bracing moral conclusion all pose unsettling questions for today's readers. For biblical theologians, Jonah also raises tough questions regarding mission and religious conversion. Here, Daniel Timmer embarks on a new reading of Jonah in order to secure its ongoing relevance for biblical theology. After an examination of the book?s historical backgrounds (in both Israel and Assyria), Timmer discusses the biblical text in detail, paying special attention to redemptive history and its Christocentric orientation. Timmer then explores the relationship between Israel and the nations―including the question of mission―and the nature of religious conversion and spirituality in the Old Testament. This New Studies in Biblical Theology volume concludes with an injunction for scholars and lay readers to approach Jonah as a book written to facilitate spiritual change in the reader. Addressing key issues in biblical theology, the works comprising New Studies in Biblical Theology are creative attempts to help Christians better understand their Bibles. The NSBT series is edited by D. A. Carson, aiming to simultaneously instruct and to edify, to interact with current scholarship and to point the way ahead.

Genres: Theology, Biblical Studies, Old Testament, Nonfiction, Evangelism, Christian

201 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2011

Reviews

[Matt Tyler · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were some helpful insights, but overall I was disappointed with this volume in the New Studies in Biblical Theology series. I have enjoyed every volume I have read in this series, but I was left confused by this one. I'm still not totally certain what the author was hoping to accomplish. I don't think the middle section of the book fit with his introductory comments and concluding reflections.

Furthermore, he barely mentioned Jesus' use of Jonah in the gospels. I don't see how you write about Jonah, especially in a series on issues related to biblical theology, and fail to deal with these passages.

Chapter 2 on conversion and spirituality and chapter 5 on Jonah 3 were the most useful chapters to me . Chapter 2 was interesting and provided some useful definitions and insights. I gleaned some exegetical and historical insights from chapter 5.

[Abigail Hartman · Rating 2 out of 5]

I agree with the other reviewers who found they liked sections of this but didn't see it as a cohesive book. I found myself frustrated almost straight out of the gate with Timmer's felt need to lay out a bunch of high-falutin' theological terms and claims in his first chapter, like he thought he needed to prove himself Truly Reformed and present his systematic theology before allowing the reader to encounter the alleged subject of the book (Jonah!). Then, when we were actually allowed to begin looking at Jonah, things improved. I thought Timmer was pretty long-winded and made too much of things that aren't emphasized in the passage while seemingly missing the main point, e.g. the partial nature of Ninevah's repentance or the alleged selfishness of Jonah's prayer from the fish. But taken in the round, there were some useful insights and thorough (sometimes too thorough...) treatments of different issues. Then the concluding chapter takes us back to Timmer's heavy-handed discussion of his rather confusing chosen themes (mission, salvation, spirituality) in a way that leaves the book of Jonah almost entirely behind. And, as at least one other reviewer has pointed out, he does all this while barely mentioning Jesus' own references to Jonah in the Gospels! If we aren't doing a biblical theology of Jonah that majors on Jesus' use of it, mayyyybe we're doing it wrong...?

Other people will recommend different parts of this book. For me, the middle chapters that deal with Jonah have the most useful sections; clearly a LOT of reading informed Timmer's take on the prophetic book, so the bibliography is a great resource. But the intro and conclusion were way too hamfisted for me. They made me feel that, rather than letting the book of Jonah speak to him out of its own context, the author was shoehorning it into his own preconceived theological categories. It's not that I thought he got everything wrong, but the overly academic, sometimes incomprehensibly contorted writing style, the laborious arguments, and the need to race ahead to New Testament realities without establishing even tangential connections to the subject at hand left Jonah itself in the dust. It's a stunning, profound book that I believe speaks to the heart of God's relationship with Israel and the nations and prefigures the coming of the kingdom in Jesus Christ (as well as Israel's reaction to Him), but A GRACIOUS AND COMPASSIONATE GOD didn't do it justice in the way I hoped it would.

[Jimmy Reagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The New Studies in Biblical Theology (NSBT) tackles the beloved Book of Jonah in this entry by Daniel Timmer. There’s really not a dud that I’ve seen in this series. Many attribute this consistent quality to the editorship of revered scholar D. A. Carson. I suspect that along with careful selection of contributors is responsible for the prestige of the series. If you value D. A. Carson as many do, you should know that he calls this volume by Timmer “a book to cherish”.

The subtitle accurately outlines what you will find between these covers: “mission, salvation, and spirituality in the book of Jonah”. In fact, chapters one and two take mission and conversion/spirituality in Jonah and relates it to the entire biblical corpus.

Chapters 3-6 take Jonah chapter by chapter drawing out its theology and again tracing the themes mentioned earlier. At times, the author is quite strict about the theology that can legitimately be mined here, perhaps overly so. Still, there are loads of great theological introspection for this familiar story. The concluding chapter effectively ties it all together.

Mark this down as another entry in this winning series!

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

[Joshua Clark · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bit meh. Some good bits, some bad. Terrible handling of Jonah 4.


The one lingering question I have from this book and a number of commentaries of similar interpretation is that if Jonah's theology is really as convoluted and incoherent as they claim it is, is there any chance they are misinterpreting Jonah? The comment keeps being made along the lines of 'how did a prophet of Israel miss this?!'... Perhaps he didn't, and you're missing something else that he was thinking.

[Jonathan Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the NSBT series. And probably if I had read this one first before the other five books on Jonah it would have probably gotten more stars from me. The other few books I read were more pastoral and readable. But still a good book.

[Sean Crowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

The only reason I gave this four stars instead of five is that it was too short. Otherwise, great book.

[Lucas Bradburn · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I continue to work my way through this exceptional series, I find that there are a whole lot of "hits" and very few "misses." Timmer's book is definitely one of the hits. Grateful for his helpful insights into the book of Jonah.

[Blake · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting read, offering some great insight into the character of God, especially as seen in the book of Jonah. God is clearly seen as both absolutely sovereign but also absolutely gracious and compassionate. Jonah...not so much. The book stimulates thoughts about Prejudice, grace, repentance, God's sovereignty, God's compassion on pagans, disobedient prophets, evil populations, etc., and what happens when hatred and bitterness grip one's heart. Some of the content I'm still chewing on and not sure I agree with the author. For example, he seemed to lean towards a Christo-centric approach to the Old Testament, whereas I just don't see Jesus on every page and don't believe every element of every story is about Christ. He didn't say that, it just seemed like he was headed there at several points. For another example, if I read this correctly, Timmer seemed to try to build the case for the repentance of the Ninevah not being true repentance. That section I'm going to have to re-read to make sure I understood him correctly. What the author shows about Jonah was a great refreshing course and even some new insight that demonstrated the depths of the problem of hatred in the heart. I enjoyed the read and think it is definitely a worthwhile read. Knowledge of Greek and/Hebrew could be helpful for a reader if he wants to read the footnotes, as the author often will refer to various words in the Hebrew or Greek language. Knowing Greek or Hebrew is definitely not a necessity to read and understand the book but it could enhance one's understanding. Overall, this was a very good read.

[Tim Sheppard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading much of this, and it introduced me to some great thoughts about the book of Jonah for which I'm deeply grateful. His clarification of mission at the beginning was helpful, and his work on the context of Jonah (and the contribution of each chapter towards the whole) was great. There were several ideas that I want to come back to and consider again.

But there were features I loved less. Why did we have to drift (more than once?) into exploring contemporary Assyrian literature before concluding it was irrelevant? More importantly, I felt like many of his great ideas never quite landed; his last chapter could have provided this opportunity, but it felt like it was only lightly anchored in the book of Jonah, exploring many NT ideas with little comment on how Jonah particularly contributed to the contours of the biblical canon. For all that we did to set up the theme of mission, why was that relevant to Jonah's first readers?

I count 3 stars as "good" - this isn't a great criticism. This is far better than other books on Jonah which I have read. Perhaps I'm being unfair, or missing something. There were some great ideas set up during the book - his conclusion to discussing Jonah 4 was especially promising - but they needed more drawing together to turn this into a 4 star review.

[Jonty Haywood · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed lots of this book. I think that the authour's intention was exactly right: in his opening chapters he defines Old Testament understandings of Mission, Conversion and Spirituality with a nod to - but by no means driven by - their use in the New Testament. Those chapters are excellent, and exactly what I wanted from this book.

The rest of the book is then taken up with analysis of each chapter in Jonah. Again, the intention is spot on - having grasped his major categories I now want to see how they are developed by the biblical text. But the comments in these chapters switch back and forth between the helpful and the bizarre. Alongside thoughts that I found useful and want to dwell on more (such as the role of the Sailors and the genuineness of Jonah's prayer) there are frequent and lengthy digressions into contemporaneous Assyrian literature and history which he then dismisses as irrelevant.

I am reluctant to give this three stars, as I found the book's methodology and insights perceptive and helpful. But the digressions confused his argument and frustrated me as a reader, so three stars it is. This book is well worth a read, but skip over some pages.

[Isaac · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

A really useful companion volume for studies in the book of Jonah. Timmer is at his best when providing insight into the inter-textual links between Jonah and other OT texts. Really insightful, and carefully identified.

To my mind, the book falls short by identifying "Mission, salvation and spirituality" as the key themes of the book. To be sure, they are essential motifs, but I think the book's key purpose is to focus on God's compassion, and his plan to ultimately reveal that compassion in Christ (thus Matthew 12:40-41). As Jonah focuses on this theme, it's purpose is to redemptively transform us - by bringing us into line with the heart of God on this matter through Christ. This "fuller" view of Jonah, to my mind, allows us to be explicitly Christocentric I think Timmer could be stronger on this.

[Jo Ksly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Une mise en perspective intéressante du livre de Jonas. L'élément principal qui m'a interpellé c'est l'avertissement que l'auteur tire du livre prophétique: le risque d'une foi qui ne soit plus qu'une culture chrétienne. La possibilité de servir Dieu sans vraiment le connaitre.

J'ai par contre parfois eu du mal à discerner la théologie biblique dans le cœur du livre, qui selon moi s'apparent parfois plus à un commentaire pur et simple.

Il me semble que l'auteur aurait pu davantage expliciter les liens entre le cœur de l'exposé et son travail de définition et de mise en perspective des termes "mission", "salut" et "spiritualité".

Il n'en demeure pas moins que le livre nous fait redécouvrir certaines vérité de Jonas, et nous amène à nouveau à nous émerveiller de la grâce de Dieu, et à en reconnaitre notre besoin.

[Chris McBurney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Looking to read a little more on Jonah and having enjoyed this series before I thought I’d give it a go.

A glance at Jonah through a biblical-theological study, this looks to help us see how Jonah threads together and fits into the wider sweep of scripture.

I’ve read a little around Jonah and yet this seemed to sit in a different place altogether. Some material just absent and yet plenty of stuff I’d never heard or seen elsewhere. Ultimately I felt that it enjoyed a rabbit hole once too often and in part, just didn’t agree.

A helpful read however when looking for alternative perspectives or broadening your reading. But likely not my go to resource in Jonah.

[Douglas Fyfe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad. It was perhaps a little more pop than scholarly but that’s not a negative. Very conversational style. Some good observations.

Really worked the BT angle quite hard but it wasn’t too forced and often left Jonah far behind rather than trying to push it.

I think the book was a little hamstrung by the historicist approach taken with regards to Nineveh. It’s of course fine to believe that Jonah is accurately describing historical (although by whom I’m not sure) but this view requires Nineveh’s repentance to be non-thorough. I think the author would be surprised to find out their repentance was not genuine.

[Joel Wentz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another solid entry in the NSBT series. The chapters I actually appreciated the most in this one are the opening chapters on the themes of mission and spirituality and conversion in Jonah and the broader biblical narrative. Those are super insightful, and probably had more impact on my reading of Jonah than the more traditional commentary-style chapters (though they are helpful as well). A solid resource for teaching and preaching on Jonah.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Biblical Theology, and Timmer was able to show how the book of Jonah fits into the overall themes of Scripture without losing sight of the meaning of the text for the original readers and for the church today. Highly recommend.

[Dan Waugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite series of books, and this is a great entry in the series. Timmer does a wonderful job of exploring how this short biblical book contributes to the development of large themes in biblical theology.

[Caleb Batchelor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good not great. Helpful background on Assyria. Informative exegesis on yhwh and elohim in Jonah. But didn't find the BT gold I'm used to in this series.

[Alex McEwen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as technical as the other volumes in this series, but if this doesn’t revive a spirit of conformity to Christ in your heart, nothing will. Great book with great subject matter.

[Lucas Nosal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am normally a big fan of this series, and this book was a mediocre one from it. I would give 3.5 stars if I could. One thing that would have made it better was if the conclusions were added to the chapter sections. I found that by the time I made it to the conclusions, I wasn't as interested. If these conclusions had come earlier, they, and the book as a whole, would have proved much more helpful for my sermon writing.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book spends more time looking at the theology of Jonah instead of just in the textual weeds. I think this volume was a lot more accessible than most in this series.

[Sean McGowan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good

[Freddie McCarty · Rating 4 out of 5]

This study was very informative. The reading level reminded me of when I was in college.

[John]

This is a very good addition to the NSBT, edited by Don Carson. It has helpful insights for matters of interpretation and gives good fodder for preaching and teaching the book for spiritual growth. Lot's of good thoughts on the Mission of God in the OT through Israel and how it relates to the NT, spirituality, and conversion. All of these issues are debated and Timmer brings balance to much of the discussions - as do most of the volumes in this series.

Timmer brings up helpful reflections on the relationship of God with Jonah, the sailors, and Nineveh (the only 4 characters in the book). Also, the reader is helped in understanding God as gracious and compassionate, which helps put the whole Bible together.

The only discouraging thing was the lack of interaction with how the Gospels mentioned Jonah - either the "sign of Jonah"(Matt 12:39, 16:14; etc,) and how it relates to Jesus (Matt 12:41) and the resurrection (Matt 12:40). It would have been helpful to see him help preachers and interpreters work through those passages with the context of Jonah in mind.

Other than that one qualification, I liked the book a lot and enjoyed very much the writing style and accessibility.

[Mark A Powell · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book of Jonah contains perhaps the most well-known story of the Bible. However, as Timmer points out in this scholarly analysis, there are greater themes to Jonah’s journey than many realize. In particular, he examines the ideas of mission, salvation, and spirituality prevalent in Jonah’s day and how they apply to the prophet’s work. Above all, the reconciliatory work of God in Jonah’s day is meant to point us to the ultimate work of Christ.

[Michael Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall helpful. But Timmer seemed a bit lost as to whether or not the book was for a lay audience or scholars, not walking a fine balance between either. Some helpful insights and useful information on the whole.

[Joe Haack · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book helps situate Jonah in God's unfolding redemptive history. It was not as immediately helpful to me as Estelle's similar volume, but I was glad for it.

[Hopson · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite commentary on Jonah thus far. Timmer presents a thorough and unblemishing look at the reluctant prophet, avoiding the temptation to airbrush his warts. The book of Jonah is really a story about a miserable missionary and a merciful God. Timmer gets this and presents it with conviction and clarity.