“Jonah The Son Of Amittai” – 2/2/25

 

As we read the book of Jonah, we discover that Jonah the prophet takes center stage across the four chapters. Bible students, familiar with this book and the gospel records, will immediately draw the connection between Jonah and the Lord’s words in Matthew 12:38-41. While this is a pivotal point in the narrative, I invite you to explore other connections between Jesus and Jonah that are equally worthy of our attention. These connections will surely enlighten and intrigue you.

 

Learning that Jonah is the son of Amittai might seem unimportant until we go to the Bible and do some research. Amittai is only mentioned in Jonah 1:1, and II Kings 14:25. God says he was a prophet (mouthpiece) for God and has apparently raised his son to be a prophet as well. In addition to this, we read that he was from Gath-Hepher (Gittah-hepher, Josh. 19:13). This might not mean much to us until we get a map and notice that Gath-Hepher was just a few miles away from Nazareth, the place where Jesus grew up (Matt. 2:23).

 

This town is within the region given to the descendants of Zebulon, Jacob’s sixth son from Leah (Gen. 30:19-20), just as Nazareth is. This is significant because of what was said when Jesus began His preaching. In Matthew 4:14-17 we read, “That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up. From that time, Jesus began to preach and to say, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” This region, often called Galilee of the Gentiles, was where Jesus began His work, bringing light and hope to a spiritually dark and oppressed region. Thus, we have a connection between Jonah and Jesus in the region where they grew up.

 

We also see a connection between Jonah’s name and Christ’s work. What do I mean? When we look into the meaning of Jonah, his name means “dove.” The dove is universally considered a symbol of peace. When we read the book of Jonah, God wanted peace between Him and Nineveh and achieved it through Jonah’s preaching (Jonah 3). Similarly, our Lord is called “the Prince of Peace” (Isa. 9:6-7)! The angels sang about His peace at His birth (Lk. 2:14). He came to bring peace, not just to one nation, but to all nations (Eph. 2:13-17; Col. 1:20-21)! Peace is a cornerstone of His kingdom! Thus, we see an embodiment of peace in Jonah and his work and the ultimate expression of peace in Christ, whose work was to bring peace between God and humanity.

 

Jonah’s life and work foreshadowed what was to come in Christ. May we appreciate this truth when we read the book of Jonah. Despite Jonah’s actions often contradicting the meaning of his name, Christ, the true Prince of Peace, perfectly fulfilled His role. Aren’t we thankful to be able to follow the Prince of Peace and look forward to the greatest peace ever known when we see Heaven one day?

 

– Jarrod M. Jacobs