The Curious Book of Jonah

Not really a story about a whale...

In 1966, J.R.R. Tolkien translated the Book of Jonah for the Jerusalem Bible. In doing so, he also provided what is arguably the most succinct summary of the book to date:

“[The whale] is quite unimportant. The real point is that God is much more merciful than ‘prophets’, is easily moved by penitence, and won’t be dictated to even by high ecclesiastics whom he himself has appointed.”

Now, if you grew up with the Sunday school version of this story, Tolkien’s summary of the Book of Jonah might sound quite odd — and even more so when you consider that, if people know anything about Jonah, it’s that he was swallowed by a whale!

But Tolkien’s analysis, as so often, is spot on. Today, we explore the Book of Jonah — what it’s really about, why it's hilarious, and how it challenges you to turn your conception of God on its head…