Below is a collection of Sefer Yonah resources, created by The Lookstein Center staff or contributed to the site by Jewish educators.
This is a growing collection. Check back soon or write to us at content@lookstein.org if you didn’t find what you’re looking for.
SEFER YONAH OVERVIEW
Jonah receives a prophecy from God, commanding him to go to the (non-Jewish) city of Nineveh, as they have become wicked. Jonah attempts to escape having to deliver this prophecy by boarding a ship that was sailing to the town of Tarshish.
God sends a storm to the boat, which almost destroys the boat and causes the sailors on the boat to panic and attempt to identify the cause of the storm. A lottery is drawn, and Jonah (and his God) are identified as the cause of the storm. Jonah declares that he is “an Ivri” (a Hebrew) and that the reason for the storm is because of his God. Jonah takes responsibility for the storm occurring, and encourages the sailors to throw him overboard to calm the sea. After some convincing, Jonah is thrown overboard and swallowed by a large fish.
Within the large fish, Jonah prays to God. God hears his prayer, and the fish spits him out onto dry land.
Jonah receives a second prophecy from God, instructing him again to go to Nineveh to warn them to return from their wicked ways or be destroyed. Jonah agrees, travels to Nineveh, and delivers the prophecy. The king of Nineveh takes the prophecy seriously and instructs the city of Nineveh to repent. God accepts their repentance and does not destroy the city.
Jonah is dismayed by this news, expressing that God is a merciful God. Jonah then leaves the city and sits near a kikayon plant. This plant provides shade for Jonah, and he becomes very upset when it dies. The plant is used as a lesson to teach Jonah a lesson about God’s care and compassion – Jonah now understands that just as he cared about the fate of one plant, God cares about the fate of all of his creatures.
KEY CHARACTERS/PLACES/ITEMS IN SEFER YONAH
Jonah, Sailors, God, Nineveh, Tarshish, the “Fish,” the kikayon plant, the King of Nineveh, and the People of Nineveh
EDUCATIONAL POINTS FOR CONNECTION
- Sefer Yonah can be taught during the time period of the Aseret Yemei Teshuva (Ten Days of Repentance) as it addresses the concept of repentance. For this reason, it is read as part of the Minha service on Yom Kippur. The text of Sefer Yonah can be taught meaningfully to students of different ages and backgrounds.
- Sefer Yonah can be utilized as a springboard for talking about prayer, and the prayer in Chapter 2 can be studied in depth.
- With older students, Sefer Yonah can also be used to discuss the concept of Jewish identity or the theme of responsibility for the larger world.
KEY THEMES IN SEFER YONAH
- Prophecy (Jonah’s two prophecies)
- Prayer (Jonah’s prayer in the fish)
- Reward/Punishment (God sending a storm to Jonah’s boat, actions of Nineveh create potential for possible destruction)
- Morality/Care for Others (Chapter 4, Verses 6-11)
- Repentance (Chapter 3, the story of the city of Nineveh)
- Responsibility for others (Jonah being instructed to go to Nineveh, Jonah leaving the boat to save it from the storm, God caring about the people of Nineveh)
KEY PESUKIM
- Jonah declaration that he is a Hebrew (a Jew) – (Yonah 1:9)
וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵהֶם עִבְרִי אָנֹכִי וְאת ה’ אֱלֹקי הַשָּׁמַיִם אֲנִי יָרֵא אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה אֶת הַיָּם וְאת הַיַּבָּשָׁה
“I am a Hebrew,” he replied. “I worship the eternal, the God of Heaven, who made both sea and land.”
- Jonah’s prayer to God – (Yonah 2:3-10) Yonah 2:2 is the introductory verse –
.וַיִּתְפַּלֵּל יוֹנָה אֶל ה’ אֱלֹקיו מִמְּעֵי הַדָּגָה
Jonah prayed to his God from the belly of the fish.
- Nineveh’s acts of repentance (Yonah 3:8)
וְיִתְכּסּוּ שׂקּים הָֽאָדָם וְהַבְּהֵמָה וְיִקְרְאוּ אֶל אֱלֹקים בְּחׇזְקָה וְיָשֻׁבוּ אִישׁ מִדַּרְכּוֹ הָֽרָעָה וּמִן הֶחָמָס אֲשֶׁר בְּכַפֵּיהֶם
They shouldl be covered with sackcloth—human and animal—and should cry mightily to God. Let everyone turn back from their own evil ways and from the injustice of which they are guilty.
- Jonah’s description of God (Yonah 4:2)
וַיִּתְפַּלּל אֶל ה’ וַיֹּאמַר אָנָּה ה’ הֲלוֹא זֶה דְבָרִי עַד הֱיוֹתִי עַל אַדְמָתִי עַל כֵּן קִדַּמְתִּי לִבְרֹ֣חַ תַּרְשִׁישָׁה כִּי יָדַעְתִּי כִּי אַתָּה א-ל חַנּ֣וּן וְרַח֔וּם אֶ֤רֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד וְנִחָם עַל הָרָעָֽה
He prayed to God, saying, “Eternal God! Isn’t this just what I said when I was still in my own country? That is why I fled beforehand to Tarshish. For I know that You are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in kindness, renouncing punishment.
- God’s metaphor for Jonah using the kikayon plant (Yonah 4:10-11)
וַיֹּאמֶר ה’ אַתָּ֥ה חַסְתָּ עַל הַקִּיקָיוֹן אֲשֶׁר לֹא עָמַלְתָּ בּוֹ וְלֹא גִדַּלְתּוֹ שֶׁבִּן לַיְלָה הָיָה וּבִן לַילָה אָבָד
אֲנִי לֹא אָחוּס עַל נִינְוֵה הָעִיר הַגְּדוֹלָה אֲשֶׁ֣ר יֶשׁ בָּהּ הַרְבֵּה מִֽשְׁתֵּים עֶשְׂרֵה רִבּוֹ אָדָם אֲשֶׁ֤ר לֹא יָדַע בֵּין מִינוֹ לִשְׂמֹאלוֹ וּבְהֵמָה רַבָּה׃
Then God said: “You cared about the plant, which you did not work for and which you did not grow, which appeared overnight and perished overnight.
And should I not care about Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who do not yet know their right hand from their left, and many animals as well?!”
Lesson Plans, Resources, and Activities
Sefer Yonah: Lessons in Mercy – This three-part lesson plan for high school students explores the argument between Jonah and God. By The Lookstein Center.
Videos
Yom Kippur: Book of Jonah – This video explains the story of Yonah through song. By Bimbam.
Ivri Anochi – This song by Benny Friedman is based on the pasuk in Sefer Yonah, in which Yonah declares to the sailors that he is a Hebrew (a Jew).