Co-texts and Contexts in the Book of Jonah

Marian Kelsey argues for the presence of ‘interlocking allusions’ in the book of Jonah, which are used by the author(s) to explore the tensions between divine freedom and divine character in scriptural texts.

Marian Kelsey argues that the book of Jonah weaves together many narratives with shared themes into a phenomenon of ‘interlocking allusion’. While describing the adventures of its protagonist, the narrative uses phrases, plot-lines and themes from many other scriptural texts, in such a way that a core interest of the book is to reflect upon a concept of and significant elements from scripture. Kelsey thus suggests that the author(s) of the book engages with and reflects on scriptural literature, exploring the character of God as presented in the literature, and the implications for humanity when it behaves in a manner judged to be wicked.

Kelsey begin by surveying the potential allusions suggested by other scholars, grouped according to the text or narrative to which the book of Jonah purportedly alludes; and further reviews the methodological considerations of how allusions are to be defined and detected, and how the book of Jonah is to be evaluated as part of the Twelve Minor Prophets. She discusses the likely dating of the book and explores the question of the book’s genre, concluding that there is a convincing explanation of the true referent of book as being Jerusalem, and that the purpose of the final line is neither rhetorical question nor statement, but true question.

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