The whining and almost contemptible prophet Jonah is Israel itself. Jonah is a caricature of Israel, and that is what made him seem unreal to me. Israel wanted the heathen killed, and not converted. And though she did not dare to disobey God outright, yet she gave God the slip at the first corner and embarked on the sea of politics. For a long time Israel had been as anxious to get into politics and form international relations as she had been determined not to be a missionary nation to her despised neighbors. So in this parable, Israel had not been long on the sea of politics when a great storm arose,--it is ever so. And, as usual in politics, someone is thrown overboard. The great fish that swallowed Jonah was Assyria. Therefore it is not strange that Israel offered a long and beautiful prayer in that kind of a fish's belly. Proud Israel, God's darling, in exile for her rebellion against Jehovah, could do no otherwise than offer up a prayer. "Out of the belly of Sheol cried I, And thou heardest my voice. For thou didst cast me into the depth, in the heart of the seas, And the flood was round about me; All thy waves and thy billows passed over me. And I said I am cast out before thine eyes; Yet I will look again toward thy holy temple. The waters compassed me about, even to the soul; The weeds were wrapped about my head. "And Jehovah spake unto the fish, (Assyria) and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land." And Israel returned from captivity. Israel still showed an aversion for missionary work after her exile, but when God said "Go" a second time, Israel went. That is, she went in the parable. It is clear, from the sarcasm of the story, that Jonah enjoyed his message when he began crying, "Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown." The parable reveals the faith of the author. He wished to convey the idea that the wicked heathen would repent more quickly than Israel if they had a herald to proclaim God's truth. Of course, a prophecy of destruction would not come true if the heathen repented. So God decided not to do what He said He would. "But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry." When Jonah, the typical Israelite, saw that his preaching had converted the heathen he was so mad that he wanted to die. I knew how kind-hearted you were toward repentant sinners, and that is the reason I tried to run off the first time. Now, God, just kill me; "for it is better for me to die than to live." Is this history? Yes, it is history in stinging sarcasm. How the Israelites must have writhed under such a portrayal of their faithless and godless hearts. But the author knew that it would take more than this to break their stubborn wills. So he proceeds with a few more sledge-hammer blows.