Did Jonah from the Bible physically exist?

A prophet named Jonah son of Amittai is mentioned in 2 Kings 14.25, a portion of the Old Testament historical books believed by most historians to preserve broadly accurate historical traditions. read more

In the passage above, the Greek word translated "whale" actually means a huge fish or sea monster. In the passage in Jonah (1:17; 2:1,10), the Hebrew word was the normal word for "fish," but here the word is modified by the word great. read more

The book of Jonah is about God and Jonah, not the whale (or fish) and Jonah. Those who scoff at, doubt or otherwise ridicule the book of Jonah are in actuality doubting Christ's own integrity. Jesus believed and taught that Jonah was a real person, and that the events described in the Bible really did happen to him. read more

Jonah or Jonas is the name given in the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh/Old Testament) to a prophet of the northern kingdom of Israel in about the 8th century BCE. He is the eponymous central figure of the Book of Jonah, in which he is called upon by God to travel to Nineveh and warn its residents to repent of their sins or face divine wrath. read more