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The key moments of the book, in order, one picture at a time.
Jonah 1:3
The flight
God spoke to Jonah. He told him to go to Nineveh, the great city, to warn its people. But Jonah does not want to obey. He is afraid, or he just doesn't want to. So he decides to do the opposite.
Jonah goes down to the port of Joppa. He looks for a ship. He finds one bound for Tarshish, a city far away, on the other side of the sea, in the opposite direction from Nineveh. Jonah pays for his journey and boards the ship.
He settles among the cargo and the sailors. Jonah thinks he can escape from God by fleeing far away. The ship leaves the harbor. The sails fill with wind. Jonah moves away from his mission, far from Nineveh, far from what God asked him to do. He thinks he is escaping. But the journey has only just begun.
Jonah 1:12-15
The storm
Jonah looks at the sailors, exhausted from fighting the waves. He says to them, "Take me and throw me into the sea. Then it will grow calm for you. I know it is because of me that this great storm has come upon you."
The sailors hesitate. They do not want blood on their hands. They go back to rowing with all their strength, trying to bring the ship back to land. But nothing works. The sea rages even more fiercely against them. The waves rise, the wind howls, and the ship creaks all over.
Then the sailors understand there is no other way. They cry out to Jonah's God, "Lord, please do not let us die for taking this man's life! Do not charge us with the blood of an innocent man! You, Lord, have done as you pleased."
Then they take hold of Jonah and throw him into the sea. At once, the waters grow calm. The storm stops dead.
Jonah 1:17
The great fish
Jonah falls into the sea. The waves swallow him. He sinks, deeper and deeper. He thinks he is going to die.
Suddenly, something enormous approaches. It is a huge fish, sent by God. Its mouth opens wide, immense. It swallows Jonah whole.
Jonah finds himself inside the belly of the fish. It is dark. It is hot. It smells terrible. But Jonah is alive. He can hardly believe it.
Three days pass. Then three nights. Jonah stays there, in the belly of the creature, at the bottom of the sea. He has time to think about his flight, about God, about his disobedience. No one comes to see him. He is alone, but not lost. The fish keeps swimming, carrying Jonah somewhere, though he has no idea where.
Jonah 2:9
The prayer
Jonah is at the bottom of the sea, inside the belly of the great fish. Around him, everything is dark and damp. Seaweed wraps around his head. He thinks he is going to die, swallowed up forever.
But Jonah begins to pray. He says, "Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God's love for them. But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good."
Jonah adds one final word, full of trust: "Salvation comes from the Lord!" Even in the darkness, even lost at the bottom of the waters, he knows God can still save him. His prayer rises to heaven, from the belly of the fish, like a cry of hope.
Jonah 3:5
Nineveh repents
Jonah finally walks through the streets of Nineveh. It is an immense city, taking three days to cross. Jonah goes a day's journey into it and cries out his message: "Forty more days, and Nineveh will be destroyed!"
The people listen to him. They do not mock him. They are afraid. Something stirs in their hearts. The people believe that God has truly spoken through the mouth of this stranger.
So the whole city stirs into action. A fast is declared. No one eats anymore, neither rich nor poor. Fine clothes are set aside. Great and small put on sackcloth, as a sign of sorrow and regret. Even those whose names no one knows, the whole people of Nineveh, repent together, from the greatest to the least of its people.
Jonah 4:6-11
The plant and the question
Jonah sits east of the city, under a small shelter. He waits, to see what will happen to Nineveh. God makes a climbing plant grow over his head, a vine. The shade is cool. Jonah is happy, very happy.
But the next day, at dawn, God sends a worm. The worm chews the plant, and it withers. Then a scorching wind blows from the desert, and the sun beats down hard on Jonah's head. He feels faint. He says, "I would rather die than live."
Then God speaks to him: "You are concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. And should I not have concern for Nineveh, that great city, with more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and also many animals?"
