What REALLY Swallowed Jonah?

The book of Jonah contains the historical account of the prophet Jonah. In verse 17 of chapter 1, the text states that the Lord prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah... That can't be right, can it? Did Jonah really spend 3 days and 3 nights inside an aquatic creature?

Host Lauren and Dr. Brian Thomas discuss this important topic on episode 57 of The Creation Podcast!

—

Do you have questions about science or Scripture? Post them in the comments and we might answer them in future episodes.

Tune in every other Tuesday here on YouTube for new episodes. You can also find the audio version on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and Google Podcasts.

Don't forget to subscribe to our channel to get notified about all of our upcoming episodes!

Hope to see you next time on The Creation Podcast!

—

[Hydroverse]

Imagine getting swallowed by Leviathan.

[biblesbarbells]

I love that ICR charges directly into the issues that many others tip-toe around: Deep time, Jonah, Noah, etc. Don't be shy: Be ready to give a defense. Don't give secular evolutionists an inch: Stand firm on the word of God.

[RelivitMedia]

GREAT video! I wanted to point out for consideration too that there were times in the Bible where people were put into "impossible survival" situations, but did in fact survive. One Example: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the furnace with the fire seven times hotter than normal. They miraculously survived without even smelling like smoke - Daniel 3:16-28. It is awesome to get intellectual evidence for Biblical stories - but no matter if Jonah died or not, survival in the stomach of an animal and/or being brought back to life are both miracles. :) I believe it is important for all of us who believe in Jesus and the Bible, to be cautious to understand that we may not always have answers that satisfy our logic or intellectual minds. There are often times with situations in our lives that God allows, that just do not make any sense and may not be understood in our lifetime on this earth. Never-the-less, God's Word (the Bible) it worthy to be trusted for so many reasons. It is awesome to see science research and study support the Bible, but always keep in mind that the Bible says in Hebrews 11:16, "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him". Thanks ICR for all you do! Press on!

[muppetonmeds]

The Bible says God prepared a fish for Jonah this means he created a fish that specifically was designed to accomplish what it did.

[markoaks]

Jonah was spat upon the shore where many Ninevites saw him. The Ninevites (who were Assyrians) worshipped Dagon, the fish god, so when the Ninevites saw a fish spit out Johan, they thought he was a god. That is why they listened to him and believed. Yahweh already knew that and that was Yahweh's plan all along. Yahweh is all-seeing and all-knowing, and He has a since of humor. Jonah (yonah) is the Hebrew word for a dove.

[Desertflower]

I’m really a fan of Dr Brian Thomas. The tone of his voice and the way he articulates makes him a very good speaker and lecturer. Once again I really enjoyed the broadcast 🇦🇺🦘Thank you from Melbourne, Australia.

[alexanderlowhorn]

Dr. Thomas has really been going at it on the ICR channel lately. Thanks for your hard work Dr. Thomas!

[stuartofblyth]

Thank you, Dr Thomas! Many think Jonah went to deliver a message of repentance, but this is not so as you rightly say. I summarise it as "Yet 40 days and you get yours!". This explains why the king asked "Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish?" It also explains why Jonah was hopping mad in Chapter 4. He was called to preach that judgement is coming but knew that if the Ninevites DID repent then God would not carry it through, and Jonah would be shown to be a false prophet. That's why he fled in the first place. "Didn’t I say before I left home that you would do this, LORD? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that you are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. You are eager to turn back from destroying people. Just kill me now, LORD! I’d rather be dead than alive if what I predicted will not happen" (NLT).

I'm one of those who believe Jonah died, too.

[annep.]

Chinese Dragons look like Dog-headed sea serpents...

[andrewp.schubert]

Thank you for this great program. 🙏 God created all living creatures on this earth.

[loricalass]

I have often wondered why the people of Nineveh took Jonah so seriously when he said their nation was about to be destroyed.

Of course, in the Bible, we often get the shortened versions. But some have suggested that when Jonah exited the fish, or whale, or whatever it was, his skin was mottled and patchy from the digestive juices of the animal. This could help get peoples attention.

There is at least one case of a man swallowed by a sperm whale, who managed to survive, but looked pretty strange for the rest of his life.

Also, since Nineva worshiped a sea creature
god, someone seen and reported to emerge from a sea creature would be enough to get everybody’s attention.

[cindland]

I can’t thank you enough for doing these broadcasts ! I still remember my mother telling me in Episcopal Sunday school that the story of the whale was made up to teach a lesson and a man couldn’t fit inside a whale. 🤦‍♀️ in addition, she told my young teen self that the Bible was stories that men made up and wrote down to explain God to us. 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️ the sad part is she spent her entire life going to church and being involved in Church ministries.😢
Many years later when I finally gave my life over to Jesus at age 40, I learned AND acknowledged that GOD is bigger and smarter than all of us and knows everything. And the Bible was GOD’S word written down by men. Not their words. However I do get how translations caused by “modern day” politics and definitions and changes in language have affected the true meaning in HIS words.

I’m so disappointed that my mother didn’t instead teach me a true faith in Jesus to give over all my woes and everything else in life. God is sovereign however nac he knew my oath to him, and I wouldn’t have met my husband when I did if I had led a different albeit somewhat easier path to HIS love and grace and forgiveness.

[JS-uywc]

A short lesson in Greek pronunciation. Ketos is pronounced with a long ‘e’. Thus, say Key-tos (κήτος). Sarcophagus (σαρκοφάγος) literally breaks down into: sarka, which means flesh and fagos, which means ‘to eat’. Thus a sarcophagus is literally a ‘flesh eater’. Yes, I am a native Greek, a believer and one who holds to a young earth belief. ICR has provided me with very valuable tools. Thank you.

[christiansaint]

I had another thought on this. I'm not sure if it really matters whether it was a whale or a sea serpent. They're both really big creatures. To me, the bottom line is that a very large creature swallowed Jonah and then vomited him up on the beach. I'm not sure of the reference atm, but there is a reference to this in the Psalms.

[gxstthq]

The ketas looks like the gods depicted in the movie El Dorado. Fascinating to know it is documented in culture before and after in extra biblical sources

[jonathanbutson]

when i was at university in the 1990's studying ocean science, my lecturer (who believed in a 4 billion year old earth and evolution) showed us an old black and white pic of an African fisherman from the Indian ocean coast of Africa. He had fallen off his fishing boat into the ocean. He was swallowed by a whale shark (the biggest living shark, it feeds on plankton) He had remained in-side the whale shark for several hours. When he was puked up by the fish he survived, but his skin was bleached white, this was very apparent in the pic!

[johndedden]

Yes makes sense as an aquatic biologist. To much stomach acid and he raised Lazarus on the 4th day when he stanketh

[AlexanderosD]

Sinking in the depths of the ocean, the ship growing smaller as it floats off. The darkness of the storm overtaking his vision as his descends under water.
Thrown by the current, he knew his life was over, this was the end, he failed to follow God's mission and now he will pay with his life, drowned to death in the ocean.
A massive dark figure approaches as he loses consciousness.
His last sight, a monstrous frame like a Leviathan from the stories he heard as a boy.
A long neck the size of the cedars of Lebanon curls about, and he sees an open maw of teeth and blackness encase him.
Then... nothing...

A corpse, eyes glossed over, soaked in vomit, bile and sea water, washed up on the shore. Had anyone seen it they would have looked on in horror.
It begins to move, a spam and then a sharp inhalation of breath, and confusion.
How long was he unconscious? How did he end up on this beach? What on earth is that thing lying dead on the shore next to him?
The thoughts racing through his mind, but he knew, the Lord speaks to him and he knows the answers now.
He will have to write this down in the future and tell others when he gets home.
But for now, Jonah tries to raise his weak and shaking body from the sand.
He has a mission, and he must fulfill it. The Lord wouldn't have brought him back from death otherwise.
He begins to stumble and then walk, he must find the nearest town and find out where he is.

[MichaelBethel]

One of the most helpful statements in this podcast was pointing to the fact that Scripture does not say that Jonah was necessarily alive (though implied when he prayed to God) while in the ketos (I am assuming that his praying to God would have been with the fact that to be absent from the body is to be present with God). In fact for him to be dead and then restored to life after being spit out makes Jesus' use of Jonah even more tightly woven with His own death, burial, and resurrection. All of this information will be added to the tools I use teaching Sunday school.
Thank you all for your faithfulness in ministering with the uncompromised Word of God.

[johncollins]

"Death before sin." For gazillions of years. Exactly. A fellow-Catholic swipes that aside by saying, Yeah but Paul was only talking about human death. He's happy that God was happy with animal suffering.