Narrative :: Jonah: Introduction Notes on ch: 1  2  3  4  

Study Notes on Jonah (including Hebrew narrative) by Tim Bulkeley

Jonah: Characters

A general introduction to characterisation is provided in the course introduction.

The central characters in this story comprise: 

• Adonai - the creator, God of heaven (1:9) who is "gracious and merciful..." (4:2)
• Jonah son of Amittai, who appears as a prophet, known from 2 Kgs 14:25, yet seems to oppose his God at every turn and often expresses a death-wish 
• mariners (with captain at one point singled out)
• people of Nineveh (with king singled out)

I have not included the fish, plant or worm - let alone the well clothed animals of Nineveh - as none acts independently.

Adonai and Jonah are evidently the main characters, the foreigners only appear in one chapter each, and much of the book is a dialogue in words and actions between the two main protagonists.

© Tim Bulkeley, 2003