All things bear record · Jonah

Jonah 1

2 witnesses of Christ here, and 1 further echo from the reading.

Creation by Christ

LORD (Jehovah), the God of heaven

And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land. Jonah 1:9

Jonah names his God as the LORD who made the sea and the dry land. That Creator, Jehovah, is the premortal Christ, who later showed His power over the sea in Galilee.

AttestedJehovah — the LORDA divine name

How we know: a footnote points to Him · a Church study aid lists it

  • the same title in Mosiah 3:8 — Jesus Christ, 'the Creator of all things from the beginning.'

Jonah as a type

And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you. Jonah 1:12–15

Jonah offers himself to be thrown into the deep so the others can live, and the storm stops. Though Jonah was running from God and Jesus was sinless, the picture of one man given up into death to bring peace and safety to others points to the Savior, whose 'innocent blood' saves.

A readingProphecy or typeA person who is a type of Him
  • interpreted by Matthew 12:40 — Jesus names Jonah as a sign of Himself.
  • a type of what is in John 11:50 — 'It is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people.'
  • a type of what is in Mark 4:39 — Jesus rebukes the wind and the sea: 'Peace, be still,' and there was a great calm.

Sign of Jonah

Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Jonah 1:17

Jesus Himself taught that Jonah's three days and nights inside the fish were a sign of the Son of Man's three days in the heart of the earth before His Resurrection. The one sign He gave to an unbelieving generation was this one.

AttestedProphecy or typeAn event that is a type of Him

How we know: a footnote points to Him · a Church study aid lists it

  • interpreted by Matthew 12:39-40 — 'As Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.'
  • interpreted by Luke 11:29-30 — 'As Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation.'
  • interpreted by Matthew 16:4 — No sign shall be given 'but the sign of the prophet Jonas.'