Difference between revisions of "Sefer Yonah and the Sin of the Calf/0"
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<h2>Content Parallels</h2> | <h2>Content Parallels</h2> | ||
| − | The two narratives | + | The overall story-line of the two narratives is similar:<br/> |
<ul> | <ul> | ||
<li><b>Sin and declaration of punishment</b> – In both stories, a nation/city finds itself close to destruction due to the severity of it sins.</li> | <li><b>Sin and declaration of punishment</b> – In both stories, a nation/city finds itself close to destruction due to the severity of it sins.</li> | ||
<li><b>Prayer to overturn decree</b> – In each case, a leader (Moshe / King of Nineveh) expresses a request that God nullify the decree and return from his wrath.</li> | <li><b>Prayer to overturn decree</b> – In each case, a leader (Moshe / King of Nineveh) expresses a request that God nullify the decree and return from his wrath.</li> | ||
| − | <li><b>40 days of intervention / fasting</b> – Nineveh is given forty days to change during which the people fast, don | + | <li><b>40 days of intervention / fasting</b> – Nineveh is given forty days to change during which the people fast, don sackcloth and cry out to God. Moshe, similarly, spends forty days on Mt. Sinai, fasting and interceding on behalf of the people.</li> |
<li><b>Punishment averted</b> – Both groups receive Divine mercy and Hashem "regrets" the evil He had planned.</li> | <li><b>Punishment averted</b> – Both groups receive Divine mercy and Hashem "regrets" the evil He had planned.</li> | ||
| − | <li><b>God's attributes</b> – In both stories Hashem's attributes of mercy are highlighted. Hashem introduces them to Moshe on Mt. Sinai and in Sefer Yonah, the prophet tells Hashem that he has always known that Hashem is a "אֵ-ל רַחוּם וְחַנּוּן אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד".</li> | + | <li><b>God's attributes</b> – In both stories Hashem's attributes of mercy are highlighted. Hashem introduces them to Moshe on Mt. Sinai, and in Sefer Yonah, the prophet tells Hashem that he has always known that Hashem is a "אֵ-ל רַחוּם וְחַנּוּן אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד".</li> |
</ul> | </ul> | ||
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<ul> | <ul> | ||
<li><b>Sins of Israel and Nineveh</b> – While Israel sins in the realm of belief, turning away from Hashem to worship the calf, the sins of Nineveh are concentrated in the interpersonal realm, "הֶחָמָס אֲשֶׁר בְּכַפֵּיהֶם".</li> | <li><b>Sins of Israel and Nineveh</b> – While Israel sins in the realm of belief, turning away from Hashem to worship the calf, the sins of Nineveh are concentrated in the interpersonal realm, "הֶחָמָס אֲשֶׁר בְּכַפֵּיהֶם".</li> | ||
| − | <li><b>Punishment of Israel and Nineveh</b> – Despite Hashem's forgiving of Israel | + | <li><b>Punishment of Israel and Nineveh</b> – Despite Hashem's forgiving of Israel  and nullifying the decree of complete destruction, Hashem still punishes many offenders, bringing a plague of the nation. In Sefer Yonah in contrast, the Ninevites do not get punished at all.</li> |
| + | <li><b>Names of Hashem</b> – In the story of the Sin of the Golden Calf, the verse states that Hashem regretted His decision to destroy, using Hashem's proper name. In the Book of Yonah, the name Elokim is used instead.</li> | ||
| + | <li><b>Who cries: "וְשָׁב מֵחֲרוֹן אַפּוֹ"?</b>  In Shemot, this plea emerges from the mouth of Moshe, the prophet who intercedes on behalf of the people. No similar cry is heard from the Israelites themselves.   In Yonah, in contrast, it is the sinner himself, not the prophet, who cries out.</li> | ||
<li><b>Moshe and Yonah</b> – Perhaps the most striking difference between the stories relates to the attitudes of Moshe and Yonah:</li> | <li><b>Moshe and Yonah</b> – Perhaps the most striking difference between the stories relates to the attitudes of Moshe and Yonah:</li> | ||
<ul> | <ul> | ||
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<li>While Moshe desires the people's repentance and the overturning of the decree, Yonah actively opposes it.</li> | <li>While Moshe desires the people's repentance and the overturning of the decree, Yonah actively opposes it.</li> | ||
<li>Moshe ask to be "erased" from Hashem's book if He does not forgive Israel (Shemot 32:32).  Yonah, in contrast, requests death because Hashem has forgiven Nineveh (Yonah 4:3).</li> | <li>Moshe ask to be "erased" from Hashem's book if He does not forgive Israel (Shemot 32:32).  Yonah, in contrast, requests death because Hashem has forgiven Nineveh (Yonah 4:3).</li> | ||
| + | <li>In Shemot, Hashem's attributes include the quality of "אמת", yet when Yonah quotes the various attributes, he omits this trait, replacing it with  the phrase "וְנִחָם עַל הָרָעָה".‎<fn>As noted above, this formulation matches that found in Yoel 2.</fn></li> | ||
</ul> | </ul> | ||
| − | |||
| − | |||
</ul> | </ul> | ||
Version as of 00:59, 1 September 2020
Sefer Yonah and the Sin of the Calf
Introduction
The story of Yonah and Nineveh recalls several aspects of the story of the Sin of the Golden Calf. Both narratives revolve around potential destruction of sinners and Hashem's ultimate decision to have mercy on the people and overturn the decree. Alongside these similarities, however, there are several key points of difference, mainly relating to the differing characters of the spiritual leaders of each story, Moshe and Yonah.
Content Parallels
The overall story-line of the two narratives is similar:
- Sin and declaration of punishment – In both stories, a nation/city finds itself close to destruction due to the severity of it sins.
- Prayer to overturn decree – In each case, a leader (Moshe / King of Nineveh) expresses a request that God nullify the decree and return from his wrath.
- 40 days of intervention / fasting – Nineveh is given forty days to change during which the people fast, don sackcloth and cry out to God. Moshe, similarly, spends forty days on Mt. Sinai, fasting and interceding on behalf of the people.
- Punishment averted – Both groups receive Divine mercy and Hashem "regrets" the evil He had planned.
- God's attributes – In both stories Hashem's attributes of mercy are highlighted. Hashem introduces them to Moshe on Mt. Sinai, and in Sefer Yonah, the prophet tells Hashem that he has always known that Hashem is a "אֵ-ל רַחוּם וְחַנּוּן אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד".
Literary Allusions
There are several almost verbatim parallels between the stories:
EN/HEע/E
| חטא העגל (שמות ל"ב-ל"ד) | ספר יונה (פרקים ג'-ד') |
| (לב:יב) שׁוּב מֵחֲרוֹן אַפֶּךָ וְהִנָּחֵם עַל הָרָעָה לְעַמֶּךָ. | (ג:ט) מִי יוֹדֵעַ יָשׁוּב וְנִחַם הָאֱלֹהִים וְשָׁב מֵחֲרוֹן אַפּוֹ וְלֹא נֹאבֵד. |
| (לב: יד) וַיִּנָּחֶם י״י עַל הָרָעָה אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר לַעֲשׂוֹת לְעַמּוֹ. | (ג:י) וַיִּנָּחֶם הָאֱלֹהִים עַל הָרָעָה אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר לַעֲשׂוֹת לָהֶם וְלֹא עָשָׂה. |
| (לד: ו) וַיַּעֲבֹר י״י עַל פָּנָיו וַיִּקְרָא י״י י״י אֵל רַחוּם וְחַנּוּן אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד וֶאֱמֶת. | (ד:ב) כִּי יָדַעְתִּי כִּי אַתָּה אֵל חַנּוּן וְרַחוּם אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד וְנִחָם עַל הָרָעָה. |
Analysis
- Degree of similarity – There is a strong degree of similarity between the parallels. In two of the cases entire phrases are repeated in the same exact form, with only the order of two words being reversed.
- Distinctive phrases – The parallels are somewhat distinctive:
- Various forms of the phrase "וְשָׁב מֵחֲרוֹן אַפּוֹ" appear 13 times in Tanakh, but in only Shemot and Yonah is the phrase accompanied by the root "נחם".
- Variations of the phrase "נחם על הרעה" appear 11 times in Tanakh, but the full formulation " וַיִּנָּחֶם.. עַל הָרָעָה אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר לַעֲשׂוֹת" is unique to these stories.
- Hashem's attributes of mercy are mentioned seven times in Tanakh. Tehillim 86:15 matches the version in Shemot (ending with "וֶאֱמֶת"), while the version in Yonah echoes that in Yoel 2:13 (ending with "וְנִחָם עַל הָרָעָה"). In the other three cases the attributes extend until the trait of "חסד".1
Points of Contrast
Despite the general similarity in plot discussed above, there are several important differences between the stories:
- Sins of Israel and Nineveh – While Israel sins in the realm of belief, turning away from Hashem to worship the calf, the sins of Nineveh are concentrated in the interpersonal realm, "הֶחָמָס אֲשֶׁר בְּכַפֵּיהֶם".
- Punishment of Israel and Nineveh – Despite Hashem's forgiving of Israel and nullifying the decree of complete destruction, Hashem still punishes many offenders, bringing a plague of the nation. In Sefer Yonah in contrast, the Ninevites do not get punished at all.
- Names of Hashem – In the story of the Sin of the Golden Calf, the verse states that Hashem regretted His decision to destroy, using Hashem's proper name. In the Book of Yonah, the name Elokim is used instead.
- Who cries: "וְשָׁב מֵחֲרוֹן אַפּוֹ"? In Shemot, this plea emerges from the mouth of Moshe, the prophet who intercedes on behalf of the people. No similar cry is heard from the Israelites themselves. In Yonah, in contrast, it is the sinner himself, not the prophet, who cries out.
- Moshe and Yonah – Perhaps the most striking difference between the stories relates to the attitudes of Moshe and Yonah:
- Moshe ascends a mountain to speak with Hashem. Yonah descends to the seas to flee from Hashem.
- While Moshe desires the people's repentance and the overturning of the decree, Yonah actively opposes it.
- Moshe ask to be "erased" from Hashem's book if He does not forgive Israel (Shemot 32:32). Yonah, in contrast, requests death because Hashem has forgiven Nineveh (Yonah 4:3).
- In Shemot, Hashem's attributes include the quality of "אמת", yet when Yonah quotes the various attributes, he omits this trait, replacing it with the phrase "וְנִחָם עַל הָרָעָה".2
