The Repentance of Nineveh/1
The Repentance of Nineveh
Introduction
A Model to Emulate?
Yonah 3 appears to describe one of the only successful repentance campaigns in all of Tanakh. Yonah cries out but five words, "עוֹד אַרְבָּעִים יוֹם וְנִינְוֵה נֶהְפָּכֶת", and manages to get the entire city, young and old, human and animal, to fast and don sackcloth. The king himself prods the people to repent of their ways and cry out to God.
(ז) וַיַּזְעֵק וַיֹּאמֶר בְּנִינְוֵה מִטַּעַם הַמֶּלֶךְ וּגְדֹלָיו לֵאמֹר הָאָדָם וְהַבְּהֵמָה הַבָּקָר וְהַצֹּאן אַל יִטְעֲמוּ מְאוּמָה אַל יִרְעוּ וּמַיִם אַל יִשְׁתּוּ. (ח) וְיִתְכַּסּוּ שַׂקִּים הָאָדָם וְהַבְּהֵמָה וְיִקְרְאוּ אֶל אֱלֹהִים בְּחׇזְקָה וְיָשֻׁבוּ אִישׁ מִדַּרְכּוֹ הָרָעָה וּמִן הֶחָמָס אֲשֶׁר בְּכַפֵּיהֶם. (ט) מִי יוֹדֵעַ יָשׁוּב וְנִחַם הָאֱלֹהִים וְשָׁב מֵחֲרוֹן אַפּוֹ וְלֹא נֹאבֵד.
(7) And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying: 'Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing; let them not feed, nor drink water; (8) but let them be covered with sackcloth, both man and beast, and let them cry mightily unto God; yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands. (9) Who knoweth whether God will not turn and repent, and turn away from His fierce anger, that we perish not?'
At first glance, the Ninevites' comprehensive repentance appears to be a model worthy of emulation. On closer inspection, however, the all-inclusive nature of the repentance itself makes one question. Why are the animals participating? Is not the goal of the process to reflect on one's ways, feel regret, and change? As animals are incapable of such introspection, their self-affliction seems almost farcical, causing one to question the entire character of the city's repentance.
Mercy vs. Repentance
Chapter 3 ends by sharing that Hashem decided to avert His decree of destruction:
וַיַּרְא הָאֱלֹהִים אֶת מַעֲשֵׂיהֶם כִּי שָׁבוּ מִדַּרְכָּם הָרָעָה וַיִּנָּחֶם הָאֱלֹהִים עַל הָרָעָה אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר לַעֲשׂוֹת לָהֶם וְלֹא עָשָׂה.
And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, which He said He would do unto them; and He did it not.
This verse implies that Hashem's decision was a direct result of the people's repentance. When Yonah later expresses dismay over the city's salvation, however, Hashem makes no mention of this point to justify His actions. He, instead, provides an enigmatic analogy, bringing a "קיקיון" to shield Yonah from the sun, and then drying it up, leading Yonah to once again request death. Hashem then explains:
(י) וַיֹּאמֶר י״י אַתָּה חַסְתָּ עַל הַקִּיקָיוֹן אֲשֶׁר לֹא עָמַלְתָּ בּוֹ וְלֹא גִדַּלְתּוֹ שֶׁבִּן לַיְלָה הָיָה וּבִן לַיְלָה אָבָד. (יא) וַאֲנִי לֹא אָחוּס עַל נִינְוֵה הָעִיר הַגְּדוֹלָה אֲשֶׁר יֶשׁ בָּהּ הַרְבֵּה מִשְׁתֵּים עֶשְׂרֵה רִבּוֹ אָדָם אֲשֶׁר לֹא יָדַע בֵּין יְמִינוֹ לִשְׂמֹאלוֹ וּבְהֵמָה רַבָּה.
(10) And the Lord said: 'Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow, which came up in a night, and perished in a night; (11) and should not I have pity on Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern Between their right hand and their left hand, and also much cattle?'
What does Hashem mean by the analogy? Why does He not simply tell Yonah that the people had repented sincerely and were no longer deserving of annihilation? Hashem's words raise several other questions as well:
- הָעִיר הַגְּדוֹלָה – Why is the great size of the city at all relevant to its salvation or destruction?
- אֲשֶׁר לֹא יָדַע בֵּין יְמִינוֹ לִשְׂמֹאלוֹ – What does it mean that the "people did not know the difference between their right and left"? Is Hashem suggesting that the city's inhabitants did not know wrong from right? Is he speaking of the entire city, or just one sub-population, perhaps the children?
- וַאֲנִי לֹא אָחוּס – In these words, Hashem implies that the decision to save Nineveh stemmed from mercy. How does this relate to their ostensible repentance mentioned in chapter 3? Which was the real reason for the annulling of the decree?
Names of God
Throughout the description of Nineveh's penitence, Hashem is consistently referred to by the name Elokim. The people "believe in Elokim" (verse 5), are told to "cry to Elokim" (verse 8), and hope that "Elokim will regret" His decision (verse 9). This stands in contrast to earlier chapters in which both the sailors and Yonah employ Hashem's proper name.1 Is there any significance to the shift in names? Why don't the people of NIneveh also refer to Hashem using His proper name? What, if anything, does this imply about the nature of the Ninevites' repentance and beseeching of God?
