Yonah #1- Character Analyzation

(א) וַֽיְהִי֙ דְּבַר־יְהוָ֔ה אֶל־יוֹנָ֥ה בֶן־אֲמִתַּ֖י לֵאמֹֽר׃ (ב) ק֠וּם לֵ֧ךְ אֶל־נִֽינְוֵ֛ה הָעִ֥יר הַגְּדוֹלָ֖ה וּקְרָ֣א עָלֶ֑יהָ כִּֽי־עָלְתָ֥ה רָעָתָ֖ם לְפָנָֽי׃ (ג) וַיָּ֤קָם יוֹנָה֙ לִבְרֹ֣חַ תַּרְשִׁ֔ישָׁה מִלִּפְנֵ֖י יְהוָ֑ה וַיֵּ֨רֶד יָפ֜וֹ וַיִּמְצָ֥א אָנִיָּ֣ה ׀ בָּאָ֣ה תַרְשִׁ֗ישׁ וַיִּתֵּ֨ן שְׂכָרָ֜הּ וַיֵּ֤רֶד בָּהּ֙ לָב֤וֹא עִמָּהֶם֙ תַּרְשִׁ֔ישָׁה מִלִּפְנֵ֖י יְהוָֽה׃

Jonah 1:1-3

(1) Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying: (2) ’Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim against it; for their wickedness is come up before Me.’ (3) But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD; and he went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish, from the presence of the LORD.

The opening lines of Yonah, written here, pose a serious yet oft-overlooked question: Why did Yonah run away from Hashem's command?

Answer #1: Yonah was in favor of strict judgement, and didn't want G-d to be merciful on sinners.

מלכים ב י״ד:כ״ד-כ״ו

(כד) וַיַּ֥עַשׂ הָרַ֖ע בְּעֵינֵ֣י יְהוָ֑ה לֹ֣א סָ֗ר מִכָּל־חַטֹּאות֙ יָרָבְעָ֣ם בֶּן־נְבָ֔ט אֲשֶׁ֥ר הֶחֱטִ֖יא אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ (כה) ה֗וּא הֵשִׁיב֙ אֶת־גְּב֣וּל יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל מִלְּב֥וֹא חֲמָ֖ת עַד־יָ֣ם הָעֲרָבָ֑ה כִּדְבַ֤ר יְהוָה֙ אֱלֹהֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אֲשֶׁ֣ר דִּבֶּ֗ר בְּיַד־עַבְדּ֞וֹ יוֹנָ֤ה בֶן־אֲמִתַּי֙ הַנָּבִ֔יא אֲשֶׁ֖ר מִגַּ֥ת הַחֵֽפֶר׃ (כו) כִּי־רָאָ֧ה יְהוָ֛ה אֶת־עֳנִ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל מֹרֶ֣ה מְאֹ֑ד וְאֶ֤פֶס עָצוּר֙ וְאֶ֣פֶס עָז֔וּב וְאֵ֥ין עֹזֵ֖ר לְיִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

II Kings 14:24-26

(24) And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; he departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin. (25) He restored the border of Israel from the entrance of Hamath unto the sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the LORD, the God of Israel, which He spoke by the hand of His servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was of Gath-hepher. (26) For the LORD saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter; for there was none shut up nor left at large, neither was there any helper for Israel.

Yeah, no. You see, Bnei Yisrael were also egregious siners, and yet Yonah was fine prophesying the military victory of Israel, which is clearly described as an action sanctioned by G-d out of pity.

In the style of the Gemara, I will use this opportunity to go on a completely unconnected tangent. A commonly noted thing about Yonah is that there is virtually no introduction to our protagonist. However, this is untrue; the Tanach merely assumes that you already know Sefer Melachim, where you learn Yonah's political affiliation (Pro-Israel), his hometown (Gat Chepher), and his personal description (Eved Hashem).

Answer #2: Assyria was a foe of Israel, and Yonah wanted them destroyed.
This answer seems compatible with our description of Yonah, but actually displays a sad lack of knowledge concerning the political realities of the 9th-8th centuries' Middle East. Here's a picture:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jehu#mediaviewer/File:Jehu-Obelisk-cropped.jpg

In this picture, we see Israel paying tribute to Assyria in exchange for an alliance against Aram. Assyria, during Yonah's time, would attack Aram, providing relief for Israel. Thus, it would be in Israel's best interest to save Nineveh.

While I cannot offer my own satisfactory opinion, there is a midrash that picks up on the need for a good theory.

פרקי דרבי אליעזר: פרק עשירי

ולמה ברח? אלא, פעם ראשונה שלחו להשיב את גבול ישראל ועמדו דבריו. פעם שניה שלחו לירושלים להחריבה. כיון שעשו תשובה, עשה הקב"ה כרוב חסדו ונחם על הרעה ולא חרבה, והיו ישראל קורין אותו נביא שקר. פעם שלישי שלחו לנינוה. דן יונה דין בינו לבין עצמו. אמר, יודע אני שזה גוי קרובי תשובה הם. עכשיו עושין תשובה, והקב"ה שולח את רוגזו על ישראל. ולא די שישראל קורין אותי נביא שקר, אלא אף עכו"ם!?

Pirkei D'Rabbi Eliezer 10

Why did he flee ? Because on the first occasion when (God) sent him to restore the border of Israel, his words were fulfilled, as it is said, " And he restored the border of Israel from the entering in of Hamath " (2 Kings xiv. 25). On the second occasion (God) sent him to Jerusalem to (prophesy that He would) destroy it. But as soon as they repented, the Holy One, blessed be He, did according to the abundance of His tender mercy and re- pented of the evil (decree), and He did not destroy it ; thereupon Israel called him a lying prophet. On the third occasion (God) sent him against Nineveh to destroy it. Jonah argued with himself, saying, I know that the nations are nigh to repentance, now they will repent and the Holy One, blessed be He, will direct His anger against Israel. And is it not enough for me that Israel should call me a lying prophet ; but shall also the nations of the world (do likewise) !?

While this midrash is certainly not peshat, it does solve our problem.
Tune in for installment #2 of my Yonah series, coming soon!