The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1914-02-01

sand years before Christ, was, during the
reign OF Sennacherib. the capital OF the
Assyrian Empire It appears to have been
in its greatest glory when Jonah 600
b. ca prophesied against it. 1t was stand
ing several years later, when Nahum ut
tered his prediction concerning the down
fall of the Assyrian Empire Nineveh its
capital was besieged for two years by the
combined forces Of the Modes and Baby
lonians, and by them was captured sos B.
c.. which was two hundred years after
the prophecy OF Jonah.
Excavations show that it was then de-
vastated by CONGREGATIONS, which de-
stroyed everything except its stone and
brick. Its walls were thrown down, and,
according to prophecy, it was made unin-
habitable Nahum iii. II; Zeph. ii. 1870.
Jonah was commanded to denouace the
iniquity OF Nineveh and make known to
her people the God of Irlael. Similar to
this mission was that of Moses when sent
to Pharaoh; Of Elijah when sent to Ahab;
of Seraiah, when sent by Jeremiah to
Babylon.
There were many reasons why Jonah
hesitated to go to Nineveh. To him, as to
other Israelites, the people of that heath
enish and wicked city, though civilized,
were repulsive. And quite likely, too, the
prophet had forebodings that his mission
might be attended with disappointment
and even with personal injury The high
conduct OF Jonah is quite characteristic OF
human nature. More than one servant OF
God has fed from unpleasant duties. And,
as is we'll known, many runaway since
the days OF Jonah has taken 10 the sea as
a way of escape
And the critic, ii familiar with the nau-
sea incident to a pitching and rolling ship,
and If also disturbed by a troubled con-
science, will see no difficulty unless de-
termned to do so in the apparent willing
ness of Jonah to be thrown overheard.
He was from the inland, among the hills
or Gath-hepher, and was consequently I'M
accustomed to sea voyages.
Nor is there anything, Incredible in
what is said to have followed--that great
fish (dahg gathoD was near the ship and
seized Jonah the moment he struck the
water. Every seafaring man knows that
at sea sharks follow ships for days, some
times for weeks, and If an unfortunate
man falls overheard he is often quickly
seized and devoured
There are two or three other matters
that the destructive critic is continually
harpng upon that may at this point be
considered, one of which. rather coarsey
put, is that God is not a being who would
so into the business OF creating whales to
swallow men,"
In the first place the Hebrew words
translated in the Common Version, pre-
pared great fish," do not mean that God
created fish for the specific purpose of
swallowing Jonah, but rather that God al
dotted or appointed great fish for that
purpose; or. in the Christian speech, the
meaning is that by the providence OF
GOD, great fish, already created, was
brought to the side of the ship, or hap.
pened to be there, at the moment Jonah
was thrown overheard, and, under the
circumstances, did what was perfectly
natural for such a fish to do, swallowed
Jonah.
The unbelieving critic has also asserted
that the story of Jonah is incredible-be
cause the throat OF whale is not large
enough to swallow a man But the high
est critism in its geological studies has
put an end, some time since, to this OBJ
lection that for centuries had been kept
on parade.
The words "dahg gathol,' translated
into both the Septuagint and the New Tes-
lament by the Greek word katos, and into
the Latin of the Vulgate by the words
pscem grandem. mean simply great
fish or sea-monster The word whale,
therefore, is the transators word, while
the words dahg gathol and katos are
those used by the Bible writer's.
So far, therefore. as the Hebrew and
Greek words are concerned, the highest
criticism makes it perfectly clear that the
fish that swallowed Jonah may have been
whale, shark, a sea serpent, sea lion
or any other large monster of the deep.
And even If the skeptic insists that in this
discussion the word whale" should be
used, still one need NOT suffer embarrass-
ment for, while it is true that the right
whale has q throat of small size, the
sperm whale has a throat sufficiently
large to swallow a man without the least
difficulty
There is not shipmaster. or a sailor who
Copyright. 1914. by the Star Com