The Exodus ‘motif’ is one the Bible’s recurring patterns or ‘jokes.’
We’re supposed to spot it when we see it. The Biblical authors often play with the literary shapes they employ and they want us to notice when they subvert our expectations as well as use them. Jonah is a case in point: the author uses the Exodus ‘shape’ in chapters 2 and 4, but does so in ways which seem inherently backwards.
I’ve written an article on this over at Theopolis called ‘Jonah’s Backwards Exodus’, why not check it out? Here’s a little taste:
As Jonah descends to the depths, he is passing through his sea of reeds (suph, 2:5) like Moses in his ark among the rushes (suph) and then Israel in the Red (suph) Sea. We would expect this to mean a movement through the waters of death to new life, a baptism; except he’s drowning. In a strange reversal Jonah is in the Red Sea but isn’t Israel, he’s Pharoah’s army. The Gentiles in the boat above him find themselves in an ark passing along the waters, celebrating salvation from Yahweh (1:16).
If you’re new to spotting the Exodus ‘shape’ of the Bible (which is both “there and back again” and “through the waters of death to new life”) I’d really recommend the book Echoes of Exodus by my friends Alastair Roberts and Andrew Wilson.
Photo by Matt Hardy on Unsplash
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