The name is in Arabic
Yunus bin Matta, peace be upon him.
Title
Dhul-Nun (owner of the whale), and the swallowed prophet.
Chronological order
He comes after Dhul-Kifl and before Moses and Aaron, peace be upon them.
Mission location
Nineveh in Iraq (was the capital of the Assyrians).
📜 Lineage and mission
Lineage: He is Yunus bin Matta, and “Matthew” was said to be his mother, and it was said to be his father’s name. He is from the children of Israel.
The Mission: Yunus, peace be upon him, was sent to the people of Nineveh. It was a great city inhabited by about a hundred thousand or more, and they worshiped idols.
🏃 Leaving his people (fleeing)
Calling the people: Yunus called on his people to unite God and abandon the worship of idols, but they rejected his call and insisted on their disbelief and stubbornness.
Threat of torment: God revealed to Yunus that torment would come to them after three days. Yunus waited, but the people did not believe.
His anger and departure: Yunus thought that his mission had ended, and he became angry with his people for their lack of response, so he decided to leave before God gave him permission to do so, thinking that God would not make it difficult for him in a vast land. This is the reason for the divine censure against him: “So he thought that We would not control him” (Al-Anbiya’: 87), meaning that We would not restrict his livelihood or land.
🌊 His salvation and the repentance of his people
The repentance of his people: After Yunus left, signs of torment began to appear on the people of Nineveh. So they returned to God, put on sackcloth, and went out to the desert, and they supplicated and asked for forgiveness, so God lifted the torment from them: $And had there not been a town that believed, and its faith benefited it, except for the people of Jonah, when they believed, We uncovered them. The torment of disgrace in the life of this world, and We have given them enjoyment for a while (Yunus: 98).
Boarding the ship: Yunus arrived at the seashore and boarded a ship.
Draw: The sea was agitated, and the passengers were afraid of drowning, so they said: There must be a disobedient slave among us. So they decided to draw lots, and the lot fell on Yunus three times.
Swallowed by a whale: Yunus threw himself into the sea, and the whale swallowed him by order of God, without scratching his flesh or breaking his bones.
🕯️ In the belly of the whale
The dark place: Yunus found himself in three darknesses: the darkness of the night, the darkness of the sea, and the darkness of the belly of the whale.
Praise and supplication: Yunus realized his mistake (going out without the permission of his Lord), so he repented and called upon God with great praise: $So he called out in the darkness: “There is no god but You. Glory be to You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers” (Al-Anbiya’: 87).
Salvation: God answered his prayer (had he not been one of those who glorified God, he would have remained in his stomach until the day they are resurrected), so he commanded the whale to spit him out on the shore.
🌳 His return to his people
His condition after the exit: Yunus emerged from the belly of the whale while he was sick and weak.
Pumpkin tree: God grew a pumpkin tree for him (a type of squash) so he could eat its fruit, take shade from its leaves, and regain his health.
His return and the message: Yunus returned to his people of Nineveh, and found that they believed in him and his law after God had lifted the torment from them, so he stayed with them teaching them and calling on them.
⌛ His age and death
His age and death: His exact age or date of death was not mentioned.
Note: The story of Yunus, peace be upon him, teaches us that seeking forgiveness and confessing sin is a means of salvation, and that repentance and returning to God lifts the calamity from nations and individuals.