Yunus, known in English as Jonah (peace be upon him), was a messenger of Allah (﷾). The Qur'an also calls him Dhun-Nun and the Companion of the Fish, both of which mean the man of the fish. His story is short, and it is one of the most hopeful in the Qur'an. He was a messenger who made a mistake, called on Allah (﷾) from deep darkness, and was rescued. His people believed, and were spared.
This guide follows what the Qur'an says, with two authentic sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ). It is the story as Islam tells it.
At a glance
- He was a messenger of Allah (﷾), sent to a hundred thousand people or more.
- The Qur'an calls him Dhun-Nun and the Companion of the Fish.
- He left his people in anger, and a great fish swallowed him.
- From the darkness he prayed: "There is no god but thou: glory to thee: I was indeed wrong!" Allah (﷾) heard him and rescued him.
- His people believed, and the Qur'an holds up their faith as one that saved them.
- His Lord chose him and made him one of the righteous.
- His mission
Allah (﷾) sends Yunus as a messenger to his people. Qur’an 37:139Qur’an 37:147
- He leaves
He leaves them in anger and goes aboard a ship that is fully laden. Qur’an 21:87Qur’an 37:140
- The fish
Lots are cast, and a big fish swallows him. Qur’an 37:141–142
- The darkness
He calls on Allah (﷾): there is no god but Him, glory to Him, and he was wrong. Qur’an 21:87Qur’an 37:143
- Delivered
Allah (﷾) listens, and casts him out on the shore, sick. A plant grows over him. Qur’an 21:88Qur’an 37:145–146
- His people
A hundred thousand or more believe, and Allah (﷾) lets them enjoy their life. Qur’an 37:147–148Qur’an 10:98
- Chosen
His Lord chooses him and makes him one of the righteous. Qur’an 68:50
The Qur'an gives no dates for Yunus's story, so these are the stages of his story.
A messenger who left in anger
Yunus was sent by Allah (﷾), like the messengers before and after him. The Qur'an names him among those to whom Allah (﷾) sent inspiration, as He did to Nuh (Noah) and the messengers who came after him. Qur’an 4:163
So also was Jonah among those sent (by Us).
Then something went wrong. The Qur'an says he departed in anger. It does not say what his people had said or done. It says he ran away to a ship that was fully laden. He agreed to cast lots, and the lot went against him. Then the big fish swallowed him, and the Qur'an says plainly that he was at fault. Qur’an 21:87Qur’an 37:140–142
The Qur'an does not hide this. It is open about Yunus's mistake, and open about how he put it right. Allah (﷾) keeps His prophets from grave sin. Yunus's fault was a lapse of judgement: he left in anger. And in the darkness he turned back to Allah (﷾). Were the prophets sinless?
The prayer from the darkness
Inside the fish, Yunus called on Allah (﷾). The Qur'an says he cried out through the depths of darkness. It gives us his exact words: Qur’an 21:87
There is no god but thou: glory to thee: I was indeed wrong!
Look at the order of his prayer. First, Allah (﷾) alone: there is no god but Him. Then praise: glory to Him. Last, his own fault: I was wrong. He blamed nobody else. He did not argue or explain. He declared Allah's (﷾) perfection, and owned his mistake.
The Qur'an says that if he had not glorified Allah (﷾), Qur’an 37:143
He would certainly have remained inside the Fish till the Day of Resurrection.
Allah (﷾) heard him.
So We listened to him: and delivered him from distress: and thus do We deliver those who have faith.
The Qur'an says that if grace from his Lord had not reached him, he would have been cast off on the bare shore in disgrace. But grace did reach him. He was cast out on the bare shore sick, but not in disgrace. Allah (﷾) caused a spreading plant of the gourd family, like a pumpkin, to grow over him. Qur’an 68:49Qur’an 37:145–146
The Qur'an says no more than this. It does not name the fish or say how long he stayed inside it, and we do not add to it.
The town that believed
Yunus was sent to a hundred thousand people or more. The Qur'an says they believed, and Allah (﷾) let them enjoy their life for a while. Qur’an 37:147–148
The Qur'an holds this up as something rare. Asking why no other town believed in time for its faith to help it, Allah (﷾) names one exception: the people of Yunus. Qur’an 10:98
When they believed, We removed from them the penalty of ignominy in the life of the present, and permitted them to enjoy (their life) for a while.
Their faith saved them, and his prayer saved him. Both turned back to Allah (﷾).
Chosen, and honoured
Allah (﷾) uses Yunus's story to teach patience. He told the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ): Qur’an 68:48
So wait with patience for the Command of thy Lord, and be not like the Companion of the Fish
Yunus had left in anger. But the Qur'an does not leave him there. It tells how his Lord honoured him:
Thus did his Lord choose him and make him of the Company of the Righteous.
He is one of those whom Allah (﷾) favoured above the nations. Qur’an 6:86
The Prophet (ﷺ) honoured him too. He said that no servant of Allah (﷾) should ever claim to be better than Yunus ibn Matta. The one who reported it adds that he named his father, Matta. It was a lesson in humility. Sahih al-Bukhari 3413Sahih al-Bukhari 4630
How the Bible tells it differently
The Bible has a whole book about Jonah, four short chapters. The heart of it is the same. A prophet is sent to a great city and runs away by ship. A great fish swallows him, and the people he warns turn back. But some points are different. Muslims believe that Allah (﷾) revealed the Torah to Musa, and the Injil to Isa: the Gospel Jesus himself preached in his lifetime. The Injil is not the New Testament. The four New Testament Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, were written by others, decades after Jesus was raised up. None of them names its author: the names were attached later. And the Torah we have today is not exactly as it was revealed. So where the Bible tells a story just as the Qur'an does, we believe it. Where it differs from the Qur'an or contradicts it, we do not. Where the Qur'an says nothing, we neither believe it nor deny it, as the Prophet (ﷺ) taught. Here are the main differences, with the verses. Jonah 1:1–3 (KJV)Jonah 1:17 (KJV)Jonah 3:5 (KJV)Qur’an 5:48Qur’an 5:46Which of the four Gospels did Jesus preach from?Who wrote the Gospels?Sahih al-Bukhari 4485How should a Muslim read the Bible?
The city. The Book of Jonah names the city: Nineveh. It tells that Jonah cried, "Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown". It tells that the people of Nineveh believed God (﷾), proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth, a rough cloth worn in mourning. The Qur'an does not name the city or give a number of days. It says Yunus was sent to a hundred thousand or more, and that they believed. Jonah 3:3–5 (KJV)Qur’an 37:147–148
Why he fled. In Jonah, the Lord tells him to go to Nineveh, and he rises up to flee to Tarshish "from the presence of the Lord". Later he gives his reason: "I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful". The Qur'an says only that he departed in anger, and gives no reason. Jonah 1:1–3 (KJV)Jonah 4:2 (KJV)Qur’an 21:87
His anger. In Jonah 4, after Nineveh turns back, "it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry", and he asks the Lord to take his life. The Qur'an tells of no such scene after his people believed. In the Qur'an, Yunus repents in the darkness, and his Lord chooses him and makes him one of the righteous. Jonah 4:1–3 (KJV)Qur’an 21:87Qur’an 68:50Were the prophets sinless?
Three days. Jonah 1:17 says he was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. The Qur'an gives no length of time. In Matthew 12:39–40, Jesus says that no sign will be given but the sign of Jonah. He compares Jonah's three days and three nights to the time the Son of man will spend “in the heart of the earth”. Yet the Gospels have him laid in the tomb on the day before the sabbath, the Jewish day of rest. They say the tomb was empty before dawn on the first day of the week: two nights, not three. Christians reply that part of a day could be counted as a whole day and night. But the sign was Jonah, and Jonah was alive in the fish: he prayed from its belly. The question page explains how Muslims understand that sign. Jonah 1:17 (KJV)Matthew 12:39–40 (KJV)Mark 15:42–46 (KJV)John 20:1 (KJV)Jonah 2:1 (KJV)What is the sign of Jonah, and does the Christian story fit it?
What we can learn
Yunus's story speaks to anyone who has made a mistake, and to anyone who feels alone in the dark.
- Call on Allah (﷾) from wherever you are. Yunus called from the depths of the darkness, and Allah (﷾) listened. "And thus do We deliver those who have faith." Qur’an 21:87–88
- Own your mistakes. His prayer ended with the words "I was indeed wrong". He blamed nobody else. Admitting a fault is the first step back.
- Allah (﷾) is glad when you turn back to Him. The Prophet (ﷺ) taught that Allah (﷾) is more pleased with His servant's repentance than a man who finds his lost camel in the desert. Sahih al-Bukhari 6309
- Be patient with those you call. The Qur'an told the Prophet (ﷺ) to wait with patience. In the end, Yunus's people believed. Qur’an 68:48Qur’an 10:98
- A mistake does not end your rank. Allah (﷾) chose Yunus and made him one of the righteous. Qur’an 68:50
- Stay humble. No servant of Allah (﷾) should say he is better than Yunus ibn Matta.
Yunus went into the dark knowing only Allah (﷾), and Allah (﷾) brought him out. The same Lord hears anyone who calls on Him with faith. Qur’an 21:88