The Historical Background of Passage’s Biblical Book

Passage:Jonah 3:1-10 The king & people of Nineveh repent because of Jonah’s message

1. Authorship: Describe what you have learned about the author of your biblical book, making sure to include information about different, competing theories of authorship. Identify these authors by including some basic facts about them. Does one theory seem better than others, and why?
2. Date: Describe what scholars believe about the date when the book was written. What are their reasons for proposing a particular theory? If there are competing theories, do the scholars say which ones seem to make the most sense?
3. Audience: What do your sources tell us about the people to whom the book was written? Be as specific as possible when describing their location and circumstances.
4. Purpose: What do your sources tell us about the purposes for writing the biblical book? Identify and explain the major purposes of the book and which one, if any, was the primary reason the author wrote that book.
5. Write a brief paragraph in which you make a preliminary attempt to explain ways that your narrative fits in with what the author was trying to tell his audience.

Sample Solution