Amittai
Amittai was the father of Jonah, the prophet from Gath-hepher.
Biography
Amittai was an Israelite of Gath-hepher in the territory of Zebulun, best known as the father of the prophet Jonah (2 Kings 14:25; Jonah 1:1). He lived during the era of the Divided Monarchy, a period of significant political turbulence and religious decline in the northern kingdom of Israel. His name means 'truthful' or 'faithful' in Hebrew, a meaning that carries irony given that his son Jonah would famously attempt to flee from the call of the God of truth. Gath-hepher was a village in Lower Galilee, making Jonah, and presumably Amittai, Galilean by origin, a detail that gives historical weight to the prophet's ministry context during the reign of Jeroboam II.
Significance
Though Amittai appears only in passing, his significance lies entirely in his paternity. He was the father of Jonah, whose story became one of Scripture's most enduring theological narratives about divine mercy, human reluctance, and the universal scope of God's concern for all peoples. Jesus himself invoked the sign of Jonah as a foreshadowing of his own death and resurrection (Matthew 12:39-40). Amittai's background in Galilean Israel also underscores that God's prophetic call reaches into ordinary tribal households, transforming ordinary lineages into bearers of extraordinary revelatory purposes that extend far beyond their cultural and national boundaries.
Verse Appearances (2)
2 Kings
Jonah
References
- Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Translators Individualised Proper Names with all References (TIPNR). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]