Georges Lahy

The Work of Jonah: The Book of Jonah according to Kabbalah Georges Lahy

Jonah is one of the minor prophets of the Bible and the book of Jonah is one of the shortest. However, these few pages are extraordinarily dense and have an unsuspected esoteric richness. The myth of Jonah describes an inner experience with which everyone can identify. It explores poorly understood dimensions of consciousness that have traditionally enabled students of Kabbalah to grasp the fundamental theme of the Fifty Gates of Intelligence (Binah). It engages the reader in an evolutionary process of transformation. The Work of Jonah proposes a new translation of the book of Jonah that closely follows the Hebrew text. Commentary is based on the richness of the Hebrew roots and on the numerical values of words. This book will enable readers to become familiar with the numerical and semantic techniques for decoding biblical texts used by the masters of the Talmud and by Kabbalists. The study of each verse should provoke an inner reaction in the reader, leading him or her to integrate the text, not only through the intellect, but in the heart and soul. Readers often discover Biblical texts through the perception of translators. The Work of Jonah offers a structure that will stimulate Hebraists to study the text more deeply, and non-Hebraists to get closer to the heart of the mysterious words and language of the Bible.