“Why did the captain (rav hachoveil) abandon his sailors on deck and reach out to Yonah to pray?” asked my Torah Academy of Bergen County students. Couldn’t the captain have sent a subordinate to try to convince Yonah to pray? A captain abandoning his sailors during a severe crisis is most unusual at best and egregiously irresponsible at worst!
A Most “Jewish” Rebuke
Moreover, the language employed by the captain is decidedly “Jewish.” After pushing Yonah to call out to his God, the captain says perhaps “HaElokim,” “the God” (Yonah 1:6), will listen to our prayers. The captain, who began the pasuk with pagan assumptions that Yonah’s God is one among many, suddenly shifts into a monotheistic mode, invoking “the” (i.e., singular) God. Perhaps the captain is tailoring his words to his audience—Yonah. But the captain began by appealing to Yonah to call out to Elokecha, your God. Moreover, if the captain was aware of Yonah’s religious position, why does he inquire into Yonah’s religion once Yonah arrives on deck?
Furthermore, the attitude expressed by the words “perhaps Hashem will listen to us” is decidedly Jewish. Moshe Rabbeinu reflects such an attitude upon his ascending to Har Sinai to appeal for clemency for the Cheit HaEigel (Shemot 32:30), “ulai achaperah be’ad chatatchem,” “perhaps I will achieve atonement for your sins.” Numerous other examples abound in Tanach. The question, accordingly, emerges as to how did a pagan know to formulate his words in complete harmony with Jewish values?
Moreover, the captain’s rebuking Yonah “mah lecha nirdam,” “how can you sleep at a moment like this?” (1:6), resonates deeply with Sephardic Jews, as this rebuke is paraphrased at the beginning of the Sephardic Selichot services. Rambam (Hilchot Teshuvah 3:4) expresses a point similarly that the role of the shofar is to arouse those who have fallen into the trap of spiritual slumber. Again the question emerges, how did the pagan know how to talk in a Jewish style to Yonah?
My students noted that this ship was docked in the Jaffa harbor. The sailors, or at least the captain, are likely at that time to have learned a significant amount about Judaism, and therefore the captain knew how to modify his speech when talking to a pious Jew. The problem with this approach is that the sailors’ later inquiries of Yonah when he is on the deck create the impression that they are unaware of Yonah’s belief system.
I suggest something a bit more ambitious. The Torah presents situations where Hashem completely “hijacks” a person and his speech. The classic example is when Hashem “hijacked” Bilam’s mouth to have him bless Bnei Yisrael. Another example is Hashem hardening Paroh’s heart. I suggest, in turn, that Hashem commandeered the mouth of the captain of Yonah’s ship to rebuke him. This is reminiscent of the Gemara (Avodah Zarah 17a) recounting the sordid story of Elazar ben Dordiah, who visited a zonah (harlot) in a far-off land. Suddenly she stuns him by giving him hauntingly poignant mussar (rebuke). How did the harlot who was so removed from even any remote connection to Jewish life know to rebuke Rabi Elazar ben Dordiah in a most potent and Jewish way? I suggest that Hashem “hijacked” the harlot, and it was as if Hashem spoke directly to Elazar ben Dordiah. His extreme reaction indicates that Elazar ben Dordiah realizes that it was none other than Hashem Who was rebuking him.
Similarly, I suggest that Hashem “hijacked” the ship’s captain to deliver poignant and Jewish style words of rebuke. This hypothesis resolves all of the questions we posed on the captain’s behavior. Hashem hijacked the captain to leave his post at a time of crisis and to speak to Yonah in a most Jewish style. Hashem intended to drive home a point to Yonah, and Yonah, who is trained to detect Hashem’s presence, should easily discern Hashem as the actual speaker.
Conclusion
Hashem has tried communicating directly with Yonah (1:1) and then indirectly through the storm. Yonah clings to his stubborn and unyielding approach despite the most strong reproof from Hashem. Hashem tries to spur Yonah to action by speaking through the ship’s captain, but once again, Yonah refuses to relent, much to his and his fellow-travelers’ detriment.
The idea of Hashem, in the guise of the ship’s captain, imploring Yonah to awaken from his spiritual slumber, looms large in our minds toward the end of Yom Kippur. At the height of the “storm” of Yom Kippur, the actual “Rav HaChoveil” addresses us, listeners, as well imploring us to awaken from our spiritual slumber to a more vigorous spiritual life.
Rabbi Haim Jachter is the spiritual leader of Congregation Shaarei Orah, the Sephardic Congregation of Teaneck. He also serves as a rebbe at Torah Academy of Bergen County and a dayan on the Beth Din of Elizabeth.
