Medieval Lexicon of Symbology

 Jesus drew specific parallels between himself and the prophet Jonah.  Commonly, we know Jonah as the quirky and petulant Old Testament prophet who tried to run from God and was swallowed up by a big fish.   Everyone knows the story of Jonah and the whale.  But certainly Jonah wasn't one of the greats like Elijah or Isaiah or Ezekiel.   His story seems almost comical, by comparison.  And yet Jesus himself, as well as the gospel writers later, made direct and indirect references to Jonah in Matthew 12:38 - 38  Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from you.” 39  He answered, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40  For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41  The men of Nineveh will ...

  Covenant Theology is a hermaneutic that describes God's relationship with man through covenants.  This system proposes that God had an original covenant with Adam, the covenant of the law, whereby Adam would obey God and would eventually be granted eternal life.  Adam broke that covenant and so God adopted a new Covenant of Grace.   Every moment in history since the fall of Adam has been under this new covenant of grace.  From time to time, however, God has expanded on the terms of the covenant of grace, administering the covenant in slightly different and more detailed terms.  So the Noaic covenant, the Mosaic covenant, the Abrahamic covenant, David, etc, are all part of the general covenant of Grace.  But each "administration" of the covenant gives a better and more complete understanding of what this covenant of grace actually is. In the New Testament, Jesus re-affirms the covenant of Grace with his earthly mission.  The implication of ...