Book of Tobit Typology

[Peter_Dawson]

One of the folks here noticed that I said that the Book of Tobit is extremely rich in typology – symbolism generated by the Holy Spirit – and wanted me to enlarge on that. Here, IMHO, is a sample…

**2 When the boy left home, accompanied by the angel, the dog followed Tobiah out of the house and went with them. The travelers walked till nightfall, and made camp beside the Tigris River.
3 Now when the boy went down to wash his feet in the river, a large fish suddenly leaped out of the water and tried to swallow his foot. He shouted in alarm.
4 But the angel said to him, “Take hold of the fish and don’t let it get away!” The boy seized the fish and hauled it up on the shore.
5 The angel then told him: “Cut the fish open and take out its gall, heart, and liver, and keep them with you; but throw away the entrails. Its gall, heart, and liver make useful medicines.”
6 After the lad had cut the fish open, he put aside the gall, heart, and liver. Then he broiled and ate part of the fish; the rest he salted and kept for the journey. Tobit 6:2-6. **

Believe it or not, here, in my opinion, you’re looking at a typological word picture of the Sacrament of Reconciliation followed by the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. Here’s a line-by-line analysis…

2 When the boy left home, accompanied by the angel, the dog followed Tobiah out of the house and went with them. The travelers walked till nightfall, and made camp beside the Tigris River. “Dogs” = “sinners.” So, maybe the dog tailing Tobit is sin afflicting mankind. You’ll see why I suggest this now. Travelers walki9ng = people following “The Way.” “Nightfall” = the Darkness Type = “God’s condemning judgment.” Note that in Genesis 2:14 the Tigris = “the third river.” The Tigris = a River Type analog = “salvation.” “Third” = a Three Type analog = “Gopd’s Will” or “the commandments.”
3 Now when the boy went down to wash his feet in the river, a large fish suddenly leaped out of the water and tried to swallow his foot. He shouted in alarm. Washing the feet, to remove the dust, or sins, picked-up while walking along The Way = the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Tobit does so in “the third river” – “salvation by the commandments” – locking-in our Sacrament of Reconciliation interpretation. Another thing does, too: The big fish which figuratively bites off his dirty foot, following Christ’s suggestion at Matthew 18:8. Who is that fish? It’s Christ, taking the sins of mankind upon Himself, the same thing Adam, the OT Christ, did when he received the fruit from Eve. Why a fish, though? Normally, fish are sinners from “the Sea of Damnable Souls.” But as Paul observes at 2 Corinthians 5:21, Christ became “He Who did not know sin Who was made to be sin.” This concept is frequently taught in the OT when Christ is symbolized by sin symbols. So, in the Book of Jonah, we see Jonah the Christ Figure “becoming sin” when he is swallowed by the big fish. As Leviathan, Christ continues in that state. The big fish coming up to bite off Tobit’s dirty foot is Christ the Jonah Fish/Leviathan doing what Christ said should be done.
4 But the angel said to him, “Take hold of the fish and don’t let it get away!” The boy seized the fish and hauled it up on the shore.
5 The angel then told him: “Cut the fish open and take out its gall, heart, and liver, and keep them with you; but throw away the entrails. Its gall, heart, and liver make useful medicines.”
6 After the lad had cut the fish open,… That’s mankind sacrificing Christ.
…he put aside the gall, heart, and liver. Then he broiled and ate part of the fish;… – there it is – eating the actual flesh of Christ by consuming the Real Presence in the Eucharist!
**…the rest he salted and kept for the journey. **

 

[JAGCath28]

Wow! This is beautiful and deep. Thank you for sharing this with us!

Peace and love,

Jessica

 

[ohioszo]

I found a connection within our community. Tobit lives in Ninevah. Ninevah spelled backwards is Havenin. It just was a near reminder of the death of Neveah (Heaven spelled backwards,) a young child who was found beside the Raisin River, with cement on top of her body. A fisherman fished for 2-1/2 hourse before he decided to chip away at the cement that he was standing upon. That cement was 1 foot from shore. The fisherman had caught much fish, before his discovery of the child buried beneath his feet. toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090606/NEWS16/906060377

What troubles me personally about this child dying, is that, as everyone perhaps, I envisioned her somewhere before she was found. I thought perhaps in a small wet cave. They had 700 clues sent to them, though. A little later, I just guessed that she was no longer alive, laying prone. Everyone hates the person who did this to her, and her mother, who gave her that name perhaps, is also blamed for whom she herself befriended. Dad not having seen her for 3 years … yes, sin all around her. Flies on the body, not nice, but, doing God’s work I guess in their small way.

 

[Beachcomber]

Thanks for this. Very interesting and enriching.

 

[grannymh]

This concept is frequently taught in the OT when Christ is symbolized by sin symbols. So, in the Book of Jonah, we see Jonah the Christ Figure “becoming sin” when he is swallowed by the big fish. As Leviathan, Christ continues in that state. The big fish coming up to bite off Tobit’s dirty foot is Christ the Jonah Fish/Leviathan doing what Christ said should be done.
6 After the lad had cut the fish open,… That’s mankind sacrificing Christ.
…he put aside the gall, heart, and liver. Then he broiled and ate part of the fish;… – there it is – eating the actual flesh of Christ by consuming the Real Presence in the Eucharist!
**…the rest he salted and kept for the journey. **

The Catholic teaching is that Jesus Christ is True God and True Man. Because Jesus Christ is True God, it would not be proper to say that Divinity “is symbolized by sin symbols” in the Old Testament. It is also improper to talk about "eating the actual flesh of Christ…
At the Resurrection, Christ had a glorified Body which passed through doors, which was not actual human flesh. We need to remember that Jesus Christ is Divine.

In the Catholic Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, Jesus is substantially present under the appearances or signs of bread and wine.

 

[Peter_Dawson]

The Catholic teaching is that Jesus Christ is True God and True Man. Because Jesus Christ is True God, it would not be proper to say that Divinity “is symbolized by sin symbols” in the Old Testament. It is also improper to talk about "eating the actual flesh of Christ…
At the Resurrection, Christ had a glorified Body which passed through doors, which was not actual human flesh. We need to remember that Jesus Christ is Divine.

In the Catholic Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, Jesus is substantially present under the appearances or signs of bread and wine.

You are simply wrong. The Bible is jammed with sin symbols for Christ. If doing that is evil, then the Holy Spirit is evil for writing this…

21 For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. 2 Corinthians 5:21.

Since the Holy Spirit is not evil, you are wrong.

Paul probably said that God MADE Christ “TO BE SIN” to make the point that, though divine and though perfect, Christ ended up being treated as vthough Christ were SIN itself.

Simple example of the Bible symbolizing Christ with SIN symbols: The Bronze Serpent mounted on a pole.

 

[Peter_Dawson]

It is also improper to talk about "eating the actual flesh of Christ…
At the Resurrection, Christ had a glorified Body which passed through doors, which was not actual human flesh. We need to remember that Jesus Christ is Divine.

In the Catholic Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, Jesus is substantially present under the appearances or signs of bread and wine.

Though Christ is indeed under the appearances of bread and wine, the POINT of the word “appearances” is that it is ONLY appearances.

In fact, the Eucharistic bread and wine ARE, IN FACT, the flesh and the blood of Christ. They really, truly, actually are. This is Real Presence theology. You must believe this. This is at the center of Catholic doctrine. Probably to drive home the point, the Greek word used by John, in translating Christ’s Aramaic, is an unusual Greek word meaning “gnaw.”

 

[grannymh]

Though Christ is indeed under the appearances of bread and wine, the POINT of the word “appearances” is that it is ONLY appearances.

In fact, the Eucharistic bread and wine ARE, IN FACT, the flesh and the blood of Christ. They really, truly, actually are. This is Real Presence theology. You must believe this. This is at the center of Catholic doctrine. Probably to drive home the point, the Greek word used by John, in translating Christ’s Aramaic, is an unusual Greek word meaning “gnaw.”

I am sure that someone who truly understands Catholic doctrine will jump in and straighten out the different meanings . In the meantime, the posts are difficult to follow. One needs to remember that Jesus Christ is God.

 

[Mintaka]

When Jonah is swallowed by the fish, the fish isn’t sin. It’s death, if anything. But it’s not really death, unlike what Jesus had to suffer for three days. It points forward to the three days of death and Jesus’ descent into Sheol.

Jesus does have sinners foreshadow him, like Jonah. But that’s the point – the foreshadowing by being weaker points forward to Christ, the perfect version.

However, not all sea monsters and big fish represent bad things in the Bible. Psalm 148 calls for sea monsters to praise the Lord. You don’t call on sin or demons to do that.

 

[DebChris]

Unlike the OP, I did not see all the symbolism when I read Tobit. Years ago, during the orientation to a required theology class that I never took, the priest said, “When reading scripture, don’t look for the answers. Look for the questions.” I found that to be a very freeing statement. One of my questions dealt with the fourth commandment to “honor father and mother” and the Genesis statement “a man will leave father and mother and cling to his wife.”
It is reading Tobit that I found the answer. When a man marries his wife, her parents (in-laws) become his parents and his parents become her parents. It is looking for the questions that I found the answer to familial relationships that we are to develop.
The OT is to be read in light of the NT and the NT to be read in light of the OT. The ability to make connections between what is written (such as the journey of Abraham to sacrifice Isaac taking 3 days) can only strengthen our faith.
The first time I went on retreat, I was told to put my name in place of Isaac or Jacob (etc) as I read the scripture passages I was given. It was a difficult time in my life during which the only way I could express myself was through writing. I was not to judge anything that I wrote in my journal. Each of us will draw something different from scripture based on our own circumstances. When we look back to what was written, we will see the growth in our own spiritual journey. We can trust the Holy Spirit.
I personally may have read the passage as a dog following a boy to the fishing hole as a loyal companion. We benefit from having friends with us during our journey. It could be the fish trying to grab the foot is sin trying to pull the boy under. St. Paul says that God turns all things to good. The fish which grabbed the boy’s foot would become a source of healing for Tobit’s eyes. This same stinky fish would drive away the demon Amodeus before he has a chance to kill Tobias.

 

[Frankk]

An interesting interpretation but it doesn’t really fit into the context. Tobit clearly comes from a God-fearing and Godly family who had complete faith in God, so squeezing the concept of Mt 18:8 into the potential loss of Tobit’s foot doesn’t add up.

And of course the fishes 3 entrails are used to cure 2 ‘ailments’. The Real Presence of Our Lord is One (indivisible) Cure for all the ills of the world so, again, the typology seems inappropriate.

 

[PJM]

One of the folks here noticed that I said that the Book of Tobit is extremely rich in typology – symbolism generated by the Holy Spirit – and wanted me to enlarge on that. Here, IMHO, is a sample…

**2 When the boy left home, accompanied by the angel, the dog followed Tobiah out of the house and went with them. The travelers walked till nightfall, and made camp beside the Tigris River.
3 Now when the boy went down to wash his feet in the river, a large fish suddenly leaped out of the water and tried to swallow his foot. He shouted in alarm.
4 But the angel said to him, “Take hold of the fish and don’t let it get away!” The boy seized the fish and hauled it up on the shore.
5 The angel then told him: “Cut the fish open and take out its gall, heart, and liver, and keep them with you; but throw away the entrails. Its gall, heart, and liver make useful medicines.”
6 After the lad had cut the fish open, he put aside the gall, heart, and liver. Then he broiled and ate part of the fish; the rest he salted and kept for the journey. Tobit 6:2-6. **

Believe it or not, here, in my opinion, you’re looking at a typological word picture of the Sacrament of Reconciliation followed by the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. Here’s a line-by-line analysis…

2 When the boy left home, accompanied by the angel, the dog followed Tobiah out of the house and went with them. The travelers walked till nightfall, and made camp beside the Tigris River. “Dogs” = “sinners.” So, maybe the dog tailing Tobit is sin afflicting mankind. You’ll see why I suggest this now. Travelers walki9ng = people following “The Way.” “Nightfall” = the Darkness Type = “God’s condemning judgment.” Note that in Genesis 2:14 the Tigris = “the third river.” The Tigris = a River Type analog = “salvation.” “Third” = a Three Type analog = “Gopd’s Will” or “the commandments.”
3 Now when the boy went down to wash his feet in the river, a large fish suddenly leaped out of the water and tried to swallow his foot. He shouted in alarm. Washing the feet, to remove the dust, or sins, picked-up while walking along The Way = the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Tobit does so in “the third river” – “salvation by the commandments” – locking-in our Sacrament of Reconciliation interpretation. Another thing does, too: The big fish which figuratively bites off his dirty foot, following Christ’s suggestion at Matthew 18:8. Who is that fish? It’s Christ, taking the sins of mankind upon Himself, the same thing Adam, the OT Christ, did when he received the fruit from Eve. Why a fish, though? Normally, fish are sinners from “the Sea of Damnable Souls.” But as Paul observes at 2 Corinthians 5:21, Christ became “He Who did not know sin Who was made to be sin.” This concept is frequently taught in the OT when Christ is symbolized by sin symbols. So, in the Book of Jonah, we see Jonah the Christ Figure “becoming sin” when he is swallowed by the big fish. As Leviathan, Christ continues in that state. The big fish coming up to bite off Tobit’s dirty foot is Christ the Jonah Fish/Leviathan doing what Christ said should be done.
4 But the angel said to him, “Take hold of the fish and don’t let it get away!” The boy seized the fish and hauled it up on the shore.
5 The angel then told him: “Cut the fish open and take out its gall, heart, and liver, and keep them with you; but throw away the entrails. Its gall, heart, and liver make useful medicines.”
6 After the lad had cut the fish open,… That’s mankind sacrificing Christ.
…he put aside the gall, heart, and liver. Then he broiled and ate part of the fish;… – there it is – eating the actual flesh of Christ by consuming the Real Presence in the Eucharist!
**…the rest he salted and kept for the journey. **

***I really enjoyed you’re views on this.

I would perhaps file it under “no harm =no foul.”

The fish by the way "may have " represented Christ Himself, as “fish” was an early and present sign for Christianity.

As a lover of typology however, I’m unsure you’re right:shrug:

Typlically, typology is more clear and easy to discern, but not always.

Gen. 14: 17-20** for example: "After his return from the defeat of Ched-or-laomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley). And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was priest of God Most High. And he blessed him and said, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, maker of heaven and earth;and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!”. I] clearly
prefigures Chrsit and the Eucharist.

Well done,

Love and prayers,*

 

[tobinatorstark]

The Catholic teaching is that Jesus Christ is True God and True Man. Because Jesus Christ is True God, it would not be proper to say that Divinity “is symbolized by sin symbols” in the Old Testament. It is also improper to talk about "eating the actual flesh of Christ…
At the Resurrection, Christ had a glorified Body which passed through doors, which was not actual human flesh. We need to remember that Jesus Christ is Divine.

In the Catholic Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, Jesus is substantially present under the appearances or signs of bread and wine.

you are quite correct.

 

[tobinatorstark]

You are simply wrong. The Bible is jammed with sin symbols for Christ. If doing that is evil, then the Holy Spirit is evil for writing this…

21 For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. 2 Corinthians 5:21.

Since the Holy Spirit is not evil, you are wrong.

Paul probably said that God MADE Christ “TO BE SIN” to make the point that, though divine and though perfect, Christ ended up being treated as vthough Christ were SIN itself.

Simple example of the Bible symbolizing Christ with SIN symbols: The Bronze Serpent mounted on a pole.

I think you are misunderstanding the whole point

 

[grannymh]

I really enjoyed you’re views on this.

I would perhaps file it under "no harm =no foul."

Pardon me. Personally, I find the view of Christ being symbolized by sin symbols in the Old Testament disturbing.

 

[tobinatorstark]

Pardon me. Personally, I find the view of Christ being symbolized by sin symbols in the Old Testament disturbing.

I understand you loud and clear. Christ came to take away sins, so how can he be a symbol for sinning. It offends me too. I don’t think that Mr. Dawson understands what is writing.

 

[juliamajor]

I understand you loud and clear. Christ came to take away sins, so how can he be a symbol for sinning. It offends me too. I don’t think that Mr. Dawson understands what is writing.

Reading symbolism into every line in the bible not only undermines the integrity of the OT but is reading into scripture that which is not there.Never agood idea. You could start to read anything into it if you wish- a dangerous thing.

 

[Peter_Dawson]

When Jonah is swallowed by the fish, the fish isn’t sin. It’s death, if anything. But it’s not really death, unlike what Jesus had to suffer for three days. It points forward to the three days of death and Jesus’ descent into Sheol.

Jesus does have sinners foreshadow him, like Jonah. But that’s the point – the foreshadowing by being weaker points forward to Christ, the perfect version.

However, not all sea monsters and big fish represent bad things in the Bible. Psalm 148 calls for sea monsters to praise the Lord. You don’t call on sin or demons to do that.

Hi, Mintaka.

First, to get it out of the way…

You say, “Psalm 148 calls for sea monsters to praise the Lord. You don’t call on sin or demons to do that.” Well, sin can’t praise the Lord, but demons can. Are they called to praise the Lord? Yes. “10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Phillipians 2:10-11. So, technically, your statement is simply wrong.

Actually, the big fish is Christ, treated like a bad thing, as though He were “made to be sin,” though He is a good thing.

Once again, the Bible very carefully uses sin symbols to symbolize Christ. Thus, we see the bronze serpent lifted-up onto a pole in the desert, symbolizing Christ being lifted-up.

 

[Peter_Dawson]

Reading symbolism into every line in the bible not only undermines the integrity of the OT but is reading into scripture that which is not there.Never agood idea. You could start to read anything into it if you wish- a dangerous thing.

Hi, Juliamajor. Not every line is symbolic, but if you don’t understand how the OT foreshadows Christ, you have essentially gutted it and rendered it nearly useless.

 

[Peter_Dawson]

I understand you loud and clear. Christ came to take away sins, so how can he be a symbol for sinning. It offends me too. I don’t think that Mr. Dawson understands what is writing.

Hi, Toby. I understand well. So did Paul: “21 For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.” Does the bronze serpent offend you?