Who disobeyed God and was swallowed by a whale?

The person who disobeyed God and was swallowed by a whale was Jonah. In the biblical Book of Jonah, God commands the prophet Jonah to preach in Nineveh, but Jonah tries to escape by sailing in the opposite direction.

A violent storm threatens the ship, and Jonah tells the sailors that his disobedience is responsible. They throw him into the sea, after which God appoints a “great fish” to swallow him. Jonah remains inside it for three days and three nights before being vomited onto dry land.

The Bible’s original wording says “great fish,” while the familiar phrase “Jonah and the whale” comes especially from later translations and Christian tradition. Matthew 12:40 uses the Greek word kētos, which can mean a large sea creature, so the text does not identify a specific whale species. Jonah then goes to Nineveh, whose people repent after hearing his warning. A common mix-up is confusing Jonah with Pinocchio, another famous character associated with being swallowed by a sea creature.