Jonah 1:1–4:9

Jonah’s Flight

1The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: ^a2“Get up! ^bGo to the great city ^cof Nineveh ^dand preach against it, ^ebecause their wickedness ^fhas confronted ^gMe.” ^h3However, Jonah got up to flee to Tarshish ⁱfrom the Lord’s presence. ^jHe went down ^kto Joppa ^land found a ship going to Tarshish. He paid the fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish, from the Lord’s presence.

⁴Then the Lord hurled ^ma violent wind on the sea, ⁿand such a violent storm arose on the sea that the ship threatened to break apart. ⁵The sailors were afraid, and each cried out to his god. ^oThey threw the ship’s cargo into the sea to lighten the load. ^pMeanwhile, Jonah had gone down to the lowest part of the vessel and had stretched out and fallen into a deep sleep. ^q

⁶The captain approached him and said, “What are you doing sound asleep? Get up! Call to your god. ^rsMaybe this god will consider us, ^tand we won’t perish.”

⁷“Come on!” the sailors said to each other. “Let’s cast lots. ^uThen we’ll know who is to blame for this trouble we’re in.” So they cast lots, and the lot singled out Jonah. ^v8Then they said to him, “Tell us who is to blame for this trouble we’re in. ^wWhat is your business ^xand where are you from? What is your country and what people are you from?”

⁹He answered them, “I’m a Hebrew. ^yI worship ^zYahweh, ^athe God of the heavens, ^bwho made the sea ^cand the dry land.”

¹⁰Then the men were even more afraid and said to him, “What is this you’ve done?” The men knew he was fleeing from the Lord’s presence, ^dbecause he had told them. ¹¹So they said to him, “What should we do to you to calm this sea that’s against us?” For the sea was getting worse and worse.

¹²He answered them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea ^eso it may quiet down for you, for I know that I’m to blame ^ffor this violent storm that is against you.” ¹³Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to dry land, but they couldn’t because the sea was raging against them more and more.

¹⁴So they called out to the Lord: ^g“Please, Yahweh, don’t let us perish because of this man’s life, and don’t charge us with innocent blood! For You, Yahweh, have done just as You pleased.” ^h15Then they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, and the sea stopped its raging. ⁱ¹⁶The men feared the Lord ^jeven more, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows. ^k

^17lNow the Lord had appointed a huge fish ^mto swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in ⁿthe fish three days and three nights. ^o

Jonah’s Prayer

2Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from inside ^pthe fish: ^q

²I called to the Lord in my distress, ^r

and He answered me.

I cried out for help in the belly of Sheol; ^s

You heard my voice. ^t

³You threw me into the depths, ^u

into the heart of the seas, ^v

and the current ^wovercame me.

All Your breakers and Your billows swept over me. ^x

⁴But I said: I have been banished ^y

from Your sight, ^z

yet I will look once more ^a

toward Your holy temple. ^b

⁵The waters engulfed me up to the neck; ^cd

the watery depths overcame me;

seaweed was wrapped around my head. ^e

⁶I sank to the foundations of the mountains; ^f

the earth with its prison bars closed behind me forever! ^g

But You raised my life ^hfrom the Pit, Lord my God! ⁱ

⁷As my life was fading away, ^j

I remembered Yahweh. ^k

My prayer came to You, ^l

to Your holy temple. ^m

⁸Those who cling to worthless idols ⁿ

forsake faithful love, ^o

⁹but as for me, I will sacrifice ^pto You

with a voice of thanksgiving. ^q

I will fulfill ^rwhat I have vowed.

Salvation ^sis from the Lord! ^t

¹⁰Then the Lord commanded the fish, ^uand it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

Jonah’s Preaching

3Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: ^v2“Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh ^wand preach ^xthe message that I tell you.” ³So Jonah got up and went to Nineveh according to the Lord’s command.

Now Nineveh was an extremely large city, ^yza three-day walk. ^a4Jonah set out on the first day of his walk in the city and proclaimed, ^b“In 40 days Nineveh will be demolished!” ⁵The men of Nineveh believed in God. ^cThey proclaimed a fast ^dand dressed in sackcloth—from the greatest of them to the least.

⁶When word reached the king of Nineveh, he got up from his throne, took off his royal robe, put on sackcloth, ^eand sat in ashes. ⁷Then he issued a decree ^fin Nineveh:

By order of the king and his nobles: No man or beast, herd or flock, is to taste anything at all. They must not eat or drink water. ⁸Furthermore, both man and beast must be covered with sackcloth, and everyone must call out earnestly to God. ^gEach must turn from his evil ways ^hand from the violence ⁱhe is doing. ^j9Who knows? ^kGod may turn and relent; He may turn from His burning anger so that we will not perish. ^l

¹⁰Then God saw their actions—that they had turned from their evil ways ^m—so God relented from the disaster ⁿHe had threatened to do to them. And He did not do it.

Jonah’s Anger

4But Jonah was greatly displeased and became furious. ^o2He prayed to the Lord: ^p“Please, Lord, isn’t this what I said while I was still in my own country? That’s why I fled toward Tarshish in the first place. ^qI knew that You are a merciful and compassionate God, ^rslow to become angry, rich in faithful love, and One who relents from sending disaster. ^s3And now, Lord, please take my life from me, ^tfor it is better for me to die than to live.” ^u

⁴The Lord asked, “Is it right for you to be angry?”

⁵Jonah left the city and sat down east of it. ^vHe made himself a shelter there and sat in its shade to see what would happen to the city. ⁶Then the Lord God appointed a plant, ^wand it grew up to provide shade over Jonah’s head to ease his discomfort. ^xJonah was greatly pleased with the plant. ⁷When dawn came the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, and it withered. ^y

⁸As the sun was rising, God appointed a scorching east wind. ^zThe sun beat down so much on Jonah’s head ^athat he almost fainted, and he wanted to die. He said, “It’s better for me to die than to live.” ^b

⁹Then God asked Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?”

“Yes,” he replied. “It is right. I’m angry enough to die!”