^4:6The Lord God appointed¹⁹ a little plant²⁰ and caused it to grow up over Jonah to be a shade over his head to rescue²¹ him from his misery.²² Now Jonah was very delighted²³ about the little plant.

^4:7So God sent²⁴ a worm at dawn the next day, and it attacked the little plant so that it dried up. ^4:8When the sun began to shine, God sent²⁵ a hot²⁶ east wind. So the sun beat down²⁷ on Jonah’s head, and he grew faint. So he despaired of life,²⁸ and said, “I would rather die than live!”²⁹

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Footnotes

19 The verb מָנָה (manah) in the Piel stem is used elsewhere in Jonah meaning “to send, to appoint” (Jonah 2:1; 4:6–8; מנה 2; 584 מָנָה).
20 The noun קִיקָיוֹן (qiqayon, “plant”) has the suffixed ending וֹן- which denotes a diminutive (see §5.7b), so it can be nuanced “little plant.” For the probable reason that the narrator used the diminutive form here, see the note on “little” in v. .
21 The consonantal form להציל is vocalized by the as לִהַצִּיל (léhatsil), a Hiphil infinitive construct from נָצַל (natsal, “to deliver, rescue”; 664–65 נָצַל). However, the ’s τοῦ σκιάζειν (tou skiazein, “to shade”) reflects an alternate vocalization tradition of לְהָצֵיל (léhatsel), a Niphal infinitive construct from צָלַל (tsalal, “to shade”; see 853 צָלַל). The vocalization is preferred for several reasons. First, it is the more difficult form with the assimilated nun. Second, the presence of the noun צֵל (tsel, “shadow”) just two words before helps to explain the origin of the vocalization which was influenced by this noun in the immediate context. Third, God’s primary motivation in giving the plant to Jonah was not simply to provide shade for him because the next day the Lord killed the plant (v. 7). God’s primary motivation was to create a situation to “rescue” Jonah from his bad attitude. Nevertheless, the narrator’s choice of the somewhat ambiguous consonantal form להציל might have been done to create a wordplay on נָצַל (“to rescue, deliver”) and צָלַל (“to shade”). Jonah thought that God was providing him shade, but God was really working to deliver him from his evil attitude, as the ensuing dialogue indicates.
22 Or “evil attitude.” The meaning of the noun רָעָה (ra’ah) is intentionally ambiguous; the author puns on its broad range of meanings to create a polysemantic wordplay. It has a broad range of meanings: (1) “distress, misery, discomfort” (2) “misfortune, injury,” (3) “calamity, disaster,” (4) “moral evil,” and (5) “ill-disposed, evil attitude” (see 949 רָעָה; רָעָה). The narrator has used several meanings of רָעָה in 3:8–4:2, namely, “moral evil” (3:8, 10) and “calamity, disaster” (3:9, 10; 4:2), as well as the related verb רָעַע (ra’a’, “to be displeasing”; see 4:1). Here the narrator puns on the meaning “discomfort” created by the scorching desert heat, but God’s primary motivation is to “deliver” Jonah—not from something as trivial as physical discomfort from heat—but from his sinful attitude about God’s willingness to spare Nineveh. This gives the term an especially ironic twist: Jonah is only concerned about being delivered from his physical “discomfort,” while God wants to deliver him from his “evil attitude.”
23 Heb “he rejoiced with great joy.” The cognate accusative construction repeats the verb and noun of the consonantal root שׂמח (smkh, “rejoice”) for emphasis; it means “he rejoiced with great joy” or “he was greatly delighted” (see §10.2.1g). This cognate accusative construction ironically mirrors the identical syntax of v. 1, “he was angry with great anger.” The narrator repeated this construction to emphasize the contrast between Jonah’s anger that Nineveh was spared and his joy that his discomfort was relieved.
24 Or “appointed.” The verb מָנָה (manah) in the Piel stem means “to send, to appoint” (Ps 61:8; Jonah 2:1; 4:6–8; Dan 1:5, 10–11; מנה 2; 584 מָנָה).
25 Or “appointed.” See preceding note on v. .
26 The adjective חֲרִישִׁית (kharishit, “autumnal”) is a with an unclear meaning ( 362 חֲרִישִׁי); therefore, the editors propose a conjectural emendation to the adjective חֲרִיפִית (kharifit, “autumnal”) from the noun חֹרֶף (khoref, “autumn”; see 358 חרֶף). However, this emendation would also create a and it would be no more clear than relating the ’s חֲרִישִׁית to I חָרַשׁ (kharash, “to plough” [in autumn harvest]). Heb “autumnal” or “sultry.” The adjective חֲרִישִׁית is a whose meaning is unclear; it might mean “autumnal” (from I חָרַשׁ, kharash; “to plough” [in the autumn harvest-time]), “silent” = “sultry” (from IV. חרשׁ, “to be silent”; 362 חֲרִישִׁי). The form חֲרִישִׁית might be an alternate spelling of חֲרִיסִית (kharisit) from the noun חֶרֶס (kheres, “sun”) and so mean “hot” ( 362 ).
27 Heb “attacked” or “smote.”
28 Heb “he asked his soul to die.”
29 Heb “better my death than my life.” Jonah repeats his assessment, found also in 4:3.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

Now the Lord God appointed a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort. So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered. When the sun rose, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint. And he asked that he might die and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

Then the Lord God provided a leafy plant and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the plant. But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered. When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die, and said, “It would be better for me to die than to live.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Then the Lord God appointed a plant, and it grew over Jonah to provide shade for his head to rescue him from his trouble. Jonah was greatly pleased with the plant. When dawn came the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, and it withered.

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

NLTNew Living Translation

And the Lord God arranged for a leafy plant to grow there, and soon it spread its broad leaves over Jonah’s head, shading him from the sun. This eased his discomfort, and Jonah was very grateful for the plant.

But God also arranged for a worm! The next morning at dawn the worm ate through the stem of the plant so that it withered away. And as the sun grew hot, God arranged for a scorching east wind to blow on Jonah. The sun beat down on his head until he grew faint and wished to die. “Death is certainly better than living like this!” he exclaimed.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And Yahweh God appointed a plant, and he made it grow up over Jonah to be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort. And Jonah was very glad about the plant. So God appointed a worm at daybreak the next day, and it attacked the plant, and it withered. And when the sun rose, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah’s head and he grew faint. And he asked that he could die and said, “My death is better than my life!”

KJV 1900King James Version

And the Lord God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his grief. So Jonah was exceeding glad of the gourd. But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gourd that it withered. And it came to pass, when the sun did arise, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.

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