JONAH
Jonah 1
1 Now the word of Yahweh came unto Jonah the son of Amittai,
saying,
2 Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their
wickedness is come up before Me.
3 But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the
presence of Yahweh, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into
it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence
of Yahweh.
4 But Yahweh sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest
in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken.
5 Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast
forth the wares that [were] in the ship into the sea, to lighten [it] of them.
But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast
asleep.
6 So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What
meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if
so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.
7 And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots, that we
may know for whose cause this evil [is] upon us. So they cast lots, and the lot
fell upon Jonah.
8 Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil
[is] upon us; What [is] thine occupation? And whence comest thou? what
[is] thy country? and of what people [art] thou?
9 And he said unto them, I [am] an Hebrew; and I fear
Yahweh, the God of heaven, Which hath made the sea and the dry [land].
10 Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him, Why
hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the
presence of Yahweh, because he had told them.
11 Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto
thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea
wrought, and was tempestuous.
12 And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall
the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest [is]
upon you.
13 Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring [it] to the land; but they could
not: for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them.
14 Wherefore they cried unto Yahweh, and said, We
beseech Thee, O Yahweh, we beseech Thee, let us not perish for this man's life,
and lay not upon us innocent blood: for Thou, O Yahweh, hast done as it pleased
Thee.
15 So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased
from her raging.
16 Then the men feared Yahweh exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto Yahweh,
and made vows.
17 Now Yahweh had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in
the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
1 Then Jonah prayed unto Yahweh his God out of the fish's belly,
2 And said, I cried by reason of
mine affliction unto Yahweh, and He heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I,
[and] Thou heardest my voice.
3 For Thou hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst
of the seas; and the floods compassed me about: all Thy billows and Thy waves
passed over me.
4 Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight; yet I will look again toward Thy
holy temple.
5 The waters compassed me about, [even] to the soul: the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head.
6 I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars [was]
about me for ever: yet hast Thou brought up my life from corruption, O Yahweh
my God.
7 When my soul fainted within me I remembered Yahweh: and my prayer came in
unto Thee, into Thine holy temple.
8 They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.
9 But I will sacrifice unto Thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay
[that] that I have vowed. Salvation [is] of Yahweh.
10 And Yahweh spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry
[land].
1 And the word of Yahweh came unto Jonah the second time, saying,
2 Arise, go unto
3 So Jonah arose, and went unto
4 And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and
said, Yet forty days, and
5 So the people of
6 For word came unto the king of
7 And he caused [it] to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the
decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor
flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water:
8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God:
yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that [is]
in their hands.
9 Who can tell [if] God will turn and repent, and turn away from His fierce anger, that we perish not?
10 And God saw their works, that they turned from
their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that He had said that He would do
unto them; and He did [it] not.
1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry.
2 And he prayed unto Yahweh, and said, I pray Thee, O Yahweh, [was] not this my
saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that Thou [art] a gracious God, and
merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest
Thee of the evil.
3 Therefore now, O Yahweh, take, I beseech Thee, my life from me; for [it is]
better for me to die than to live.
4 Then said Yahweh, Doest thou well to be angry?
5 So Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and
there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what
would become of the city.
6 And Yahweh 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.
7 But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the
gourd that it withered.
8 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.
9 And God said to Jonah, Doest thou well to be angry for the gourd? And he said, I do well to be angry, [even] unto death.
10 Then said Yahweh, Thou wouldst have spared the gourd, for the which thou
hast not laboured, neither madest
it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night:
11 And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than six score
thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left
hand; and [also] much cattle?