¶ NOW THE WORD of the ⟨Lord⟩ came unto Jonah the son of A-mit′-tai, saying,
- Arise, go to Nin′-e-veh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.
- But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tar′-shish from the presence of the ⟨Lord⟩, and went down to Jop′-pa; and he found a ship going to Tar′-shish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tar′-shish from the presence of the ⟨Lord⟩.
- ¶ But the ⟨Lord⟩ sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like(ly) to be broken.
- Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the wares that were in the ship, to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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?
- And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the ⟨Lord⟩, the ⟨God⟩ of (the third) heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land.
- 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 the ⟨Lord⟩, because he had told them.
- 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.
- 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.
- Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not: for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them.
- Wherefore they cried unto the ⟨Lord⟩, and said, We beseech thee, O ⟨Lord⟩, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man’s life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O ⟨Lord⟩, hast done as it pleased thee.
- So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging.
- Then the men feared the ⟨Lord⟩ exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the ⟨Lord⟩, and made vows.
- ¶ Now the ⟨Lord⟩ had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Chapter Two
¶THEN JONAH PRAYED unto the ⟨Lord⟩ his ⟨God⟩ out of the fish’s belly,
- And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the ⟨Lord⟩, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice.
- 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.
- Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight; yet I will look again toward thy holy temple.
- The waters compassed me about, even to the soul: the depth (en)closed me round about, the (sea)weeds were wrapped about my head.
- 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 ⟨Lord⟩ my ⟨God⟩.
- When my soul fainted within me I remembered the ⟨Lord⟩: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple.
- ⟨•They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.•⟩ [⇒]
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But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the ⟨Lord⟩.
- And the ⟨Lord⟩ spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.
Chapter Three
¶ AND THE WORD of the ⟨Lord⟩ came unto Jonah the second time, saying,
- Arise, go unto Nin′-e-veh that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.
- So Jonah arose, and went unto Nin′-e-veh, according to the word of the ⟨Lord⟩. Now Nin′-e-veh was an exceeding great city of three days’ journey (in diameter).
- And Jonah began to enter into the city (after) a day’s journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nin′-e-veh shall be overthrown.
- ¶ So the people of Nin′-e-veh believed ⟨God⟩, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to to the least of them.
- For word came unto the king of Nin′-e-veh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him(self ) with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
- And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through(out) Nin′-e-veh 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:
- 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.
- Who can tell if ⟨God⟩ will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger that we perish not?
- ¶ And ⟨God⟩ saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and ⟨God⟩ repented of the evil, that he had said he would do unto them; and he did it not.
Chapter Four
¶ BUT IT DISPLEASED Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry,
- And he prayed unto the ⟨Lord⟩, and said, I pray thee, O ⟨Lord⟩, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tar′-shish: for I knew that thou art a gracious ⟨God⟩, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.
- Therefore now, O ⟨Lord⟩, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.
- ¶ Then said the ⟨Lord⟩, Doest thou well to be angry?
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Then said the ⟨Lord⟩, Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night:
- And should not I not spare Nin′-e-veh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also (with) much cattle?
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