Jonah 1-4

New International Version

Jonah Flees From the Lord

1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah^(A) son of Amittai:^(B) ²“Go to the great city of Nineveh^(C) and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”

³But Jonah ran^(D) away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish^(E). He went down to Joppa,^(F) where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.^(G)

⁴Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up.^(H) ⁵All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship.^(I)

But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. ⁶The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call^(J) on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.”^(K)

⁷Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.”^(L) They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.^(M) ⁸So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?”

⁹He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord,^(N) the God of heaven,^(O) who made the sea^(P) and the dry land.^(Q)”

¹⁰This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)

¹¹The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”

¹²“Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.”^(R)

¹³Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before.^(S) ¹⁴Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man,^(T) for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.”^(U) ¹⁵Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm.^(V) ¹⁶At this the men greatly feared^(W) the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows^(X) to him.

Jonah’s Prayer

¹⁷Now the Lord provided^(Y) a huge fish to swallow Jonah,^(Z) and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. 2 ¹^[a]From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God. ²He said:

“In my distress I called^(AA) to the Lord,^(AB)
    and he answered me.
From deep in the realm of the dead^(AC) I called for help,
    and you listened to my cry.
³You hurled me into the depths,^(AD)
    into the very heart of the seas,
    and the currents swirled about me;
all your waves^(AE) and breakers
    swept over me.^(AF)
⁴I said, ‘I have been banished
    from your sight;^(AG)
yet I will look again
    toward your holy temple.’^(AH)
⁵The engulfing waters threatened me,^[b]
    the deep surrounded me;
    seaweed was wrapped around my head.^(AI)
⁶To the roots of the mountains^(AJ) I sank down;
    the earth beneath barred me in forever.
But you, Lord my God,
    brought my life up from the pit.^(AK)

⁷“When my life was ebbing away,
I remembered^(AL) you, Lord,
and my prayer^(AM) rose to you,
to your holy temple.^(AN)

⁸“Those who cling to worthless idols^(AO)
    turn away from God’s love for them.
⁹But I, with shouts of grateful praise,^(AP)
    will sacrifice^(AQ) to you.
What I have vowed^(AR) I will make good.
    I will say, ‘Salvation^(AS) comes from the Lord.’”

¹⁰And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

Jonah Goes to Nineveh

3 Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah^(AT) a second time: ²“Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.”

³Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it. ⁴Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming,^(AU) “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” ⁵The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.^(AV)

⁶When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.^(AW) ⁷This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh:

“By the decree of the king and his nobles:

Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink.^(AX) ⁸But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call^(AY) urgently on God. Let them give up^(AZ) their evil ways^(BA) and their violence.^(BB) ⁹Who knows?^(BC) God may yet relent^(BD) and with compassion turn^(BE) from his fierce anger^(BF) so that we will not perish.”

¹⁰When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented^(BG) and did not bring on them the destruction^(BH) he had threatened.^(BI)

Jonah’s Anger at the Lord’s Compassion

4 But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry.^(BJ) ²He prayed to the Lord, “Isn’t this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew^(BK) that you are a gracious^(BL) and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love,^(BM) a God who relents^(BN) from sending calamity.^(BO) ³Now, Lord, take away my life,^(BP) for it is better for me to die^(BQ) than to live.”^(BR)

⁴But the Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry?”^(BS)

⁵Jonah had gone out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. ⁶Then the Lord God provided^(BT) a leafy plant^[c] 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. ⁷But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered.^(BU) ⁸When 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,^(BV) and said, “It would be better for me to die than to live.”

⁹But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?”^(BW)

“It is,” he said. “And I’m so angry I wish I were dead.”

¹⁰But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. ¹¹And should I not have concern^(BX) for the great city of Nineveh,^(BY) in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”

Footnotes

Jonah 2:1 In Hebrew texts 2:1 is numbered 1:17, and 2:1-10 is numbered 2:2-11.
Jonah 2:5 Or waters were at my throat
Jonah 4:6 The precise identification of this plant is uncertain; also in verses 7, 9 and 10.

Daniel 4:1-27

New International Version

Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream of a Tree

4 ^[a]King Nebuchadnezzar,

To the nations and peoples of every language,^(A) who live in all the earth:

May you prosper greatly!^(B)

²It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs^(C) and wonders that the Most High God^(D) has performed for me.

³How great are his signs,
how mighty his wonders!^(E)
His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;
his dominion endures^(F) from generation to generation.

⁴I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at home in my palace, contented^(G) and prosperous. ⁵I had a dream^(H) that made me afraid. As I was lying in bed,^(I) the images and visions that passed through my mind^(J) terrified me.^(K) ⁶So I commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be brought before me to interpret^(L) the dream for me. ⁷When the magicians,^(M) enchanters, astrologers^[b] and diviners^(N) came, I told them the dream, but they could not interpret it for me.^(O) ⁸Finally, Daniel came into my presence and I told him the dream. (He is called Belteshazzar,^(P) after the name of my god, and the spirit of the holy gods^(Q) is in him.)

⁹I said, “Belteshazzar, chief^(R) of the magicians, I know that the spirit of the holy gods^(S) is in you, and no mystery is too difficult for you. Here is my dream; interpret it for me. ¹⁰These are the visions I saw while lying in bed:^(T) I looked, and there before me stood a tree in the middle of the land. Its height was enormous.^(U) ¹¹The tree grew large and strong and its top touched the sky; it was visible to the ends of the earth.^(V) ¹²Its leaves were beautiful, its fruit abundant, and on it was food for all. Under it the wild animals found shelter, and the birds lived in its branches;^(W) from it every creature was fed.

¹³“In the visions I saw while lying in bed,^(X) I looked, and there before me was a holy one,^(Y) a messenger,^[c] coming down from heaven. ¹⁴He called in a loud voice: ‘Cut down the tree^(Z) and trim off its branches; strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the animals flee from under it and the birds from its branches.^(AA) ¹⁵But let the stump and its roots, bound with iron and bronze, remain in the ground, in the grass of the field.

“‘Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him live with the animals among the plants of the earth. ¹⁶Let his mind be changed from that of a man and let him be given the mind of an animal, till seven times^[d] pass by for him.^(AB)

¹⁷“‘The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High^(AC) is sovereign^(AD) over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest^(AE) of people.’

¹⁸“This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, had. Now, Belteshazzar, tell me what it means, for none of the wise men in my kingdom can interpret it for me.^(AF) But you can,^(AG) because the spirit of the holy gods^(AH) is in you.”^(AI)

Daniel Interprets the Dream

¹⁹Then Daniel (also called Belteshazzar) was greatly perplexed for a time, and his thoughts terrified^(AJ) him. So the king said, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its meaning alarm you.”^(AK)

Belteshazzar answered, “My lord, if only the dream applied to your enemies and its meaning to your adversaries! ²⁰The tree you saw, which grew large and strong, with its top touching the sky, visible to the whole earth, ²¹with beautiful leaves and abundant fruit, providing food for all, giving shelter to the wild animals, and having nesting places in its branches for the birds^(AL)— ²²Your Majesty, you are that tree!^(AM) You have become great and strong; your greatness has grown until it reaches the sky, and your dominion extends to distant parts of the earth.^(AN)

²³“Your Majesty saw a holy one,^(AO) a messenger, coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Cut down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump, bound with iron and bronze, in the grass of the field, while its roots remain in the ground. Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven; let him live with the wild animals, until seven times pass by for him.’^(AP)

²⁴“This is the interpretation, Your Majesty, and this is the decree^(AQ) the Most High has issued against my lord the king: ²⁵You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox and be drenched^(AR) with the dew of heaven. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High^(AS) is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes.^(AT) ²⁶The command to leave the stump of the tree with its roots^(AU) means that your kingdom will be restored to you when you acknowledge that Heaven rules.^(AV) ²⁷Therefore, Your Majesty, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed.^(AW) It may be that then your prosperity^(AX) will continue.^(AY)”

Read full chapter

Footnotes

Daniel 4:1 In Aramaic texts 4:1-3 is numbered 3:31-33, and 4:4-37 is numbered 4:1-34.
Daniel 4:7 Or Chaldeans
Daniel 4:13 Or watchman; also in verses 17 and 23
Daniel 4:16 Or years; also in verses 23, 25 and 32