Jonah 3
Christian Standard Bible
Jonah’s Preaching
3 The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time:(A) 2 “Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh(B) and preach(C) the message that I tell you.” 3 Jonah got up and went to Nineveh according to the Lord’s command.
Now Nineveh was an extremely great city,[a](D) a three-day walk. 4 Jonah set out on the first day of his walk in the city and proclaimed,(E) “In forty days Nineveh will be demolished!” 5 Then the people of Nineveh believed God. They proclaimed a fast(F) and dressed in sackcloth—from the greatest of them to the least.
6 When word reached the king of Nineveh, he got up from his throne, took off his royal robe, covered himself with sackcloth,(G) and sat in ashes. 7 Then he issued a decree(H) in Nineveh:
By order of the king and his nobles: No person or animal, herd or flock, is to taste anything at all. They must not eat or drink water. 8 Furthermore, both people and animals must be covered with sackcloth, and everyone must call out earnestly to God.(I) Each must turn from his evil ways(J) and from his wrongdoing.[b] 9 Who knows?(K) God may turn and relent; he may turn from his burning anger so that we will not perish.(L)
10 God saw their actions—that they had turned from their evil ways(M)—so God relented from the disaster(N) he had threatened them with. And he did not do it.
Jonah 3
New Life Version
Jonah Obeys the Lord
3 The Word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, 2 “Get up and go to the large city of Nineveh, and tell the people there the news which I am going to tell you.” 3 So Jonah got up and went to Nineveh, as the Lord had told him. Now Nineveh was a very large city. It took three days to walk through it. 4 Jonah started into the city, for a day’s walk, and he cried out, “In forty days Nineveh will be destroyed!”
5 Then the people of Nineveh believed in God. They called for a time when no food was to be eaten. And all the people, from the greatest to the least, put on clothes made from hair. 6 When the news came to the king of Nineveh, he got up from his throne and laid aside his beautiful clothing. Then he covered himself with cloth made from hair, and sat in ashes. 7 And he sent word through all of Nineveh, saying, “By the law of the king and his leaders, do not let man or animal, cattle or flock, taste anything. Do not let them eat or drink water. 8 Both man and animal must be covered with cloth made from hair. Everyone must pray to God with all his heart, so each person may turn from his sinful way and from the bad things he has done. 9 Who knows? God may change His mind and stop being angry so that we will not die.”
10 When God saw what they did, and that they turned from their sinful way, He changed His mind about the trouble He said He would bring upon them, and He did not destroy Nineveh.
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
Copyright © 1969, 2003 by Barbour Publishing, Inc.