Jonah 3
Legacy Standard Bible
Ninevites Turn from Their Evil Ways
3 Now the word of Yahweh came to Jonah the second time, saying, 2 “Arise, go to (A)Nineveh, the great city, and (B)call out to it this very call which I am going to speak to you.” 3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh according to the word of Yahweh. Now Nineveh was [a]an (C)exceedingly great city, a three days’ walk. 4 Then Jonah began to go into the city, one day’s walk; and he (D)called out and said, “Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”
5 And the [b]people of Nineveh believed in God; and they called a (E)fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them. 6 Then the word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, laid aside his mantle from him, (F)covered himself with sackcloth, and sat on the [c]ashes. 7 And he (G)cried out and said,
“In Nineveh by the [d]decree of the king and his nobles[e]: Do not let man, [f]animal, herd, or flock taste a thing. Do not let them eat, and do not let them drink water.
8 But both man and [g]animal must be covered with sackcloth; and let [h]men (H)call on God with their strength that each may (I)turn from his evil way and from the violence which is in [i]his hands.
9 (J)Who knows, God may turn and relent and turn away from His burning anger so that we will not perish.”
10 Then God saw their works, that they (K)turned from their evil way, so (L)God [j]relented concerning the evil which He had spoken He would [k]bring upon them. And He did not [l]bring it upon them.
Footnotes
- Jonah 3:3 Lit a great city to God
- Jonah 3:5 Lit men
- Jonah 3:6 Or dust
- Jonah 3:7 Lit taste, cf. 3:7b
- Jonah 3:7 Lit saying
- Jonah 3:7 Lit beast, cattle
- Jonah 3:8 Lit beast, cattle
- Jonah 3:8 Lit them
- Jonah 3:8 Lit their
- Jonah 3:10 Or regretted, cf. 1 Sam 15:11, 29, 35
- Jonah 3:10 Lit do
- Jonah 3:10 Lit do
Jonah 3
Common English Bible
Nineveh hears God’s word
3 The Lord’s word came to Jonah a second time: 2 “Get up and go to Nineveh, that great city, and declare against it the proclamation that I am commanding you.” 3 And Jonah got up and went to Nineveh, according to the Lord’s word. (Now Nineveh was indeed an enormous city, a three days’ walk across.)
4 Jonah started into the city, walking one day, and he cried out, “Just forty days more and Nineveh will be overthrown!” 5 And the people of Nineveh believed God. They proclaimed a fast and put on mourning clothes, from the greatest of them to the least significant.
6 When word of it reached the king of Nineveh, he got up from his throne, stripped himself of his robe, covered himself with mourning clothes, and sat in ashes. 7 Then he announced, “In Nineveh, by decree of the king and his officials: Neither human nor animal, cattle nor flock, will taste anything! No grazing and no drinking water! 8 Let humans and animals alike put on mourning clothes, and let them call upon God forcefully! And let all persons stop their evil behavior and the violence that’s under their control!” 9 He thought, Who knows? God may see this and turn from his wrath, so that we might not perish.[a]
10 God saw what they were doing—that they had ceased their evil behavior. So God stopped planning to destroy them, and he didn’t do it.
Footnotes
- Jonah 3:9 Heb lacks He thought.
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