Font Size
Jonah 1-2
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
Jonah 1-2
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
Jonah Tries to Run Away from God
1 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amit′tai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nin′eveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went on board, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.
4 But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up. 5 Then the mariners were afraid, and each cried to his god; and they threw the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone down into the inner part of the ship and had lain down, and was fast asleep. 6 So the captain came and said to him, “What do you mean, you sleeper? Arise, call upon your god! Perhaps the god will give a thought to us, that we do not perish.”
7 And they said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, that we may know on whose account this evil has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah. 8 Then they said to him, “Tell us on whose account this evil has come upon us. What is your occupation? And whence do you come? What is your country? And of what people are you?” 9 And he said to them, “I am a Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 10 Then the men were exceedingly afraid, and said to him, “What is this that you have done!” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them.
11 Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you, that the sea may quiet down for us?” For the sea grew more and more tempestuous. 12 He said to them, “Take me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you; for I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you.” 13 Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring the ship back to land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them. 14 Therefore they cried to the Lord, “We beseech thee, O Lord, let us not perish for this man’s life, and lay not on us innocent blood; for thou, O Lord, hast done as it pleased thee.” 15 So they took up Jonah and threw him into the sea; and the sea ceased from its raging. 16 Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows.
17 [a] And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
A Psalm of Thanksgiving
2 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, 2 saying,
“I called to the Lord, out of my distress,
and he answered me;
out of the belly of Sheol I cried,
and thou didst hear my voice.
3 For thou didst cast me into the deep,
into the heart of the seas,
and the flood was round about me;
all thy waves and thy billows
passed over me.
4 Then I said, ‘I am cast out
from thy presence;
how shall I again look
upon thy holy temple?’
5 The waters closed in over me,
the deep was round about me;
weeds were wrapped about my head
6 at the roots of the mountains.
I went down to the land
whose bars closed upon me for ever;
yet thou didst bring up my life from the Pit,
O Lord my God.
7 When my soul fainted within me,
I remembered the Lord;
and my prayer came to thee,
into thy holy temple.
8 Those who pay regard to vain idols
forsake their true loyalty.
9 But I with the voice of thanksgiving
will sacrifice to thee;
what I have vowed I will pay.
Deliverance belongs to the Lord!”
10 And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.
Footnotes
- Jonah 1:17 Ch 2.1 in Heb
Jonah 1-2
New International Version
Jonah 1-2
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.”
3 But 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)
4 Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up.(H) 5 All 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. 6 The 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)
7 Then 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) 8 So 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?”
9 He 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)”
10 This 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.)
11 The 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)
13 Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before.(S) 14 Then 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) 15 Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm.(V) 16 At 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
17 Now 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. 2 He 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.
3 You 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)
4 I said, ‘I have been banished
from your sight;(AG)
yet I will look again
toward your holy temple.’(AH)
5 The engulfing waters threatened me,[b]
the deep surrounded me;
seaweed was wrapped around my head.(AI)
6 To 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.
9 But 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.’”
10 And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)
The Revised Standard Version of the Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1965, 1966 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.