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Jonah 1 - Micah 2
English Standard Version
Jonah 1 - Micah 2
English Standard Version
Jonah Flees the Presence of the Lord
1 Now the word of the Lord came to (A)Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to (B)Nineveh, that (C)great city, and call out against it, (D)for their evil[a] has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah (E)rose to flee to (F)Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to (G)Joppa and found a ship going to (H)Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to (I)Tarshish, (J)away from the presence of the Lord.
4 But (K)the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened (L)to break up. 5 Then the mariners were afraid, and (M)each cried out to his god. And (N)they hurled the cargo that was 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, (O)call out to your god! (P)Perhaps the god will give a thought to us, that we may not perish.”
Jonah Is Thrown into the Sea
7 And they said to one another, “Come, let us (Q)cast lots, that we may know on whose account this evil has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 Then they said to him, “Tell us on whose account this evil has come upon us. What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?” 9 And he said to them, “I am a Hebrew, and I fear (R)the Lord, the God of heaven, (S)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 (T)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, “Pick me up and hurl me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you, (U)for I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you.” 13 Nevertheless, the men rowed hard[b] to get back to dry land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them. 14 Therefore they called out to the Lord, “O Lord, let us not perish for this man's life, and (V)lay not on us innocent blood, (W)for you, O Lord, have done as it pleased you.” 15 So they picked up Jonah and hurled him into the sea, (X)and the sea ceased from its raging. 16 Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, (Y)and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord (Z)and made vows.
A Great Fish Swallows Jonah
17 [c] And the Lord appointed[d] a great fish to swallow up Jonah. (AA)And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Jonah's Prayer
2 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, 2 saying,
(AB)“I called out to the Lord, out of my distress,
and he answered me;
(AC)out of the belly of Sheol I cried,
(AD)and you heard my voice.
3 (AE)For you cast me into the deep,
into the heart of the seas,
and the flood surrounded me;
(AF)all your waves and your billows
passed over me.
4 (AG)Then I said, ‘I am driven away
from your sight;
(AH)yet I shall again look
upon your holy temple.’
5 (AI)The waters closed in over me (AJ)to take my life;
the deep surrounded 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 forever;
yet you brought up my life from the pit,
O Lord my God.
7 When my life was fainting away,
I remembered the Lord,
(AK)and my prayer came to you,
into your holy temple.
8 (AL)Those who pay regard to vain idols
(AM)forsake their hope of steadfast love.
9 (AN)But I with the voice of thanksgiving
will sacrifice to you;
what I have vowed I will pay.
(AO)Salvation belongs to the Lord!”
10 And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land.
Jonah Goes to Nineveh
3 Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, 2 “Arise, go to (AP)Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.” 3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now (AQ)Nineveh was an exceedingly great city,[e] three days' journey in breadth.[f] 4 Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's journey. And he called out, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” 5 (AR)And the people of Nineveh believed God. (AS)They called for a fast and (AT)put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.
The People of Nineveh Repent
6 The word reached[g] the king of Nineveh, and (AU)he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, (AV)and sat in ashes. 7 And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, (AW)“By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor (AX)beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, 8 but let man and (AY)beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. (AZ)Let everyone turn from his evil way and from (BA)the violence that is in his hands. 9 (BB)Who knows? God may turn and relent (BC)and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.”
10 When God saw what they did, (BD)how they turned from their evil way, (BE)God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.
Jonah's Anger and the Lord's Compassion
4 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly,[h] and (BF)he was angry. 2 And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? (BG)That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a (BH)gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and (BI)relenting from disaster. 3 (BJ)Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, (BK)for it is better for me to die than to live.” 4 And the Lord said, (BL)“Do you do well to be angry?”
5 Jonah went out of the city and sat to the east of the city and (BM)made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city. 6 Now the Lord God appointed a plant[i] and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort.[j] So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. 7 But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered. 8 When the sun rose, God appointed a scorching (BN)east wind, (BO)and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he (BP)was faint. And he asked that he might die and said, (BQ)“It is better for me to die than to live.” 9 But God said to Jonah, (BR)“Do you do well to be angry for the plant?” And he said, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.” 10 And the Lord said, “You pity the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow, which came into being in a night and perished in a night. 11 And should not I pity (BS)Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much (BT)cattle?”
1 The word of the Lord that came to Micah (BU)of Moresheth (BV)in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw (BW)concerning (BX)Samaria and Jerusalem.
The Coming Destruction
2 (BY)Hear, you peoples, all of you;[k]
(BZ)pay attention, O earth, and all that is in it,
and (CA)let the Lord God be a witness against you,
(CB)the Lord from his holy temple.
3 For behold, (CC)the Lord is coming out of (CD)his place,
and will come down and (CE)tread upon the high places of the earth.
4 And (CF)the mountains will melt under him,
and the valleys will split open,
like wax before the fire,
like waters poured down a steep place.
5 All this is for (CG)the transgression of Jacob
and for the sins of the house of Israel.
(CH)What is the transgression of Jacob?
Is it not (CI)Samaria?
And what is (CJ)the high place of Judah?
Is it not Jerusalem?
6 Therefore I will make (CK)Samaria (CL)a heap in the open country,
a place for planting vineyards,
and I will pour down her stones (CM)into the valley
and (CN)uncover her foundations.
7 All (CO)her carved images shall be beaten to pieces,
(CP)all her wages shall be burned with fire,
and all her idols I will lay waste,
for from (CQ)the fee of a prostitute she gathered them,
and to the fee of a prostitute they shall return.
8 (CR)For this I will lament and wail;
I will go (CS)stripped and naked;
I will make lamentation (CT)like the jackals,
and mourning (CU)like the ostriches.
9 (CV)For her wound is incurable,
and it has come to Judah;
it has reached to the gate of my people,
to Jerusalem.
10 (CW)Tell it not in (CX)Gath;
weep not at all;
in Beth-le-aphrah
(CY)roll yourselves in the dust.
11 Pass on your way,
inhabitants of Shaphir,
(CZ)in nakedness and shame;
the inhabitants of Zaanan
do not come out;
the lamentation of Beth-ezel
shall take away from you its standing place.
12 For the inhabitants of Maroth
wait anxiously for good,
because disaster has come down (DA)from the Lord
to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 Harness the steeds to the chariots,
inhabitants of (DB)Lachish;
it was the beginning of sin
to the daughter of Zion,
for in you were found
(DC)the transgressions of Israel.
14 Therefore you shall give parting gifts[l]
to (DD)Moresheth-gath;
the houses of (DE)Achzib shall be a deceitful thing
to the kings of Israel.
15 I will again bring (DF)a conqueror to you,
inhabitants of (DG)Mareshah;
the glory of Israel
shall come to (DH)Adullam.
16 (DI)Make yourselves bald and cut off your hair,
for the children of your delight;
(DJ)make yourselves as bald as the eagle,
for they shall go from you into exile.
Woe to the Oppressors
2 (DK)Woe to those who devise wickedness
and work evil (DL)on their beds!
When the morning dawns, they perform it,
because it is in the power of their hand.
2 They covet fields and (DM)seize them,
and houses, and take them away;
they oppress a man and his house,
a man and his inheritance.
3 Therefore thus says the Lord:
behold, against (DN)this family I am devising disaster,[m]
from which you cannot remove your necks,
and you (DO)shall not walk haughtily,
(DP)for it will be a time of disaster.
4 In that day (DQ)they shall take up a taunt song against you
and moan bitterly,
and say, “We are utterly ruined;
(DR)he changes the portion of my people;
(DS)how he removes it from me!
(DT)To an apostate he allots our fields.”
5 Therefore you will have none (DU)to cast the line by lot
in the assembly of the Lord.
6 (DV)“Do not preach”—thus they preach—
(DW)“one should not preach of such things;
(DX)disgrace will not overtake us.”
7 Should this be said, O house of Jacob?
(DY)Has the Lord grown impatient?[n]
Are these his deeds?
Do not my words do good
to him who walks uprightly?
8 But lately (DZ)my people have risen up as an enemy;
you strip the rich robe from those who pass by trustingly
with no thought of war.[o]
9 The women of my people you drive out
from their delightful houses;
from their young children you take away
my splendor forever.
10 (EA)Arise and go,
for this is no (EB)place to rest,
because of (EC)uncleanness that destroys
with a grievous destruction.
11 If a man should go about and (ED)utter wind and lies,
saying, “I will preach to you (EE)of wine and strong drink,”
he would be the preacher for this people!
12 I will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob;
(EF)I will gather (EG)the remnant of Israel;
I will set them together
like sheep in a fold,
(EH)like a flock in its pasture,
a noisy multitude of men.
13 (EI)He who opens the breach goes up before them;
they break through and pass the gate,
(EJ)going out by it.
Their king passes on before them,
(EK)the Lord at their head.
Footnotes
- Jonah 1:2 The same Hebrew word can mean evil or disaster, depending on the context; so throughout Jonah
- Jonah 1:13 Hebrew the men dug in [their oars]
- Jonah 1:17 Ch 2:1 in Hebrew
- Jonah 1:17 Or had appointed
- Jonah 3:3 Hebrew a great city to God
- Jonah 3:3 Or a visit was a three days' journey
- Jonah 3:6 Or had reached
- Jonah 4:1 Hebrew it was exceedingly evil to Jonah
- Jonah 4:6 Hebrew qiqayon, probably the castor oil plant; also verses 7, 9, 10
- Jonah 4:6 Or his evil
- Micah 1:2 Hebrew all of them
- Micah 1:14 Or give dowry
- Micah 2:3 The same Hebrew word can mean evil or disaster, depending on the context
- Micah 2:7 Hebrew Has the spirit of the Lord grown short?
- Micah 2:8 Or returning from war
Jonah 1 - Micah 2
New International Version
Jonah 1 - Micah 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.
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.”
3 Jonah 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. 4 Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming,(AU) “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” 5 The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.(AV)
6 When 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) 7 This 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) 8 But 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) 9 Who knows?(BC) God may yet relent(BD) and with compassion turn(BE) from his fierce anger(BF) so that we will not perish.”
10 When 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) 2 He 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) 3 Now, Lord, take away my life,(BP) for it is better for me to die(BQ) than to live.”(BR)
4 But the Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry?”(BS)
5 Jonah 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. 6 Then 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. 7 But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered.(BU) 8 When 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.”
9 But 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.”
10 But 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. 11 And 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?”
1 The word of the Lord that came to Micah of Moresheth(BZ) during the reigns of Jotham,(CA) Ahaz(CB) and Hezekiah,(CC) kings of Judah(CD)—the vision(CE) he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
2 Hear,(CF) you peoples, all of you,(CG)
listen, earth(CH) and all who live in it,
that the Sovereign Lord may bear witness(CI) against you,
the Lord from his holy temple.(CJ)
Judgment Against Samaria and Jerusalem
3 Look! The Lord is coming from his dwelling(CK) place;
he comes down(CL) and treads on the heights of the earth.(CM)
4 The mountains melt(CN) beneath him(CO)
and the valleys split apart,(CP)
like wax before the fire,
like water rushing down a slope.
5 All this is because of Jacob’s transgression,
because of the sins of the people of Israel.
What is Jacob’s transgression?
Is it not Samaria?(CQ)
What is Judah’s high place?
Is it not Jerusalem?
6 “Therefore I will make Samaria a heap of rubble,
a place for planting vineyards.(CR)
I will pour her stones(CS) into the valley
and lay bare her foundations.(CT)
7 All her idols(CU) will be broken to pieces;(CV)
all her temple gifts will be burned with fire;
I will destroy all her images.(CW)
Since she gathered her gifts from the wages of prostitutes,(CX)
as the wages of prostitutes they will again be used.”
Weeping and Mourning
8 Because of this I will weep(CY) and wail;
I will go about barefoot(CZ) and naked.
I will howl like a jackal
and moan like an owl.
9 For Samaria’s plague(DA) is incurable;(DB)
it has spread to Judah.(DC)
It has reached the very gate(DD) of my people,
even to Jerusalem itself.
10 Tell it not in Gath[d];
weep not at all.
In Beth Ophrah[e]
roll in the dust.
11 Pass by naked(DE) and in shame,
you who live in Shaphir.[f]
Those who live in Zaanan[g]
will not come out.
Beth Ezel is in mourning;
it no longer protects you.
12 Those who live in Maroth[h] writhe in pain,
waiting for relief,(DF)
because disaster(DG) has come from the Lord,
even to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 You who live in Lachish,(DH)
harness fast horses to the chariot.
You are where the sin of Daughter Zion(DI) began,
for the transgressions of Israel were found in you.
14 Therefore you will give parting gifts(DJ)
to Moresheth(DK) Gath.
The town of Akzib[i](DL) will prove deceptive(DM)
to the kings of Israel.
15 I will bring a conqueror against you
who live in Mareshah.[j](DN)
The nobles of Israel
will flee to Adullam.(DO)
16 Shave(DP) your head in mourning
for the children in whom you delight;
make yourself as bald as the vulture,
for they will go from you into exile.(DQ)
Human Plans and God’s Plans
2 Woe to those who plan iniquity,
to those who plot evil(DR) on their beds!(DS)
At morning’s light they carry it out
because it is in their power to do it.
2 They covet fields(DT) and seize them,(DU)
and houses, and take them.
They defraud(DV) people of their homes,
they rob them of their inheritance.(DW)
3 Therefore, the Lord says:
“I am planning disaster(DX) against this people,
from which you cannot save yourselves.
You will no longer walk proudly,(DY)
for it will be a time of calamity.
4 In that day people will ridicule you;
they will taunt you with this mournful song:
‘We are utterly ruined;(DZ)
my people’s possession is divided up.(EA)
He takes it from me!
He assigns our fields to traitors.’”
False Prophets
6 “Do not prophesy,” their prophets say.
“Do not prophesy about these things;
disgrace(ED) will not overtake us.(EE)”
7 You descendants of Jacob, should it be said,
“Does the Lord become[k] impatient?
Does he do such things?”
“Do not my words do good(EF)
to the one whose ways are upright?(EG)
8 Lately my people have risen up
like an enemy.
You strip off the rich robe
from those who pass by without a care,
like men returning from battle.
9 You drive the women of my people
from their pleasant homes.(EH)
You take away my blessing
from their children forever.
10 Get up, go away!
For this is not your resting place,(EI)
because it is defiled,(EJ)
it is ruined, beyond all remedy.
11 If a liar and deceiver(EK) comes and says,
‘I will prophesy for you plenty of wine and beer,’(EL)
that would be just the prophet for this people!(EM)
Deliverance Promised
12 “I will surely gather all of you, Jacob;
I will surely bring together the remnant(EN) of Israel.
I will bring them together like sheep in a pen,
like a flock in its pasture;
the place will throng with people.(EO)
13 The One who breaks open the way will go up before(EP) them;
they will break through the gate(EQ) and go out.
Their King will pass through before them,
the Lord at their head.”
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.
- Micah 1:10 Gath sounds like the Hebrew for tell.
- Micah 1:10 Beth Ophrah means house of dust.
- Micah 1:11 Shaphir means pleasant.
- Micah 1:11 Zaanan sounds like the Hebrew for come out.
- Micah 1:12 Maroth sounds like the Hebrew for bitter.
- Micah 1:14 Akzib means deception.
- Micah 1:15 Mareshah sounds like the Hebrew for conqueror.
- Micah 2:7 Or Is the Spirit of the Lord
English Standard Version (ESV) 
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New International Version (NIV) 
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