Jonah 4
Christian Standard Bible
Jonah’s Anger
4 Jonah was greatly displeased and became furious.(A) 2 He prayed to the Lord,(B) “Please, Lord, isn’t this what I said while I was still in my own country? That’s why I fled toward Tarshish in the first place.(C) I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God,(D) slow to anger, abounding in faithful love, and one who relents from sending disaster.(E) 3 And now, Lord, take my life from me,(F) for it is better for me to die than to live.”(G)
4 The Lord asked, “Is it right for you to be angry?”
5 Jonah left the city and found a place east of it.(H) He made himself a shelter there and sat in its shade to see what would happen to the city. 6 Then the Lord God appointed a plant, and it grew over Jonah to provide shade for his head to rescue him from his trouble.[a] Jonah was greatly pleased with the plant. 7 When dawn came the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, and it withered.(I)
8 As the sun was rising, God appointed a scorching east wind.(J) The sun beat down on Jonah’s head(K) so much that he almost fainted, and he wanted to die. He said, “It’s better for me to die than to live.”(L)
9 Then God asked Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?”
“Yes, it’s right!” he replied. “I’m angry enough to die!”
10 And the Lord said, “You cared about the plant, which you did not labor over and did not grow. It appeared in a night and perished in a night. 11 So may I not care about the great city of Nineveh,(M) which has more than a hundred twenty thousand people who cannot distinguish between their right and their left,(N) as well as many animals?”(O)
Footnotes
- 4:6 Or disaster, or evil
Jonah 4
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 4
Jonah’s Anger and God’s Reproof. 1 But this greatly displeased Jonah, and he became angry.[a] 2 He prayed to the Lord, “O Lord, is this not what I said while I was still in my own country? This is why I fled at first toward Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger, abounding in kindness, repenting of punishment.[b](A) 3 So now, Lord, please take my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.”(B) 4 But the Lord asked, “Are you right to be angry?”[c]
5 Jonah then left the city for a place to the east of it, where he built himself a hut and waited[d] under it in the shade, to see what would happen to the city. 6 Then the Lord God provided a gourd plant.[e] And when it grew up over Jonah’s head, giving shade that relieved him of any discomfort, Jonah was greatly delighted with the plant. 7 But the next morning at dawn God provided a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered. 8 And when the sun arose, God provided a scorching east wind; and the sun beat upon Jonah’s head till he became faint. Then he wished for death, saying, “It is better for me to die than to live.”
9 But God said to Jonah, “Do you have a right to be angry over the gourd plant?” Jonah answered, “I have a right to be angry—angry enough to die.” 10 Then the Lord said, “You are concerned[f] over the gourd plant which cost you no effort and which you did not grow; it came up in one night and in one night it perished. 11 And should I not be concerned over the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot know their right hand from their left, not to mention all the animals?”[g]
Footnotes
- 4:1 He became angry: because of his narrow vindictiveness, Jonah did not wish the Lord to forgive the Ninevites.
- 4:2 Punishment: lit., “evil”; see 1:2, 7, 8; 3:8, 10; 4:1.
- 4:4 The Lord’s question is as unexpected as it is pithy. It is also a mysterious reply to Jonah’s wish to die; perhaps it serves to invite Jonah to think over his situation. However, it goes unanswered, and the request and reply will be repeated in vv. 8–9.
- 4:5 Waited: Jonah still hopes his threat of doom will be fulfilled.
- 4:6 Gourd plant: the Hebrew word, qiqayon, means here a wide-leafed plant of the cucumber or castor-bean variety.
- 4:10 Concerned: the meaning of the Hebrew verb suggests “pity, care for,” and this appears in the Lord’s attitude to Nineveh in v. 11. Jonah has shown only a selfish concern over the plant in contrast to the Lord’s true “concern” for his creatures.
- 4:11 A selfish Jonah bemoans his personal loss of a gourd plant for shade without any concern over the threat of loss of life to the Ninevites through the destruction of their city. If a solicitous God provided the plant for a prophet without the latter’s effort or merit, how much more is God disposed to show love and mercy toward all people, Jew and Gentile, when they repent of their sins and implore divine pardon. God’s care goes beyond human beings to all creation, as in Job 38.
Jonah 4
New King James Version
Jonah’s Anger and God’s Kindness
4 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he became angry. 2 So he prayed to the Lord, and said, “Ah, Lord, was not this what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I (A)fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a (B)gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm. 3 (C)Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for (D)it is better for me to die than to live!”
4 Then the Lord said, “Is it right for you to be angry?”
5 So Jonah went out of the city and sat on the east side of the city. There he made himself a shelter and sat under it in the shade, till he might see what would become of the city. 6 And the Lord God prepared a [a]plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be shade for his head to deliver him from his misery. So Jonah [b]was very grateful for the plant. 7 But as morning dawned the next day God prepared a worm, and it so damaged the plant that it withered. 8 And it happened, when the sun arose, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat on Jonah’s head, so that he grew faint. Then he wished death for himself, and said, (E)“It is better for me to die than to live.”
9 Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?”
And he said, “It is right for me to be angry, even to death!”
10 But the Lord said, “You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow, which [c]came up in a night and perished in a night. 11 And should I not pity Nineveh, (F)that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons (G)who cannot discern between their right hand and their left—and much livestock?”
Footnotes
- Jonah 4:6 Heb. kikayon, exact identity unknown
- Jonah 4:6 Lit. rejoiced with great joy
- Jonah 4:10 Lit. was a son of a night
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Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
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