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Jonah 1-3
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Jonah 1-3
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Jonah Tries to Run Away from God
1 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai, saying,(A) 2 “Go at once to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it, for their wickedness has come up before me.”(B) 3 But Jonah set out 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 his fare and went on board, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.(C)
4 But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and such a mighty storm came upon the sea that the ship threatened to break up.(D) 5 Then the sailors were afraid, and each cried to his god. They threw the cargo that was in the ship into the sea, to lighten it for them. Jonah, meanwhile, had gone down into the hold of the ship and had lain down and was fast asleep.(E) 6 The captain came and said to him, “What are you doing sound asleep? Get up; call on your god! Perhaps the god will spare us a thought so that we do not perish.”(F)
7 The sailors[a] said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, so that we may know on whose account this calamity has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah.(G) 8 Then they said to him, “Tell us why this calamity has come upon us. What is your occupation? Where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?”(H) 9 “I am a Hebrew,” he replied. “I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”(I) 10 Then the men were even more 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 so.(J)
11 Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you, that the sea may quiet down for us?” For the sea was growing more and more tempestuous. 12 He said to them, “Pick 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 storm has come upon you.”(K) 13 Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to bring the ship[b] back to land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more stormy against them. 14 Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, O Lord, we pray, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life. Do not make us guilty of innocent blood, for you, O Lord, have done as it pleased you.”(L) 15 So they picked Jonah up and threw him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging. 16 Then the men feared the Lord even more, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows.(M)
17 [c]But the Lord provided a large fish to swallow up Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.(N)
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 you heard my voice.
3 You cast me into the deep,
into the heart of the seas,
and the flood surrounded me;
all your waves and your billows
passed over me.(O)
4 Then I said, ‘I am driven away
from your sight;
how[d] shall I look again
upon your holy temple?’(P)
5 The waters closed in over me;
the deep surrounded me;
weeds were wrapped around my head(Q)
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.(R)
7 As my life was ebbing away,
I remembered the Lord,
and my prayer came to you,
into your holy temple.(S)
8 Those who worship vain idols
forsake their true loyalty.(T)
9 But I with the voice of thanksgiving
will sacrifice to you;
what I have vowed I will pay.
Deliverance belongs to the Lord!”(U)
10 Then the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out onto the dry land.
Conversion of Nineveh
3 The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying,(V) 2 “Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.” 3 So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days’ walk across. 4 Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” 5 And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.(W)
6 When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.(X) 7 Then he had a proclamation made in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: No human or animal, no herd or flock, shall taste anything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water.(Y) 8 Humans and animals shall be covered with sackcloth, and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands.(Z) 9 Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.”(AA)
10 When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them, and he did not do it.(AB)
Jonah 1-3
New International Version
Jonah 1-3
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)
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.