Jonas 4

1 Men det tog Jonas saare fortrydeligt op, og han blev vred.

But Jonah was very distressed [that God had not destroyed Nineveh]. He became very angry. [The people of Nineveh were non-Jews, and Jonah did not think that God should act mercifully toward anyone who was not a Jew].

2 Saa bad han til HERREN og sagde: »Ak, HERRE! Var det ikke det, jeg tænkte, da jeg endnu var hjemme i mit Land? Derfor vilde jeg ogsaa før fly til Tarsis; jeg vidste jo, at du er en naadig og barmhjertig Gud, langmodig og rig paa Miskundhed, og at du angrer det onde.

He prayed to Yahweh, “O Yahweh, what you have done is what I thought that you would do, before I left home [RHQ]. That is why I [decided] immediately to run away, and go to Tarshish [city], because I knew that you, O God, act very kindly and compassionately [toward all people]. You do not quickly become angry with people who do evil things. You love people very much, and you change your mind about punishing [people who sin].

3 Saa tag nu, HERRE, mit Liv; thi jeg vil hellere dø end leve.«

[So] now, O Yahweh, [since you will not destroy Nineveh city as you said you would], allow me to die, because it would be better for me to die than to [continue to] live.”

4 Men HERREN sagde: »Er det med Rette, du er vred?«

Yahweh replied, “(Why is it right for you to be angry [about my not destroying the city]?/It is not right for you to be angry [about my not destroying the city]!) [RHQ]”

5 Saa gik Jonas ud og slog sig ned østen for Byen; der byggede han sig en Løvhytte og satte sig i Skygge under den for at se, hvorledes det gik Byen.

Jonah [did not reply]. He went out of the city to the east [side of it]. He made a small shelter in order that he could sit under it and be protected from the sun. He sat under the shelter and waited to see what would happen to the city.

6 Da bød Gud HERREN en Olieplante skyde op over Jonas og skygge over hans Hoved for at tage hans Mismod, og Jonas glædede sig højligen over den.

Then Yahweh God caused a vine to grow up [immediately] to shade Jonah’s head from the sun and make him [feel] more comfortable. Jonah was very happy about [having] the vine [over his head].

7 Men ved Morgengry næste Dag bød Gud en Orm stikke Olieplanten, saa den visnede;

But before dawn the next day, God sent a worm that chewed the vine, with the result that the vine withered.

8 og da Solen stod op, rejste Gud en glødende Østenstorm, og Solen stak Jonas i Hovedet, saa han vansmægtede og ønskede sig Døden, idet han tænkte: »Jeg vil hellere dø end leve.«

Then, when the sun rose [high in the sky], God sent a very hot wind from the east, and the sun shone very strongly on Jonah’s head, with the result that he felt faint. He wanted to die, and he said, “It would be better for me to die than to [continue to] live!”

9 Men Gud sagde til Jonas: »Er det med Rette, du er vred for Olieplantens Skyld?« Han svarede: »Ja, med Rette er jeg saa vred, at jeg kunde tage min Død derover.«

But God asked Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about [what happened to] the vine?” Jonah replied, “[Yes], it is right! [Now] I am very angry and I want to die!”

10 Da sagde HERREN: »Du ynkes over Olieplanten, som du ingen Møje har haft med eller opelsket, som blev til paa een Nat og gik ud paa een Nat.

But Yahweh said [to him], “You have been concerned about my [causing] that vine [to wither], even though you did not take care of it, and you did not make it grow. It just grew up during one night, and it completely withered [at the end of] the next night.

11 Og jeg skulde ikke ynkes over Nineve, den store Stad med mer end tolv Gange 10 000 Mennesker, som ikke kan skelne højre fra venstre, og meget Kvæg.«

But there are more than 120,000 people in Nineveh who [are very young, and because of that], they cannot tell which is their right hand and which is their left hand, and there are also many cattle, [and none of these have done anything to displease me]. So (is it not right for me to be concerned about the people of that huge city, [and not want to destroy them]?/it is certainly right for me to be concerned about the people of that huge city [and not want to destroy them]!) [RHQ]”