Jonah 1

1 Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai, saying,

And the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying:

2 “Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before Me.”

Rise and go to Nineveh, the great city, and preach in it. For its malice has ascended before my eyes.

3 Jonah, however, got up to flee to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa and found a ship bound for Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went aboard to sail for Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD.

And Jonah rose in order to flee from the face of the Lord to Tarshish. And he went down to Joppa and found a ship bound for Tarshish. And he paid its fare, and he went down into it, in order to go with them to Tarshish from the face of the Lord.

4 Then the LORD hurled a great wind upon the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship was in danger of breaking apart.

But the Lord sent a great wind into the sea. And a great tempest took place in the sea, and the ship was in danger of being crushed.

5 The sailors were afraid, and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the ship’s cargo into the sea to lighten the load. But Jonah had gone down to the lowest part of the vessel, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.

And the mariners were afraid, and the men cried out to their god. And they threw the containers that were in the ship into the sea in order to lighten it of them. And Jonah went down into the interior of the ship, and he fell into a painful deep sleep.

6 The captain approached him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call upon your God. Perhaps this God will consider us, so that we may not perish.”

And the helmsman approached him, and he said to him, “Why are you weighed down with sleep? Rise, call upon your God, so perhaps God will be mindful of us and we might not perish.”

7 “Come!” said the sailors to one another. “Let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity that is upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah.

And a man said to his shipmate, “Come, and let us cast lots, so that we may know why this disaster is upon us.” And they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah.

8 “Tell us now,” they demanded, “who is to blame for this calamity that is upon us? What is your occupation, and where have you come from? What is your country, and who are your people?”

And they said to him: “Explain to us what is the reason that this disaster is upon us. What is your work? Which is your country? And where are you going? Or which people are you from?”

9 “I am a Hebrew,” replied Jonah. “I worship the LORD, the God of the heavens, who made the sea and the dry land.”

And he said to them, “I am Hebrew, and I fear the Lord God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”

10 Then the men were even more afraid and said to him, “What have you done?” The men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.

And the men were greatly afraid, and they said to him, “Why have you done this?” (For the men knew that he was fleeing from the face of the Lord, because he had told them.)

11 Now the sea was growing worse and worse, so they said to Jonah, “What must we do to you to calm this sea for us?”

And they said to him, “What are we to do with you, so that the sea will cease for us?” For the sea flowed and swelled.

12 “Pick me up,” he answered, “and cast me into the sea, so it may quiet down for you. For I know that I am to blame for this violent storm that has come upon you.”

And he said to them, “Take me, and cast me into the sea, and the sea will cease for you. For I know that it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you.”

13 Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to dry land, but they could not, for the sea was raging against them more and more.

And the men were rowing, so as to return to dry land, but they did not succeed. For the sea flowed and swelled against them.

14 So they cried out to the LORD: “Please, O LORD, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life! Do not charge us with innocent blood! For You, O LORD, have done as You pleased.”

And they cried out to the Lord, and they said, “We beseech you, Lord, do not let us perish for this man’s life, and do not attribute to us innocent blood. For you, Lord, have done just as it pleased you.”

15 At this, they picked up Jonah and cast him into the sea, and the raging sea grew calm.

And they took Jonah and cast him into the sea. And the sea was stilled from its fury.

16 Then the men feared the LORD greatly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows to Him.

And the men feared the Lord greatly, and they sacrificed victims to the Lord, and they made vows.

17 Now the LORD had appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the fish.

And the Lord prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights.