Jonah 4
1 Jonah, however, was greatly displeased, and he became angry.
And it was vexing unto Jonah, with a great vexation, —and it angered him.
2 So he prayed to the LORD, saying, “O LORD, is this not what I said while I was still in my own country? This is why I was so quick to flee toward Tarshish. I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion—One who relents from sending disaster.
So he prayed unto Yahweh, and said—Ah now! Yahweh! Was not, this, my word, while I was yet upon mine own soil? For this cause, did I hasten to flee unto Tarshish, —because I knew that, thou, art a GOD of favour and compassion, slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness, and art grieved over calamity.
3 And now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.”
Now, therefore, O Yahweh, take, I pray thee, my life from me, —for it were better for me, to die, than, to live.
4 But the LORD replied, “Have you any right to be angry?”
Then said Yahweh, Art thou rightly angry?
5 Then Jonah left the city and sat down east of it, where he made himself a shelter and sat in its shade to see what would happen to the city.
But Jonah, went forth, out of the city, and abode on the east side of the city; and made for himself there, a hut, and sat under it, in the shade, until he should see what would become of the city.
6 So the LORD God appointed a vine, and it grew up to provide shade over Jonah’s head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was greatly pleased with the plant.
Now Yahweh God appointed a gourd, and caused it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to deliver him from his vexation, —and Jonah rejoiced over the gourd, with great rejoicing.
7 When dawn came the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant so that it withered.
But God appointed a worm, at the uprisings of the dawn, the next day, —and it smote the gourd, that it withered.
8 As the sun was rising, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint and wished to die, saying, “It is better for me to die than to live.”
And it came to pass, at the breaking forth of the sun, that God appointed a sultry east wind, and the sun smote upon the head of Jonah, that he became faint, —and asked his life, that he might die, and said, It were better for me, to die, than, to live.
9 Then God asked Jonah, “Have you any right to be angry about the plant?” “I do,” he replied. “I am angry enough to die!”
Then said God unto Jonah, Art thou rightly angry over the gourd? And he said, I am rightly angry, unto death.
10 But the LORD said, “You cared about the plant, which you neither tended nor made grow. It sprang up in a night and perished in a night.
Then said Yahweh, Thou, wouldest have spared the gourd, for which thou hadst not toiled, neither hadst thou made it grow, —which, as the off-spring of a night, came up, and, as the offspring of a night, perished;
11 So should I not care about the great city of Nineveh, which has more than 120,000 people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well?”
And was not, I, to spare Nineveh, the great city, —wherein are more than twelve times ten thousand human beings, who cannot discern between their right hand and their left, besides much cattle?
