Jonah 4

1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly; and he was wroth.

But this seemed very wrong to Jonah and he became angry.

2 And he prayed unto the Lord, and said, I pray thee, O Lord, was not this my word, while I was yet in my own country? Therefore made I haste to fly unto Tharshish; for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, long-suffering, and abundant in kindness, and repentant of the evil.

He prayed to the Lord and said, “Ah, Lord, wasn’t this what I said when I was still in my own country? That was why I fled at once to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious and merciful God, patient, and loving and ready to forgive.

3 And now, O Lord, take, I pray thee, my soul from me; because it is better for me to die, than to live.

Therefore, Lord, I beg you, take my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live!”

4 And the Lord said, Art thou very wroth?

But the Lord said, “Are you doing right in being angry?”

5 Now Jonah was gone out of the city, and dwelt on the east side of the city; and he had made himself there a booth, and sat under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city.

Then Jonah went out of the city and sat down on the east side, and there made a hut for himself and sat under it, waiting to see what would become of the city.

6 And the Lord God made ready a gourd, and it grew up over Jonah, to be a shade over his head, to relieve him from his affliction. And Jonah rejoiced because of the gourd exceedingly.

And the Lord arranged for a bush to grow up over Jonah as a shade for his head to make him comfortable. The bush gave Jonah great pleasure;

7 But God made ready a worm when the morning dawned on the morrow, and it smote the gourd that it withered.

but at dawn the next day God arranged for a worm which attacked the bush, so that it wilted.

8 And it came to pass, when the sun arose, that God made ready a hot east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he became faint; and he wished for himself to die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.

And when the sun rose, God arranged a hot east wind. And the sun beat upon Jonah’s head, so that he was faint and begged that he might die, saying, “It is better for me to die than to live.”

9 And God said unto Jonah, Art thou very wroth for the gourd? And he said, I am very wroth, even unto death.

But God said to Jonah, “Are you doing right in being angry about the bush?” He replied, “I have every right to be as angry as I could possibly be!”

10 And the Lord said, Thou wouldst have spared the gourd, for which thou hadst not labored, neither hadst thou made it grow; which came up in one night, and perished in one night;

The Lord said, “You care about a bush which has cost you no trouble and which you have not made grow, which came up in a night and wilted in a night.

11 And shall I not spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than twelve times ten thousand persons, who know not how to discern between their right hand and their left hand, and also much cattle?

Should I not care for the great city Nineveh, in which there are one hundred and twenty thousand people who do not know their right hand from their left; and many cattle too?”