Jonah 1

1 And there is a word of Jehovah unto Jonah son of Amittai, saying:

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

2 'Rise, go unto Nineveh, the great city, and proclaim against it that their wickedness hath come up before Me.'

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

3 And Jonah riseth to flee to Tarshish from the face of Jehovah, and goeth down [to] Joppa, and findeth a ship going [to] Tarshish, and he giveth its fare, and goeth down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the face of Jehovah.

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.

4 And Jehovah hath cast a great wind on the sea, and there is a great tempest in the sea, and the ship hath reckoned to be broken;

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.

5 and the mariners are afraid, and cry each unto his god, and cast the goods that [are] in the ship into the sea, to make [it] light of them; and Jonah hath gone down unto the sides of the vessel, and he lieth down, and is fast asleep.

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.

6 And the chief of the company draweth near to him, and saith to him, 'What — to thee, O sleeper? rise, call unto thy God, it may be God doth bethink himself of us, and we do not perish.'

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.”

7 And they say each unto his neighbour, 'Come, and we cast lots, and we know on whose account this evil [is] on us.' And they cast lots, and the lot falleth on Jonah.

“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.

8 And they say unto him, 'Declare to us, we pray thee, on what account this evil [is] on us? what [is] thine occupation, and whence comest thou? what [is] thy country, seeing thou art not of this people?'

“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?”

9 And he saith unto them, 'A Hebrew I [am], and Jehovah, God of the heavens, I am reverencing, who made the sea and the dry land.'

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

10 And the men fear a great fear, and say unto him, 'What [is] this thou hast done!' for the men have known that from the face of Jehovah he is fleeing, for he hath told them.

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.

11 And they say unto him, 'What do we do to thee that the sea may cease from us, for the sea is more and more tempestuous?'

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?”

12 And he saith unto them, 'Lift me up, and cast me into the sea, and the sea doth cease from you; for I know that on my account this great tempest [is] upon you.'

“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.”

13 And the men row to turn back unto the dry land, and are not able, for the sea is more and more tempestuous against them.

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.

14 And they cry unto Jehovah, and say, 'We pray Thee, O Jehovah, let us not, we pray Thee, perish for this man's life, and do not lay on us innocent blood, for Thou, Jehovah, as Thou hast pleased, Thou hast done.'

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.”

15 And they lift up Jonah, and cast him into the sea, and the sea ceaseth from its raging;

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

16 and the men fear Jehovah — a great fear, and sacrifice a sacrifice to Jehovah, and vow vows.

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

17 And Jehovah appointeth a great fish to swallow up Jonah, and Jonah is in the bowels of the fish three days and three nights.

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.