Jonah 1

1Now the word of Jehovah came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,

1The LORD spoke to Jonah, the son of Amittai.

2Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.

2He said, 'Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh. Preach against it, because I have seen how wicked its people are.'

3But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of Jehovah; and he went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of Jehovah.

3But Jonah tried to run away from the LORD by going to Tarshish. He went down to the port of Joppa and found a ship leaving for that city. He paid the fare and went on board to sail with them to Tarshish, hoping to hide from the LORD.

4But Jehovah sent out a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken.

4However, the LORD sent a powerful wind over the sea, and such a violent storm broke out that the ship was in danger of breaking apart.

5Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god; and they cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it unto them. But Jonah was gone down into the innermost parts of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep.

5The sailors were terrified, and each one cried out to his own god. They threw the ship's cargo into the sea to make the boat lighter. Meanwhile, Jonah had gone down below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.

6So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.

6The captain went to him and said, 'How can you sleep? Get up and pray to your God! Maybe he will notice us so that we won't die.'

7And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah.

7Then the sailors said to each other, 'Come, let's cast lots to find out who is responsible for bringing this disaster on us.' They cast lots, and the lot identified Jonah.

8Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; what is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou?

8So they asked him, 'Tell us, who is responsible for this trouble? What is your job? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what group of people are you?'

9And he said unto them, I am a Hebrew; and I fear Jehovah, the God of heaven, who hath made the sea and the dry land.

9He answered, 'I am a Hebrew, and I worship the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.'

10Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him, What is this that thou hast done? For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of Jehovah, because he had told them.

10This terrified the men, and they asked, 'What have you done?' They knew he was running away from the LORD because he had already told them so.

11Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea grew more and more tempestuous.

11The storm was getting worse and worse, so they asked him, 'What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?'

12And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you.

12'Pick me up and throw me into the sea,' he replied, 'and it will become calm. I know it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.'

13Nevertheless the men rowed hard to get them back to the land; but they could not: for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them.

13Instead, the men tried to row hard to get back to land, but they couldn't because the sea grew even wilder against them.

14Wherefore they cried unto Jehovah, and said, We beseech thee, O Jehovah, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man’s life, and lay not upon us innocent blood; for thou, O Jehovah, hast done as it pleased thee.

14Then they cried out to the LORD, 'Please, LORD, do not let us die for taking this man's life. Do not hold us responsible for killing an innocent man, for you, LORD, have done as you pleased.'

15So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea; and the sea ceased from its raging.

15Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm.

16Then the men feared Jehovah exceedingly; and they offered a sacrifice unto Jehovah, and made vows.

16At this, the men were filled with great fear of the LORD; they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made promises to him.

17And Jehovah prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

17Now the LORD provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish for three days and three nights.