1 And the word of Jehovah came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 Arise, go to Nineveh, the great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me. 3 But 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. 4 But Jehovah sent out a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest upon the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken. 5 And the mariners were afraid, and cried every one unto his god; and they cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to be lightened of them. But Jonah had gone down into the lower part of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep. 6 And the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, sleeper? arise, call upon thy God; perhaps God will think upon us, that we perish not. 7 And they said each one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. And they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah. 8 And they said 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? 9 And he said unto them, I am a Hebrew, and I fear Jehovah, the God of the heavens, who hath made the sea and the dry [land]. 10 Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him, What is this thou hast done? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of Jehovah: for he had told them. 11 And they said unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea grew more and more tempestuous. 12 And 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 because of me this great tempest is upon you. 13 But the men rowed hard to regain the land; but they could not; for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them. 14 And they cried unto Jehovah and said, Ah, Jehovah, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, Jehovah, hast done as it pleased thee. 15 And they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from its raging. 16 And the men feared Jehovah exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto Jehovah, and made vows. 17 And Jehovah prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Jonah 1 Darby Translation
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Amittai
Named as the father of the prophet Jonah.
Cited in the guide: 2 Kings 14:25; Jonah 1:1
Jonah
The prophet from Gath-hepher, son of Amittai, through whom the LORD spoke that Jeroboam son of Joash would restore Israel's boundary.
Cited in the guide: 2 Kings 14:25; Jonah 1:1; Jonah 1:3
Places
Joppa
Judah's main seaport. Cedar for the Temple arrived here, Jonah fled from here, and Peter's rooftop vision here opened the gospel to the Gentiles.
Cited in the guide: Jonah 1:3; Acts 9:36; Acts 10:9
Cross references (17)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Luke 11:32; Luke 11:29–30; 2 Kings 14:25; Matthew 16:4; Matthew 12:39–41
- 2 Genesis 18:20–21; Genesis 10:11; Nahum 1:1; Isaiah 58:1; Jonah 4:11
- 3 Psalm 139:7–12; Joshua 19:46; Genesis 4:16; Acts 9:43; 2 Thessalonians 1:9
- 4 Psalm 107:23–31; Matthew 8:24–27; Exodus 14:21; Psalm 135:7; Amos 4:13
- 5 Jeremiah 2:28; Acts 27:18–19; 1 Kings 18:26; Judges 16:19; Luke 22:45–46
- 6 Psalm 107:28–29; Jonah 3:9; Mark 4:37–41; Ephesians 5:14; 2 Samuel 12:22
- 7 Proverbs 16:33; Joshua 7:13–18; Numbers 32:23; Joshua 7:10; 1 Samuel 14:41–42
- 8 Genesis 47:3; 1 Samuel 30:13; James 5:16; Joshua 7:19; 1 Samuel 14:43
- 9 Psalm 146:5–6; Psalm 95:5–6; Nehemiah 9:6; Psalm 136:26; Nehemiah 1:4
- 10 Jonah 1:3; Job 27:22; Joshua 7:25; John 19:8; Daniel 5:6–9
- 11 1 Samuel 6:2–3; Micah 6:6–7; 2 Samuel 21:1–6; 2 Samuel 24:11–13
- 12 2 Samuel 24:17; 1 Chronicles 21:17; Joshua 7:12; John 11:50; Joshua 7:20–21
- 13 Proverbs 21:30; Job 34:29
- 14 Psalm 115:3; Psalm 135:6; Deuteronomy 21:8; Ephesians 1:11; Psalm 107:28
- 15 Luke 8:24; Psalm 93:3–4; Psalm 107:29; Psalm 89:9; Matthew 8:26
- 16 Daniel 6:26; Psalm 116:14; Genesis 8:20; Psalm 50:14; Psalm 107:22
- 17 Matthew 12:40; Luke 11:30; Matthew 16:4; Psalm 104:25–26; Habakkuk 3:2
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
… the sign of Jonah, for those who held the same opinion as Jonah regarding the Lord, and who confessed, and said, "I am a servant of the Lord, and I worship the Lord God of heaven, who hath made the sea and the dry land." [This was done] that man, receiving an unhoped-for salvation from God, might rise from the …
But the one says, Take me, and cast me into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you; the other, Himself rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 7 (1894)