The Prophet Jonah

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- Chapter 4 -

And Jonah was afflicted with a great affliction, and he was angry.(a)

And he prayed to the Lord, and he said, “I beg you, Lord, was this not my word, when I was still in my own land? Because of this, I knew beforehand to flee into Tarshish. For I know that you are a lenient and merciful God, patient and great in compassion, and forgiving despite ill will.

And now, Lord, I ask you to take my life from me. For it is better for me to die than to live.”

And the Lord said, “Do you really think you are right to be angry?”

And Jonah went out of the city, and he sat opposite the east of the city. And he made himself a shelter there, and he was sitting under it in the shadow, until he might see what would befall the city.

And the Lord God prepared an ivy, and it ascended over the head of Jonah so as to be a shadow over his head, and to protect him (for he had labored hard). And Jonah rejoiced because of the ivy, with great rejoicing.(b)

(c)

And God prepared a worm, when dawn approached on the next day, and it struck the ivy, and it dried up.

And when the sun had risen, the Lord ordered a hot and burning wind. And the sun beat down on the head of Jonah, and he burned. And he petitioned for his soul that he might die, and he said, “It is better for me to die than to live.”

And the Lord said to Jonah, “Do you really think that you are right to be angry because of the ivy?” And he said, “I am right to be angry even unto death.”

And the Lord said, “You grieve for the ivy, for which you have not labored and which you did not cause to grow, though it had been born during one night, and during one night perished.

And shall I not spare Nineveh, the great city, in which there are more than one hundred and twenty thousand men, who do not know the difference between their right and their left, and many beasts?”

Footnotes

(a)4:1 Was exceedingly troubled, etc:His concern was lest he should pass for a false prophet; or rather, lest God’s word, by this occasion, might come to be slighted and disbelieved.(Challoner)

(b)4:6 Literally, ‘laboraverat enim’ means ‘for he had labored,’ but the context makes it clear that he had labored hard.(Conte)

(c)4:6 The Lord God prepared an ivy:Hederam. In the Hebrew it is Kikajon, which some render a gourd: others a palmerist, or palma Christi.(Challoner)

But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry.

He prayed to the LORD, and said, “Please, LORD, wasn’t this what I said when I was still in my own country? Therefore I hurried to flee to Tarshish, for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness, and you relent of doing harm.

Therefore now, LORD, take, I beg you, my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.”

The LORD said, “Is it right for you to be angry?”

Then Jonah went out of the city and sat on the east side of the city, and there made himself a booth and sat under it in the shade, until he might see what would become of the city.

The LORD God prepared a vine and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head to deliver him from his discomfort. So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the vine.

But God prepared a worm at dawn the next day, and it chewed on the vine so that it withered.

When the sun arose, God prepared a sultry east wind; and the sun beat on Jonah’s head, so that he was faint and requested for himself that he might die. He said, “It is better for me to die than to live.”

God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the vine?” He said, “I am right to be angry, even to death.”

The LORD said, “You have been concerned for the vine, for which you have not labored, neither made it grow; which came up in a night and perished in a night.

Shouldn’t I be concerned for Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred twenty thousand persons who can’t discern between their right hand and their left hand, and also many animals?”