¹The Word of Jehovah came to Jonah (son of AmaThi), and said:²‘Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh and make this proclamation against it; for, cries of their evil have reached up to Me.’³However, Jonah got up and decided to flee from the face of Jehovah [all the way] to Tharsis! For he went down to JopPa and there he found a boat that was sailing to Tharsis, then he paid his fare, boarded, and preceded to sail away from the face of Jehovah.⁴But then Jehovah raised a wind over the sea that created huge swells, and [soon] the boat was in danger of breaking up. ⁵Of course, this made the sailors so frightened that they each started yelling out to their own gods, and they started throwing things into the sea to lighten the load.Meanwhile, Jonah had gone down into the ship’s hold and fallen asleep, and then he started snoring. ⁶So the ship’s captain went down to him and said:‘Why are you [just lying there] snoring? Get up and call to your God so He will save us and we won’t be destroyed!’⁷Well at that, each man started saying to his companion:‘Come, let’s throw lots to find out why this evil has fallen on us!’So they threw lots, and the lot fell to Jonah. ⁸And they asked him if he knew the reason why this evil had come down upon them. They also asked what he did for a living and where he came from (what kind of place and what kind of people).⁹Then he told them:‘I’m a servant of Jehovah, the God of the heavens… I worship the One who made the seas and the dry land.’¹⁰Well at that, the men became very frightened and they asked him what he’d done, because they realized that he was running away. So he explained [to them all that had happened].¹¹Then they asked him:‘So, what must we do to you in order to calm the sea?’And just as they asked this, the sea rose in a great swell.¹²So Jonah told them:‘Just pick me up and throw me into the sea… Then it’ll become calm for you. I know that that these great swells have come upon you because of me.’¹³Nevertheless, the men pressed on and they tried to reach land… But they couldn’t – the sea [kept pushing] against them.¹⁴So they called out to Jehovah and said:‘Please don’t destroy us over the life of this man, because we don’t want the blood of the righteous held against us! But for You, O Lord, we’ll do whatever You want.’¹⁵So then they took Jonah and threw him into the sea… And suddenly the sea became still and stopped tossing about! ¹⁶As a result, the men became very frightened of Jehovah, and they made vows to Him and offered sacrifices to Him.¹⁷Then Jehovah ordered a great sea creature to swallow Jonah, and he stayed in its belly for three days and three nights.

¹Well, from from the belly of the sea creature, Jonah prayed to Jehovah his God, ²saying this:‘In my affliction, I called out to You, O Jehovah, my God, And You paid attention to me. I’ve called from the belly of the place of the dead, And from there, You listened to my voice!³‘You threw me into the heart of the sea… Into the depths of its waters, And by the sea, I was covered.‘Then I asked, as their waves and crests poured upon me:⁴‘Have I been pushed away from Your eyes… Won’t I see Your Holy Temple again?⁵‘But the waters were rolling around me, And then, they entered my soul… By the deep, I was encircled, And my head went under the water.⁶‘I went down between mountain fissures… Through the earth and its bars of the ages. And I said:‘O Jehovah, my God; Let my soul rise above this corruption!’⁷‘Then, as my life was reaching [its end], You noticed [my bad situation]; For my prayers had ascended to You… Yes, to You in Your Holy Temple!⁸‘Some pay attention to things that are foolish, While others will listen to lies… For they’ve given up on Your mercy. ⁹But, with my voice, I’ll praise You, And I’m offering [this song] as my sacrifice. For I’ll do everything that I’ve promised If you’ll just save me, Jehovah!’¹⁰And at that, the Lord gave orders to the large sea creature, and it vomited Jonah out on dry land.

¹Well thereafter, The Word of Jehovah came to Jonah a second time and said:²‘Now, you must get up and travel to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim My words over it, just as I told you before!’³So Jonah got up, and for the next three days he traveled to Nineveh, just as the Lord had told him (for God considered Nineveh to be a great city).⁴Then when Jonah arrived at the city, he spent [a full] day traveling through it proclaiming:‘In just three days, Nineveh will be wiped away!’⁵Well, because the men of Nineveh believed in God, they called for a fast and for everyone (from the least to the greatest) to wear sackcloth. ⁶And when [Jonah’s] words reached the king of Nineveh, he arose from his throne, removed all of his clothes and put on sackcloth, and then he sat in ashes. ⁷The king and his great men also sent a proclamation throughout Nineveh, that said:‘The people may not eat anything, [nor may they feed] their cattle, oxen, or sheep… They may not eat or drink anything at all!⁸‘They must each wrap themselves and their cattle in sackcloth as they all fervently call out to God! Also, every man must turn from his wicked ways and from the sins of his hands and say:⁹‘Who knows if God will change His mind and turn from the anger of His rage, so that we’ll not perish?’¹⁰Well, when God saw what they were doing and that they’d turned from their wicked ways, He changed His mind over the evil things that He said He’d do to them, and He didn’t do anything.

¹However, Jonah was very upset and confused by this...²So he prayed to Jehovah and said:‘O Lord,‘Wasn’t this what I said [would happen] when I was back in my own land?‘It was because of something like this that I thought about fleeing to Tharsis! For I knew that because You’re kind, sympathetic, lenient, and full of mercy, You’d change Your mind about doing such evil!³‘So now, O Master and Lord, please kill me… For it’d be better for me to die than to go on living!’⁴And the Lord asked:‘Has this [really] grieved you that much?’⁵Well thereafter, Jonah left the city and sat down in front of it… He built a shelter and just sat there, staring at it.⁶Then Jehovah God provided a gourd [plant] that grew up over Jonah’s head to shade him during this bad [time]. And Jonah became very happy and joyful over the gourd [plant].⁷But then, early the next morning, God sent a worm which killed the [plant] and dried it up. ⁸And just as the sun was rising, God also sent a burning wind, which (along with the sun) burned Jonah’s head. So he became discouraged to the point where he wanted to just resign from life.For he said:‘It’s better for me to die than to live!’⁹Then God asked Jonah:‘Are you [really] that grieved over the gourd [plant]?’And he replied:‘Yes, I’m grieved to the point of death!’¹⁰And the Lord said:‘You treated that plant so tenderly… You nourished it and worked hard over it, even though it grew up in a single night and was gone before the next evening! ¹¹So, shouldn’t I spare this great city where 120,000 people now live who don’t know their right hands from their left… Along with all of their cattle?’