| New Living Translation | Berean Study Bible |
| 1The LORD gave this message to Jonah son of Amittai: | 1Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai, saying, |
| 2“Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh. Announce my judgment against it because I have seen how wicked its people are.” | 2“Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before Me.” |
| 3But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the LORD. He went down to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping to escape from the LORD by sailing to Tarshish. | 3Jonah, 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. |
| 4But the LORD hurled a powerful wind over the sea, causing a violent storm that threatened to break the ship apart. | 4Then the LORD hurled a great wind upon the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship was in danger of breaking apart. |
| 5Fearing for their lives, the desperate sailors shouted to their gods for help and threw the cargo overboard to lighten the ship. But all this time Jonah was sound asleep down in the hold. | 5The 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. |
| 6So the captain went down after him. “How can you sleep at a time like this?” he shouted. “Get up and pray to your god! Maybe he will pay attention to us and spare our lives.” | 6The 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.” |
| 7Then the crew cast lots to see which of them had offended the gods and caused the terrible storm. When they did this, the lots identified Jonah as the culprit. | 7“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“Why has this awful storm come down on us?” they demanded. “Who are you? What is your line of work? What country are you from? What is your nationality?” | 8“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?” |
| 9Jonah answered, “I am a Hebrew, and I worship the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.” | 9“I am a Hebrew,” replied Jonah. “I worship the LORD, the God of the heavens, who made the sea and the dry land.” |
| 10The sailors were terrified when they heard this, for he had already told them he was running away from the LORD. “Oh, why did you do it?” they groaned. | 10Then 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. |
| 11And since the storm was getting worse all the time, they asked him, “What should we do to you to stop this storm?” | 11Now 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“Throw me into the sea,” Jonah said, “and it will become calm again. I know that this terrible storm is all my fault.” | 12“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.” |
| 13Instead, the sailors rowed even harder to get the ship to the land. But the stormy sea was too violent for them, and they couldn’t make it. | 13Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to dry land, but they could not, for the sea was raging against them more and more. |
| 14Then they cried out to the LORD, Jonah’s God. “O LORD,” they pleaded, “don’t make us die for this man’s sin. And don’t hold us responsible for his death. O LORD, you have sent this storm upon him for your own good reasons.” | 14So 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.” |
| 15Then the sailors picked Jonah up and threw him into the raging sea, and the storm stopped at once! | 15At this, they picked up Jonah and cast him into the sea, and the raging sea grew calm. |
| 16The sailors were awestruck by the LORD’s great power, and they offered him a sacrifice and vowed to serve him. | 16Then the men feared the LORD greatly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows to Him. |
| 17 Now the LORD had arranged for a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was inside the fish for three days and three nights. | 17Now the LORD had appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the fish. |
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