Jonah 1

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1. 1The LORD spoke to Jonah son of Amittai and said,
2. 2Arise, go to the great city of Nineveh and cry out against it, for their wickedness has come up before me.
3. 3But Jonah got up to flee to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa, found a ship going to Tarshish, paid the fare, and boarded it to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD.
4. 4But the LORD sent a powerful wind across the sea, and a violent storm hit so hard that the ship was on the verge of breaking apart.
5. 5The sailors were terrified. Each one cried out to his own god for help, and they threw the cargo overboard to lighten the ship. Meanwhile, Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.
6. 6The captain found him and said, "How can you sleep at a time like this? Get up and pray to your God! Maybe he'll take notice of us and we won't die."
7. 7The sailors said to each other, "Let's cast lots to find out who's to blame for this disaster." They cast lots, and the lot pointed to Jonah.
8. 8They said to him, "Tell us, we ask you, for whose cause this evil has come upon us. What is your occupation? Where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?"
9. 9Jonah answered, "I'm a Hebrew, and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land."
10. 10This terrified them even more. "What have you done?" they demanded. They already knew he was running from the LORD, because he had told them.
11. 11Then they asked him, "What should we do to you so that the sea will be calm for us?" For the sea was raging and stormy.
12. 12"Pick me up and throw me into the sea," Jonah said. "Then it will calm down. I know this terrible storm is my fault."
13. 13Instead, the men rowed with all their strength, trying to reach the shore. But they couldn't — the storm only grew fiercer against them.
14. 14So they cried out to the LORD, "Please, LORD, don't let us die for taking this man's life, and don't hold us guilty of shedding innocent blood — because you, LORD, have done what you chose to do."
15. 15Then they picked Jonah up and threw him into the sea, and the sea stopped its raging.
16. 16Then the men feared the LORD greatly, and offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows.
17. 17Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights.