Jonah 1:7

Jonah 1:7 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah.
• New International Version (NIV)Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And they said to one another, "Come, let us cast lots, that we may know on whose account this evil has come upon us." So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And they said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this trouble has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah.

Context of Jonah 1:7

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. 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.” “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“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?” 9“I am a Hebrew,” replied Jonah. “I worship the LORD, the God of the heavens, who made the sea and the dry land.”

Jonah 1:7 word by word

וַיֹּאמְר֞וּ אִ֣ישׁ אֶל־רֵעֵ֗הוּ לְכוּ֙ וְנַפִּ֣ילָה גֽוֹרָל֔וֹת וְנֵ֣דְעָ֔ה בְּשֶׁלְּמִ֛י הָרָעָ֥ה הַזֹּ֖את לָ֑נוּ וַיַּפִּ֙לוּ֙ גּֽוֹרָל֔וֹת וַיִּפֹּ֥ל הַגּוֹרָ֖ל עַל־יוֹנָֽה׃Read the interlinear

• Comeהָלַךְhâlak · to go: come!H1980
• said the sailorsאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• toאֶל'êl 'el · to(wards)H413
• ·אִישׁ'îysh · man: anyoneH376
• one anotherרֵעַrêa‛ rêya‛ · neighborH7453
• Let us castנָפַלnâphal · to fall: allotH5307
• lotsגּוֹרָלgôrâl gôrâl · allottedH1486
• to find outיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
• who is responsibleמִיmîy · who?H4310
• for thisזֹאתzô'th · thisH2063
• calamityרָעָהra‛ râ‛âh · distress: evilH7451
• onעַל‛al · uponH5921
• Jonahיוֹנָהyônâh · JonahH3124

Cross-references for Jonah 1:7

• Judges 7:13And as Gideon arrived, a man was telling his friend about a dream. “Behold, I had a dream,” he said, “and I saw a loaf of barley bread come tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent so hard that the tent overturned and collapsed.”
• Isaiah 41:6Each one helps the other and says to his brother, “Be strong!”
• Joshua 7:14In the morning you must present yourselves tribe by tribe. The tribe that the LORD selects shall come forward clan by clan, and the clan that the LORD selects shall come forward family by family, and the family that the LORD selects shall come forward man by man.
• Judges 20:9Now this is what we will do to Gibeah: We will go against it as the lot dictates.
• 1 Samuel 10:20Thus Samuel had all the tribes of Israel come forward, and the tribe of Benjamin was selected.
• 1 Samuel 14:41So Saul said to the LORD, the God of Israel, “Why have You not answered Your servant this day? If the fault is with me or my son Jonathan, respond with Urim, but if the fault is with the men of Israel, respond with Thummim.” And Jonathan and Saul were selected, but the people were cleared of the charge.
• Esther 3:7In the twelfth year of King Xerxes, in the first month, the month of Nisan, the Pur (that is, the lot) was cast before Haman to determine a day and month. And the lot fell on the twelfth month, the month of Adar.
• Psalms 22:18They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.
• Proverbs 16:33The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.
• Matthew 27:35When they had crucified Him, they divided up His garments by casting lots.
• Acts 1:23So they proposed two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias.
• Acts 13:19And having vanquished seven nations in Canaan, He gave their land to His people as an inheritance.
• Joshua 7:10But the LORD said to Joshua, “Stand up! Why have you fallen on your face?
• Joshua 22:16“This is what the whole congregation of the LORD says: ‘What is this breach of faith you have committed today against the God of Israel by turning away from the LORD and building for yourselves an altar, that you might rebel against the LORD this day?
• 1 Samuel 14:38Therefore Saul said, “Come here, all you leaders of the troops, and let us investigate how this sin has occurred today.
• Job 10:2I will say to God: Do not condemn me! Let me know why You prosecute me.

Commentaries on Jonah 1:7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7Come, and let us cast lots - This was a very ancient mode of endeavoring to find out the mind of Divine Providence; and in this case it proves that they supposed the storm to have arisen on account of some hidden crime of some person aboard. A philosopher being at sea in a violent storm. when the crew began to call earnestly to the gods for safety, he said, "Be silent, and cease your prayers; for should the gods know that you are here, we shall all be…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7Come, and let us cast lots - Jonah too had probably prayed, and his prayers too were not heard. Probably, too, the storm had some unusual character about it, the suddenness with which it burst upon them, its violence, the quarter from where it came, its whirlwind force. “They knew the nature of the sea, and, as experienced sailors, were acquainted with the character of wind and storm, and had these waves been such as they had known before, they would…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-7Verses 4-7 God sent a pursuer after Jonah, even a mighty tempest. Sin brings storms and tempests into the soul, into the family, into churches and nations; it is a disquieting, disturbing thing. Having called upon their gods for help, the sailors did what they could to help themselves. Oh that men would be thus wise for their souls, and would be willing to part with that wealth, pleasure, and honour, which they cannot keep without making shipwreck of…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7-8God permitted the use of lots for certain purposes, such as making decisions when people sought his will (see Leviticus 16:8; Joshua 18:6; 1 Chronicles 26:12–16; Acts 1:26). However, divination in general, as it was practiced throughout the ancient world, displeased the Lord because it sought guidance apart from him (Deuteronomy 18:9–13). who is responsible for this calamity that is upon us: In the ancient Near East, people often believed that disasters…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. cast lots--God sometimes sanctioned this mode of deciding in difficult cases. Compare the similar instance of Achan, whose guilt involved Israel in suffering, until God revealed the offender, probably by the casting of lots (Pr 16:33; Ac 1:26). Primitive tradition and natural conscience led even the heathen to believe that one guilty man involves all his associates, though innocent, in punishment. So Cicero [The Nature of the Gods, 3.37] mentions that…Read the comment

Topics related to Jonah 1:7

• Jonah
• Lot, the
• Superstition

In the dictionaries

• Jonah
• Lot
• Cry
• Raging
• Decision
• Divination
• Jonah, the Book of
• lots, casting lots

Commentaries on Jonah 1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings