Jonah 3:5

Jonah 3:5 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
• New International Version (NIV)The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.
• New King James Version (NKJV)So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them.

Context of Jonah 3:5

3Jonah got up and went to Nineveh according to the Lord’s command. Now Nineveh was an extremely great city, a three-day walk. 4Jonah set out on the first day of his walk in the city and proclaimed, “In forty days Nineveh will be demolished!” Then the people of Nineveh believed God. They proclaimed a fast and dressed in sackcloth — from the greatest of them to the least. 6When word reached the king of Nineveh, he got up from his throne, took off his royal robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7Then he issued a decree in Nineveh: By order of the king and his nobles: No person or animal, herd or flock, is to taste anything at all. They must not eat or drink water.

Jonah 3:5 word by word

וַֽיַּאֲמִ֛ינוּ אַנְשֵׁ֥י נִֽינְוֵ֖ה בֵּֽאלֹהִ֑ים וַיִּקְרְאוּ־צוֹם֙ וַיִּלְבְּשׁ֣וּ שַׂקִּ֔ים מִגְּדוֹלָ֖ם וְעַד־קְטַנָּֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• So the peopleאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
• of Ninevehנִינְוֵהnîynevêh · NinevehH5210
• believedאָמַן'âman · be faithfulH539
• Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• and proclaimedקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call toH7121
• a fastצוֹםtsôm tsôm · fastH6685
• and putלָבֵשׁlâbash lâbêsh · to clotheH3847
• on sackclothשַׂקώaq · sackclothH8242
• from the greatestגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
• of them even to the leastקָטָןqâţân qâţôn · smallH6996

Cross-references for Jonah 3:5

• Exodus 9:18Tomorrow at this time I will rain down the worst hail that has ever occurred in Egypt from the day it was founded until now.
• Matthew 12:41The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at Jonah’s preaching; and look — something greater than Jonah is here.
• Luke 11:32The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at Jonah’s preaching, and look — something greater than Jonah is here.
• Acts 27:25So take courage, men, because I believe God that it will be just the way it was told to me.
• Hebrews 11:1Now faith is the reality of what is hoped for, the proof of what is not seen.
• 2 Chronicles 20:3Jehoshaphat was afraid, and he resolved to seek the Lord. Then he proclaimed a fast for all Judah,
• Ezra 8:21I proclaimed a fast by the Ahava River, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey for us, our dependents, and all our possessions.
• Jeremiah 36:9In the fifth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, in the ninth month, all the people of Jerusalem and all those coming in from Judah’s cities into Jerusalem proclaimed a fast before the Lord.
• Joel 1:14Announce a sacred fast; proclaim a solemn assembly! Gather the elders and all the residents of the land at the house of the Lord your God, and cry out to the Lord.
• Joel 2:12Even now — this is the Lord’s declaration — turn to me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning.
• Jeremiah 31:34No longer will one teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know me, from the least to the greatest of them” — this is the Lord’s declaration. “For I will forgive their iniquity and never again remember their sin.
• Jeremiah 42:1Then all the commanders of the armies, along with Johanan son of Kareah, Jezaniah son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest, approached
• Acts 8:10They all paid attention to him, from the least of them to the greatest, and they said, “This man is called the Great Power of God.”

Commentaries on Jonah 3:5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5The people of Nineveh believed God - They had no doubt that the threatening would be fulfilled, unless their speedy conversion prevented it; but, though not expressed, they knew that the threatening was conditional. "The promises and threatenings of God, which are merely personal, either to any particular man or number of men, are always conditional, because the wisdom of God hath thought fit to make these depend on the behavior of men." - Dr. S. Clarke's…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5And the people of Nineveh believed God; - strictly, “believed in God.” To “believe in God” expresses more heart-belief, than to “believe God” in itself need convey. To believe God is to believe what God says, to be true; “to believe in” or “on God” expresses not belief only, but that belief resting in God, trusting itself and all its concerns with Him. It combines hope and trust with faith, and love too, since, without love, there cannot be trust. They…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-10Verses 5-10 There was a wonder of Divine grace in the repentance and reformation of Nineveh. It condemns the men of the gospel generation, Mt 12:41. A very small degree of light may convince men that humbling themselves before God, confessing their sins with prayer, and turning from sin, are means of escaping wrath and obtaining mercy. The people followed the example of the king. It became a national act, and it was necessary it should be so, when it was…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5-6For the second time in this short book, non-believers respond positively to the Lord (compare Jonah 1:16). In ancient Israel, people often fasted during prayer and repentance in difficult times (see 2 Samuel 1:12; Nehemiah 1:4). Wearing burlap and sitting on ashes often showed mourning and deep repentance (see Genesis 37:34; Job 16:15; Lamentations 2:10). The Assyrians had similar customs. These actions allowed people to show their grief in a visible way…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. believed God--gave credit to Jonah's message from God; thus recognizing Jehovah as the true God. fast ... sackcloth--In the East outward actions are often used as symbolical expressions of inward feelings. So fasting and clothing in sackcloth were customary in humiliation. Compare in Ahab's case, parallel to that of Nineveh, both receiving a respite on penitence (1Ki 21:27; 20:31, 32; Joe 1:13). from the greatest ... to the least--The penitence was not…Read the comment

Topics related to Jonah 3:5

• Faith
• Fasting
• Heathen
• Minister, Christian
• Missions
• Obedience
• Orator
• Repentance
• Revivals

In the dictionaries

• God
• Nineveh
• Nineveh, Ninevite
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Fast
• Lay
• Mightily
• Mourn
• Ashes
• Joel (2)

Commentaries on Jonah 3

• 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
• Darby Translation 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