God’s Word Translation
Jonah 1:9
9Jonah answered them, “I’m a Hebrew. I worship the Lord, the God of heaven. He is the God who made the sea and the land.”
Jonah 1:9 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land.
- New International Version (NIV)He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And he said to them, "I am a Hebrew, and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land."
- New King James Version (NKJV)So he said to them, “I am a Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”
Context of Jonah 1:9
7Then the sailors said to each other, “Let’s throw dice to find out who is responsible for bringing this disaster on us.” So they threw dice, and the dice indicated that Jonah was responsible. 8They asked him, “Tell us, why has this disaster happened to us? What do you do for a living? Where do you come from? What country are you from? What nationality are you?” Jonah answered them, “I’m a Hebrew. I worship the Lord, the God of heaven. He is the God who made the sea and the land.” 10Then the men were terrified. They knew that he was running away from the Lord, because he had told them. They asked Jonah, “Why have you done this?” 11The storm was getting worse. So they asked Jonah, “What should we do with you to calm the sea?”
Read all of Jonah 1Jonah 1:9 word by word
וַיֹּ֥אמֶר אֲלֵיהֶ֖ם עִבְרִ֣י אָנֹ֑כִי וְאֶת־יְהוָ֞ה אֱלֹהֵ֤י הַשָּׁמַ֙יִם֙ אֲנִ֣י יָרֵ֔א אֲשֶׁר־עָשָׂ֥ה אֶת־הַיָּ֖ם וְאֶת־הַיַּבָּשָֽׁה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And he saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- an Hebrewעִבְרִי‛ibrîy · HebrewH5680
- and I fearיָרֵאyârê' · afraidH3373
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- the Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- of heavenשָׁמַיִםshâmayim shâmeh · heavenH8064
- which hath madeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
- the seaיָםyâm · seaH3220
- and the dryיַבָּשָׁהyabbâώâh · dry landH3004
Cross-references for Jonah 1:9
- Genesis 14:13Then a soldier who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew what had happened. He was living next to the oak trees belonging to Mamre the Amorite, a brother of Eshcol and Aner. (These men were Abram’s allies.)
- Genesis 39:14she called her household servants and said to them, “Look! My husband brought this Hebrew here to fool around with us. He came in and tried to go to bed with me, but I screamed as loud as I could.
- Philippians 3:5I was circumcised on the eighth day. I’m a descendant of Israel. I’m from the tribe of Benjamin. I’m a pure-blooded Hebrew. When it comes to following Jewish laws, I was a Pharisee.
- 2 Kings 17:25When they first came to live there, they didn’t worship the Lord. So the Lord sent lions to kill some of them.
- Job 1:9Satan answered the Lord, “Haven’t you given Job a reason to fear God?
- Hosea 3:5After that, the Israelites will turn and look to the Lord their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the Lord for his blessings in the last days.
- Acts 27:23I know this because an angel from the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood by me last night.
- Revelation 15:4Lord, who won’t fear and praise your name? You are the only holy one, and all the nations will come to worship you because they know about your fair judgments.”
- Ezra 1:2This is what King Cyrus of Persia says: The Lord God of heaven has given me all the kingdoms of the world. Then he ordered me to build a temple for him in Jerusalem (which is in Judah).
- Ezra 5:11This was their reply to us: “We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth. We are rebuilding the temple that was originally built many years ago by a great king of Israel.
- Ezra 7:12From: Artaxerxes, king of kings To: Ezra the priest, a scribe for the Teachings of the God of Heaven: I wish you peace and prosperity!
- Nehemiah 1:4When I heard this, I sat down and cried. I mourned for days. I continued to fast and pray to the God of heaven.
- Nehemiah 2:4“What do you want?” the king asked me. So I prayed to the God of heaven,
- Psalms 136:26Give thanks to the God of heaven because his mercy endures forever.
- Daniel 2:18He told them to ask the God of heaven to be merciful and to explain this secret to them so that they would not be destroyed with the rest of the wise advisers in Babylon.
- Revelation 11:13At that moment a powerful earthquake struck. One-tenth of the city collapsed, 7,000 people were killed by the earthquake, and the rest were terrified. They gave glory to the God of heaven.
Commentaries on Jonah 1:9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9I fear the Lord - In this Jonah was faithful. He gave an honest testimony concerning the God he served, which placed him before the eyes of the sailors as infinitely higher than the objects of their adoration; for the God of Jonah was the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land, and governed both. He also honestly told them that he was fleeing from the presence of this God, whose honorable call he had refused to obey. See Jonah 1:10.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9I am an Hebrew - This was the name by which Israel was known to foreigners. It is used in the Old Testament, only when they are spoken of by foreigners, or speak of themselves to foreigners, or when the sacred writers mention them in contrast with foreigners. So Joseph spoke of his land Genesis 40:15, and the Hebrew midwives Exodus 1:19, and Moses‘ sister Exodus 2:7, and God in His commission to Moses Exodus 3:18; Exodus 7:16; Exodus 9:1 as to Pharaoh…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 8-12Verses 8-12 Jonah gave an account of his religion, for that was his business. We may hope that he told with sorrow and shame, justifying God, condemning himself, and explaining to the mariners what a great God Jehovah is. They said to him, Why hast thou done this? If thou fearest the God that made the sea and the dry land, why wast thou such a fool as to think thou couldst flee from his presence? If the professors of religion do wrong, they will hear it…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9a Hebrew: See also Genesis 41:12; Exodus 1:15; 2:11. Jonah worshiped the Lord, who, unlike the sailors’ false gods, made and controlled the sea and land. Many believed different gods ruled specific areas and tasks. Calling God the God of the heavens likely showed this deity's superiority, as heaven is the highest realm. The Old Testament consistently states that the Lord is the one true God (see, for example, Deuteronomy 6:4), sometimes using language to…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. I am an Hebrew--He does not say "an Israelite." For this was the name used among themselves; "Hebrew," among foreigners (Ge 40:15; Ex 3:18). I fear the Lord--in profession: his practice belied his profession: his profession aggravated his guilt. God ... which ... made the sea--appropriately expressed, as accounting for the tempest sent on the sea. The heathen had distinct gods for the "heaven," the "sea," and the "land." Jehovah is the one and only…Read the comment
Topics related to Jonah 1:9
In the dictionaries
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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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