New International Version
Jonah 1:9
9He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry 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.
- 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.”
- New Living Translation (NLT)Jonah answered, “I am a Hebrew, and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.”
Context of Jonah 1:9
7Then 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. 8So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?” He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 10This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.) 11The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”
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 14:13A man who had escaped came and reported this to Abram the Hebrew. Now Abram was living near the great trees of Mamre the Amorite, a brother of Eshkol and Aner, all of whom were allied with Abram.
- Genesis 39:14she called her household servants. “Look,” she said to them, “this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us! He came in here to sleep with me, but I screamed.
- Philippians 3:5circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee;
- 2 Kings 17:25When they first lived there, they did not worship the Lord; so he sent lions among them and they killed some of the people.
- Job 1:9“Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied.
- Hosea 3:5Afterward the Israelites will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the Lord and to his blessings in the last days.
- Acts 27:23Last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me
- Revelation 15:4Who will not fear you, Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”
- Ezra 1:2“This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: “ ‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah.
- Ezra 5:11This is the answer they gave us: “We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, one that a great king of Israel built and finished.
- Ezra 7:12Artaxerxes, king of kings, To Ezra the priest, teacher of the Law of the God of heaven: Greetings.
- Nehemiah 1:4When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.
- Nehemiah 2:4The king said to me, “What is it you want?” Then I prayed to the God of heaven,
- Psalms 136:26Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.
- Daniel 2:18He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
- Revelation 11:13At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and 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
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