Jonah 1:11

Jonah 1:11 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous.
• New International Version (NIV)The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then they said to him, "What shall we do to you, that the sea may quiet down for us?" For the sea grew more and more tempestuous.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you that the sea may be calm for us?”—for the sea was growing more tempestuous.

Context of Jonah 1:11

9Jonah answered, “I am a Hebrew, and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.” 10The sailors were terrified when they heard this, for he had already told them he was running away from the Lord. “Oh, why did you do it?” they groaned. And since the storm was getting worse all the time, they asked him, “What should we do to you to stop this storm?” 12“Throw me into the sea,” Jonah said, “and it will become calm again. I know that this terrible storm is all my fault.” 13Instead, the sailors rowed even harder to get the ship to the land. But the stormy sea was too violent for them, and they couldn’t make it.

Jonah 1:11 word by word

וַיֹּאמְר֤וּ אֵלָיו֙ מַה־נַּ֣עֲשֶׂה לָּ֔ךְ וְיִשְׁתֹּ֥ק הַיָּ֖ם מֵֽעָלֵ֑ינוּ כִּ֥י הַיָּ֖ם הוֹלֵ֥ךְ וְסֹעֵֽר׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Then saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• they unto him, What shall we doעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
• unto thee, that the seaיָםyâm · seaH3220
• may be calmשָׁתַקshâthaq · be quietH8367
• wroughtהָלַךְhâlak · to go: continueH1980
• and was tempestuousסָעַרsâ‛ar · to rageH5590

Cross-references for Jonah 1:11

• 1 Samuel 6:2Then the Philistines called in their priests and diviners and asked them, “What should we do about the Ark of the Lord? Tell us how to return it to its own country.”
• 2 Samuel 21:1There was a famine during David’s reign that lasted for three years, so David asked the Lord about it. And the Lord said, “The famine has come because Saul and his family are guilty of murdering the Gibeonites.”
• 2 Samuel 24:11The next morning the word of the Lord came to the prophet Gad, who was David’s seer. This was the message:
• Micah 6:6What can we bring to the Lord? Should we bring him burnt offerings? Should we bow before God Most High with offerings of yearling calves?

Commentaries on Jonah 1:11

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 11What shall we do unto thee - In these poor men there was an uncommon degree of humanity and tender feeling.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 11What shall we do unto thee? - They knew him to be a prophet; they ask him the mind of his God. The lots had marked out Jonah as the cause of the storm; Jonah had himself admitted it, and that the storm was for “his” cause, and came from “his” God. “Great was he who fled, greater He who required him. They dare not give him up; they cannot conceal him. They blame the fault; they confess their fear; they ask “him” the remedy, who was the author of the sin…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
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1111. What shall we do unto thee?--They ask this, as Jonah himself must best know how his God is to be appeased. "We would gladly save thee, if we can do so, and yet be saved ourselves" (Jon 1:13, 14).Read the comment

Topics related to Jonah 1:11

• Jonah
• Superstition

In the dictionaries

• the sea, the Great Sea, the western sea
• Cry
• Raging
• Jonah, the Book of

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