New Living Translation
Jonah 3:6
6When the king of Nineveh heard what Jonah was saying, he stepped down from his throne and took off his royal robes. He dressed himself in burlap and sat on a heap of ashes.
Jonah 3:6 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
- New International Version (NIV)When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.
- English Standard Version (ESV)The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth and sat in ashes.
Context of Jonah 3:6
4On the day Jonah entered the city, he shouted to the crowds: “Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed!” 5The people of Nineveh believed God’s message, and from the greatest to the least, they declared a fast and put on burlap to show their sorrow. When the king of Nineveh heard what Jonah was saying, he stepped down from his throne and took off his royal robes. He dressed himself in burlap and sat on a heap of ashes. 7Then the king and his nobles sent this decree throughout the city: “No one, not even the animals from your herds and flocks, may eat or drink anything at all. 8People and animals alike must wear garments of mourning, and everyone must pray earnestly to God. They must turn from their evil ways and stop all their violence.
Read all of Jonah 3Jonah 3:6 word by word
וַיִּגַּ֤ע הַדָּבָר֙ אֶל־מֶ֣לֶך נִֽינְוֵ֔ה וַיָּ֙קָם֙ מִכִּסְא֔וֹ וַיַּעֲבֵ֥ר אַדַּרְתּ֖וֹ מֵֽעָלָ֑יו וַיְכַ֣ס שַׂ֔ק וַיֵּ֖שֶׁב עַל־הָאֵֽפֶר׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- For wordדָּבָרdâbâr · wordH1697
- cameנָגַעnâga‛ · to touchH5060
- unto the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- of Ninevehנִינְוֵהnîynevêh · NinevehH5210
- and he aroseקוּםqûm · to arise: riseH6965
- from his throneכִּסֵּאkissê' kissêh · throneH3678
- and he laidעָבַר‛âbar · to pass: bringH5674
- his robeאַדֶּ֫רֶת'addereth · clothingH155
- from him, and coveredכָּסָהkâsâh · to coverH3680
- with sackclothשַׂקώaq · sackclothH8242
- and satיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
- in ashesאֵ֫פֶר'êpher · ashesH665
Cross-references for Jonah 3:6
- Jeremiah 13:18Say to the king and his mother, “Come down from your thrones and sit in the dust, for your glorious crowns will soon be snatched from your heads.”
- Psalms 2:10Now then, you kings, act wisely! Be warned, you rulers of the earth!
- James 1:9Believers who are poor have something to boast about, for God has honored them.
- James 4:6And he gives grace generously. As the Scriptures say, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
- Esther 4:1When Mordecai learned about all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on burlap and ashes, and went out into the city, crying with a loud and bitter wail.
- Job 2:8Job scraped his skin with a piece of broken pottery as he sat among the ashes.
- Job 42:6I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.”
- Jeremiah 6:26Oh, my people, dress yourselves in burlap and sit among the ashes. Mourn and weep bitterly, as for the loss of an only son. For suddenly the destroying armies will be upon you!
- Lamentations 3:29Let them lie face down in the dust, for there may be hope at last.
- Daniel 9:3So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and fasting. I also wore rough burlap and sprinkled myself with ashes.
- Micah 1:10Don’t tell our enemies in Gath; don’t weep at all. You people in Beth-leaphrah, roll in the dust to show your despair.
- Matthew 11:21“What sorrow awaits you, Korazin and Bethsaida! For if the miracles I did in you had been done in wicked Tyre and Sidon, their people would have repented of their sins long ago, clothing themselves in burlap and throwing ashes on their heads to show their remorse.
- Luke 10:13“What sorrow awaits you, Korazin and Bethsaida! For if the miracles I did in you had been done in wicked Tyre and Sidon, their people would have repented of their sins long ago, clothing themselves in burlap and throwing ashes on their heads to show their remorse.
Commentaries on Jonah 3:6
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 6Word came unto the king - This, some think, was Pul; others, Sardanapalus his son, king of Assyria, who flourished in the reign of Jeroboam the Second: but it seems more probable that the monarch here alluded to was a king of Assyria contemporary with Joash, king of Judah. It was by the decree of the king that the fast was instituted, and became general.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 6For word came - , rather, “And the matter came,” i. e., the “whole account,” as we say. “The word, word,” throughout Holy Scripture, as in so many languages stands for that which is reported of. “The whole account,” namely, how this stranger, in strange austere attire, had come, what had happened to him before he came, how he preached, how the people had believed him, what they had done, as had just been related, “came to the king.” The form of words…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. 6The king of Nineveh may have been a local ruler who governed the city. It is also possible that he was the king of Assyria, who at times used Nineveh as a center of royal rule (compare 2 Kings 19:9–13).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 66. in ashes--emblem of the deepest humiliation (Job 2:8; Eze 27:30).Read the comment
Topics related to Jonah 3:6
In the dictionaries
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
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