v1
And this ^[Hebrew “it”] was greatly displeasing ^[Literally “was displeasing with great displeasure”] to Jonah, and he became furious. ^[Literally “it was hot for him”]
v2
And he prayed to Yahweh and said, “O Yahweh, was this not what I said ^[Literally “my word”] while I was in my homeland? Therefore I originally fled ^[Literally “I did the first time to flee”] to Tarshish, because I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and having great steadfast love, ^[Literally “and great of steadfast love”] and one who relents concerning calamity. ^[That is, calamity sent by God as judgment]
v3
And so then, Yahweh, please take my life from me, because for me death is better than life!“
v4
And Yahweh said, “Is it right for you to be angry?” ^[Literally “Rightfully is it hot for you”; some take this to mean “Are you so very angry?” (Targum Jonah 4:4; see also JPS, NEB, NET)]
v5
And Jonah went out from the city and sat down east of the city, and he made for himself a shelter there. And he sat under it in the shade, waiting to see ^[Literally “until he would see”] what would happen with the city.
v6
And Yahweh God appointed a plant, ^[Probably a castor oil plant, though some have suggested some type of gourd plant] and he made it grow up over Jonah to be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort. And Jonah was very glad ^[Literally “was glad with great joy”] about the plant.
v7
So God appointed a worm at daybreak ^[Literally “at the coming up of the dawn”] the next day, and it attacked the plant, and it withered.
v8
And when the sun rose, ^[Literally “and it happened at the rising of the sun”] God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah’s head and he grew faint. And he asked that he could die ^[Literally “and he asked his soul to die”] and said, “My death is better than my life!“
v9
So God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry ^[Literally “rightfully is it hot for you”; some take this to mean “Are you so very angry?” (Targum Jonah 4:4; see also JPS, NEB, NET)] about the plant?” And he said, “It is right for me to be angry enough to die!” ^[Literally “Rightfully it is hot for me until death”]
v10
But Yahweh said, “You are troubled about the plant, for which you did not labor nor cause it to grow. It grew up in a night and it perished in a night! ^[Literally “Which was a son of a night and as a son of a night it perished”]
v11
And should I not be concerned about Nineveh, the great city, in which there are ^[Literally “which there are in it”] more than one hundred and twenty thousand ^[Literally “than two ten myriad” (12 x 10,000)] people who do not know right from left, ^[“hand” is often supplied, but it is not clear just what deficiency is meant by this expression, which occurs only here in biblical Hebrew] plus many animals?”