the Week of Proper 9 / Ordinary 14
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The Holy Bible, Berean Study Bible
Jonah 3:9
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Concordances:
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- InternationalParallel Translations
Who knows? God may turn and relent; he may turn from his burning anger so that we will not perish.
Who knows whether God will not turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, so that we might not perish?"
Who can tell if God will turne and repent, and turne away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?
Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?
Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish."
"Who knows, God may turn and relent, and turn from His burning anger so that we will not perish."
Who knows? Maybe God will change his mind. Maybe he will stop being angry, and then we will not die.
"Who knows, God may turn [in compassion] and relent and withdraw His burning anger (judgment) so that we will not perish."
Who can tell if God will turne, and repent and turne away from his fierce wrath, that we perish not?
"Who knows, God may turn and relent and withdraw His burning anger so that we will not perish."
Who knows, God may turn and relent and turn away from His burning anger so that we will not perish."
Who knows? Maybe God will change his mind, relent and turn from his fierce anger; and then we won't perish."
Who knoweth but that God will turn and repent, and will turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?
Who knows? Maybe God will stop being angry and change his mind, and we will not be punished.
Who knows if God will return and have mercy upon us, and remove from us his fierce anger, that we may perish not?
Perhaps God will change his mind; perhaps he will stop being angry, and we will not die!"
Who knows? God may relent and change his mind and turn from his blazing anger so that we will not perish."
Who knows? He may turn, and God may have pity and turn away from the glow of His anger, that we do not perish.
Who knoweth whether God will not turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?
Who may say that God will not be turned, changing his purpose and turning away from his burning wrath, so that destruction may not overtake us?
Who knoweth whether God will not turn and repent, and turn away from His fierce anger, that we perish not?'
Who can tel whether God wyl turne and be moued with repentaunce, and turne from his fierce wrath, that we perishe not?
Who knows if God will repent, and turn from his fierce anger, and so we shall not perish?
Who knoweth whether God will not turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?
Who knows whether God will not turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, so that we might not perish?"
Who woot, if God be conuertid, and foryyue, and be turned ayen fro woodnesse of his wraththe, and we schulen not perische?
Who knows whether God will not turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we will not perish?
Who can tell [if] God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?
Who knows? Perhaps God might be willing to change his mind and relent and turn from his fierce anger so that we might not die."
Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish?
Who can tell? Perhaps even yet God will change his mind and hold back his fierce anger from destroying us."
Who knows? God may change His mind and stop being angry so that we will not die."
Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish."
Who knoweth whether God himself - may turn and grieve, - and turn away from the glow of his anger, that we perish not?
Who can tell if God will turn, and forgive: and will turn away from his fierce anger, and we shall not perish?
Who knows, God may yet repent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we perish not?"
Who knoweth? He doth turn back, and God hath repented, and hath turned back from the heat of His anger, and we do not perish.'
Who can tell? God maye turne, and repete, and cease from his fearce wrath, that we perish not.
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
Jonah 1:6, 2 Samuel 12:22, Psalms 106:45, Joel 2:13, Joel 2:14, Amos 5:15, Luke 15:18-20
Reciprocal: Genesis 32:20 - peradventure Exodus 32:12 - repent Exodus 32:30 - peradventure Numbers 25:4 - that the fierce Judges 10:15 - do thou 2 Samuel 12:16 - besought 2 Kings 7:4 - if they save us 1 Chronicles 21:13 - great Psalms 90:13 - let it Jeremiah 18:8 - I will Jeremiah 20:16 - repented Jeremiah 26:13 - repent Lamentations 3:29 - if Daniel 4:27 - if it Zephaniah 2:3 - it may Acts 8:22 - if
Cross-References
And the man answered, "The woman whom You gave me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate it."
Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" "The serpent deceived me," she replied, "and I ate."
And to Adam He said: "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree from which I commanded you not to eat, cursed is the ground because of you; through toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.
By the sweat of your brow you will eat your bread, until you return to the ground-because out of it were you taken. For dust you are, and to dust you shall return."
And Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.
And the LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.
And the LORD said to Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?" "I do not know!" he answered. "Am I my brother's keeper?"
Then the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the sons of men were building.
"Hagar, servant of Sarai," He said, "where have you come from, and where are you going?" "I am running away from my mistress Sarai," she replied.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
Who can tell,.... The Septuagint and Arabic versions prefix to this the word "saying", and take them to be, not the words of the king, but of the Ninevites; though very wrongly: or "who is he that knows"; which some connect with the next word, "he will return": that is, that knows the ways of repentance, he will return, as Kimchi and Ben Melech; or that knows that he has sinned, as Aben Ezra: or that knows the transgressions he is guilty of, will return, as Jarchi; and so the Targum,
"whosoever knows that sins are in his hands, he will return, or let him return, from them:''
but they are the words of the king, with respect to God, encouraging his subjects to the above things, from the consideration of the probability, or at least possibility, of God's being merciful to them:
[if] God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce wrath,
that we perish not? he speaks here not as nor as absolutely doubting, but as between hope and fear: for, by the light of nature, it is not certain that God will pardon men upon repentance; it is only probable or possible he may; neither the light of nature nor the law of Moses connect repentance and remission of sins, it is the Gospel does this; and it is only by the Gospel revelation that any can be assured that God will forgive, even penitent sinners; however, this Heathen prince encourages his subjects not to despair of, but to hope for, the mercy of God, though they could not be sure of it; and it may be observed, that he does not put their hope of not perishing, or of salvation, upon their fasting, praying, and reformation, but upon the will, mercy, and goodness of God.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
Who can tell if God will turn and repent? - The Ninevites use the same form of words, which God suggested by Joel to Judah. Perhaps He would thereby indicate that He had Himself put it into their mouths. “In uncertainty they repented, and obtained certain mercy” . “It is therefore left uncertain, that men, being doubtful of their salvation, may repent the more vehemently and the more draw down on themselves the mercy of God” . “Most certain are the promises of God, whereby He has promised pardon to the penitent. And yet the sinner may well be uncertain whether he have obtained that penitence which makes him the object of those promises, not a servile repentance for fear of punishment, but true contrition out of the love of God.” And so by this uncertainty, while, with the fear of hell, there is mingled the fear of the loss of God, the fear of that loss, which in itself involves some love, is, by His grace, turned into a contrite love, as the terrified soul thinks “Who” He is, whom it had all but lost, whom, it knows not whether it may not lose. In the case of the Ninevites, the remission of the temporal and eternal punishment was bound up in one, since the only punishment which God had threatened was temporal, and if this was forgiven, that forgiveness was a token that His displeasure had ceased.
“They know not the issue, yet they neglect not repentance. They are unacquainted with the method of the lovingkindness of God, and they are changed amid uncertainty. They had no other Ninevites to look to, who had repented and been saved. They had not read the prophets nor heard the patriarchs, nor benefited by counsel, nor partaken of instruction, nor had they persuaded themselves that they should altogether propitiate God by repentance. For the threat did not contain this. But they doubted and hesitated about this, and yet repented with all carefulness. What account then shall we give, when these, who had no good hopes held out to them as to the issue, gave evidence of such a change, and thou, who mayest be of good cheer as to God’s love for men, and hast many times received many pledges of His care, and hast heard the prophets and Apostles, and hast been instructed by the events themselves, strivest not to attain the same measure of virtue as they?
Great then was the virtue too of these people, but much greater the lovingkindness of God; and this you may see from the very greatness of the threat. For on this ground did He not add to the sentence, ‘but if ye repent, I will spare,’ that, casting among them the sentence unconditioned, He might increase the fear, and, increasing the fear, might impel them the more speedily to repentance.” “That fear was the parent of salvation; the threat removed the peril; the sentence of overthrow stayed the overthrow. New and marvelous issue! The sentence threatening death was the parent of life. Contrary to secular judgment, the sentence lost its force, when passed. In secular courts, the passing of the sentence gives it validity. Contrariwise with God, the pronouncing of the sentence made it invalid. For had it not been pronounced, the sinners had not heard it: had they not heard it, they would not have repented, would not have averted the chastisement, would not have enjoyed that marvelous deliverance. They fled not the city, as we do now (from the earthquake), but, remaining, established it. It was a snare, and they made it a wall; a quicksand and precipice, and they made it a tower of safety.”
“Was Nineveh destroyed? Quite the contrary. It arose and became more glorious, and all this intervening time has not effaced its glory, and we all yet celebrate it and marvel at it, that thenceforth it has become a most safe harbor to all who sin, not allowing them to sink into despair, but calling all to repentance, both by what it did and by what it gained from the Providence of God, persuading us never to despair of our salvation, but living the best we can, and setting before us a good hope, to be of good cheer that the end will anyhow be good” . “What was Nineveh? “They ate, they drank; they bought, they sold; they planted, they builded;” they gave themselves up to perjuries, lies, drunkenness, enormities, corruptions. This was Nineveh. Look at Nineveh now. They mourn, they grieve, are saddened, in sackcloth and ashes, in fastings and prayers. Where is that Nineveh? It is overthrown.”
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Jonah 3:9. Who can tell if God will turn and repent — There is at least a peradventure for our salvation. God may turn towards us, change his purpose, and save us alive. While there is life there is hope; God has no pleasure in the death of sinners; he is gracious and compassionate. Himself has prescribed repentance; if we repent, and turn to him from our iniquities, who knows then whether God will not turn, &c.
