Lectionary Calendar
Thursday, June 19th, 2025
the Week of Proper 6 / Ordinary 11
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Read the Bible

New Life Version

Jonah 3:5

Then the people of Nineveh believed in God. They called for a time when no food was to be eaten. And all the people, from the greatest to the least, put on clothes made from hair.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Faith;   Fasting;   Heathen;   Minister, Christian;   Missions;   Obedience;   Orator;   Repentance;   Revivals;   Scofield Reference Index - Faith;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Fasting;   Judgments;   Nineveh;   Repentance;   Sackcloth;   Sins, National;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Fasting;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Jonah;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Fast, Fasting;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Fast;   Mourn;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Mourning;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Decree;   Evangelism;   Oracles;   Prophecy, Prophets;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Jonah;   Sackcloth;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Faith ;   Hymn;   Unconscious Faith;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Fast, Fasting;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Sackcloth;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Fasting;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Ashes;   Joel (2);   Jonah, the Book of;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Repentance;   Sackcloth;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Then the people of Nineveh believed God. They proclaimed a fast and dressed in sackcloth—from the greatest of them to the least.
Hebrew Names Version
The people of Nineveh believed God; and they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
King James Version (1611)
So the people of Nineueh beleeued God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackecloth from the greatest of them euen to the least of them.
King James Version
So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
English Standard Version
And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.
New American Standard Bible
Then the people of Nineveh believed in God; and they called a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them.
New Century Version
The people of Nineveh believed God. They announced that they would fast for a while, and they put on rough cloth to show their sadness. All the people in the city did this, from the most important to the least important.
Amplified Bible
The people of Nineveh believed and trusted in God; and they proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth [in penitent mourning], from the greatest even to the least of them.
Geneva Bible (1587)
So the people of Nineueh beleeued God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth from ye greatest of the euen to the least of them.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Then the people of Nineveh believed in God; and they called a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least of them.
Legacy Standard Bible
And the people of Nineveh believed in God; and they called a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them.
Berean Standard Bible
And the Ninevites believed God. They proclaimed a fast and dressed in sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least.
Contemporary English Version
They believed God's message and set a time when they would go without eating to show their sorrow. Then everyone in the city, no matter who they were, dressed in sackcloth.
Complete Jewish Bible
when the people of Ninveh believed God. They proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least.
Darby Translation
And the men of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
Easy-to-Read Version
The people of Nineveh believed God. They decided to stop eating for a time to think about their sins. They put on special clothes to show they were sorry. All the people in the city did this, from the most important to the least important.
George Lamsa Translation
So the people of Nineveh believed in God and decreed a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least.
Good News Translation
The people of Nineveh believed God's message. So they decided that everyone should fast, and all the people, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth to show that they had repented.
Lexham English Bible
And the people of Nineveh believed in God, and they proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth—from the greatest of them to the least important.
Literal Translation
And the men of Nineveh believed in God, and they called a fast and put on sackclothes, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
American Standard Version
And the people of Nineveh believed God; and they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
Bible in Basic English
And the people of Nineveh had belief in God; and a time was fixed for going without food, and they put on haircloth, from the greatest to the least.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the people of Nineveh believed God; and they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the men of Niniue beleued God, and proclaymed a fast, and put on sackecloth from the greatest of them to the leaste of them.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And the men of Nineve believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloths, from the greatest of them to the least of them.
English Revised Version
And the people of Nineveh believed God; and they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
World English Bible
The people of Nineveh believed God; and they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And men of Nynyue bileueden to the Lord, and prechiden fastyng, and weren clothid with sackis, fro the more `til to the lesse.
Update Bible Version
And the people of Nineveh believed God; and they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
Webster's Bible Translation
So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
New English Translation
The people of Nineveh believed in God, and they declared a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them.
New King James Version
So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them.
New Living Translation
The 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.
New Revised Standard
And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And the people of Nineveh believed in God, - and proclaimed a fast, and clothed themselves in sackcloth, from the greatest of them, even unto the least of them.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And the men of Ninive believed in God: and they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least.
Revised Standard Version
And the people of Nin'eveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.
Young's Literal Translation
And the men of Nineveh believe in God, and proclaim a fast, and put on sackcloth, from their greatest even unto their least,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And the people of Niniue beleued God, and proclamed fastinge, and arayed them selues in sack cloth, as well the greate as the small of them.
THE MESSAGE
The people of Nineveh listened, and trusted God. They proclaimed a citywide fast and dressed in burlap to show their repentance. Everyone did it—rich and poor, famous and obscure, leaders and followers.

Contextual Overview

5 Then the people of Nineveh believed in God. They called for a time when no food was to be eaten. And all the people, from the greatest to the least, put on clothes made from hair. 6 When the news came to the king of Nineveh, he got up from his throne and laid aside his beautiful clothing. Then he covered himself with cloth made from hair, and sat in ashes. 7 And he sent word through all of Nineveh, saying, "By the law of the king and his leaders, do not let man or animal, cattle or flock, taste anything. Do not let them eat or drink water. 8 Both man and animal must be covered with cloth made from hair. Everyone must pray to God with all his heart, so each person may turn from his sinful way and from the bad things he has done. 9 Who knows? God may change His mind and stop being angry so that we will not die." 10 When God saw what they did, and that they turned from their sinful way, He changed His mind about the trouble He said He would bring upon them, and He did not destroy Nineveh.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

believed: Exodus 9:18-21, Matthew 12:41, Luke 11:32, Acts 27:25, Hebrews 11:1, Hebrews 11:7

and proclaimed: 2 Chronicles 20:3, Ezra 8:21, Jeremiah 36:9, Joel 1:14, Joel 2:12-17

from: Jeremiah 31:34, Jeremiah 42:1, Jeremiah 42:8, Acts 8:10

Reciprocal: Genesis 37:34 - General Exodus 9:20 - General Leviticus 23:2 - proclaim Judges 20:26 - wept 1 Kings 20:31 - put sackcloth 2 Chronicles 20:13 - all Judah Nehemiah 9:1 - children Isaiah 37:1 - he rent Isaiah 58:5 - to spread Ezekiel 3:6 - of a strange speech and of an hard language Joel 1:13 - lie Jonah 3:7 - caused Micah 6:9 - hear Zechariah 12:12 - the family of the house of David apart Romans 10:14 - shall they

Cross-References

Genesis 2:17
But do not eat from the tree of learning of good and bad. For the day you eat from it you will die for sure."
Genesis 3:2
Then the woman said to the snake, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden.
Genesis 3:3
But from the tree which is in the center of the garden, God has said, ‘Do not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.'"
Genesis 3:6
The woman saw that the tree was good for food, and pleasing to the eyes, and could fill the desire of making one wise. So she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave some to her husband, and he ate.
Genesis 3:7
Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were without clothes. So they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves clothing.
Genesis 3:10
And the man said, "I heard the sound of You in the garden. I was afraid because I was without clothes. So I hid myself."
Genesis 3:13
Then the Lord God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" And the woman said, "The snake fooled me, and I ate."
Genesis 3:14
Then the Lord God said to the snake, "Because you have done this, you will be hated and will suffer more than all cattle, and more than every animal of the field. You will go on your stomach and you will eat dust all the days of your life.
Genesis 3:15
And I will make you and the woman hate each other, and your seed and her seed will hate each other. He will crush your head, and you will crush his heel."
Genesis 3:22
Then the Lord God said, "See, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and bad. Now then, he might put out his hand to take from the tree of life also, and eat and live forever."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

So the people of Nineveh believed God,.... Or "in God" r: in the word of the Lord, as the Targum; they believed there was a God, and that he, in whose name Jonah came, was the true God; they believed the word the prophet spake was not the word of man, but, the word of God; faith came by hearing the word, which is the spring of true repentance, and the root of all good works. Kimchi and R. Jeshuah, in Aben Ezra, suppose that the men of the ship, in which Jonah had been, were at Nineveh; and these testified that they had cast him into the sea, and declared the whole affair concerning him; and this served greatly to engage their attention to him, and believe what he said: but this is not certain; and, besides, their faith was the effect of the divine power that went along with the preaching of Jonah, and not owing to the persuasion of men;

and proclaimed a fast; not of themselves, but by the order of their king, as follows; though Kimchi thinks this was before that:

and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them; both, with respect to rank and age, so universal were their fasting and mourning; in token of which they stripped themselves of their common and rich apparel, and clothed themselves with sackcloth; as was usual in extraordinary cases of mourning, not only with the Jews, but other nations.

(Jonah would be a quite a sight to behold. The digestive juices of the fish would have turned his skin to a most unnatural colour and his hair was most like all gone. Indeed, anyone looking like that would attract your attention and give his message more credence, especially after he told you what had happened to him. A God who creates storms, prepares large fish to swallow a man and preserves him in the fish, would not likely have too much trouble destroying your city. Editor)

r באלהים "in Deum", V. L.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And the people of Nineveh believed God; - strictly, “believed in God.” To “believe in God” expresses more heart-belief, than to “believe God” in itself need convey. To believe God is to believe what God says, to be true; “to believe in” or “on God” expresses not belief only, but that belief resting in God, trusting itself and all its concerns with Him. It combines hope and trust with faith, and love too, since, without love, there cannot be trust. They believed then the preaching of Jonah, and that He, in Whose Name Jonah spake, had all power in heaven and earth. But they believed further in His unknown mercies; they cast themselves upon the goodness of the hitherto “unknown God.” Yet they believed in Him, as the Supreme God, “the” object of awe, the God אלהים 'ĕlohı̂ym Jonah 3:5, Jonah 3:8, האלהים ha'ĕlohı̂ym Jonah 3:9, although they knew Him not, as He Is , the Self-Existent One. Jonah does not say how they were thus persuaded.

God the Holy Spirit relates the wonders of God’s Omnipotence as common everyday things. They are no marvels to Him Who performed them. “He commanded and they were done.” He spake with power to the hearts which He had made, and they were turned to Him. Any human means are secondary, utterly powerless, except in “His” hands Who Alone doth all things through whomsoever He doth them. Our Lord tells us that “Jonah” himself “was a sign unto the Ninevites” . Whether then the mariners spread the history, or howsoever the Ninevites knew the personal history of Jonah, he, in his own person and in what befell him, was a sign to them. They believed that God, Who avenged “his” disobedience, would avenge their’s. They believed perhaps, that God must have some great mercy in store for them, Who not only sent His prophet so far from his own land to “them” who had never owned, never worshiped Him, but had done such mighty wonders to subdue His prophet’s resistance and to make him go to them.

And proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth - It was not then a repentance in word only, but in deed. A fast was at that time entire abstinence from all food until evening; the haircloth was a harsh garment, irritating and afflictive to the body. They who did so, were (as we may still see from the Assyrian sculptures) men of pampered and luxurious habits, uniting sensuality and fierceness. Yet this they did at once, and as it seems, for the 40 days. They “proclaimed a fast.” They did not wait for the supreme authority. Time was urgent, and they would lose none of it. In this imminent peril of God’s displeasure, they acted as men would in a conflagration. People do not wait for orders to put out a fire, if they can, or to prevent it from spreading. Whoever they were who proclaimed it, whether those in inferior authority, each in his neighborhood, or whether it spread from man to man, as the tidings spread, it was done at once. It seems to have been done by acclamation, as it were, one common cry out of the one common terror. For it is said of them, as one succession of acts, “the men of Nineveh believed in God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth from their great to their little,” every age, sex, condition . “Worthy of admiration is that exceeding celerity and diligence in taking counsel, which, although in the same city with the king, perceived that they must provide for the common and imminent calamity, not waiting to ascertain laboriously the king’s pleasure.” In a city, 60 miles in circumference, some time must needs be lost, before the king could be approached; and we know, in some measure, the forms required in approaching Eastern monarchs of old.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Jonah 3:5. The people of Nineveh believed God — They had no doubt that the threatening would be fulfilled, unless their speedy conversion prevented it; but, though not expressed, they knew that the threatening was conditional. "The promises and threatenings of God, which are merely personal, either to any particular man or number of men, are always conditional, because the wisdom of God hath thought fit to make these depend on the behaviour of men." - Dr. S. Clarke's Sermons, vol. i.

Proclaimed a fast — And never was there one so general, so deep, and so effectual. Men and women, old and young, high and low, and even the cattle themselves, all kept such a fast as the total abstinence from food implies.


 
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