Now the sea was growing worse and worse, so they said to Jonah, “What must we do to you to calm this sea for us?”
Parallel translations
- WEB Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you, that the sea may be calm to us?” For the sea grew more and more stormy.
- 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.
- 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.
- NASB So they said to him, “What should we do to you so that the sea will become calm for us?”—for the sea was becoming increasingly stormy.
- NLT And since the storm was getting worse all the time, they asked him, “What should we do to you to stop this storm?”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
As the sea grows fiercer, the sailors ask Jonah how to make it calm. It matters because they look to the offender for the remedy, and only costly action will quiet God's judgment.
Overview
The worsening storm presses the question of how the Lord's anger can be turned aside. Remarkably, the pagan crew defers to Jonah rather than acting rashly, seeking the right course before God. Their concern to do what is just toward both Jonah and themselves shows a tender conscience that the prophet has yet to recover.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- 1 Sam 6:2–3the Philistines summoned the priests and diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how to send it back to its place.”
- 2 Sam 21:1–6During the reign of David there was a famine for three successive years, and David sought the face of the LORD. And the LORD said, “It is because of the blood shed by Saul and his family, because he killed the Gibeonites.”
- Mic 6:6–7With what shall I come before the LORD when I bow before the God on high? Should I come to Him with burnt offerings, with year-old calves?
- 2 Sam 24:11–13When David got up in the morning, a revelation from the LORD had come to Gad the prophet, David’s seer:
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Three days in the belly of the fish is the sign Jesus gave of his own death and resurrection (Matt 12:40); and God's mercy on pagan Nineveh foreshadows the gospel going to the nations.
How Jonah 1:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.