The Meaning of Jonah 1:11 Explained

Jonah 1:11

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.

YLT: And they say unto him, 'What do we do to thee that the sea may cease from us, for the sea is more and more tempestuous?'

Darby: And they said unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea grew more and more tempestuous.

ASV: Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea grew more and more tempestuous.

Discover Jonah 1:11

CONTEXT: What is the Context of Jonah 1:11?

MEANING: What does Jonah 1:11 Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in Jonah 1:11 mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in Jonah 1:11?

What is the context of Jonah 1:11?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

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.

What does Jonah 1:11 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The sailors might have known what to do with Jonah had he been a criminal guilty of some crime against persons or if he had accidentally transgressed a law of his God. However, he was guilty of being a servant of his God and directly disobeying the Lord"s order to him. They had no idea what would placate the creator of the sea in such a case, so they asked Jonah since he knew his God.

Context Summary

Jonah 1:1-16 - Fleeing From God And Duty

Jonah is mentioned in 2 Kings 14:25. He was clearly very patriotic, and did not despair of his country in its darkest days. This commission to Nineveh was therefore not to his taste, because he had no desire to see the great heathen city brought to her knees. Another century would have to pass before Isaiah and Micah would proclaim that the heathen world would turn to God, Micah 4:1; Isaiah 2:2.

Rather than go upon this errand of mercy, Jonah hurried down to the one seaport, that he might escape his duty. Sin is always a descent; we always have to pay heavily in tolls and fares when we take our own way instead of God's, and we must never reckon that opportunity implies permission.

Weary with excitement and travel, the prophet is oblivious to the weighing of the anchor. The disasters that block the way of disobedience are harder than our difficulties in performing God's bidding. Note the divine agency in our lives: the word of the Lord came; the Lord hurled forth a great wind; the Lord prepared a great fish. There were, in these heathen sailors, beautiful traits which ought to have abashed the prophet. Their prayer to their idols and their endeavor to save this stranger Jew are as instructive as remarkable. [source]

Chapter Summary: Jonah 1

¹ Jonah, sent to Nineveh, flees to Tarshish
⁴ He is betrayed by a great storm;
¹¹ thrown into the sea;
¹⁷ and swallowed by a fish

What do the individual words in Jonah 1:11 mean?

And they said to him what shall we do to you that may be calm the sea for us for was growing and more tempestuous

וַיֹּאמְר֤וּ אֵלָיו֙ מַה־ נַּ֣עֲשֶׂה לָּ֔ךְ וְיִשְׁתֹּ֥ק הַיָּ֖ם מֵֽעָלֵ֑ינוּ כִּ֥י הוֹלֵ֥ךְ וְסֹעֵֽר

וַיֹּאמְר֤וּ	And they said
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural Root: אָמַר Sense: to say, speak, utter.
אֵלָיו֙	to him
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular Root: אֶל Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
נַּ֣עֲשֶׂה	shall we do
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, first person common plural Root: עָשָׂה Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
לָּ֔ךְ	to you
Parse: Preposition, second person feminine singular
וְיִשְׁתֹּ֥ק	that may be calm
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect, third person masculine singular Root: שָׁתַק Sense: (Qal) to be quiet, be silent.
הַיָּ֖ם	the sea
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular Root: יָם Sense: sea.
מֵֽעָלֵ֑ינוּ	for us
Parse: Preposition-m, first person common plural Root: עַל Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
הוֹלֵ֥ךְ	was growing
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular Root: הָלַךְ Sense: to go, walk, come.
וְסֹעֵֽר	and more tempestuous
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular Root: סָעַר Sense: to storm, rage.

What are the major concepts related to Jonah 1:11?

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Similar Scriptures for Jonah 1:11

		2 Samuel 21:1-6 [2]
		2 Samuel 24:11-13 [2]
		Micah 6:6-7 [2]
		1 Samuel 6:2-3 [2]