SIL Translator’s Notes on Jonah 2000 – Page 5

SIL Translator’s Notes on Jonah 1:9

1:9a

“I am a Hebrew,”: Jonah only answered the final question. By this statement, he made it clear he was a foreigner to the sailors.

Hebrew: This was the term other people used when they referred to the Israelites. The Israelites themselves often used it when they spoke about themselves to foreigners. You should probably transliterate the word Hebrew here to distinguish it from your translation of the term “Israelite.”

1:9b

I worship the LORD: The Hebrew verb which the Berean Standard Bible translates as worship is literally “fear” (same verb as in 1:5a). The OT often uses the verb “to fear” when referring to people’s relationship to God. In such a context, this verb is sometimes translated “stand in awe of” but worship makes better sense here.

LORD: See the statement on Yahweh in the Introduction. By using God’s special name, Jonah was distinguishing the true God whom he worshiped from the various “gods” whom the sailors worshiped.

the God of the heavens: Jonah described God as the God of the heavens. Here of refers to where God was thought to live. It can be translated “the God in the heavens.”

In the Hebrew text, the expression “the LORD, the God of heaven” occurs at the beginning of the sentence (not its normal place) for emphasis. We could translate this emphasis in English as

“It is the LORD, the God of heaven, whom I worship.”

1:9c

who made the sea and the dry land: By saying that the LORD was the creator of the sea and the dry land, Jonah implied that the LORD controlled these areas and therefore the terrible storm as well.

the sea and the dry land: This means “the whole world.”

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SIL Translator’s Notes on Jonah 1:10

1:10a

The men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them: Here the author gives the reason why the sailors were terrified, that is, because Jonah had told them that he was running away from the LORD. In the Berean Standard Bible, the result (they were even more afraid) is given first and then the reason (Jonah had told them he was running away from the LORD) is given. In the Display this has been reordered and the reason given first. Consider if it is more natural in your language to place the reason first or last.

1:10b

Then the men were even more afraid: The expression translated even more afraid is literally “they were afraid with a great fear.” 1:5 said that they were afraid; now their fear had increased.

1:10c

What have you done?: This is another rhetorical question. It showed that the sailors were terrified because Jonah had disobeyed God (Ellison, p. 372; Keil-Delitzsch, pp. 395–96).

If your language does not use rhetorical questions often or does not use them to blame someone for something, you will need to express the question as a statement. For example, see the second meaning line in 1:10c in the Display.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Jonah 1:11

1:11a

Now the sea was growing worse and worse: All the time the sailors were talking to Jonah the sea grew rougher. The Hebrew idiom used here has the sense of “more and more,” that is, “the sea continued to get rougher.”

1:11b

What must we do to you to calm this sea for us?: Now that the sailors knew that the storm had happened because Jonah had disobeyed the LORD, they asked Jonah what they should do to him to make it stop. They felt that they needed to punish him so they could be rescued from the storm.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Jonah 1:12

1:12a

Pick me up…and cast me into the sea: You may not need to use both the verbs Pick…up and cast in your language. For example:

Throw me into the sea (Good News Translation)

The Hebrew verb which the Berean Standard Bible has translated cast is the same word used in 1:5c for throwing the cargo into the sea. It is also the same word used for the LORD’s action of “hurling” the wind in 1:4a.

1:12b

For I know that I am to blame for this violent storm that has come upon you: Jonah knew that the storm had happened because he had disobeyed the LORD.

General Comment about 1:12

In your language you may need to reorder the parts of this verse to show more clearly how they relate to one another. For example,

Jonah answered them, “I know that it is because of me that you (plur) are in this terrible storm. So take hold of me and throw me into the sea. If you (plur) do that, then it will become calm.”

SIL Translator’s Notes on Jonah 1:1

Section 1:1–17

The LORD told Jonah to take a message to the people of Nineveh but Jonah disobeyed

This section tells about the LORD’s command to Jonah to preach a message of judgment and destruction to the people of Nineveh, the capital city of Assyria. Jonah, however, disobeyed the LORD and tried to flee from him; he got on a ship heading for Tarshish, a city in the opposite direction.#

1:1

Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai, saying: The expression the word of the LORD came to Jonah refers to the message which the LORD communicated to Jonah. We do not know how Jonah received this message. It could have been in a vision or a dream, or perhaps the LORD spoke directly to him.

In Hebrew the story begins abruptly: the word of the LORD came to Jonah. Most English versions follow the Hebrew style. However, in your language it may be necessary to reorder the verse so that the story begins in a more natural way for your readers. Notice that the second meaning line in the Display gives one possible way of doing this. You need to decide which is the best way in your language for introducing this story.

LORD: LORD represents the Hebrew Yahweh, the personal name of God. See the notes in the Introduction on how to translate this term.

Jonah son of Amittai: Jonah was the son of a man called Amittai. Nothing more is recorded about Jonah’s background in this book. 2 Kings 14:25 gives a little more information. The important thing to keep in mind is that he was an Israelite and the LORD told him to deliver a message to the people of Nineveh, who were enemies of the Israelites. In the New Testament, Jesus referred to Jonah as a prophet (Matthew 12:29).

SIL Translator’s Notes on Jonah 1:14

1:14a

So they cried out to the LORD: This is the first time the sailors prayed to the LORD, the true God, instead of to their own gods.

1:14b

Please, O LORD, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life: When the sailors became sure that they could not save themselves, they decided that they must kill Jonah by throwing him into the sea. However, they wanted to make sure that the LORD would not punish them for killing Jonah, so they asked to be forgiven even before doing it.

Please: This translates a word in Hebrew which indicates that what follows is a plea or entreaty. It is sometimes translated in older English translations as “we beseech you.” If there is a word or phrase in your language which is used in a situation where someone is begging another person to do something for them, you can use it here.

1:14c

Do not charge us with innocent blood: The Good News Translation does not translate the word innocent. Instead, it combines this sentence with 1:14b, since it considers 1:14b–c as a doublet. However, most other English versions make a difference between 1:14b and 1:14c, and it is recommended that you do so too.

There are two ways to understand this statement:

(1) The sailors were saying that there was a slight chance that Jonah might be innocent.

(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, Contemporary English Version, God’s Word, King James Version, Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures, New Jerusalem Bible, Revised English Bible Revised Standard Version).

(2) The sailors were saying that Jonah was guilty.

(New Century Version, New Living Translation (2004))

Although option 2 makes some sense in the context (since Jonah had admitted his guilt), most major commentaries and English versions support the first interpretation (1). It is recommended that you follow the first option too and translate this part of the verse in a way that makes it clear that the sailors still thought that Jonah might be innocent.

1:14d

For You, O LORD, have done as You pleased: In the sailors’ minds, the LORD was responsible for the whole situation. He had sent the storm and he had indicated through the casting of lots that Jonah was the guilty party. Therefore he was also responsible for them needing to throw Jonah overboard. Therefore they asked the LORD not to blame them for Jonah’s death.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Jonah 1:15

1:15a

they picked up Jonah and cast him into the sea: The verbs translated picked up and cast are the same verbs which the Berean Standard Bible translated “pick up” and “cast” in 1:12a. See the note there.

1:15b

and the raging sea grew calm: This is a dramatic point in the story. The sailors’ reaction in 1:16 shows this. The Good News Translation uses a phrase to indicate this:

at once (Good News Translation)

raging: As the English word raging used by the Berean Standard Bible suggests, the Hebrew word is connected with “anger.” You will need to check whether or not you can use a similar image in your language.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Jonah 1:16

1:16a

Then the men feared the LORD greatly: The storm stopped suddenly and the sea became calm. This showed the sailors that it was the LORD who controlled the storm. As a result, they feared him greatly. The Hebrew verb yaraʾ can mean “to fear” or “to stand in awe of.” With God as the object, it can also mean “to worship,” as it did in 1:9. However, while any of these meanings are possible here, the majority of English versions understand it to mean “fear” or even “terrified.” The addition of the expression “with a great fear” in the Hebrew text here also suggests that “fear” is the correct meaning.

1:16b

they offered a sacrifice to the LORD: We are not given any details about what kind of sacrifice the sailors made or how it was done. However, the Hebrew verb used here, when it refers to literal sacrifices, is always used in the OT for sacrificing an animal. So they probably killed an animal.

1:16c

made vows to Him: We also do not know what the sailors promised in their vows. They probably promised to be loyal or faithful to the LORD in some way. They may have promised him that they would do something which they felt would please him, or they may have promised to give him another offering once they were safely back to land. Try not to translate in a way that indicates they promised to obey God, since it is unclear what vows they made. You should make your translation as general as possible.

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Source: SIL Translator’s Notes on Jonah 2000