But the storm continued to rage around the ship; and they said: 

“There is some man on this ship who has brought upon us this trouble.  Let us cast lots and find who it is.”

Then they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah.  They said to him, all at once: 

“Tell us, who are you?  From what country do you come?  What is your business?  To what people do you belong?  Why have you brought all this trouble upon us?”

Then Jonah told them the whole story, how he came from the land of Israel, and that he had fled away from the presence of the Lord.  And they said to him: 

“What shall we do to you, that the storm may cease?”

Then said Jonah: 

“Take me up and throw me into the sea; then the storm will cease and the waters will be calm; for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you.”

But the men were not willing to throw Jonah into the sea.  They rowed hard to bring the ship to the land, but they could not.  Then they cried unto the Lord, and said: 

“We pray thee, O Lord, we pray thee, let us not die for this man’s life; for thou, O Lord, hast done as it pleased thee.”

At last, when they could do nothing else to save themselves, they threw Jonah into the sea.

At once the storm ceased, and the waves became still.  Then the men on the ship feared the Lord greatly.  They offered a sacrifice to the Lord, and made promises to serve him.

And the Lord caused a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was alive within the fish for three days and three nights.  In the fish Jonah cried to the Lord; and the Lord caused the great fish to throw up Jonah upon the dry land.

Notice all through this story that, although Jonah was God’s servant, he was always thinking about himself.  God protected Jonah and saved him, not because he was such a good man, but because he wanted to teach him a great lesson.

By this time Jonah had learned that some men who worshipped idols were kind in their hearts, and were dear to the Lord.  This was the lesson that God meant Jonah to learn; and now the call of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: 

“Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it what I command you.”  So Jonah went to the city of Nineveh; and as he entered into it, he called out to the people: 

“Within forty days shall Nineveh be destroyed.”

And he walked through the city all day crying out only this: 

“Within forty days shall Nineveh be destroyed.”

And the people of Nineveh believed the word of the Lord as spoken by Jonah.  They turned away from their sins and fasted and sought the Lord, from the greatest of them even to the least.  The king of Nineveh arose from his throne, and laid aside his royal robes, and covered himself with sack-cloth and sat in ashes, as a sign of his sorrow.  And the king sent out a command to his people that they should fast, and seek the Lord, and turn from sin.