Bible Strands
Jonah 1:16
Then the men feared the LORD greatly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows to Him.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The pagan sailors who just cast Jonah overboard witness the storm cease and respond directly to the LORD. The words — וַ/יִּֽזְבְּחוּ (va/yizzbechu) = and they sacrificed, and זֶ֙בַח (zebach) = a sacrifice, recording the men’s immediate ritual response to the calmed waters. The thread — Their vow-keeping parallels the psalmist’s pledge in Psalms 116:14 and the royal command to tremble before God in Daniel 6:26, while their altar-act echoes Noah’s offering in Genesis 8:20. Why it lands — The text demands recognition of divine authority through observed acts and requires the fulfillment of spoken commitments without delay.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the Lord, and made vows.
Cross-references
- Psalms 116:14 I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people.
- Daniel 6:26 I hereby decree that in every part of my kingdom, men are to tremble in fear before the God of Daniel: For He is the living God, and He endures forever; His kingdom will never be destroyed, and His dominion will never end.
- Genesis 8:20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD. And taking from every kind of clean animal and clean bird, he offered burnt offerings on the altar.
- Psalms 50:14 Sacrifice a thank offering to God, and fulfill your vows to the Most High.
- Psalms 107:22 Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving and declare His works with rejoicing.
- Isaiah 26:9 My soul longs for You in the night; indeed, my spirit seeks You at dawn. For when Your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness.
- Isaiah 60:5 Then you will look and be radiant, and your heart will tremble and swell with joy, because the riches of the sea will be brought to you, and the wealth of the nations will come to you.
- Daniel 4:34 But at the end of those days I, Nebuchadnezzar, looked up to heaven, and my sanity was restored to me. Then I praised the Most High, and I honored and glorified Him who lives forever: “For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His kingdom endures from generation to generation.
- Jonah 1:10 Then the men were even more afraid and said to him, “What have you done?” The men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.
- Mark 4:31 It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds sown upon the earth.