Bible Strands
Jonah 3:2
“Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message that I give you.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The LORD addresses Jonah a second time, issuing a fresh command after the initial encounter. The directive targets the prophet specifically, ordering movement toward the great city of Nineveh.
The words — The imperative ק֛וּם (kum) means "arise," paired with לֵ֥ךְ (lekh) "go," forming a direct command to move toward the great city. The verb וִּ/קְרָ֤א (vi/k.Ra') translates literally as "and call out" or "proclaim."
The thread — This commission echoes the LORD's earlier charge to Jonah in Jonah 1:2 and parallels the prophetic summons in Jeremiah 1:17 and Ezekiel 2:7. Each reference frames the prophet's role as a bearer of a received message rather than an originator of it.
Why it lands — The text demands immediate obedience to a divine directive, leaving no room for delay or negotiation. A reader is asked to recognize that the authority of the message rests entirely on the speaker, not on the messenger's comfort or readiness.
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
Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 1:17 Get yourself ready. Stand up and tell them everything that I command you. Do not be intimidated by them, or I will terrify you before them.
- Ezekiel 2:7 But speak My words to them, whether they listen or refuse to listen, for they are rebellious.
- Jonah 1:2 “Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before Me.”
- Jonah 3:3 This time Jonah got up and went to Nineveh, in accordance with the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, requiring a three-day journey.
- Jeremiah 15:19 Therefore this is what the LORD says: “If you return, I will restore you; you will stand in My presence. And if you speak words that are noble instead of worthless, you will be My spokesman. It is they who must turn to you, but you must not turn to them.
- Ezekiel 3:17 “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me.
- Zephaniah 2:13 And He will stretch out His hand against the north and destroy Assyria; He will make Nineveh a desolation, as dry as a desert.
- Matthew 3:8 Produce fruit, then, in keeping with repentance.
- John 5:14 Afterward, Jesus found the man at the temple and said to him, “See, you have been made well. Stop sinning, or something worse may happen to you.”