Jonah 3:8

Furthermore, let both man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and have everyone call out earnestly to God. Let each one turn from his evil ways and from the violence in his hands.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — The king of Nineveh issues a citywide decree to all inhabitants and their livestock, mandating public mourning and prayer immediately after Jonah's warning of imminent destruction.

The words — The verb יִתְכַּסּוּ (yit.kassu) commands people and animals to cover themselves with שַׂקִּים (saqqim, sackcloth), while the phrase בְּחָזְקָה (be.chazkah) modifies the call to God to mean with strength or earnestness.

The thread — The summons to seek God appears in Isaiah 55:6, while the sackcloth imagery contrasts with Isaiah 59:6's statement that sinful deeds cannot serve as spiritual covering. The directive to call upon God parallels the earlier command in Jonah 1:6.

Why it lands — The text requires a concrete abandonment of personal violence and evil conduct alongside public mourning and earnest prayer. It demands that external signs of repentance be matched by immediate behavioral change.

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

וְיִתְכַּסּ֣וּve./yit.ka.Suand/ they may cover themselves שַׂקִּ֗יםsa.Kimsackcloth<s>הָֽאָדָם֙ha./'a.Damthe/ people וְהַבְּהֵמָ֔הve./ha./be.he.Mahand/ the/ livestock וְיִקְרְא֥וּve./yik.re.'Uand/ let them call out אֶל־'el-to אֱלֹהִ֖ים'E.lo.HimGod בְּחָזְקָ֑הbe./cha.ze.Kahwith/ strength וְיָשֻׁ֗בוּve./ya.Shu.vuand/ let them turn back אִ֚ישׁ'isheveryone מִדַּרְכּ֣וֹmi./dar.K/ofrom/ way/ his הָֽרָעָ֔הha./ra.'Ah<the>/ evil וּמִן־u./min-and/ from הֶחָמָ֖סhe./cha.Masthe/ violence אֲשֶׁ֥ר'a.Sherwhich בְּכַפֵּיהֶֽם׃be./kha.pei./Hem[is] in/ palms/ their

King James Version

But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.

Cross-references

Isaiah 55:6 Seek the LORD while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.
Isaiah 59:6 Their cobwebs cannot be made into clothing, and they cannot cover themselves with their works. Their deeds are sinful deeds, and acts of violence are in their hands.
Jonah 1:6 The captain approached him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call upon your God. Perhaps this God will consider us, so that we may not perish.”
Isaiah 1:16 Wash and cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil!
Ezekiel 18:21 But if the wicked man turns from all the sins he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die.
Jonah 1:14 So they cried out to the LORD: “Please, O LORD, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life! Do not charge us with innocent blood! For You, O LORD, have done as You pleased.”
Acts 3:19 Repent, then, and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped away,
Psalms 130:1 A song of ascents. Out of the depths I cry to You, O LORD!
Isaiah 58:6 Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen: to break the chains of wickedness, to untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and tear off every yoke?
Jeremiah 18:11 Now therefore, tell the men of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem that this is what the LORD says: ‘Behold, I am planning a disaster for you and devising a plan against you. Turn now, each of you, from your evil ways, and correct your ways and deeds.’