Jonah 1:13
Context1:13 Instead, they tried to row 1 back to land, 2 but they were not able to do so 3 because the storm kept growing worse and worse. 4
Jonah 1:16
Context1:16 The men feared the Lord 5 greatly, 6 and earnestly vowed 7 to offer lavish sacrifices 8 to the Lord. 9
Jonah 1:10
Context1:10 Hearing this, 10 the men became even more afraid 11 and said to him, “What have you done?” (The men said this because they knew that he was trying to escape 12 from the Lord, 13 because he had previously told them. 14 )


[1:13] 1 sn The word translated row is used in Ezekiel to describe digging through a wall (Ezek 8:8; 12:5, 7, 12). Its use in Jonah pictures the sailors digging into the water with their oars as hard as they could.
[1:13] 2 sn The word for land here is associated with a Hebrew verb meaning “to be dry” and is the same noun used in v. 9 of dry ground in contrast with the sea, both made by the
[1:13] 3 tn Heb “but they were not able.” The phrase “to do so” does not appear in the Hebrew text but is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[1:13] 4 tn Heb “the sea was walking and storming.” See the note on the same idiom in v. 11.
[1:16] 5 tc The editors of BHS suggest that the direct object אֶת־יְהוָה (’et-yÿhvah, “the
[1:16] 6 tn Heb “they feared the
[1:16] 7 tn Heb “they vowed vows.” The root נדר (ndr, “vow”) is repeated in the verb and accusative noun, forming an emphatic effected accusative construction in which the verbal action produces the object specified by the accusative (see IBHS 166-67 §10.2.1f). Their act of vowing produced the vows. This construction is used to emphasize their earnestness and zeal in making vows to worship the God who had just spared their lives from certain death.
[1:16] 8 tn Heb “they sacrificed sacrifices.” The root זבח (zbkh, “sacrifice”) is repeated in the verb and accusative noun, forming an emphatic effected accusative construction in which the verbal action produces the object (see IBHS 166-67 §10.2.1f). Their act of sacrificing would produce the sacrifices. It is likely that the two sets of effected accusative constructions here (“they vowed vows and sacrificed sacrifices”) form a hendiadys; the two phrases connote one idea: “they earnestly vowed to sacrifice lavishly.” It is unlikely that they offered animal sacrifices at this exact moment on the boat – they had already thrown their cargo overboard, presumably leaving no animals to sacrifice. Instead, they probably vowed that they would sacrifice to the
[1:16] 9 tn Heb “The men feared the
[1:10] 9 tn Heb “Then the men feared…” The vav-consecutive describes the consequence of Jonah’s statement. The phrase “Hearing this” does not appear in the Hebrew text but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.
[1:10] 10 tn Heb “The men feared a great fear.” The cognate accusative construction using the verb יָרֵא (yare’, “to fear”) and the noun יִרְאָה (yir’ah, “fear”) from the same root (ירא, yr’) emphasizes the sailors’ escalating fright: “they became very afraid” (see IBHS 167 §10.2.1g).
[1:10] 12 sn The first two times that Jonah is said to be running away from the
[1:10] 13 tn Heb “because he had told them.” The verb הִגִּיד (higgid, “he had told”) functions as a past perfect, referring to a previous event.