Jonah 3:6 kjv
For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
Jonah 3:6 nkjv
Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth and sat in ashes.
Jonah 3:6 niv
When Jonah's warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.
Jonah 3:6 esv
The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
Jonah 3:6 nlt
When the king of Nineveh heard what Jonah was saying, he stepped down from his throne and took off his royal robes. He dressed himself in burlap and sat on a heap of ashes.
Jonah 3 6 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Gen 37:34 | Then Jacob tore his clothes and put sackcloth… | Jacob mourns Joseph's presumed death |
| 2 Sam 3:31 | Then David said to Joab…Tear your clothes and put on sackcloth… | David mourns Abner's death |
| 1 Kgs 21:27-29 | Ahab…tore his clothes and put on sackcloth…God did not bring the disaster… | King Ahab's humiliation brings God's postponement of judgment |
| 2 Kgs 19:1 | Hezekiah…tore his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth… | Hezekiah's distress and prayer in the face of Assyrian threat |
| 2 Chr 12:6-7 | Then the leaders…humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is righteous.” When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah… | Judah's leaders humble themselves, God relents |
| 2 Chr 33:12-13 | And when Manasseh was in distress, he entreated the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly… | Manasseh's profound repentance leads to restoration |
| Esth 4:1 | Mordecai tore his clothes and put on sackcloth… | Mordecai's deep distress over Haman's decree |
| Job 2:8 | He took a piece of broken pottery…and sat among the ashes. | Job's extreme mourning and suffering |
| Job 42:6 | Therefore I retract, and I repent in dust and ashes. | Job's ultimate humility and repentance |
| Psa 30:11 | You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, | Sackcloth symbolizing a period of mourning |
| Isa 58:5 | Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes beneath him? | Critique of outward show without true heart repentance |
| Jer 6:26 | O daughter of my people, put on sackcloth, and roll in ashes… | Call for deep national repentance |
| Dan 9:3 | Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. | Daniel's humble prayer and intercession for Israel |
| Joel 2:12-13 | Yet even now…return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and tear your hearts and not your garments. | Call to sincere heart-repentance over mere outward acts |
| Mt 11:21 | Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. | Jesus references repentance with sackcloth and ashes |
| Lk 10:13 | Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. | Parallel to Matthew, emphasizing deep regret |
| Lk 18:14 | …everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted. | Principle of humility leading to exaltation |
| Jas 4:10 | Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you. | Command for humble submission to God |
| Gen 18:27 | Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes.” | Abraham's profound self-abasement before God |
| 1 Pet 5:6 | Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, | Call for humble submission under God's sovereignty |
| Acts 11:18 | When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.” | God's granting of repentance and salvation to Gentiles |
| Rom 2:4 | Or do you despise the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? | God's kindness serves to draw people to repentance |
| Jer 18:7-8 | If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted…and if that nation…repents…then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster… | God's willingness to relent from judgment upon repentance |
| Ex 32:14 | And the Lord relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people. | Example of God relenting from intended judgment |
| Num 16:45 | "Get away from this assembly, so that I may put an end to them at once." Then they fell on their faces. | People falling on their faces as an act of humble plea |
| Ezr 9:5 | At the evening sacrifice I rose from my humiliation, with my garment and my cloak torn… I knelt on my knees… | Ezra's profound lament and self-abasement before God |
Jonah 3 verses
Jonah 3 6 Meaning
Jonah 3:6 describes the immediate and profound response of the king of Nineveh upon hearing Jonah's divine warning. This verse portrays his drastic actions of self-humiliation and repentance: abandoning his royal authority and garments, replacing them with symbols of sorrow and contrition—sackcloth and ashes. This personal transformation sets the example for the entire city, signifying their turning from wickedness towards God.
Jonah 3 6 Context
Jonah chapter 3 begins with the prophet finally obeying God's command to go to Nineveh. Upon entering the vast city, Jonah delivers a stark, simple message: "Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown." The king's response in verse 6 is central to the narrative, immediately following the city's spontaneous belief in God. Nineveh, the formidable capital of the Assyrian Empire, was infamous for its brutal military conquests and polytheistic practices. Assyrian kings were known for their arrogance and depictions of overwhelming power and conquests, never showing vulnerability or self-abasement. For such a monarch to respond with profound humility and self-abjection, stripping himself of royal insignia and sitting in ashes, signifies an unparalleled, radical shift and serves as a direct indictment of the frequently disobedient kings of Israel and Judah. This public and personal act from the highest authority galvanizes the city's repentance, allowing God to mercifully relent from His announced judgment.
Jonah 3 6 Word analysis
For the word came (וַיַּגַּע הַדָּבָר, vayagga haddavār): This phrase signifies not merely that a message was heard, but that it "reached" or "penetrated" deeply, implying divine impact and authority. It highlights the power of God's proclaimed truth to affect even the highest echelons of a pagan kingdom.
unto the king of Nineveh (אֶל-מֶלֶךְ נִינְוֵה, el melekh Nînve): Directly naming "the king of Nineveh" emphasizes the ultimate recipient and initiator of this widespread repentance. His individual conversion is strategically critical for the city's collective turning. It showcases God's sovereign reach over even the most powerful Gentile rulers.
and he arose from his throne (וַיָּקָם מִכִּסְאוֹ, vayyaqom mikkisse'o): This is a symbolic act. The "throne" (כִּסֵּא, kisse') represents kingly authority, power, and dignity. To "arise from his throne" is to relinquish the posture of worldly dominion, signifying a personal abdication of his pride and self-importance before the sovereign God. It's an act of deep humility and acknowledgment of a higher power.
and he laid his robe from him (וַיּוֹרֶד אַדַּרְתּוֹ, wayyôred 'addartô): The "robe" (אַדֶּרֶת, 'adderet) refers to a majestic or stately cloak, typically representing royal status, honor, or authority. Stripping it off is an outward demonstration of discarding pride, earthly glory, and personal dignity. This echoes acts of humiliation found in biblical accounts of profound grief or repentance.
and covered him with sackcloth (וַיְכַס בְּשַׂקּוֹ, waykhas beśaqqô): "Sackcloth" (שַׂק, śaq) was a coarse fabric, often made of goat hair, worn as a sign of mourning, deep distress, or intense repentance across the ancient Near East, including by Israelites and surrounding cultures. Covering oneself with it symbolized inner anguish, self-abasement, and sorrow for sin.
and sat in ashes (וַיֵּשֶׁב עַל-אֵפֶר, wayyēšev 'al-'ēfer): "Ashes" ('אֵפֶר, 'ēfer) represented decay, destruction, and the lowest state of humility and brokenness. Sitting or lying in ashes further accentuated the depth of mourning, lamentation, and genuine contrition. It signifies a profound identification with the gravity of the city's sin and a complete casting away of all status and comfort.
"he arose from his throne...and he laid his robe from him...and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes": This sequence of actions represents a radical and deliberate stripping away of all symbols of power, prestige, and comfort, replaced by public and undeniable expressions of profound humility and lament. It's a stark contrast between kingly arrogance and the utter lowliness demanded by true repentance. This full bodily engagement indicates a complete dedication to the act of contrition, embodying a paradigm of genuine remorse.
Jonah 3 6 Bonus section
- The king of Nineveh's actions are presented as more righteous and responsive to God's word than many kings of Israel and Judah mentioned in the Old Testament, forming an implicit critique or polemic against Israel's often-hardened heart. This is famously referenced by Jesus in Matthew 12:41, where He states that "The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here."
- The stripping of the "adderet" (royal robe) contrasts with the transfer of "adderet" as a symbol of prophetic authority (e.g., Elijah to Elisha in 1 Kings 19:19), showing a shedding of earthly authority to receive divine mercy.
- The fact that a king of one of the most ruthless empires led his people in such an act of vulnerability without any external military threat indicates the overwhelming internal conviction produced by God's word, highlighting the spiritual, not merely political, power of the prophetic message.
Jonah 3 6 Commentary
Jonah 3:6 powerfully depicts the Ninevite king's radical and exemplary response to God's word, mediated through Jonah. Far from the typical pagan potentate, who would likely reject foreign prophecies or consolidate power, this king instantly stripped himself of all royal insignia and adopted the biblical symbols of profound mourning and repentance: sackcloth and ashes. This was not a perfunctory act but a dramatic physical manifestation of an inward transformation, highlighting the authenticity of his, and by extension, Nineveh's, change of heart. His action validated Jonah's brief but impactful message and established a clear precedent for the entire city. The King's immediate and total humility illustrates a profound understanding of divine judgment and the necessary path to avert it—not by military might or political maneuver, but by humble, sincere repentance. This instance serves as a vivid illustration of God's responsiveness to genuine humility and underscores His universal sovereignty and mercy that extends beyond national or cultural boundaries.