---
title: "Jonah 4 - Study King James Bible with ellicotts commentary for english readers"
description: "Read Jonah 4 with ellicotts commentary for english readers commentary. 1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry. 2 And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I"
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url: "https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/ellicotts-commentary-for-english-readers/jonah/4"
---

[ Read](/kjv/jonah/4)[ Commentary](/study/jonah/4)[ Interlinear](/interlinear/jonah/4) Audio

 1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry.

 2 And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O LORD, *was* not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou *art* a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.

 3 Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for *it is* better for me to die than to live.

 4 ¶ Then said the LORD, Doest thou well to be angry?*

 5 So Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city.

 6 And the LORD God prepared a gourd, and made *it* to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his grief. So Jonah was exceeding glad of the gourd.**

 7 But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gourd that it withered.

 8 And it came to pass, when the sun did arise, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said, *It is* better for me to die than to live.*

 9 And God said to Jonah, Doest thou well to be angry for the gourd? And he said, I do well to be angry, *even* unto death.**

 10 Then said the LORD, Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night:**

 11 And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and *also* much cattle?
 
[Jonah 3](/study/jonah/3) [Micah 1](/study/micah/1)

## Commentary

 To verse 1
 
**IV.
JONAH’S DISCONTENT AND CORRECTION.** 

(1) **But it displeased Jonah.**—The Hebrew (*it was evil to*) is stronger. The prophet was vexed and irritated. 

**He was very angry.**—Literally, *it* (anger) *burnt to him.* David’s feeling at the death of Uzziah ([2 Samuel 6:8](/kjv/2-samuel/6/8); [1 Chronicles 13:11](/kjv/1-chronicles/13/11)) is described in the same terms. Selfish jealousy for his own reputation, jealousy for the honour of the prophetic office, a mistaken patriotism disappointed that the great enemy of his country should go unpunished, Jewish exclusiveness which could not endure to see the Divine clemency extended to the heathen, have each been adduced as the motive of Jonah’s anger. Possibly something of all these blended in his mind.

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