SEV Biblia, Chapter 4:5
¶ Y salió Jonás de la ciudad, y se asentó hacia el oriente de la ciudad, y se hizo allí una choza, y se sentó debajo de ella a la sombra, hasta ver qué sería de la ciudad.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Jonah 4:5
Verse 5. So Jonah went out of the city] I believe this refers to what had already passed; and I therefore agree with Bp. Newcome, who translates, "Now Jonah HAD gone out of the city, and HAD sat," &c.; for there are many instances where verbs in the preterite form have this force, the w vau here turning the future into the preterite. And the passage is here to be understood thus: When he had delivered his message he left the city, and went and made himself a tent, or got under some shelter on the east side of the city, and there he was determined to remain till he should see what would become of the city. But when the forty days had expired, and he saw no evidence of the Divine wrath, he became angry, and expostulated with God as above. The fifth verse should be read in a parenthesis, or be considered as beginning the chapter.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 5. So Jonah went out of the city , etc.] Had not the inhabitants of it repented, he had done right to go out of it, and shake the dust of his feet against it; or, in such a case, had he gone out of it, as Lot out of Sodom, when just going to be overthrown; but Jonah went out in a sullen fit, because it was to be spared; though some render the words, “now Jonah had gone out of the city” f73 ; that is, before all this passed, recorded in the preceding verses; and so Aben Ezra observes, that the Scripture returns here to make mention of the affairs of Jonah, and what happened before the accomplishment of the forty days: and sat on the east side of the city ; where he might have very probably a good sight of it; and which lay the reverse of the road to his own country; that, if the inhabitants should pursue him, they would miss of him; which some suppose he might be in fear of, should their city be destroyed: and there made him a booth ; of the boughs of trees, which he erected, not to continue in, but for a short time, expecting in a few days the issue of his prediction: and sat under it in the shadow ; to shelter him from the heat of the sun: till he might see what would become of the city ; or, “what would be done in” it, or “with” it f74 ; if this was after he knew that the Lord had repented of the evil he threatened, and was disposed to show mercy to the city; and which, as Kimchi thinks, was revealed to him by the spirit of prophecy; then he sat here, expecting the repentance of the Ninevites would be a short lived one; be like the goodness of Ephraim and Judah, as the morning cloud, and early dew that passes away; and that then God would change his dispensations towards them again, as he had done; or however he might expect, that though the city was not totally overthrown, yet that there would be something done; some lesser judgment fall upon them, as a token of the divine displeasure, and which might save his credit as a prophet Ver. 6 . And the Lord God prepared a gourd , etc.] So the Septuagint render the word; but some say that a worm will not touch that; Jerom renders it an ivy; but neither the gourd nor that rise upwards without some props to support them. The Hebrew word is “kikaion”, the same with the “kiki”, or “cici”, of Herodotus f75 , Dioscorides f76 , Strabo f77 , and Pliny f78 ; a plant frequent in Egypt, of which the Egyptians made an oil; hence the Talmudists make mention of the oil of “kik”, which Reshlakish says is the “kikaion” of Jonah; and which is the same that the Arabians call “alcheroa” or “alcherva”, according to Samuel ben Hophni f80 , Maimonides f81 , Bartenora f82 , and Jerom f83 ; and which is well known to be the “ricinus”, or “palma Christi”; and which, by the description of it, according to all the above writers, bids fairest to be here intended; it rising up to the height of a tree, an olive tree, having very large broad leaves, like those of vines, or of plantain; and springing up suddenly, as Pliny says it does in Spain; and Clusius affirms he saw at the straits of Gibraltar a ricinus of the thickness of a man, and of the height of three men; and Bellonius, who travelled through Syria and Palestine, saw one in Crete of the size of a tree; and Dietericus f85 , who relates the above, says he saw himself, in a garden at Leyden, well furnished and enriched with exotic plants, an American ricinus, the stalk of which was hollow, weak, and soft, and the leaves almost a foot and a half; and which Adolphus Vorstius, he adds, took to be the same which Jonah had for a shade; with which agrees what Dioscorides says, that there is a sort of it which grows large like a tree, and as high as a fig tree; the leaves of it are like those of a palm tree, though broader, smoother, and blacker; the branches and trunk of it are hollow like a reed: and what may seem more to confirm this is, that a certain number of grains of the seed of the ricinus very much provoke vomiting; which, if true, as Marinus observes, the word here used may be derived from awq , which signifies to vomit; from whence is the word ayq , vomiting; and the first radical being here doubled may increase the signification, and show it to be a great emetic; and the like virtue of the ricinus is observed by others f88 . Jerom allegorizes it of the ceremonial law, under the shadow of which Israel dwelt for a while; and then was abrogated by Christ, who says he was a worm, and no man: but it is better to apply it to outward mercies and earthly enjoyments, which like this plant spring out of the earth, and have their root in it, and are of the nature of it, and therefore minded by earthly and carnal men above all others; they are thin, slight, and slender things; there is no solidity and substance in them, like the kiki, whose stalk is hollow as a reed, as Dioscorides says; they are light and empty things, vanity and vexation of spirit; spring up suddenly sometimes, and are gone as soon; some men come to riches and honour at once, and rise up to a very great pitch of both, and quickly fall into poverty and disgrace again; for these are very uncertain perishing things, like this herb or plant, or even as grass, which soon withers away. They are indeed of God, who is the Father of mercies, and are the gifts of his providence, and not the merit of men; they are disposed of according to his will, and “prepared” by him in his purposes, and given forth according to them, and in his covenant to his own special people, and are to them blessings indeed: and made [it] to come up over Jonah ; over his head, as follows; and it may be over the booth he had built, which was become in a manner useless; the leaves of the boughs of which it was made being withered with the heat of the sun; it came over him so as to cover him all over; which may denote both the necessity of outward mercies, as food and raiment, which the Lord knows his people have need of; and the sufficiency of them he grants, with which they should be content: that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his grief ; either from the vexation of mind at the repentance of the Ninevites, and the mercy shown them; this being a refreshment unto him, and which he might take as a new token of the Lord’s favourable regard to him, after the offence he had given him, and gentle reproof for it; or from the headache, with which he was thought to have been afflicted, through his vexation; or by the heat of the sun; or rather it was to shelter him from the heat of the sun, and the distress that gave him: so outward mercies, like a reviving and refreshing shadow, exhilarate the spirits, and are a defence against the injuries and insults of men, and a preservative from the grief and distress which poverty brings with it: so Jonah was exceeding glad of the gourd ; or, “rejoiced with a great joy” f89 ; he was excessively and above measure glad of it, because of its usefulness to him: outward mercies are what we should be thankful for; and it is good for men to rejoice in their labours, and enjoy the good of them; to eat their bread with a merry heart and cheerfulness; but should not be elevated with them beyond measure, lifted up with pride, and boast and glory of them, and rejoice in such boastings, which is evil; or rejoice in them as their portion, placing their happiness therein, which is to rejoice in a thing of naught; or to overrate mercies, and show more affection for them than for God himself, the giver of them, who only should be our “exceeding joy”; and, when this is the case, it is much if they are not quickly taken away, as Jonah’s gourd was, as follows:
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 5-11 - Jonah went out of the city, yet remained near at hand, as if he expected and desired its overthrow. Those who have fretful, uneas spirits, often make troubles for themselves, that they may still have something to complain of. See how tender God is of his people in their afflictions, even though they are foolish and froward. A thing small i itself, yet coming seasonably, may be a valuable blessing. A gourd in the right place may do us more service than a cedar. The leas creatures may be great plagues, or great comforts, as God is pleased to make them. Persons of strong passions are apt to be cast down with an trifle that crosses them, or to be lifted up with a trifle that please them. See what our creature-comforts are, and what we may expect the to be; they are withering things. A small worm at the root destroys large gourd: our gourds wither, and we know not what is the cause Perhaps creature-comforts are continued to us, but are made bitter; the creature is continued, but the comfort is gone. God prepared a wind to make Jonah feel the want of the gourd. It is just that those who love to complain, should never be left without something to complain of When afflicting providences take away relations, possessions, an enjoyments, we must not be angry at God. What should especially silenc discontent, is, that when our gourd is gone, our God is not gone. Sin and death are very dreadful, yet Jonah, in his heat, makes light of both. One soul is of more value than the whole world; surely then on soul is of more value than many gourds: we should have more concern for our own and others' precious souls, than for the riches and enjoyment of this world. It is a great encouragement to hope we shall find merc with the Lord, that he is ready to show mercy. And murmurers shall be made to understand, that how willing soever they are to keep the Divin grace to themselves and those of their own way, there is one Lord ove all, who is rich in mercy to all that call upon him. Do we wonder a the forbearance of God towards his perverse servant? Let us study ou own hearts and ways; let us not forget our own ingratitude an obstinacy; and let us be astonished at God's patience towards us __________________________________________________________________
Original Hebrew
ויצא 3318 יונה 3124 מן 4480 העיר 5892 וישׁב 3427 מקדם 6924 לעיר 5892 ויעשׂ 6213 לו שׁם 8033 סכה 5521 וישׁב 3427 תחתיה 8478 בצל 6738 עד 5704 אשׁר 834 יראה 7200 מה 4100 יהיה 1961 בעיר׃ 5892
