Jonah 3:10
New International Version
When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.

New Living Translation
When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened.

English Standard Version
When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.

Berean Standard Bible
When God saw their actions—that they had turned from their evil ways—He relented from the disaster He had threatened to bring upon them.

King James Bible
And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.

New King James Version
Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it.

New American Standard Bible
When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their evil way, then God relented of the disaster which He had declared He would bring on them. So He did not do it.

NASB 1995
When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it.

NASB 1977
When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it.

Legacy Standard Bible
Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way, so God relented concerning the evil which He had spoken He would bring upon them. And He did not bring it upon them.

Amplified Bible
When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God [had compassion and] relented concerning the disaster which He had declared that He would bring upon them. And He did not do it.

Christian Standard Bible
God saw their actions—that they had turned from their evil ways —so God relented from the disaster he had threatened them with. And he did not do it.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Then God saw their actions—that they had turned from their evil ways—so God relented from the disaster He had threatened to do to them. And He did not do it.

American Standard Version
And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil which he said he would do unto them; and he did it not.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And God saw their works, that they repented from their evil ways, and he turned the heat of his wrath from them, and he did not destroy them

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil ways; and God repented of the evil which he had said he would do to them; and he did it not.

Contemporary English Version
When God saw that the people had stopped doing evil things, he had pity and did not destroy them as he had planned.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And God saw their works, that they were turned from their evil way: and God had mercy with regard to the evil which he had said that he would do to them, and he did it not.

English Revised Version
And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, which he said he would do unto them; and he did it not.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
God saw what they did. He saw that they turned from their wicked ways. So God reconsidered his threat to destroy them, and he didn't do it.

Good News Translation
God saw what they did; he saw that they had given up their wicked behavior. So he changed his mind and did not punish them as he had said he would.

International Standard Version
God took note of what they did—that they turned from their evil ways. Because God relented concerning the trouble about which he had warned them, he did not carry it out.

JPS Tanakh 1917
And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, which He said He would do unto them; and He did it not.

Literal Standard Version
And God sees their works, that they have turned back from their evil way, and God relents of the evil that He spoke of doing to them, and He has not done [it].

Majority Standard Bible
When God saw their actions—that they had turned from their evil ways—He relented from the disaster He had threatened to bring upon them.

New American Bible
When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out.

NET Bible
When God saw their actions--they turned from their evil way of living!--God relented concerning the judgment he had threatened them with and he did not destroy them.

New Revised Standard Version
When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.

New Heart English Bible
God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way. God relented of the disaster which he said he would do to them, and he did not do it.

Webster's Bible Translation
And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do to them; and he did it not.

World English Bible
God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way. God relented of the disaster which he said he would do to them, and he didn’t do it.

Young's Literal Translation
And God seeth their works, that they have turned back from their evil way, and God repenteth of the evil that He spake of doing to them, and he hath not done it.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Nineveh Repents
9Who knows? God may turn and relent; He may turn from His fierce anger, so that we will not perish.” 10When God saw their actions— that they had turned from their evil ways— He relented from the disaster He had threatened to bring upon them.

Cross References
Exodus 32:14
So the LORD relented from the calamity He had threatened to bring on His people.

1 Kings 21:27
When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and fasted. He lay down in sackcloth and walked around meekly.

1 Chronicles 21:15
Then God sent an angel to destroy Jerusalem, but as the angel was doing so, the LORD saw it and relented from the calamity, and He said to the angel who was destroying the people, "Enough! Withdraw your hand now!" At that time the angel of the LORD was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

Isaiah 30:18
Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore He rises to show you compassion, for the LORD is a just God. Blessed are all who wait for Him.

Jeremiah 18:8
But if that nation I warned turns from its evil, then I will relent of the disaster I had planned to bring.

Jeremiah 31:18
I have surely heard Ephraim's moaning: 'You disciplined me severely, like an untrained calf. Restore me, that I may return, for You are the LORD my God.

Jeremiah 36:3
Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about all the calamity I plan to bring upon them, each of them will turn from his wicked way. Then I will forgive their iniquity and their sin."


Treasury of Scripture

And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do to them; and he did it not.

God saw.

1 Kings 21:27-29
And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly…

Job 33:27,28
He looketh upon men, and if any say, I have sinned, and perverted that which was right, and it profited me not; …

Jeremiah 31:18-20
I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus; Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the LORD my God…

and God repented.

Jonah 4:2
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.

Jeremiah 18:8
If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.

Joel 2:13
And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.

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Jonah 3
1. Jonah, sent again, preaches to the Ninevites.
5. Upon their repentance,
10. God relents.














(10) And God repented.--See Note, Genesis 6:6.

And he did it not.--As we are entirely ignorant of the nature of the threatened destruction, so are we also of the mode in which it was averted. Possibly some inscription throwing light on the book of Jonah may yet be discovered.

Verse 10. - § 4. God accepts this repentance, and the threatened destruction is averted. God saw their works. There is no notice in the inscriptions of this "repentance," or of any change in the polytheistic worship of the Ninevites. But the existing records of this period are singularly meagre, and show a state of calamity and depression, of internal commotions and famine. Nor is it usual in the monumental history to find mention of any events but wars and the execution of material works; moral reformations are not recorded. God repented of the evil (Exodus 32:14). This is an anthropopathical mode of speaking; God acted as if, taking man's view of the transaction, he repented. The sentence was conditional, as Jonah well knew (Jonah 4:2), in accordance with the great principle laid down in Jeremiah 18:7, etc., viz. that if a nation against which sentence is pronounced turn from its evil way, the sentence shall not be executed. God does not change, but he threatens that man may change (see note on Amos 7:3; and observe the same principle applied to individuals, Ezekiel 33:8, 13-16). He did it not. The evil day was postponed. This partial repentance, though it was not permanent and made little lasting impression on the national life, showed that there was some element of good in these Assyrians, and that they were not yet ripe for destruction. It has been considered to be a proof of the unhistorical character of the Book of Jonah that no mention of any of the incidents is made in the Books of Kings and Chronicles; but there is nothing strange in this. Those records never touch external politics except as closely connected with Israel's fortunes; and, derived as they were from national annals, it would have been unnatural for them to have narrated events happening so far away, and not likely to be introduced in the documents on which their history was founded.



Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
When God
הָֽאֱלֹהִים֙ (hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

saw
וַיַּ֤רְא (way·yar)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 7200: To see

their actions—
מַ֣עֲשֵׂיהֶ֔ם (ma·‘ă·śê·hem)
Noun - masculine plural construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 4639: An action, a transaction, activity, a product, property

that
כִּי־ (kî-)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

they had turned
שָׁ֖בוּ (šā·ḇū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 7725: To turn back, in, to retreat, again

from their evil
הָרָעָ֑ה (hā·rā·‘āh)
Article | Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 7451: Bad, evil

ways—
מִדַּרְכָּ֣ם (mid·dar·kām)
Preposition-m | Noun - common singular construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 1870: A road, a course of life, mode of action

[He]
הָאֱלֹהִ֗ים (hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

relented
וַיִּנָּ֣חֶם (way·yin·nā·ḥem)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Nifal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5162: To sigh, breathe strongly, to be sorry, to pity, console, rue, to avenge

from
עַל־ (‘al-)
Preposition
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

the disaster
הָרָעָ֛ה (hā·rā·‘āh)
Article | Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 7451: Bad, evil

He had threatened
דִּבֶּ֥ר (dib·ber)
Verb - Piel - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1696: To arrange, to speak, to subdue

to bring
לַעֲשׂוֹת־ (la·‘ă·śō·wṯ-)
Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 6213: To do, make

upon them.
לָהֶ֖ם (lā·hem)
Preposition-l | Pronoun - third person masculine plural
Strong's 1992: They


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OT Prophets: Jonah 3:10 God saw their works that they turned (Jon. Jh)
Jonah 3:9
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