Jonah 1:3
But Jonah erose up to fflee unto gTarshish from the hpresence of the LORD, and went down to iJoppa; and he found a ship going to jTarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
e:
Genesis 25:34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.
Numbers 24:25 And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way.
Psalms 94:8 Understand, ye brutish among the people: and ye fools, when will ye be wise?
f:
Nehemiah 6:11 And I said, Should such a man as I flee? and who is there, that, being as I am, would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in.
Genesis 3:8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.
Genesis 4:16 ¶And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.
James 5:17 Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.
Exodus 4:13 And he said, O my Lord, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send.
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.
g:
Isaiah 2:16 And upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures.
Isaiah 23:1 The burden of Tyre. Howl, ye ships of Tarshish; for it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no entering in: from the land of Chittim it is revealed to them.
Isaiah 60:9 Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the LORD thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee.
h:
Psalms 139:6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.
Jonah 1:10 Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him, Why hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.
i:
Joshua 19:46 And Me-jarkon, and Rakkon, with the border before Japho.
2 Chronicles 2:16 And we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as thou shalt need: and we will bring it to thee in floats by sea to Joppa; and thou shalt carry it up to Jerusalem.
Acts 9:36 ¶Now there was at Joppa a certain disciple named Tabitha, which by interpretation is called Dorcas: this woman was full of good works and almsdeeds which she did.
j:
1 Kings 10:22 For the king had at sea a navy of Tharshish with the navy of Hiram: once in three years came the navy of Tharshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.
Heb. And.
he was commanded to arise, Jon 1:2, so here Jonah did, but it was to run from his business, not to do it; it was a rising against God.
whatever was the cause which moved Jonah to do this, it is strange that he should fall into a fixed opinion that he might, and a fixed resolution that he would, thus flee from his God and from his duty.
to sea, as some, but this seemeth too rambling a humour: to Cilicia, say others, and particularly to Tarsus, no mean city of Cilicia, Act 21:39; others say it was Tunis or Carthage in Africa, to which Jonah minded to flee; either of these carry such probability with them, that we will not determine for our reader.
I cannot suppose that Jonah dreamed of fleeing from the omnipresence of God, he knew how David described this, Psa 139:7-12, and natural reason told him he could never flee from this; but this presence of God is to be interpreted of the place where God usually had showed himself present by revealing his word and will to his prophets, who are servants to the Lord, and as such did stand before the Lord ready to receive his commands: now this command to Jonah being displeasing to him, and yet whilst he was in his own country, the valley of vision, he is still put upon the work, now he resolves to shift off the work by shifting place; perhaps he might think God would not put him upon it when he was gotten into a strange and remote country, where were no prophets, nor prophetic impulses. Joppa; a well-known haven on the-Mediterranean, now called Jaffa, anciently Japho, Jos 19:46.
bound for, and ready to set sail for, the place he designed.
Carthage or Tunis, or Tarsus in Cilicia.
forthwith agreed. with the master of the ship, and, though unusual, paid presently, staid not till he came to the port designed.
immediately went a ship-board, and in a melancholy, discomposed humour gets into a cabin, or under deck, to go with them; waiting the time when they should go, that he might be sure to go with them.
see above.