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OET (OET-LV) And_I not will_I_have_compassion on Nīnəvēh the_city (the)_great which there_are in_it many more_than_two_plus ten ten_thousand person[s] who not he_distinguishes between hand_of_his_right and_left_of_his and_livestock much.
OET (OET-RV) so shouldn’t I feel sorry for the huge city of Nineveh which has so many people in it who don’t know right from wrong—over 120,000 people, not to mention all the livestock!”
Jonah was upset that the LORD had not destroyed the people of Nineveh, and he argued with the LORD about it. The LORD taught Jonah that Jonah, too, should have compassion on the people of Nineveh. The LORD caused a plant to grow to shelter Jonah from the sun and then sent a worm to destroy it. When Jonah was upset about the plant being destroyed, the LORD told him that if he could be concerned about a mere plant, it was more fitting that the LORD should be concerned about people—as people are more important to him than plants. This was to show Jonah how much the LORD cared about people—even the enemies of the Israelites.
The LORD wanted Jonah to see that his attitude towards the people of Nineveh was not reasonable. If Jonah could care about a plant which he never looked after or caused to grow, then was it not right that the LORD should care about the people of Nineveh, whom he created and whom he loved?
So should I not care about the great city of Nineveh,
So, is it not right that I should show compassion for the huge city Nineveh and all its inhabitants?
Similarly, it is proper that I be concerned about that huge city, Nineveh, and all its inhabitants.”
So should I not care about the great city of Nineveh: The book ends with another rhetorical question to which the implied answer is “Yes, I [the LORD] am right to have compassion for the people in Nineveh.” If you cannot use rhetorical questions in this way in your language, you can use a statement instead. See 4:11d in the Display.
care about: This is the same Hebrew verb ḥus as in 4:10b. See the comments there. You should translate the verb in the same way in the two verses.
which has more than 120,000 people
Are not its people more valuable than that plant? Yes they are! And there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand (120,000) of them,
Then Yahweh added, “There are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people in the city, and they are more valuable than that plant,
who cannot tell their right hand from their left,
people who cannot even distinguish evil from good.
which has more than 120,000 people who cannot tell their right hand from their left: Here the LORD contrasted Jonah’s compassion for an insignificant plant with his own compassion for the people of Nineveh. If Jonah could feel compassion for a plant, which only lived a day, it was even more fitting that the LORD should have compassion on the people of Nineveh, who were much more important.
more than 120,000 people who cannot tell their right hand from their left: Scholars do not agree about to whom this refers. The two possibilities are:
This refers to all the people living in Nineveh. In this case the expression who cannot tell their right hand from their left is a Hebrew idiom which means that the people cannot tell right from wrong. (NIV, RSV, CEV, GW, NCV, NJB, REB)4.11 Allen, p. 230; Baldwin, p. 590; Ellison, p. 389; Sasson, p. 300; Stuart, p. 507
This refers only to the small children living in Nineveh, children too young to be able to tell their right hand from their left hand. (TEV)4.11 Keil-Delitzsch, pp. 416–17; UBS Handbook, pp. 114–15
It is recommended that you follow the first interpretation (1), as do the majority of English versions and commentaries.
Some versions make explicit the meaning of the Hebrew idiom who cannot tell their right hand from their left. For example, NCV has:
which has more than one hundred twenty thousand people who do not know right from wrong (NCV)
You need to decide whether you should do the same or keep the literal expression with perhaps a footnote to explain its meaning.4.11 See also CEV
and many cattle as well?”
Not only that, but there are also many animals there as well.”
and many cattle as well: God not only had compassion on the people of Nineveh, he also had compassion on the animals and spared them as well.
cattle: The Hebrew word behemah which the BSB translates as cattle can also be a general term for domestic animals and is not limited to cattle4.11 See also GW, NCV, NJB, NJPS, NLT, NRSV. Here is a more general way to translate this word:
animals (GNT)
In some languages it may be more natural to reorder 4:11, so that God’s statement about the size of the city comes before his rhetorical question about his concern for them. One model for this would be the NIV:
But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city? (NIV)
Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-words-phrases
וַֽאֲנִי֙
and,I
This expression, So I, paired with “You” in verse [4:10](../04/10.md), indicates a direct comparison between Yahweh’s attitude toward the people of Nineveh and Jonah’s attitude toward the plant. Indicate this comparison in a way that is natural in your language. Alternate translation: [So on my part] or [So as for me]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / rquestion
וַֽאֲנִי֙ לֹ֣א אָח֔וּס עַל־נִינְוֵ֖ה הָעִ֣יר הַגְּדוֹלָ֑ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר יֶשׁ־בָּ֡הּ הַרְבֵּה֩ מִֽשְׁתֵּים־עֶשְׂרֵ֨ה רִבּ֜וֹ אָדָ֗ם אֲשֶׁ֤ר לֹֽא־יָדַע֙ בֵּין־יְמִינ֣וֹ לִשְׂמֹאל֔וֹ וּבְהֵמָ֖ה רַבָּֽה
and,I not concerned on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in Nīnəvēh the=city (the),great which/who there_are in,it more more,than_two_plus teen twenty_thousand humankind which/who not knowing between hand_of,his_right and,left_of,his and,livestock enough/great(fs)
God is using the question form to emphasize his claim that he should have compassion on Nineveh. If you would not use the question form for this purpose in your language, you could translate this as a statement or an exclamation. Alternate translation: [I certainly should have compassion for Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 people who cannot distinguish between their right hand and their left hand, and also many cattle!]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / rquestion
אֲשֶׁ֣ר יֶשׁ־בָּ֡הּ הַרְבֵּה֩
which/who there_are in,it more
To make this verse simpler, it can be divided into two parts. The first part, ending with the great city, can be ended with a question mark. The rest of the verse can then be a statement, ending with a period. If that would be helpful in your language, begin the second part as follows: Alternate translation: [There are more than] or [It has more than]
Note 4 topic: translate-numbers
מִֽשְׁתֵּים־עֶשְׂרֵ֨ה רִבּ֜וֹ
more,than_two_plus teen twenty_thousand
Alternate translation: [one hundred twenty thousand]
Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom
אֲשֶׁ֤ר לֹֽא־יָדַע֙ בֵּין־יְמִינ֣וֹ לִשְׂמֹאל֔וֹ
which/who not knowing between hand_of,his_right and,left_of,his
This idiom means “who do not know the difference between right and wrong.” If this phrase does not have that meaning in your language, you could use an idiom from your language that does have this meaning or state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [who do not know up from down] or [who do not know what is good for them]
OET (OET-LV) And_I not will_I_have_compassion on Nīnəvēh the_city (the)_great which there_are in_it many more_than_two_plus ten ten_thousand person[s] who not he_distinguishes between hand_of_his_right and_left_of_his and_livestock much.
OET (OET-RV) so shouldn’t I feel sorry for the huge city of Nineveh which has so many people in it who don’t know right from wrong—over 120,000 people, not to mention all the livestock!”
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The Hebrew text, lemmas, and morphology are all thanks to the OSHB and some of the glosses are from Macula Hebrew.
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