Jonah 3:2 (ASV)

Passage

Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.

Nearby Context

Jonah 3:1 And the word of Jehovah came unto Jonah the second time, saying,

Jonah 3:2 Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.

Jonah 3:3 So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of Jehovah. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city, of three days` journey.

Jonah 3:4 And Jonah began to enter into the city a day`s journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "arise", "nineveh", "great", "city", "preach", "preaching", and "thee". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "arise" and "nineveh", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 1's "And the word of Jehovah came unto..." into verse 3's "So Jonah arose and went unto Nineveh...", so "arise" and "nineveh" belong inside that flow. In Jonah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "arise" and "nineveh" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.