Jonah 3:7 (GNV)

Passage

And he proclaimed and said through Nineueh, (by the counsell of ye king and his nobles) saying, Let neither man, nor beast, bullock nor sheep taste any thing, neither feed nor drinke water.

Nearby Context

Jonah 3:5 So the people of Nineueh beleeued God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth from ye greatest of the euen to the least of them.

Jonah 3:6 For worde came vnto the King of Nineueh, and he rose from his throne, and he layed his robe from him, and couered him with sackecloth, and sate in ashes.

Jonah 3:7 And he proclaimed and said through Nineueh, (by the counsell of ye king and his nobles) saying, Let neither man, nor beast, bullock nor sheep taste any thing, neither feed nor drinke water.

Jonah 3:8 But let man and beast put on sackecloth, and crie mightily vnto God: yea, let euery man turne from his euill way, and from the wickednesse that is in their handes.

Jonah 3:9 Who can tell if God will turne, and repent and turne away from his fierce wrath, that we perish not?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "sheep", "proclaimed", "said", "through", "nineueh", "counsell", "king", and "nobles". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "sheep" and "proclaimed", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 6's "For worde came vnto the King of..." into verse 8's "But let man and beast put on...", so "sheep" and "proclaimed" 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 "sheep" and "proclaimed" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.