Jonah 1:10 (KJV)

Passage

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.

Nearby Context

Jonah 1:8 Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; What is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou?

Jonah 1:9 And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land.

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.

Jonah 1:11 Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous.

Jonah 1:12 And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "exceedingly", "afraid", "said", "hast", "thou", "done", "knew", and "fled". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "exceedingly" and "afraid", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 9's "And he said unto them I am..." into verse 11's "Then said they unto him What shall...", so "exceedingly" and "afraid" 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 "exceedingly" and "afraid" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.