Jonah 4:3 (KJV)

Passage

Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.

Nearby Context

Jonah 4:1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry.

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.

Jonah 4:3 Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.

Jonah 4:4 Then said the LORD, Doest thou well to be angry?

Jonah 4:5 So Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "therefore", "lord", "take", "beseech", "thee", "life", "better", and "than". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "therefore" and "lord", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "And he prayed unto the LORD and..." into verse 4's "Then said the LORD Doest thou well...", so "therefore" and "lord" 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 "therefore" and "lord" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.