Jonah 1:12 (LSB)

Passage

So he said to them, “Lift me up and hurl me into the sea. Then the sea will become quiet for you, for I know that on account of me this great storm has come upon you.”

Nearby Context

Jonah 1:10 Then the men became greatly fearful, and they said to him, “What is this you have done?” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of Yahweh because he had told them.

Jonah 1:11 So they said to him, “What should we do to you that the sea may become quiet for us?”—for the sea was becoming increasingly stormy.

Jonah 1:12 So he said to them, “Lift me up and hurl me into the sea. Then the sea will become quiet for you, for I know that on account of me this great storm has come upon you.”

Jonah 1:13 However, the men rowed desperately to return to dry land, but they could not, for the sea was becoming increasingly stormy against them.

Jonah 1:14 Then they called on Yahweh and said, “Ah! O Yahweh, we earnestly pray, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life, and do not put innocent blood on us; for You, O Yahweh, as You have pleased You have done.”

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "said", "lift", "hurl", "become", "quiet", "account", "great", and "storm". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "said" and "lift", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "So they said to him What should..." into verse 13's "However the men rowed desperately to return...", so "said" and "lift" 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 "said" and "lift" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.