Jonah 1:6
“So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →The captain wakes Jonah and urges him to pray to his God in hope that they might be spared.
What Does Jonah 1:6 Mean?
The captain, finding a passenger asleep in a deadly storm, rouses him with a rebuke and a plea. His words echo God's own command in verse 2: arise, call. A pagan ship's master must tell the prophet of Israel to pray. He does not even presume on the outcome but says only if so be, hoping this God might think upon them and spare their lives.
It is a humbling moment, and Scripture often lets outsiders shame the people who should know better. The captain's instinct is right: when all human effort fails, turn to God. His humble if so be is a fitting posture before the Almighty, who is never owed but always merciful. We are not promised that prayer controls the storm, but we are invited to call upon the One who can. That a frightened sailor must remind a prophet of this is a reminder to us never to grow so familiar with God that we forget to actually seek Him.
In the Original Language
qara' (קָרָא), 'call upon' -- the verb for calling on God in prayer; the captain uses the very word God used in verse 2, urging Jonah toward the God he is fleeing.