Targum Jonathan on Jonah Chapter 3
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וַהֲוָה פִּתְגַם נְבוּאָה מִן קֳדָם יְיָ עִם יוֹנָה תִּנְיָנוּת לְמֵימָר:
And this was the word of prophecy from before the LORD with Jonah again, saying:
קוּם אֱזֵיל לְנִינְוֵה קַרְתָּא רַבְּתָא וְאִתְנַבֵּי עֲלָהּ יַת נְבוּאֲתָא דִי אֲנָא מְמַלֵיל עִמָךְ:
Get up, go down to Nineveh, the great city, and prophecy upon them the prophecy that I command you.
וְקָם יוֹנָה וַאֲזַל לְנִינְוֵה כְּפִתְגָמָא דַייָ וְנִינְוֵה הֲוַת קַרְתָּא רַבְּתָא קֳדָם יְיָ מַהֲלַךְ תְּלָתָא יוֹמִין:
And Jonah got up and went to Nineveh per the word of the LORD, and Nineveh was a big city before the LORD — a three-days’ walk across.
וּשְׁרֵי יוֹנָה לְמֵיעַל בְּקַרְתָּא מְהַלֵיךְ יוֹמָא חָד וְאַכְרֵיז וַאֲמַר בְּסוֹף אַרְבְּעִין יוֹמִין וְנִינְוֵה מִתְהַפְּכָא:
And Jonah began to enter the city, a one-day’s walk in, and he announced and said: “At the end of forty days Nineveh will be overturned!”
וְהֵימִינוּ אַנְשֵׁי נִינְוֵה בְּמֵימְרָא דַייָ וּגְזָרוּ צוֹמָא וַאֲסָרוּ שַׂקִין מֵרַבְּהוֹן וְעַד זְעָרֵיהוֹן:
And the people of Nineveh believed the word of the LORD, and they decreed a fast and bound with sackcloth, from the greatest to the smallest.
וּמְטָא פִּתְגָמָא לְוַת מַלְכָּא דְנִינְוֵה וְקָם מִכּוּרְסֵי מַלְכוּתֵיהּ וְאַעְדִי לְבוּשֵׁי יְקָרֵיהּ מִנֵיהּ וְאִתְכַּסֵי שַׂקָא וִיתִיב עַל קִיטְמָא:
And the word reached before the king of Nineveh,¹ and he got up from his royal throne and removed his valuable clothes and from him and covered himself in sackcloth and sat on ashes.
footnotes: ¹ Some texts say: “before the Pharaoh who was king in those days in Nineveh,”
וְאַכְרֵיז וַאֲמַר בְּנִינְוֵה מִגְזֵירַת מַלְכָּא וְרַבְרְבָנוֹהִי לְמֵימָר אֱנָשָׁא וּבְעִירָא תּוֹרָא וַעֲנָא לָא יִטְעֲמוּן מִדַעַם וְלָא יִרְעוּן וּמַיָא לָא יִשְׁתּוּן:
And he called out and said in Nineveh from the decree of the king and his officials, saying: “People and animals, cattle and sheep, none shall taste anything, nor graze, nor drink water.”
וְיִתְכַּסוּן סַקִין אֱנָשָׁא וּבְעִירָא וִיצַלוּן קֳדָם יְיָ בִּתְקוֹף וִיתוּבוּן גְבַר מֵאוֹרְחֵיהּ בִּישְׁתָּא וּמִן חֲטוֹפָא דְבִידֵיהוֹן:
And people and animals were covered in sackcloth and prayed before the LORD vigorously, and each man turned from his wicked way and from the robbery of his hands.
מַן יְדַע דְאִית בִּידֵיהּ חוֹבִין יְתוּב מִנְהוֹן וְיִתְרַחֵים עֲלוֹהִי מִן קֳדָם יְיָ וִיתוּב מִתְּקוֹף רוּגְזֵיהּ וְלָא נוֹבֵד:
“Who knows, He has our guilt in His hand! He may turn from us and have mercy on it from before the LORD, and turn back from His strong anger that we may not be lost.”
וּגְלַן קֳדָם יְיָ עוֹבָדֵיהוֹן אֲרֵי תָבוּ מֵאוֹרְחַתְהוֹן בִּישְׁתָא וְתָב יְיָ מִן בִּישְׁתָא דִי מַלֵיל לְמֶעְבַּד לְהוֹן וְלָא עֲבָד:
And their acts were revealed before God, that they had turned from their evil ways, and God turned the evil that He had said he would do away from them and did not do it.