What shall we do unto thee, then they said,
That so the raging of the sea be stay'd?
(For it did rage and foam.) Take me, said he,
And cast me overboard into the sea;
So shall the sea be calm, for on my score
I know it is, that thus the waves do roar.
Nevertheless they rowed hard to gain
The land, but all their labour was in vain;
So much against them did the tempest beat.
Wherefore they the Almighty did entreat,
And said, We do beseech thee, and we pray,
O Lord, that thou would'st not upon us lay
The charge of guiltless blood, nor let it be,
That now we perish, on th' account that we
Take this man's life away; for thou alone
As it hath pleased thee, O Lord, hast done.
So they took Jonah up, and to the seas
Committed him, then did the tempest cease.
Then did the dread of the great God on high,
Seize on the mariners exceedingly.

And they did offer up a sacrifice,

And vowed vows unto the Lord likewise.

And now the Lord for Jonah did contrive

A mighty fish, to swallow 'im up alive,
And in the fish's belly for the space

Of three days and three nights, poor Jonah was.

CHAP. II.

Unto the Lord his God then Jonah pray'd
Out of the belly of the fish, and said,
By reason of affliction, which lay sore
Upon me, I the Lord God did implore,
And he gave ear; and from Hell's Belly I

Cry'd unto thee, and thou, Lord, heard'st my cry:
For thou into the deep hadst cast me out,
And there the floods did compass me about;
In the midst of the sea, thy waves were sent,
And all thy billows which my head o'erwent.
Then said I though thy presence hath forsook
Me, to thy holy temple will I look.
The waters compassed about my soul,
And the great deeps did round about me roll,
The weeds were wrapt about my head, I went
Down to the bottom of the element;

The earth with her strong bars surrounded me,
Yet thou, O Lord, from death hast set me free.
When my soul fainted, on the Lord I thought,
And to thee, to thy temple then was brought
My prayer. They their own mercies do despise,
Who have regard to lying vanities.

But with the voice of my thanksgiving, I
Will offer sacrifice to thee on high,

And pay my vows which I have vow'd, each one,

For why? Salvation's of the Lord alone.

And now the fish, as God did give command,
Did vomit Jonah out upon dry land.

CHAP. III.

And now the second time to Jonah came
God's word, and said, Arise, go and proclaim
To that great city Nineveh, what I

Have heretofore commanded thee to cry.
So Jonah rose up, and prepar'd to go
To Nineveh, as God had bid him do.

(Now was the city Nineveh so great,
That it was three days' journey long complete)
And as into the city Jonah made

His first day's journey, he cry'd out and said,
When forty days shall be expired and past,
This city Nineveh shall be laid waste.
Then did the Ninevites with one accord,
Believe this was the message of the Lord;
And did proclaim a fast, and every one,
From greatest to the least, put sackcloth on:
For to the king this news was quickly flown,
And he arose, and came down from his throne,
And having laid aside his robes of state,
He put on sackcloth, and in ashes sate:
And issuing out his royal proclamation,
And through the city making publication
Thereof (being by the king and council sign'd)
A solemn and a general fast enjoin'd;
And said, I will, that neither man nor beast,
Nor flock, nor herd, shall their provision taste:
But let them all put sackcloth on and cry
Unto the Lord with greatest fervency;
Yea, let them all their evil ways refrain,
And from the violence which they retain.
Who knows if God will yet be pleas'd to spare,

And turn away the evil that we fear?
And God beheld their works, and saw that they
Had turned from the evil of their way.

And God turn'd from his wrath, and did revoke
The dreadful judgment whereof he had spoke.

CHAP. IV.

But hereat Jonah was extremely vext,
And in his mind exceedingly perplext:
And to the Lord his God he pray'd, and said,
O Lord, I pray thee, was not I afraid

Of this, when I was yet at home? Therefore

I unto Tarshish took my flight before:
For that thou art a gracious God I know,
Of tender mercy, and to anger slow,
Of great compassion, and dost oft recall
The evil thou dost threat mankind withal.
Now therefore, Lord, I earnestly do pray
That thou would'st please to take my life away,
For I had better die than live. Dost thou
Do well, said God, to be so angry now?
So then out of the city Jonah went,
And on the east side of it made a tent,*
And underneath the shade thereof he sate,
Expecting what would be the city's fate.
And over Jonah's head behold the Lord
Prepar'd, and caused to come up a gourd
To shadow him, and ease him of his grief;
And Jonah was right glad of this relief.
But God a worm sent early the next day,
Which smote the gourd; it withered away:
And when the sun arose, it came to pass,
That God a vehement east wind did raise;
Besides the sun did beat upon his head,

So that he fainted, saying, Would I were dead;
For it is better for me now to die,

Than thus to lead my life in misery.

, a cover, a booth, bower, or hut made of the bonghs of trees.-ED.

And to distressed Jonah, said the Lord,
Dost thou well to be angry for the gourd?
And he unto the Lord made this reply,
I do well to be angry e'en to die.
Thou hast had pity, Jonah, on the gourd,

For which thou didst not labour, said the Lord,
Nor madest it to grow, which also came
Up in a night, and perish'd in the same.

And should not I extend my gracious pity

To Nineveh, so populous a city,

Where more than six score thousand persons dwell, Who 'twixt their right hand, and their left can tell No difference, wherein are also found

Cattle which do in multitudes abound.

CHAP. XXXVII.

WHEN Jacob from his brother Esau fled,
He by the hand of providence was led
To Padan-aram, in Assyria, where
He serv'd his uncle Laban twenty year;
During which time he was in all things blest,
And with a num'rous issue 'mongst the rest:
Amongst whom none so pleasing in his sight
As Joseph was, who was his chief delight:
Who by the time that Jacob was return'd
Into the land, where's fathers had sojourn'd,
Was full arrived at seventeen years of age;
And by his hopefulness did then presage,
He was endued with a noble mind,
That would to virtuous actions be inclin'd;
For being sent to feed his father's flock,
Among his brethren he great notice took
Of what they did, and if in any sort
They did amiss, he thereof made report
Unto his father, and did thus create
His father's favour, but his brethren's hate.
His father loved him better than the rest,
As being the son wherewith his age was blest.
And that his kindness might the more appear,
Made him a party colour'd coat to wear.
But as it often haps, his father's love
Did in his brethren greater hatred move.

But that which most incens'd them was his dreams,
By which, in a prophetic way, he seems
Their low submission, and his future state
Of greatness plainly to prognosticate.
For to his brethren thus his dreams he told,
And said, As we were binding sheaves, behold,
My sheaf arose and stood up in the field,
And all your sheaves stood round about, to yield
Obeisance unto mine: And what, must we
Indeed, say they, be subject unto thee?
Their wrath increas'd, this added to his crime.
And Joseph dreamed yet a second time;
And said, Behold, I saw the sun and moon,
And the eleven stars to me fall down.
At which his father highly was offended,
And for these words, the lad he reprehended,
And said, Fond youth, dost thou pretend to shew
That I, thy mother, and thy brethren too,
Must all submit to thee? Thou dost but dream:
But Jacob kept his words, and thought of them.

Now Jacob's sons did feed their flocks in Shechem,
And he desired Joseph to go seek them,
And find them out, and come again and tell
If all things with them and their flocks were well.
So Joseph went, and wander'd here and there,
But could not find out where his brethren were,
Until a man had told him their intent

Of going to Dotham, where he also went.
And when his brethren at a distance saw him,
They held a consultation how to slay him,
And said, Here comes the dreamer, we shall see
What the event of all his dreams will be;
For we will kill, and in a pit will hide him,
And say some beast or other hath destroy'd him,
But Reuben somewhat tend'rer than the rest,
Endeavour'd to persuade them to desist
From murder, saying, Into this pit let's cast him,
And this he said in hopes to have releas'd him.
And now when Joseph came not dreading ought,
They stript him of his party colour'd coat,
And led him to a pit that was hard by,

And threw him into't, but the pit was dry.

And sitting down to eat, they chanc'd to spy,

A company of Ishmaelites pass by,

Who with balm, myrrh, and spice, their camels lading,

From Gilead came, and were to Egypt trading.

Then Judah said, "Twill do us little good
To slay our brother, and conceal his blood;
Come therefore, brethren, be advis'd by me,
Let's sell him to these Ishmaelites, for he
Is our own flesh, and 'tis a cruel deed,
To kill him, and to this they all agreed.
Their brother then out of the pit they hale,
And to these merchants offer'd him to sale:
Who, him for twenty silver pieces bought,
And with them to the land of Egypt brought.
But Reuben, ignorant of what was done,
Came to the pit, and seeing the lad was gone,
He rent his clothes in a great consternation,
Returning back with heavy lamentation.
And now that they might make their story good
They kill'd a kid, and dipped in the blood
Their brother Joseph's coat, and home they came,
And to their father's view expos'd the same,
And said, This we have found, now thou dost know
Whether it be thy son's coat, yea or no.
And Jacob knew the coat full well, and said,
Now hath some evil beast devour'd the lad;