But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth
As the king was, and the people also were; and this order
enjoined the same to the beasts, horses, and camels, whose rich
trappings were to be taken off, and sackcloth put upon them, for
the greater solemnity, of the mourning; as at this day, at the
funerals of great persons, not only the horses which draw the
hearse and mourning, coaches are covered with black velvet, to
make the solemnity more awful: but others are led, clothed in
like manner: and cry mightily unto God;
which clause stands so closely connected with the former, as if
it respected beasts as well as men, who sometimes are said to cry
for food in times of drought and distress, ( Joel 1:20 ) ; and who
here might purposely be kept from food and drink, that they might
cry, and so the more affect the minds of the Ninevites, in their
humiliation and abasement; but men are principally meant, at
least who were to cry unto God intensely and earnestly, with
great ardour, fervency, and importunity; not only aloud, and with
a strong voice, but with their whole heart, as Kimchi and Ben
Melech interpret it; heartily, sincerely, and devoutly, for the
averting divine wrath, and the pardon of their sins, and the
sparing of their city: yea, let them turn everyone from his
evil way;
as well knowing that fasting and prayer would be of no avail,
without leaving everyone their sinful courses, and reforming
their life and manners: and from the violence that [is] in
their hands:
their rapine and oppression, their thefts and robberies, and
preying upon the substance of others; which seem to be the
reigning vices of this city, in doing which many murders were
committed also; see ( Nahum 3:1 ) ; the Jewish
writers interpret this of making restitution for rapine and
violence, which is a genuine fruit of repentance; see ( Luke 19:8 ) . The
Septuagint version understands this, not as a direction from the
king to the men of Nineveh what they should do, but as a
narrative of what they did; and no doubt but they did these
things, put on sackcloth, fast, pray, and turn from their evil
ways; yet they are the instructions of the king unto them and the
orders he gave them.
Jonah 3:8
