Good News Translation does not make it clear what the king of Nineveh heard about: (1) the message proclaimed by Jonah, (2) the repentance of the people, or (3) the decision that everyone should fast. The Hebrew is equally indefinite, since it merely says that the “word” (davar) reached the king. An American Translation is excessively literal here, with “when the thing reached the king of Nineveh,” leaving it to the imagination to wonder what this “thing” could possibly be. New English Bible‘s “when the news reached the king” fails to define the nature of the news, but it is most natural to suppose that the writer describes first in verse 5 the reaction of the subjects, and then goes on in the next verse to speak of the king’s response to Jonah’s message. Knox takes this verse as a development of the preceding one, with “nay, the king of Nineveh himself.” Living Bible is not justified in including the king among those mentioned in the previous verse, with its “from the king down, everyone….” So here in verse 6 Living Bible presumes that the king has heard Jonah’s message already, and the verse is taken to be an explanation of the action of the people.
In view of the obscure reference of the pronoun it, one may be justified in employing a clause referring to various aspects of what had happened, for example, “when the king of Nineveh heard about all that was happening.” In this way both the preaching of Jonah and the response of the people would be involved. It is quite likely that whatever was said to the king would include both elements.
In a narrative of this kind, it is not necessary to look for the name of a specific king. The very title “king of Nineveh” rather than “king of Assyria” is enough to show that the writer is not concerned with historical details. The description of his activity takes on a chiastic form: he abandons his throne (A), takes off his robes (B), puts on sackcloth (B), and sits, like Job, in ashes (A), as a sign of repentance. Seated on his throne and wearing his robes of state, he is the stock figure of a king, which makes his repentance all the more impressive.
Throne may be rendered as “his great chair” or “his important seat.” On the other hand, a description of the seat as a place of judging or of decision making may also be involved; for example, “the chair from which he gave orders” or “the seat where he judged.”
A literal translation of took off his robe might suggest completely undressing in public. A more satisfactory rendering may be “took off his robe of authority,” or even as in some languages “took off his king’s coat.”
Put on sackcloth is best rendered in many instances as “put on clothing made of sackcloth” or “… coarse cloth.”
In choosing a term for ashes, it is extremely important to distinguish between (1) hot coals and (2) ashes that are cold and have simply been scattered or placed in piles. Therefore sat down in ashes may best be rendered in many instances as “sat down where there were cold ashes.” One would certainly want to avoid any translation that would suggest a “hot seat.”
Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. et al. A Handbook on the Book of Jonah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1978, 1982, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .