Jonah 4:4

"Then said the LORD, Do you well to be angry?" LXX: 'The Lord replied to Jonah, are you so much afflicted?' The Hebrew word hara lach can be translated as 'are you annoyed?' and are you afflicted?'. And each one pertains to the prophet and to the Lord: either he is annoyed and fears appearing a liar to the inhabitants of Nineveh, or he is afflicted, knowing that Israel is going to be destroyed. And with reason God does not say to him: 'you are wrong to get angry' or 'to be afflicted', not wanting to reprehend one suffering, nor does he say, 'you have reason to be angry or afflicted', so as not to contradict his former sentence. But he asks him whether he is angry or afflicted so that he replies the causes of his anger or suffering, or even, if he remains quiet, so that God's truth can be proved by his silence.

But when the days had already passed, as I just said, after which it was likely that the things announced would be accomplished, and then, with the wrath still not taking effect, he understands that God has shown mercy, yet he has not gone entirely outside of hope; but he thinks that a postponement of the evil has been given to them, who chose to repent, yet there will be something from wrath anyway, since they have not shown labors in their repentance equal to their offenses. For what would a three-day sweat profit those buried in every absurd deed, and held fast by such terrible transgressions? Pondering these things to himself, as is likely, he departed from the city, and waits to see what will happen to them; for he expected it either perhaps to fall, being shaken down, or to be burned up by fire, just as Sodom was.

Jonah understood that Israel would be destroyed. For the Lord did not say, "You are angered evilly," lest He seem to blame the saddened man; on the other hand, He did not say, "You are angered rightly," lest He be contrary to His own sentence. Therefore, He questions him concerning the causes of his grief, in order that he may answer, or if he were silent, he may by his silence confirm the judgment of God.