So the shipmaster came to him, and said to him, "What do you mean, sleeper? Arise, call on your gods! Maybe the gods will notice us, so that we won't perish."
Whereas the first pericope of the story (Jonah 1:1-3) illuminates the lack of compassion that characterized the prophet, this second one (Jonah 1:4-6) reinforces it and implies, in contrast, that God is compassionate. Not only was Jonah fleeing from God’s presence, but he was also displaying a character that was antithetical to God’s. Such is often the case when God’s people turn their backs on Him and run from His assignments.