Jonah 2: Jonah’s Prayer
v.1,2 Jonah prays in faith – God heard his call
v.1 From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the LORD his God.
v.2 He said: “In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me. From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help, and you listened to my cry.
v.3,4 He acknowledges this is God’s word but prays with hope
v.3 You hurled me into the depths, into the very heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about me; all your waves and breakers swept over me.
v.4 I said, ‘I have been banished from your sight; yet I will look again toward your holy temple.’
v.5,6 Everything about this was life-terminating
v.5 The engulfing waters threatened me, the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head.
v.6 To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you, LORD my God, brought my life up from the pit.
v.7,8 As he lost hope he cried out to the Lord
v.7 “When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, LORD, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple.
v.8 “Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them.
v.9,10 He prays in faith and God answers – he is delivered from the fish
v.9 But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the LORD.’ ”
v.10 And the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
[Notes: Verse 1 tells us Jonah prayed but verse 2 confirms that and is the first sign of his prayer being answered. Verse 3 confirms he believes it is an act of God that he is there but whether verse 4 is a statement of faith inside the fish or an addition after he is expelled from the fish is unclear. Verses 5 & 6 explain that as he went down into the depths he concluded this was the end. Yet even there – verse 7 – he prays for help. Unlike pagans, he will praise the Lord – verses 8 & 9 – and the Lord [v.10] gets the fish to spew him out. [Activity No.6 of God]
For those who may wish to make a study of this chapter, to perhaps think some more about what you have been reading, use the link below: