Explore the story of Jonah as we unpack his prayer and reflections from the belly of a great fish in Chapter 2. In this episode, we discuss the symbolic significance of the three days and nights Jonah spent in the fish and how it mirrors the deeper themes of redemption and faith. Through personal journal insights and biblical interpretations, you’ll discover the timeless lessons from Jonah’s journey that resonate with us deeply today.
Welcome to Add Bible, an audio daily devotion from the Ezra Project. Allen J. Huth shares a Bible passage with comments from over 35 years of his personal Bible reading journals and applies the Word of God to our daily lives.
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Today we are in Jonah chapter 2. After Jonah got swallowed by the whale in chapter 1, he has a prayer to the Lord in this chapter. Let’s listen in to our guest reader, Oda Nordpool, as she reads Jonah chapter 2.
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Then Jonah prayed to the Lord, his God from the belly of the fish, saying, I called out to the Lord out of my distress, and he answered me. Out of the belly of Sheol I cried. And you heard my voice, for you cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the flood surrounded me. All your waves and your billows passed over me. Then I said, I am driven away from your sight, yet I shall again look upon your holy temple. The waters closed in over me to take my life. The deep surrounded me. Weeds were wrapped about my head, and the roots of the mountains. I went down to the land whose bars closed upon me forever. Yet you brought my life from the pit. Oh, Lord, my God. When my life was fainting away, I remember the Lord, and my prayer came to you into your holy temple. Those who pay regard to vain idols forsake their hope of steadfast love. But I, with the voice of thanksgiving, will sacrifice you. What I have owed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord. And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land.
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As I mentioned in yesterday’s recording, most of the time you read Jonah all in one day. That was the case in 1991, and the case again in 2010. I referred to my journal entry in 1991 in yesterday’s recording, so let’s look at 2010. On that day, I read all of the book of Jonah, but I’ll refer to only the parts relating to the first couple of chapters. I wrote in my journal, before Nahum prophesied against Nineveh, Jonah was instructed to do so. So I went back and read Jonah this morning. As with Nahum, Jonah was specifically instructed to call out against Nineveh. Jonah was told to go there. Jonah refused to go. God tells him again to go. So those were my journal entries in 2010 concerning the first couple of chapters of Jonah. In 2013, I read the book of Jonah a chapter a day. On this day, concerning chapter 2, I wrote, Jonah prayed from the stomach of the fish, according to verse 1. He prayed a prayer of thanksgiving for saving his life in the stormy sea. He was drowning. The current engulfed me. Your brakes and billows passed over me. Water encompassed me to the point of death. God was not easy on Jonah. He beat him up pretty good to the point of death before he saved him with the fish. After three days to get his bearing straight and recommit to the Lord, Jonah gets vomited by the fish. None of this is a fun experience. Those were my personal Bible reading journal entries, so now let’s take a look at the principles of Jonah chapter 2. At the end of chapter 1, the last verse says, Chapter 2 opens with Jonah’s prayer from the belly of the fish. Before we get too far along in chapter 2, the first question you may have is, is this even believable? To get some insight, let me turn to my English Standard Version Study Bible footnote. It says, Fish is not limited to what is called fish today, generally cold-blooded vertebrae sea creatures with fins and gills, but it is a general word for an aquatic beast which cannot be identified further. However, a large whale, such as a sperm whale, could easily swallow a man whole. So, is the story believable? It really doesn’t matter to me how man justifies the possibility of this happening. What matters to me is in the Word of God. Again, the last verse of chapter 1 says, The Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. Therefore, it’s not only possible, it’s real. If we don’t believe the story, then we don’t believe the Lord could have appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah, and we doubt the veracity of the scriptures themselves. Next, let’s take a look at the period of three days and three nights. Again, my English Standard Version Study Bible footnote. It says, “…though this may be a symbolic expression for a time of dying and rising…” more likely it describes the actual number of days, or parts of three days, according to accepted reckoning of the days at that time. In either case, it has associations with return from death or near death, which perhaps is why Jesus likened the time between his own death and resurrection to Jonah’s time in the fish, and that’s referring to Matthew 12, verse 40. So did Jonah spend three days and three nights in the belly of a whale? Most likely, he did. And, again, if we don’t believe the story, we doubt Jesus. In Matthew chapter 12, beginning with verse 38, some scribes and Pharisees questioned Jesus. They say we wish to see a sign from you. But he answered them, An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Again, if we don’t believe the story of Jonah being swallowed by a fish and spending three days and three nights in the belly of that fish, then we doubt the words of Jesus who confirms the story with his own words in Matthew chapter 12. Now let’s take a look at Jonah’s prayer here in chapter 2. Jonah is in distress. No kidding. He cries out to the Lord. You and I probably would too if we were in the belly of a sperm whale. Jonah recounts his recent experience. Verse 3, Remember, he was cast into the sea in a big storm. Verse 5, the waters closed in over me to take my life. The deep surrounded me. Weeds were wrapped about my head. Yes, Jonah was drowning. His life was at stake for disobeying God. Do you feel like sometimes you’re drowning because you’re not obedient to the Lord? Are you surrounded by the flood of despair? Are the waters of life closing in around you? Are the weeds of life wrapped around your head or in your head? If so, read on, verse 6. Yet you brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God. When my life was fainting away, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came to you into your holy temple. Yes, God saved Jonah. He can save you. He can get you out of the pit of your life. But remember, Jonah is praying. Are you praying about your circumstances? Are you asking God to unwrap the weeds in your life? Are you asking God to raise you up from the pit? Will you do like Jonah and say, I remembered the Lord. Jonah concludes his prayer in verse 9. But I, with the voice of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you what I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord. From the belly of a whale, Jonah is voicing thanksgiving and promises to the Lord. Maybe you’ve been there. You’re up against the wall and you’ve said this time, Lord, if you’re real, save me, help me. And if you do, I’ll live for you forever. That’s basically Jonah’s cry from the belly of a whale. Save my life and I’ll live for you. Salvation belongs to the Lord. I hope if you’re desperate, if your life is full of weeds, if you’re being overcome by the waters of life, that you remember the Lord, that you cry out to the Lord with a voice of thanksgiving and a voice of promise that you’ll do better. God saved Jonah from the belly of a whale. He can save you in your circumstances as well. Verse 10 concludes the chapter. And the Lord spoke to the fish and had vomited Jonah out upon the dry land. Yes, the Lord delivered Jonah from his life-threatening circumstances. He can vomit you out of your life-challenging circumstances as well. Like Jonah, pray to the Lord. Call out to Him in your distress. Allow Him to speak to your circumstances and get you out and back to dry land. Let’s pray. Father, what a beautiful chapter. What an example of prayer and desperation from Jonah. Some who are listening may be in a circumstance like Jonah. They’re desperate. Waters of life are surrounding them. The weeds are wrapped around them. They’re in a place where they themselves can’t do much about getting out of their circumstances. They need you. Thank you for the reminder that salvation belongs to the Lord. Thank you for the example that you spoke to the fish. You spoke to Jonah’s circumstances. Lord, we ask you to speak into ours today. And as you do, remind us in our desperation that we vowed to you that it would be different this time if you saved us out of this mess. We’re going to see that this circumstance did change Jonah. May it change us as well. Father, hear our prayers of distress. Lead us to dry land. In your name we ask it. Amen. Thanks for listening to AdBible today. Maybe you wonder if Old Testament prophecy is true, came true already, or is coming true in the future. First, most prophets had a recurring theme. God loves us. Because he loves us so much, he gave us commandments, rules, statutes to live by. If we live by them, we can be blessed beyond what we can think or imagine. But when we choose to disregard, ignore, and set aside his rules, we are subject to his curses. We live under curses until things get so bad we cry out to God. He’s always there, waiting for our cry. Most often, but not always, He responds with grace, love, mercy, and forgiveness. We get back in line, then the cycle repeats. The Old Testament prophets cover this cycle over and over. Sometimes we wonder how the Israelites could have been so foolish. Yet, in our day, we have the same choice. We know God loves us. We generally know the rules, and we’d know them a lot better if we were more consistent in our time in God’s Word. Yet we decide, like those in the Old Testament, to ignore them and live out our lives. Things don’t often go well, so we finally cry out to God. As we see in the Old Testament, prophecy comes true as God restores rebellious, disobedient people like us back into right relationship with Him. But it is not always the case. Sometimes He has enough and does not deliver them. So yes, Old Testament prophecies are true, they came true, and they will come true in the future as we cycle through the same life choices the Israelites made. Thus, the value of reading all the Old Testament prophets Maybe we will learn what they tried to teach. God loves us. Keep His rules, love Him back, and enjoy His blessings. Thanks for listening to AdBible today. As we begin 2025, your financial partnership is so very important to The Ezra Project as we work our way through our first year of radio programming. In honor of your support of AdBible, connecting God’s people to God’s Word, we will send you the day-by-day book, The Writings of the Old Testament Historical Books, for any donation. It is the book we started with in 2025 on AdBible. The book covers Job, Ruth, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles. 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