• Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • 0Shopping Cart
Enduring Word
  • Enduring Word
  • About
    • FAQs
    • Free Smartphone App
    • About Enduring Word
    • David Guzik
    • Your Story
    • Pray for Enduring Word
    • Bibliography
    • The Team of Enduring Word
    • Donations
    • Speaking Request
    • Global Dental Mission
    • 2023 Holy Land Cruise
  • Commentary
    • Commentary – English
    • Comentario – Español
    • Comentário – Português
    • 注释 – 中文 (Chinese)
    • (Arabic) تفاسير – اللغة العربية
    • Farsi فارسی
    • русский (Russian)
    • ўзбек (Uzbek)
    • Commentaire – Français
    • Commentario – Italiano
    • Kommentar – Deutsch
    • Commentary – Tamil
    • Nederlandstalige Bijbelstudies door Stan Marinussen
  • Media
    • YouTube Channel
    • Question & Answer Videos
    • Q&A Podcast
    • Q&A Topics
    • Video
    • Audio Messages
    • YouVersion Devotional Reading Plans
  • Social Media
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
  • Store
    • New & Featured
    • Bible Commentaries
    • For the Christian Life
    • By J. Edwin Orr
  • The Post
  • Blog
    • Q&A with David Guzik
    • Weekly Devotional
    • For Pastors, Preachers, Bible Teachers
    • Bible Study Tools
    • Thinking About…
    • Creed
  • Donate
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
  • Jonah
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4

Jonah 2 – In the Belly of the Fish

A. Jonah in the fish.

1. (1:17) Jonah’s three days and nights in the fish.

Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

a. The LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah: Some people question if this could happen as the Bible says it did; but surely it is not a difficult thing for God to have prepared a great fish, even if that particular fish was a special creation for that moment.

i. We don’t know what kind of fish this was. Some speculate it was a species of whale, others say it was a large fish known as the “sea-dog.” All we can say for certain is that for Jonah, it was a “lifeboat fish.”

ii. There is a story of a whaler named James Bartley, who in 1891 reportedly fell into the sea while harpooning a large sperm whale. When the whale was killed and dissected, Bartley was found in the whale’s stomach, unconscious but alive. While some have argued that the incident was carefully investigated and true, the widow of the ship’s captain denied that it ever happened.

iii. It may be questioned if the story of James Bartley is true or not, but certainly the story of Jonah is true because Jesus said it was true. In Matthew 12:40 we read that Jesus said Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish.

b. Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights: Though Jonah was a rebellious, resistant, believer, God was not finished with him yet – so the LORD preserved his life.

i. God could have rescued Jonah in any number of ways. He chose this specific way because of the effect it would have on Jonah’s heart.

ii. The book of Jonah shows us important principles about the sovereignty of God. What happens when God wants a person to do something, but the person doesn’t want to do it? Jonah shows us that God has a way of bringing us to the place where we want what God wants.

c. Three days and three nights: Apparently, Jonah did nothing for three days and three nights in the belly of the fish; it was only after that period was over that he prayed the prayer following.

i. Some have wondered if Jonah spent the time sulking, and finally decided he had to repent fully and seek God – perhaps this was the case. However, the starting point of the prayer in Jonah 2 seems to show that Jonah had cried out to God all the time. The prayer of Jonah 2 came after Jonah received assurance from God that he would be delivered.

2. (2:1-2) Jonah praises God for His deliverance.

Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the fish’s belly. And he said:

“I cried out to the LORD because of my affliction,
And He answered me.
Out of the belly of Sheol I cried,
And You heard my voice.”

a. Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the fish’s belly: Jonah was still in the belly of the fish but he knew it was enough that the LORD had heard his cry (You heard my voice). In faith, Jonah knew that he would be delivered.

i. Jonah knew God heard him before the answer came. This shows that Jonah had faith and that God can give total peace and assurance that prayer is answered, even before the actual answer comes.

b. I cried out to the LORD: In this and the rest of the chapter, Jonah’s prayer uses many phrases and figures of speech from the Psalms. This shows that Jonah was a man who knew God’s word, and knew it by heart because there was no Bible and no candle in the fish’s belly.

· In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried out to my God; He heard my voice from His temple. (Psalm 18:6)

· Deep calls unto deep at the noise of Your waterfalls; all Your waves and billows have gone over me. (Psalm 42:7)

· For I said in my haste, “I am cut off from before Your eyes”; nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications when I cried out to You. (Psalm 31:22)

3. (3-7) Jonah describes his trouble, his cry to God, and God’s faithful answer.

“For You cast me into the deep,
Into the heart of the seas,
And the floods surrounded me;
All Your billows and Your waves passed over me.
Then I said, ‘I have been cast out of Your sight;
Yet I will look again toward Your holy temple.’
The waters surrounded me, even to my soul;
The deep closed around me;
Weeds were wrapped around my head.
I went down to the moorings of the mountains;
The earth with its bars closed behind me forever;
Yet You have brought up my life from the pit,
O LORD, my God.
When my soul fainted within me,
I remembered the LORD;
And my prayer went up to You,
Into Your holy temple.”

a. You cast me into the deep: Jonah realized that it wasn’t the sailors who cast him into the sea – it was God Himself. Jonah saw that he had never been out of God’s hands, though he tried to run from Him.

b. I have been cast out of Your sight: Jonah’s greatest pain was not the calamity, but his separation from God – his feeling that he was cast out of Your sight. Still, he was determined – even in the belly of a fish – to turn his heart towards God and His temple. Simply, Jonah remembered the LORD.

c. Yet You have brought up my life from the pit, O LORD, my God: Again, Jonah could praise God for the answer to prayer before the answer came because God gave him assurance.

4. (8-9) Jonah declares his commitment to God.

“Those who regard worthless idols
Forsake their own Mercy.
But I will sacrifice to You
With the voice of thanksgiving;
I will pay what I have vowed.
Salvation is of the LORD.”

a. Those who regard worthless idols forsake their own Mercy: Jonah realized that resisting God, running from Him, was like being an idolater.

b. But I will sacrifice to You: Jonah repented from running away from God, and he turned to God with sacrifice and thanksgiving. He promised to pay his vows to God, and do whatever God told him to do,

i. At one time or another, Jonah had probably said what we all have said: “Lord, I’ll do whatever You want me to do.” Now Jonah realized fully that he must stop resisting God and he should pay his vows to God.

c. Salvation is of the LORD: This was more than a statement of fact; it was Jonah’s triumphant declaration. God had saved and would save, and Jonah meant it personally. Jonah’s salvation is of the LORD.

i. Jonah knows this in the close-up picture; he knew that his salvation is of the LORD. He also now knew it in the big picture; that salvation is not of a nation or a race or a language. Salvation is not of man at all; salvation is of the LORD.

d. At the end of Jonah 2:9 it is clear that Jonah has repented, but we might wonder when did Jonah repent? Jonah showed several marks of true repentance.

· Jonah proclaimed his fear of the LORD and he was honest about his sin and rebellion, no longer covering it up (Jonah 1:9).

· Jonah allowed himself to be cast into the sea (Jonah 1:12).

· Jonah began to pray; he called out to God during the three days and three nights in the belly of the fish (Jonah 2:2, 2:4, and 2:7).

· Jonah had a new heart of gratitude (Jonah 2:9).

· Jonah renewed the commitment to his vow (Jonah 2:9).

· Jonah gave glory to God in all of this (Jonah 2:9).

i. In all this we see repentance as more than a one-time event. Though it begins at one time, it must continue and mature. Repentance is an event, but it is also a process.

B. Jonah out of the fish.

1. (10a) God speaks to the fish.

So the LORD spoke to the fish,

a. The LORD spoke to the fish: The fish worked at the command of God. Just as much as the fish was under the command of God when it swallowed Jonah, it was under His command when it let him go.

b. To the fish: If God can speak to a fish, He can speak to us. Then again, fish probably don’t resist the will of God as we do.

2. (10b) Jonah is expelled from the fish.

And it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

a. Vomited Jonah: Sometimes we don’t have much of a choice about how we will be delivered. Jonah might have preferred another method, but God had a purpose in this also.

i. Jonah’s deliverance came after Jonah’s repentance was complete. Jonah wasn’t just sorry for what he did; he was now trusting God again. In many believers today, there is a work of God, or an aspect of His deliverance, that will remain undone as long as that believer resists Him and refuses to trust God.

ii. Jonah’s deliverance came after three days and nights had passed, providing a foreshadowing of Jesus’ resurrection. Jesus said, For 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 (Matthew 12:40).

iii. When Jesus spoke of three days and three nights in Matthew 12:40, it does make a Thursday crucifixion necessary. Rabbinic literature from the time of Jesus explains that the phrase “so many days and so many nights” was a figure of speech that could refer to any part of a day and night. Ellison notes that Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah (around the year A.D. 100) said: “A day and a night make a whole day, and a portion of a whole day is reckoned as a whole day.” This demonstrates how in Jesus’ day, the phrase three days and three nights did not necessarily mean a 72-hour period, but a period including at least the portions of three days and three nights.

iv. Pointing towards the Messiah to come, Jesus Christ, we see that Jonah’s deliverance came after a remarkable demonstration of laying down one’s life. Jonah gave his life to appease the wrath of God coming upon others. But death did not hold him; after three days and nights of imprisonment, he was alive and free.

b. Onto dry land: It is commonly thought that Jonah was vomited out on the shores of Nineveh – but we are not told that this was the case, especially because Nineveh is about 375 miles from the Mediterranean Sea. If Jonah did walk into Nineveh right from the belly of the fish, it would have been a miraculous projection of the fish’s vomit.

© 2022 The Enduring Word Bible Commentary by David Guzik – ewm@enduringword.com

Tweet
Pin1
Share2
3 Shares
Bible Commentary Quick Navigation
Start Here!

Old Testament

Gen Exo Lev Num Deu Jos Jud Rut 1Sa 2Sa 1Ki 2Ki 1Ch 2Ch Ezr Neh Est Job Psa Pro Ecc Son Isa Jer Lam Eze Dan Hos Joe Amo Oba Jon Mic Nah Hab Zep Hag Zec Mal

New Testament

Mat Mar Luk Joh Act Rom 1Co 2Co Gal Eph Phi Col 1Th 2Th 1Ti 2Ti Tit Phm Heb Jam 1Pe 2Pe 1Jo 2Jo 3Jo Jud Rev
Back

Genesis

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50
Back

Matthew

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Back

Mark

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
Back

Exodus

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
Back

Leviticus

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27
Back

Luke

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Back

John

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21
Back

Numbers

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36
Back

Deuteronomy

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34
Back

Acts

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Back

Romans

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
Back

Joshua

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 18 20 21 22 23 24
Back

Judges

1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21
Back

1 Corinthians

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
Back

2 Corinthians

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
Back

Ruth

1 2 3 4
Back

1 Samuel

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Back

Galatians

1 2 3 4 5 6
Back

Ephesians

1 2 3 4 5 6
Back

2 Samuel

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Back

1 Kings

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
Back

Philippians

1 2 3 4
Back

Colossians

1 2 3 4
Back

2 Kings

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Back

1 Chronicles

1 2 3 4 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29
Back

1 Thessalonians

1 2 3 4 5
Back

2 Thessalonians

1 2 3
Back

2 Chronicles

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36
Back

Ezra

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Back

1 Timothy

1 2 3 4 5 6
Back

2 Timothy

1 2 3 4
Back

Nehemiah

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
Back

Esther

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Back

Titus

1 2 3
Back

Philemon

1
Back

Job

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42
Back

Psalm

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150
Back

Hebrews

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
Back

James

1 2 3 4 5
Back

Proverbs

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Back

Ecclesiastes

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Back

1 Peter

1 2 3 4 5
Back

2 Peter

1 2 3
Back

Song of Solomon

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Back

Isaiah

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66
Back

1 John

1 2 3 4 5
Back

2 John

1
Back

Jeremiah

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52
Back

Lamentations

1 2 3 4 5
Back

3 John

1
Back

Ezekiel

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48
Back

Daniel

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Back

Revelation

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
Back

Hosea

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
Back

Joel

1 2 3
Back

Amos

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Back

Obadiah

1
Back

Jonah

1 2 3 4
Back

Micah

1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Back

Nahum

1 2 3
Back

Habakkuk

1 2 3
Back

Zephaniah

1 2 3
Back

Haggai

1 2
Back

Zechariah

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
Back

Malachi

1 2 3 4

Subscribe

* indicates required
Get Prayer Requests and Updates from David Guzik
Receive David Guzik's Weekly Devotional
Special Emails: Pastors, Preachers, Bible Teachers

Enduring Word YouTube Channel

The Post

local-view-digital-marketing-september-2022-ad

Latest Blog Posts

  • All I KnowAll I KnowMarch 12, 2023 - 8:18 pm
  • Thankful for a Problem ChurchThankful for a Problem ChurchMarch 5, 2023 - 7:33 pm
  • The Glory of Everyday BelieversThe Glory of Everyday BelieversFebruary 26, 2023 - 10:24 pm
© Copyright - Enduring Word       |      Site Hosted & Maintained by Local View Digital Marketing    |    Privacy Policy
Scroll to top

Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. By proceeding, you consent to our cookie usage. Please see our Privacy Policy for cookie usage details.

Privacy PolicyOK

Cookie and Privacy Settings



How we use cookies

We may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website.

Click on the different category headings to find out more. You can also change some of your preferences. Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer.

Essential Website Cookies

These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features.

Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site.

We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain.

We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. You can check these in your browser security settings.

Google Analytics Cookies

These cookies collect information that is used either in aggregate form to help us understand how our website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are, or to help us customize our website and application for you in order to enhance your experience.

If you do not want that we track your visit to our site you can disable tracking in your browser here:

Other external services

We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Changes will take effect once you reload the page.

Google Webfont Settings:

Google Map Settings:

Google reCaptcha Settings:

Vimeo and Youtube video embeds:

Other cookies

The following cookies are also needed - You can choose if you want to allow them:

Privacy Policy

You can read about our cookies and privacy settings in detail on our Privacy Policy Page.

Privacy Policy
Accept settingsHide notification only