Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from inside the fish: I called to the Lord in my distress, and He answered me. I cried out for help in the belly of Sheol; You heard my voice. You threw me into the depths, into the heart of the seas, and the current overcame me. All Your breakers and Your billows swept over me. But I said: I have been banished from Your sight, yet I will look once more toward Your holy temple. The waters engulfed me up to the neck; the watery depths overcame me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. I sank to the foundations of the mountains; the earth with its prison bars closed behind me forever! But You raised my life from the Pit, Lord my God! As my life was fading away, I remembered Yahweh. My prayer came to You, to Your holy temple. Those who cling to worthless idols forsake faithful love, but as for me, I will sacrifice to You with a voice of thanksgiving. I will fulfill what I have vowed. Salvation is from the Lord! Then the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land. Jonah 2
My words…
Praise
Father, Your holy scriptures are at times … strange. A man runs away from a job You had given him to do, and You bring him back around in the belly of a big fish. Scholars can’t seem to agree whether this is fact, fiction, allegory or parable. I figure since Jesus mentions Jonah, it must be fact. I hope so! Either way, I can learn so much from Jonah and so much about You. The city of Ninevah was filled with detestable idolators, committing reprehensible acts and calling it worship. Yet, You couldn’t bear that they had not been given a chance to know You. Your limitless mercy is intended for all humankind, no matter how abhorrent. A father who sold his daughter as a sex slave or a mother who sacrificed her baby boy to a heathen god were both worth saving – in Your eyes. Instead of choosing a willing, obedient prophet to preach to the Ninevites, You chose obstinate Jonah who dared to turn his back on You and head out of town. You chose him because Jonah needed to learn something. Jonah needed to grow. Running away from You and his responsibility to You landed him in a dark, wet place with his head wrapped in seaweed. So he prayed, and You saved him. And through him, You saved Ninevah. Praise God from whom salvation is offered freely to all men for all time.
Prayer for me
I identify with Jonah. I get where he’s coming from. What you ask of me is not easy. My heart does not break when I encounter those who live purposefully wicked lives. Instead of being drawn to them as a messenger for You, I am repulsed. I need Your discernment and a measure of Your mercy to see them as lost and searching, caught in a snare set by the evil one. You see them as worth saving, and so must I. Are they any less worthy than I? No. They are not.
Forgive me
Forgive me for my prideful ways. Like Jonah, I have plans of my own. Surely they must be better than Your plans! How foolish. Forgive my reluctance to follow Your lead and trust that I will end up in a better place with a stronger faith.
Prayer for others
Father, today I pray for that someone who is running away from You. She knows You. She has served You in the past. But now her heart has hardened, and she refuses to worship You or pray to You. Perhaps she no longer believes You exist. She needs a Jonah on her doorstep! I pray You send a messenger who will capture her attention so Your Spirit can re-kindle her devotion to You.
Thank You
Thank you for saving Ninevah! In doing so, You offer hope to all, even those who feel they are beyond saving. And thank you for saving Jonah! By doing so, You prove Your longsuffering for all who are running from You.
More praise
Father, I lift this prayer to Your holy temple. I know You hear each word of every prayer as it is uttered. You heard Jonah from the belly of a fish. You hear me now. How magnificent You are! I praise You as the God whose ears are always attentive to the prayers of His children.
