When the walls close in
Right at the centre of this reluctant prophet’s story, hidden in the darkness of a fish’s belly, we find one of the most beautiful prayers in all of Scripture.
Passage: Jonah 2:1-9
“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 breakers and your waves
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.
To the roots of the mountains I went down,
to the land whose bars closed upon me forever.
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.
Those who pay regard to vain idols
forsake their hope of steadfast love.
But I with the voice of thanksgiving
will sacrifice to you;
what I have vowed I will pay.
Salvation belongs to the Lord!”
Two observations
a/ The fish is never called judgment. It is called God’s provision.
b/ Jonah never actually asks to get out.
- Fill your heart before you need it
- Gratitude changes the atmosphere before circumstances change
- Salvation belongs to the Lord
One final observation: Throughout the entire prayer… the fish never changes. Jonah does.
