II. The Prophet’s Prayer (Jonah 2:1-10)

II. The Prophet’s Prayer (2:1-10)

2:1 When God called Jonah to obedience, when the storm threatened destruction, when sinners criticized his rebellion, nothing changed in Jonah’s attitude. But, when he was swallowed by a fish, Jonah prayed. Some of us don’t get right with God until circumstances are so adverse that they swallow us whole, but God knows what it takes to teach us to repent and pray.

2:2-3 You threw me into the depths (2:3). Ultimately, it wasn’t the sailors but God who was responsible for tossing the prophet overboard. Jonah recognized that they had only done to him what God wanted done. Then, God sent a whale-a-gram and trapped his fleeing prophet. In his glorious sovereignty, he brought Jonah to a place that drove him to call on the Lord.

2:4-6 Jonah had been banished from God’s sight (2:4). He was out of fellowship with God. But then Jonah declared, you raised my life from the Pit (2:6).

Have you ever been in the Pit? Are you there now? If so, there’s good news: The Pit is not a bad place to be if it gets you back into the will of God. When a visit to that place is what it takes to nudge you back on track spiritually, you can thank God for the Pit.

2:7-9 When my son was young, I told him to empty the trash. He told me that he didn’t feel like it, but I assured him I could change the way he felt. And I did. God changed the way Jonah felt because God loved him enough to track him down. As a result, Jonah remembered the Lord (2:7). He remembered that Salvation belongs to the Lord; therefore, he was ready to fulfill what he had previously vowed (2:9). The prophet was ready to fulfill his obligation to speak the words of God.

2:10 Many of us want God to act before we have acted, but notice that God didn’t command change until Jonah got right with him. Then, the fish vomited Jonah onto dry land.

You can go straight to your own Nineveh to begin with, or you can let God get you there the hard way. But be warned: it can get messy if the “Hound of heaven” has to pursue you because of rebellion. He will track you down.