English Standard Version
Jonah 2:1
1Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish,
Jonah 2:1 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish’s belly,
- New International Version (NIV)From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the fish’s belly.
- New Living Translation (NLT)Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from inside the fish.
Context of Jonah 2:1
Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, 2saying, "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. 3For 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.
Read all of Jonah 2Jonah 2:1 word by word
וַיִּתְפַּלֵּ֣ל יוֹנָ֔ה אֶל־יְהוָ֖ה אֱלֹהָ֑יו מִמְּעֵ֖י הַדָּגָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Jonah 2:1
- 2 Chronicles 33:11Therefore the Lord brought upon them the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria, who captured Manasseh with hooks and bound him with chains of bronze and brought him to Babylon.
- Psalms 50:15and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me."
- Psalms 91:15When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.
- Isaiah 26:16O Lord, in distress they sought you; they poured out a whispered prayer when your discipline was upon them.
- Hosea 5:15I will return again to my place, until they acknowledge their guilt and seek my face, and in their distress earnestly seek me.
- Hosea 6:1"Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.
- James 5:13Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise.
- Job 13:15Though he slay me, I will hope in him; yet I will argue my ways to his face.
- Psalms 130:1Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord!
- Lamentations 3:53they flung me alive into the pit and cast stones on me;
- Acts 16:24Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.
Commentaries on Jonah 2:1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1Then Jonah prayed - out of the fish's belly - This verse makes the first of the second chapter in the Hebrew text. It may be asked, "How could Jonah either pray or breathe in the stomach of the fish?" Very easily, if God so willed it. And let the reader keep this constantly in view; the whole is a miracle, from Jonah's being swallowed by the fish till he was cast ashore by the same animal. It was God that had prepared the great fish. It was the Lord that…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1Then - (“And”) Jonah prayed, i. e., when the three days and nights were passed, he uttered this devotion. The word “prayed” includes thanksgiving, not petition only. It is said of Hannah that she “prayed” 1 Samuel 2:1; but her canticle is all one thanksgiving without a single petition. In this thanksgiving Jonah says how his prayers had been heard, but prays no more. God had delivered him from the sea, and be thanks God, in the fish‘s belly, as…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1The prayer of Jonah. (1-9) He is delivered from the fish. (10) Verses 1-9 Observe when Jonah prayed. When he was in trouble, under the tokens of God's displeasure against him for sin: when we are in affliction we must pray. Being kept alive by miracle, he prayed. A sense of God's good-will to us, notwithstanding our offences, opens the lips in prayer, which were closed with the dread of wrath. Also, where he prayed; in the belly of the fish. No place is…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-9Jonah realized that the Lord had kindly saved him by sending the fish. He then created a prayer similar to a psalm. The prayer's careful structure follows the pattern of a personal song of thanks. This suggests Jonah may have written it after the event, as he remembered his feelings and worries.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-101. his God--"his" still, though Jonah had fled from Him. Faith enables Jonah now to feel this; just as the returning prodigal says of the Father, from whom he had wandered, "I will arise and go to my Father" (Lu 15:18). out of the fish's belly--Every place may serve as an oratory. No place is amiss for prayer. Others translate, "when (delivered) out of the fish's belly." English Version is better.Read the comment
Topics related to Jonah 2:1
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Jonah 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- Darby Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
English Standard Version — © 2001 Crossway Bibles
Commentaries