Jonah 2:2

The Pulpit Commentary - Jonah 2:2-3

Affliction and prayer. Doubtless the language of this psalm of thanksgiving was the result of subsequent meditation, for it is evidently a studied composition, resembling in passages several of the sacred Hebrew odes. But the sentiments were those actually experienced by the prophet when in the most humiliating position. In his experience was much which may prove very instructive and helpful to ourselves. I. DEEP AFFLICTION . The language of Jonah 2:3 , literally descriptive of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jonah 2:2-10

Triumph, thanksgiving. "And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice," etc. This is one of the most striking instances in all Scripture of the benefit of believing prayer. "Lord, what a change within us one short hour Spent in thy presence will prevail to make! What heavy burdens from our bosom take! What parched lands refresh as with a shower! We kneel, and all around us seems to... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Jonah 2:2

I cried by reason of mine affliction - , or, “out of affliction” which came “to me.” So the Psalmist thanked God in the same words, though in a different order ; “To the Lord in trouble to me I called, and He heard me.” He “called,” and God heard and answered , “He does not say, I “call,” but I “called”; he does not pray for the future, but gives thanks for the past.” Strange cause of thankfulness this would seem to most faith, to be alive in such a grave; to abide there hour after hour, and... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Jonah 2:1-2

Jonah 2:1-2. Then Jonah prayed Those devout thoughts and feelings which he had at that time, he afterward digested into the following prayer, and added a thanksgiving for his deliverance at the end of it. So several of David’s Psalms were probably composed after his trouble was over; but in a manner suitable to the thoughts he had at the time of his affliction; and with a grateful sense of God’s mercies for his deliverance out of it: see Psalms 54:0. and 120. And he heard me He thanks God... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Jonah 2:1-10

2:1-10 A PSALM OF THANKSGIVINGJonah regained consciousness inside the great fish. This almost unbelievable experience caused him to believe that it was God’s way of saving his life. From inside the fish he then thanked God for saving him from drowning. He seems to have remembered phrases from various psalms and prayers used in temple worship, and he brought these together to form his own prayer of thanksgiving.In the opening words of the psalm Jonah recalled his prayer of desperation as he... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Jonah 2:2

cried = cried out. Not the same word as in the next clause, or in Jonah 1:5 ; but the same as in Jonah 1:2 , Jonah 1:5 , Jonah 1:14 . heard = answered. Hebrew. anah . Not the same word as in the next clause. hell. Hebrew. Sheol . App-35 . Compare Psalms 18:5 ; Psalms 116:3 . cried = cried for help in distress. Not the same word as in preceding clause, or in Jonah 1:2 , Jonah 1:5 , Jonah 1:14 . heardest = gavest heed to. Hebrew. shama . Not the same word as in preceding clause. hadst... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Jonah 2:2

"I called by reason of my affliction unto Jehovah,And he answered me;Out of the belly of Sheol cried I,And thou heardest my voice."This marvelous prayer which God heard and answered was not offered from any formal position such as kneeling, standing, etc. "The Bible shows by example that men may pray in any posture."[15] The Scriptures show that men prayed kneeling (1 Kings 8:54), standing (Nehemiah 9:5; Luke 18:13), bowing down on the earth with face between the knees (1 Kings 18:42), lying in... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Jonah 2:2

2. His prayer is partly descriptive and precatory, partly eucharistical. Jonah incorporates with his own language inspired utterances familiar to the Church long before in Jonah 2:2; Psalms 120:1; in Jonah 2:3; Psalms 42:7; in Jonah 2:4; Psalms 31:22; in Jonah 2:5; Psalms 69:1; in Jonah 2:7; Psalms 142:3; Psalms 18:6; in Jonah 2:8; Psalms 31:6; in Jonah 2:9; Psalms 116:17; Psalms 116:18; Psalms 3:8. Jonah, an inspired man, thus attests both the antiquity and inspiration of the Psalms. It marks... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Jonah 2:2

Jonah, as many others, called to the Lord out of a distressing situation asking for help, and the Lord responded to his cry with deliverance (cf. Psalms 3:4; Psalms 120:1). The second part of the verse is a parallel restatement of the first part. The prophet compared the fish’s stomach to a burial chamber from which he could not escape. "Depth" is literally the "belly" of Sheol, the place of departed souls that the Hebrews conceived of as under the earth’s surface. Jonah thought that he had... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Jonah 2:2-9

F. Jonah’s psalm of thanksgiving 2:2-9The following prayer is mainly thanksgiving for deliverance from drowning. It is not thanksgiving for deliverance from the fish or a prayer of confession, as we might expect. Jonah prayed it while he was in the fish. Evidently he concluded after some time in the fish’s stomach that he would not die from drowning. Drowning was a particularly distasteful form of death for an ancient Near Easterner such as Jonah who regarded the sea as a great enemy. Jonah’s... read more

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