Jonah 2

Jonah’s Prayer

^*From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God. He said:

“In my distress I called^a to the Lord,^b

and he answered me.

From deep in the realm of the dead^c I called for help,

and you listened to my cry.

You hurled me into the deep,^d

into the very heart of the seas,

and the currents swirled about me;

all your waves^e and breakers

swept over me.^f

I said, ‘I have been banished

from your sight;^g

yet I will look again

toward your holy temple.’^h

The engulfing waters threatened me,

the deep surrounded me;

seaweed was wrapped around my head.ⁱ

To the roots of the mountains^j I sank down;

the earth beneath barred me in forever.

But you, Lord my God,

brought my life up from the pit.^k

“When my life was ebbing away,

I remembered^l you, Lord,

and my prayer^m rose to you,

to your holy temple.ⁿ

“Those who cling to worthless idols^o

forfeit God’s love for them.

But I, with shouts of grateful praise,^p

will sacrifice^q to you.

What I have vowed^r I will make good.

I will say, ‘Salvation^s comes from the Lord.’ ”

And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.