precise significance of this number, they all share the notion of preservation of life, renewal of life, or a new beginning of life. Certainly for the early Christian community, Jesus’ resurrection on the third day likewise points to the renewal of life for all creation. ■ 2:1–9 Following a brief introduction (v 1), the narrator records in vv 2–9 the prayer of Jonah while he was inside the fish. Fish is in the masculine gender in 1:17 and 2:10; it is in the feminine in 2:1. After noting various interpretations