Jonah’s Prayer
1 From inside the fish, Jonah prayed to the Lord his God:
2 When I was in trouble, Lord,
I prayed to you,
and you listened
to me.
From deep in the world
of the dead,
I begged for your help,
and you answered
my prayer.
3 You threw me down
to the bottom
of the sea.
The water was churning
all around;
I was completely covered
by your mighty
waves.
4 I thought I was swept away
from your sight,
never again to see
your holy temple.
5 I was almost drowned
by the swirling waters
that surrounded
me.
Seaweed had wrapped
around my head.
6 I had sunk down below
the underwater
mountains;
I knew that forever,
I would be a prisoner
there.
But, you, Lord God,
rescued me from
that pit.
7 When my life was slipping away,
I remembered you—
and in your holy temple
you heard my prayer.
8 All who worship worthless idols
turn from the God
who offers them
mercy.
9 But with shouts of praise,
I will offer a sacrifice
to you, my Lord.
I will keep my promise,
because you are the one
with power to
save.
10 The Lord commanded the fish to vomit up Jonah on the shore.
And it did.
The Contemporary English Version, c1995 by the American Bible Society.
Selected texts provided for use with the Amos: Hypertext Bible Commentary