Jonah 2
Contemporary English Version
Jonah's Prayer
2 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 deep
below the mountains
beneath the sea.
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 (A) The Lord commanded the fish to vomit up Jonah on the shore. And it did.
Jonah 2
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
A Psalm of Thanksgiving
2 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, 2 saying,
“I called to the Lord out of my distress,
and he answered me;
out of the belly of Sheol I cried,
and you heard my voice.
3 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.(A)
4 Then I said, ‘I am driven away
from your sight;
how[a] shall I look again
upon your holy temple?’(B)
5 The waters closed in over me;
the deep surrounded me;
weeds were wrapped around my head(C)
6 at the roots of the mountains.
I went down to the land
whose bars closed upon me forever;
yet you brought up my life from the Pit,
O Lord my God.(D)
7 As my life was ebbing away,
I remembered the Lord,
and my prayer came to you,
into your holy temple.(E)
8 Those who worship vain idols
forsake their true loyalty.(F)
9 But I with the voice of thanksgiving
will sacrifice to you;
what I have vowed I will pay.
Deliverance belongs to the Lord!”(G)
10 Then the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out onto the dry land.
Footnotes
- 2.4 Theodotion: Heb surely
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New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.