“Now the Lord had arranged for a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.” (Verse 1:12). What was Jonah thinking during those 72 hours? He might have thought, “I wish I hadn’t told them to throw me overboard.”
It appears that Jonah waited for either most or all of the 72 hours he was inside the fish before he got around to praying. We know he was in the hold of a ship sound asleep. Was he now in the belly of a fish sound asleep?
“In my great trouble I cried to the Lord and He answered me; from the depth of death, I called, and Lord, You heard me.” (Verse 2). I think what Jonah was saying was that when the sailors threw him overboard and he was sinking into a watery grave, his cry of help was heard by the Lord and that was when the fish swallowed him and saved his life.
But after three days in the fish’s belly, he gave up the idea of rescue. “When I had lost all hope, I turned my thoughts once more to the Lord. And my earnest prayer went to You in Your holy Temple.” (Verse 7). In Hebrews 6, Paul used a similar illustration. “When a farmer’s land has had many showers upon it and good crops came up, that land has experienced God’s blessing upon it. But if it keeps on having crops of thistles and thorns, the land is considered no good and is ready for condemnation and being burned off.” (Verses 7-8).
What Paul is saying here is not about a Christian losing his salvation and going to hell. After burning their fields off, the farmer would again cultivate his field and plant new crops. Today’s farmers use herbicides rather than burning their fields. Sometimes in our lives we wander so far from the Lord that the only way He can get our attention is by bringing severe trials into our lives. Not every trial is one of these type like Jonah’s.
James tells us, “Dear Brothers, is your life full of difficulties and temptations? Then be happy, for when the way is rough, your patience has a chance to grow. So let it grow, and don’t try to squirm out of your problems. For when your patience is finally in full bloom, then you will be ready for anything, strong in character, full and complete.” (James 1:2-4).
No, Jonah’s problem was much greater because God had an assignment for him, a ministry, and Jonah rejected it and God, Who gave it to him. Jonah finally came to himself like the burned field. “I will never worship anyone but You! For how can I thank You enough for all You have done? I will surely fulfill my promises. For my deliverance came from the Lord alone.” (Verse 9).
So what was the result of Jonah’s repentance? “And the Lord ordered the fish to spit up Jonah on the beach, and it did. (Verse 10).