Jonah 2:9
"Salvation is of the LORD."
This verse concludes Jonah’s prayer from within the belly of the great fish, as he reflects on his dire circumstances and experiences. After crying out to God in distress and acknowledging His Sovereignty and Mercy, Jonah's prayer culminates in a vow of thanksgiving and praise. Here, Jonah declares that "Salvation is of the LORD." No truer words could have been spoken, as this declaration, prompted by the Spirit of God within Jonah, expresses the essence of THE FAITH revealed in all Scripture. It is the foundational truth of the God of the Bible and the confession of every elect child of God, in whom the Spirit of Christ is revealed. This acknowledgment of God’s ultimate Authority and Power highlights His ability to deliver His elect from the depths of sin and the legal demands of the Law. This verse encapsulates the message of Redemption throughout all Scripture, emphasizing God’s grace in saving sinners.
Jonah’s experience in the belly of the fish foreshadows or acts as a "type" of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection.
Jonah's "Death" and Jesus' Burial: Jonah’s three days and three nights in the belly of the fish can be compared to Jesus' burial for three days after His death (Jonah 1:17). Just as Jonah was in the belly of the fish, seemingly "dead" or separated from life, Jesus was in the tomb, separated from the world for three days before His resurrection. His Soul was in Sheol, the place of the dead, while His body rested in the tomb. During Jonah's time in the belly of the great fish, his body was neither diminished nor digested by the fluids in the fish's belly. Similarly, Christ's body could not see corruption, even though He was in the grave for three days and nights (Acts 2:29-31).
Jonah's Rescue and Jesus' Resurrection: After Jonah spent three days and three nights in the fish, he was miraculously delivered, vomited onto dry land (Jonah 2:10). This can be seen as a picture of Jesus' resurrection from the grave. Just as Jonah was "released" from the fish, Jesus was raised from the dead after His death. Some argue that Jonah did not die while in the fish’s belly, but the language used to describe his time there suggests death, even if only symbolically. While Jonah's experience is a type, Jesus, in fulfilling the Scriptures, did die and was resurrected by the Spirit of God.
Jesus' Reference to Jonah: Jesus Himself draws a direct parallel between Jonah and His death and resurrection. In Matthew 12:40, Jesus says, "For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale's belly, so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." This statement explicitly connects Jonah’s experience with the sacrificial death and miraculous resurrection of the LORD Jesus.
Jonah as a Sign: In Matthew 12:39-41, the LORD Jesus refers to Jonah as a "sign" for the people of His time. Jonah’s experience of being swallowed by the fish and then emerging from it is seen as a sign pointing to the greater miracle of Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection, which would bring Salvation to sinners worldwide. While many in Christ’s day rejected the sign and denied Jesus as the Fulfillment of it, those whom God purposed to hear did hear and rejoiced in His coming, doing, and dying to save His people.
Substitution and Satisfaction: Jonah’s time in the fish is most clearly a symbol of the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus, foundational to redemption. Jonah's willingness to be cast into the deep to spare the sailors' lives (Jonah 1:12) mirrors how Jesus willingly laid down His life to save those the Father purposed to save.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead by His power, called here the sign of the prophet Jonah, was the great proof of His Messiahship. As Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the fish and then came out alive, so would Christ be in the grave for three days and then rise again. While the Jews of Christ's day would not believe in Him and continue in unbelief to this day, those chosen by God the Father from before the foundation of the world do believe, having been given eyes by the Spirit of God.
1 Timothy 3:16
“And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”
Amen and Amen!! 🙏❤️✝️🕊️