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Jonah's Prayer

So, there's Jonah, flopping around in the water, but G-d wasn't about to leave him like that. He sent a gigantic fish that swallowed Jonah whole. Jonah was in the stomach of the fish for three days. (The word for fish switches from "dag" to "dagah." Rashi cites a Midrash that there were two fish; a male fish expelled Jonah in favor of a female fish.) Jonah prayed to G-d, comparing the fish to the grave. Since G-d miraculously kept him alive inside the fish, Jonah knew that he would survive. He had sunk to the deepest depths, but G-d raised him up. Jonah recognized his own wrongdoing and thanked G-d for His kindness, so G-d ordered the fish to spit him out onto dry land.

Author: Rabbi Jack Abramowitz