These small group studies of Jonah extensive cross-references, Bible study discussion questions, lessons to learn, and applications.  Visit our library of inductive Bible studies for more in depth inductive studies on this and other books of the Bible you can use in your small group.

Jonah 2 Inductive Bible Study

Jonah 2:1-10

Jonah’s Prayer

Summary- Jonah cried out to the Lord from the belly of the great fish. He acknowledged his desperate condition and his needy state, and his desire to return again to the Lord. He knew that the Lord, alone, had saved him. The Lord proved His sovereignty in having the fish vomit Jonah up onto dry land.

Central Teaching- Nowhere is outside of the Lord’s presence, and He always hears the prayers of His children.

Key Words- prayed, cried out, depth, answered, salvation, fish, vomited

Key Verse- 2:2

Ten things this passage says-

Ten things this passage does NOT say-

What does this passage teach me about God?

He is omnipresent. We cannot escape from Him.

He hears the cries of His children.

He disciplines His children.

He not only sometimes throws us into difficult situations, but He creates those situations for our good.

He has brought up my life from the pit.

He is in charge of creation, and it obeys Him.

He is holy.

Salvation is from Him.

How does this passage apply to my life?

I am never so low, so desperate, so sinful that I cannot turn to Him in repentance, and He will hear me.

Salvation is from Him alone. I should not turn to others, or even myself for safety.

Even in my deepest affliction, I should give thanks to the Lord.

Questions-

What did Jonah ask God for in this prayer? V1-9

What is the general tone of this prayer? V1-9

What are the 3 parts of this prayer? V 1-9 (Thanksgiving [2-6], contrition [7,8] and rededication [9].)

What was the main idea behind this prayer? V1-9

How did Jonah’s prayers differ from the sailors’? V1 (He was praying to the Lord His God, and they were crying out to their gods and his God. He had a personal relationship with Him).

Where was he located when he prayed this prayer? V1

When had Jonah called out in distress? V2

What was God’s response to his prayer? V2

Where is “the depths of Sheol”? V2

Who was responsible for casting Jonah into the sea? V3

Who caused the sea to be rough and dangerous? V3

What was Jonah’s conclusion about his proximity to God after he was cast into the sea? V4

Was his conclusion accurate? V4

How did he respond to this conclusion? V4

How do you think he “looked again towards God’s holy temple”? V4

What is this verse describing? V5

How did his near drowning affect Jonah? V5

Again, what is this verse describing? Why did he not just say “I almost drown”? V6

What was God’s reaction to Jonah’s near-death experience? V6

When did Jonah remember the Lord? V7

What does this indicate about man’s typical response in times of distress? V7

What happened to Jonah’s prayer? V7

What is the consequence of looking to idols for deliverance? V8

What are some examples of idols people today might have? V8

What impact does following these idols have on our relationship with God? V8

What was Jonah’s choice, when faced with turning to idols or to God? V9

What was Jonah’s sacrifice to the Lord? V9

Why was “the voice of thanksgiving” a sacrifice? V9

How can we apply this concept to our lives? V9

Where is salvation from? V9

What had the Lord already saved Jonah from? V9

What was the Lord’s response when Jonah made this confession of faith? V10

How did the fish respond to the Lord’s command? V10

What can we learn from the fish’s response? V10

Cross References-

Jonah 2:1-

2 Chron 33:11-13

11 Therefore the LORD brought the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria against them, and they captured Manasseh with hooks, bound him with bronze chains and took him to Babylon. 12 When he was in distress, he entreated the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. 13 When he prayed to Him, He was moved by his entreaty and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD was God.

Ps 50:15

15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble;

I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me.”

Ps 91:15

15 “He will call upon Me, and I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble;

I will rescue him and honor him.

Isa 26:16

16 O LORD, they sought You in distress;

They could only whisper a prayer,

Your chastening was upon them.

Hos 5:15

15 I will go away and return to My place

Until they acknowledge their guilt and seek My face;

In their affliction they will earnestly seek Me.

Hos 6:1-3

“Come, let us return to the LORD.

For He has torn us, but He will heal us;

He has wounded us, but He will bandage us.

2 “He will revive us after two days;

He will raise us up on the third day,

That we may live before Him.

3 “So let us know, let us press on to know the LORD.

His going forth is as certain as the dawn;

And He will come to us like the rain,

Like the spring rain watering the earth.”

James 5:13

13 Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises.

Job 13:15

15 “Though He slay me,

I will hope in Him.

Nevertheless I will argue my ways before Him.

Ps 130:1-2

Out of the depths I have cried to You, O LORD.

2 Lord, hear my voice!

Let Your ears be attentive

To the voice of my supplications.

Acts 16:24-25

24 and he, having received such a command, threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. 25 But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them;

Jonah 2:2-

Ps 4:1

Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness!

You have relieved me in my distress;

Be gracious to me and hear my prayer.

Ps 22:24

24 For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;

Nor has He hidden His face from him;

But when he cried to Him for help, He heard.

Ps 34:6

6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him

And saved him out of all his troubles.

Ps 120:1

In my trouble I cried to the LORD,

And He answered me.

Luke 22:44

44 And being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground.

Ps 18:5-6

5 The cords of Sheol surrounded me;

The snares of death confronted me.

6 In my distress I called upon the LORD,

And cried to my God for help;

He heard my voice out of His temple,

And my cry for help before Him came into His ears.

Ps 61:2

2 From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint;

Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

Ps 86:13

13 For Your lovingkindness toward me is great,

And You have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.

Ps 16:10

10 For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol;

Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.

Matt 12:40

40 for just as JONAH WAS THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS IN THE BELLY OF THE SEA MONSTER, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

Ps 34:6

6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him

And saved him out of all his troubles.

Ps 65:2

2 O You who hear prayer,

To You all men come.

Jonah 2:3-

Ps 69:1-2

Save me, O God,

For the waters have threatened my life.

2 I have sunk in deep mire, and there is no foothold;

I have come into deep waters, and a flood overflows me.

Ps 69:14-15

14 Deliver me from the mire and do not let me sink;

May I be delivered from my foes and from the deep waters.

15 May the flood of water not overflow me

Nor the deep swallow me up,

Nor the pit shut its mouth on me.

Lam 3:54

54 Waters flowed over my head;

I said, “I am cut off!”

Ps 42:7

7 Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;

All Your breakers and Your waves have rolled over me.

Ps 88:7

7 Your wrath has rested upon me,

And You have afflicted me with all Your waves.

Jonah 2:4-

Ps 31:22

22 As for me, I said in my alarm,

“I am cut off from before Your eyes”;

Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications

When I cried to You.

Isa 38:17

17 “Lo, for my own welfare I had great bitterness;

It is You who has kept my soul from the pit of nothingness,

For You have cast all my sins behind Your back.

Isa 49:14

14 But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me,

And the Lord has forgotten me.”

1 Kings 9:7

7 then I will cut off Israel from the land which I have given them, and the house which I have consecrated for My name, I will cast out of My sight. So Israel will become a proverb and a byword among all peoples.

Jer 7:15

15 “I will cast you out of My sight, as I have cast out all your brothers, all the offspring of Ephraim.

Jer 15:1

Then the LORD said to me, “Even though Moses and Samuel were to stand before Me, My heart would not be with this people; send them away from My presence and let them go!

1 Kings 8:38-39

38 whatever prayer or supplication is made by any man or by all Your people Israel, each knowing the affliction of his own heart, and spreading his hands toward this house; 39 then hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive and act and render to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know, for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men,

1 Kings 8:42

42(for they will hear of Your great name and Your mighty hand, and of Your outstretched arm); when he comes and prays toward this house,

2 Chron 6:38

38 if they return to You with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their captivity, where they have been taken captive, and pray toward their land which You have given to their fathers and the city which You have chosen, and toward the house which I have built for Your name,

Ps 5:7

7 But as for me, by Your abundant lovingkindness I will enter Your house,

At Your holy temple I will bow in reverence for You.

Dan 6:10

10 Now when Daniel knew that the document was signed, he entered his house (now in his roof chamber he had windows open toward Jerusalem); and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God, as he had been doing previously.

Jonah 2:5-

Ps 40:2

2 He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay,

And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.

Ps 69:1-2

Save me, O God,

For the waters have threatened my life.

2 I have sunk in deep mire, and there is no foothold;

I have come into deep waters, and a flood overflows me.

Ps 18:16

16 He sent from on high, He took me;

He drew me out of many waters.

Ps 40:2

2 He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay,

And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.

Jer 18:8

8 if that nation against which I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent concerning the calamity I planned to bring on it.

Jonah 2:6-

Deut 32:22

22 For a fire is kindled in My anger,

And burns to the lowest part of Sheol,

And consumes the earth with its yield,

And sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.

Ps 65:6

6 Who establishes the mountains by His strength,

Being girded with might;

Ps 104:6

6 You covered it with the deep as with a garment;

The waters were standing above the mountains.

Isa 40:12

12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand,

And marked off the heavens by the span,

And calculated the dust of the earth by the measure,

And weighed the mountains in a balance

And the hills in a pair of scales?

Hab 3:6

6 He stood and surveyed the earth;

He looked and startled the nations.

Yes, the perpetual mountains were shattered,

The ancient hills collapsed.

His ways are everlasting.

Hab 3:10

10 The mountains saw You and quaked;

The downpour of waters swept by.

The deep uttered forth its voice,

It lifted high its hands.

Prov 8:25-26

25 “Before the mountains were settled,

Before the hills I was brought forth;

26 While He had not yet made the earth and the fields,

Nor the first dust of the world.

Ps 16:10

10 For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol;

Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.

Isa 38:17

17 “Lo, for my own welfare I had great bitterness;

It is You who has kept my soul from the pit of nothingness,

For You have cast all my sins behind Your back.

Job 33:24

24 Then let him be gracious to him, and say,

‘Deliver him from going down to the pit,

I have found a ransom’;

Job 33:28

28’He has redeemed my soul from going to the pit,

And my life shall see the light.’

Ps 30:3

3 O LORD, You have brought up my soul from Sheol;

You have kept me alive, that I would not go down to the pit.

Ps 30:9

9 “What profit is there in my blood, if I go down to the pit?

Will the dust praise You? Will it declare Your faithfulness?

Ps 55:23

23 But You, O God, will bring them down to the pit of destruction;

Men of bloodshed and deceit will not live out half their days.

But I will trust in You.

Ps 143:7

7 Answer me quickly, O LORD, my spirit fails;

Do not hide Your face from me,

Or I will become like those who go down to the pit.

Jonah 2:7-

Ps 22:14

14 I am poured out like water,

And all my bones are out of joint;

My heart is like wax;

It is melted within me.

Ps 27:13

13 I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD

In the land of the living.

Heb 12:3

3 For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Ps 20:7

7 Some boast in chariots and some in horses,

But we will boast in the name of the LORD, our God.

Ps 42:5

5 Why are you in despair, O my soul?

And why have you become disturbed within me?

Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him

For the help of His presence.

Ps 43:5

5 Why are you in despair, O my soul?

And why are you disturbed within me?

Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him,

The help of my countenance and my God.

Isa 50:10

10 Who is among you that fears the LORD,

That obeys the voice of His servant,

That walks in darkness and has no light?

Let him trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God.

2 Chron 30:27

27 Then the Levitical priests arose and blessed the people; and their voice was heard and their prayer came to His holy dwelling place, to heaven.

Ps 18:6

6 In my distress I called upon the LORD,

And cried to my God for help;

He heard my voice out of His temple,

And my cry for help before Him came into His ears.

Ps 11:4

4 The LORD is in His holy temple; the LORD’S throne is in heaven;

His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men.

Ps 65:4

4 How blessed is the one whom You choose and bring near to You

To dwell in Your courts.

We will be satisfied with the goodness of Your house,

Your holy temple.

Mic 1:2

2 Hear, O peoples, all of you;

Listen, O earth and all it contains,

And let the Lord GOD be a witness against you,

The Lord from His holy temple.

Hab 2:20

20 “But the LORD is in His holy temple.

Let all the earth be silent before Him.”

Jonah 2:8-

Ps 50:14

14 “Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving

And pay your vows to the Most High;

Ps 50:23

23 “He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me;

And to him who orders his way aright

I shall show the salvation of God.”

Ps 107:22

22 Let them also offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,

And tell of His works with joyful singing.

NASU

Ps 116:17-18

17 To You I shall offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving,

And call upon the name of the LORD.

18 I shall pay my vows to the LORD,

Oh may it be in the presence of all His people,

Rom 12:1

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

Job 22:27

27 “You will pray to Him, and He will hear you;

And you will pay your vows.

Eccl 5:4-5

4 When you make a vow to God, do not be late in paying it; for He takes no delight in fools. Pay what you vow!

5 It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay.

Jonah 2:9-

Ps 50:14

14 “Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving

And pay your vows to the Most High;

Ps 50:23

23 “He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me;

And to him who orders his way aright

I shall show the salvation of God.”

Ps 50:23

23 “He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me;

And to him who orders his way aright

I shall show the salvation of God.”

Ps 107:22

22 Let them also offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,

And tell of His works with joyful singing.

Ps 116:17-18

17 To You I shall offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving,

And call upon the name of the LORD.

18 I shall pay my vows to the LORD,

Oh may it be in the presence of all His people,

Rom 12:1

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

Rom 12:1

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

Job 22:27

27 “You will pray to Him, and He will hear you;

And you will pay your vows.

Eccl 5:4-5

4 When you make a vow to God, do not be late in paying it; for He takes no delight in fools. Pay what you vow! 5 It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay.

Ps 3:8

8 Salvation belongs to the LORD;

Your blessing be upon Your people!

Ps 37:39-40

39 But the salvation of the righteous is from the LORD;

He is their strength in time of trouble.

40 The LORD helps them and delivers them;

He delivers them from the wicked and saves them,

Because they take refuge in Him.

Ps 68:20

20 God is to us a God of deliverances;

And to GOD the Lord belong escapes from death.

Acts 4:12

12 “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

Rev 7:10

10 and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

Jonah 2:10-

Ps 33:9

9 For He spoke, and it was done;

He commanded, and it stood fast.

Ps 105:31

31 He spoke, and there came a swarm of flies

And gnats in all their territory.

Ps 105:34

34 He spoke, and locusts came,

And young locusts, even without number,

Isa 50:2

2 “Why was there no man when I came?

When I called, why was there none to answer?

Is My hand so short that it cannot ransom?

Or have I no power to deliver?

Behold, I dry up the sea with My rebuke,

I make the rivers a wilderness;

Their fish stink for lack of water

And die of thirst.

Jonah 1:17

17 And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights.

Matt 8:8-9

8 But the centurion said, “Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 “For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, “Go!’ and he goes, and to another, “Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, “Do this!’ and he does it.”

Matt 8:26-27

26 He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm. 27 The men were amazed, and said, “What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”

Gen 1:21

21 God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good.

Matt 17:27

27 “However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for you and Me.”

Luke 11:30

30 “For just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.

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