Now the LORD had appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the fish.Yahweh prepared a huge fish to swallow up Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.And Jehovah prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
5 sermons cite this verse
… ceased its raging. And then the men feared the Lord even more and they offered sacrifice to the Lord and made their vows. But the Lord provided a fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of that fish three days and three nights. Saints, this is the word of God for you, the people of God. the word of the Lord came to Jonah. What does it mean to hear God's voice? How can you be sure, I mean really sure, that it is God's voice that you are hearing? That moment when all of life's many noises die down, and you hear with clarity the Holy Spirit gently speaking, what does it feel like when the word of the Lord comes to you? See, I'd wager that there are moments, big moments, when we are probably more attuned, when our ears are standing up at the ready, and we are hoping, maybe even begging for a word from God. That in some of life's biggest moments, we can feel least equipped to meet that challenge. And oh, wouldn't it be nice if God would just show up and tell us which road we should take? What do I want to do with my life? Is this the person that I am supposed to spend my life with? Will I be the kind of parent that I so desperately want to be? What values will most guide my living? My friends, it is often in these tectonically important moments when we can feel a sneaking voice of dread. What happens if I take the wrong …
… this is the last verse of chapter 1 and I'm done now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Y'all missed it. Did y'all get that? He got thrown overboard but God had prepared an Uber to come by and pick him up. Are y'all listening to me here today? I'm trying to tell somebody when you get right, when you get off the boat and get headed toward where you're supposed to be, God will make arrangements for you to get to where you need to be. When you choose to obey God, somebody say, when I choose to obey God, when I choose to do what he tells me to do, when I choose to be obedient to the call and the manner that he has on my life, when I make a step, Here's what I know about God. You make one step in God's direction, he makes two steps in your direction. …
… to the Lord and made vows. So that's good. They knew he was God. But the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights." Now here's my favorite verse. Then Jonah prayed. You see what I'm saying? I think you know where I'm going with this. You're overstaying your welcome in the belly of the fish, because this didn't have to happen in Jonah 2, verse 1. This could have happened in Jonah 1, verse 6. If it had happened in Jonah 1, verse 6 when the captain came and said, "'Wake up, man. What's wrong with you? We're all going to die. Get up. Don't you care? Call on your God. Perhaps he will give a thought to us. Perhaps he'll get us out of this. Perhaps he'll notice us. Perhaps he'll do something. Perhaps he'll give a thought to us. Jonah's thought was, throw me overboard. What if his thought had been, call on God? …
… I want to show you a great verse. In the book of Jonah, chapter 1 and verse 17. Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. And then over in Matthew chapter 12 and verse 39, But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign. No sign will be given except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights, this is Jesus speaking, in the belly of a great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. And Nineveh will rise up in judgment to this generation and condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah. And indeed, a greater than Jonah is here. I want to talk to you for a few moments on don't waste what you've been through. Don't waste it. And I want to come at this story of famous. …
… overboard. And just as Jonah is plunging to his death, the Bible says that the Lord provided a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was living in the belly of the fish for three days and for three nights. And it's in the aftermath of this mistake, this disobedience, this poor decision, it's in this moment that we find Jonah praying to God. And Jonah prays one of the most beautiful prayers in all of Scripture while he's sitting in the belly of the fish. Some of our best prayers come in the moments after our worst mistakes. And here's the good news. God still hears Jonah. I'm so glad that even when I refuse to listen to God, God still takes the time to listen to me. I can turn in the wrong direction, ignore the instructions God has given me, and God will still hear my cry when I call for help. God specializes in loving us at our lowest. God values us so highly that God refuses to allow past decisions to define future destiny. …