A Prayer of Descent

This morning I hope to cover all of Jonah 2.

Here's the context: Jonah has just been thrown overboard in the middle of a raging storm and swallowed up by a fish. Jonah 1:15-17 says this:

So they picked up Jonah and hurled him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging.

16 Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows.

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

Just before we get into Jonah 2, let me draw your attention to those words in chapter 1, verse 17: "the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah." That means this was a miraculous event. I believe Jonah is describing a creative miracle of God. God specially prepared this fish. This was not merely a natural event orchestrated by divine providence. This was a one-of-a-kind miracle fashioned by God's creative hand specifically for the moment.
You'll often hear people go to great lengths to explain how Jonah's ride in a fish might have been possible. They'll point out that this might have been a certain kind of whale, or shark. And it is true that there are several varieties of whales and sharks large enough to swallow a grown man in a single gulp...

https://www.thegracelifepulpit.com/Sermons.aspx?code=2012-04-29-PJ