[1] To his God, the Eternal, Jonah prayed from inside this great fish. [2] Jonah: With desperate cries I beckoned the Eternal to hear, and He answered me. From the belly, the place of death, I cried out to You, and You have responded to my voice. [3] You threw me into the watery depths and cast me into the middle of the chaotic seas. The waters closed in around me; Your waves broke over me; Your surf swelled as I sank into the depths. [4] But then I said to You, "I have been driven out from before Your very eyes. Still, I know I will gaze again on Your holy temple." [5] The waters swallowed me; the deep abyss was covering over me. Seaweeds were wrapped around my head, trapping me [6] as I sank down to where the mountains are rooted to the earth. I went down to the place where death's gate would lock me in forever. Yet You lifted me up from the pit. Eternal One, You are my God! [7] Only as my life was fading way did I remember the Eternal; To Your sacred dwelling, Your holy temple, my cries did rise to You. [8] Those who worship worthless idols turn their backs on God and renounce their loyal love. [9] But I will sing to You and sacrifice to You with a voice filled with thanksgiving; Whatever I promised, I will certainly pay it because deliverance is from the Eternal alone. [10] Then the Eternal One directed the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto the shore.
