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The Holy Bible - God's Word for All Generations

Jonah Chapter 2

King James Version (KJV)

Other Translations

asv (asv) - eBible.org engASV USFM

1 Then Jonah prayed unto Jehovah his God out of the fish’s belly.
2 And he said,
3 I called by reason of mine affliction unto Jehovah,
4 And he answered me;
5 Out of the belly of Sheol cried I,
6 And thou heardest my voice.
7 For thou didst cast me into the depth, in the heart of the seas,
8 And the flood was round about me;
9 All thy waves and thy billows passed over me.
10 And I said, I am cast out from before thine eyes;

darby (darby) - eBible.org Darby 1890 plaintext

1 And Jonah prayed unto Jehovah hisGod out of the fish's belly;
2 and he said: I cried by reason of my distress unto Jehovah, and he answered me; Out of the belly of Sheol cried I: thou heardest my voice.
3 For thou didst cast me into the depth, into the heart of the seas, And the flood was round about me: All thy breakers and thy billows are gone over me.
4 And I said, I am cast out from before thine eyes, Yet will I look again toward thy holy temple.
5 The waters encompassed me, to the soul: The deep was round about me, The weeds were wrapped about my head.
6 I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; The bars of the earth [closed] upon me for ever: But thou hast brought up my life from the pit, O Jehovah myGod.
7 When my soul fainted within me, I remembered Jehovah; And my prayer came in unto thee, Into thy holy temple.
8 They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.
9 But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that which I have vowed. Salvation is of Jehovah.
10 And Jehovah commanded the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry [land].

lxxbrent (lxxbrent) - Septuagint (Brenton 1851) eBible USFM

1 Now the Lord had commanded a great whale to swallow up Jonas: and Jonas was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights.
2 And Jonas prayed to the Lord his God out of the belly of the whale,
3 and said, I cried in my affliction to the Lord my God, and he hearkened to me, [even] to my cry out of the belly of hell: thou heardest my voice.
4 Thou didst cast me into the depths of the heart of the sea, and the floods compassed me: all thy billows and thy waves have passed upon me.
5 And I said, I am cast out of thy presence: shall I indeed look again toward thy holy temple?
6 Water was poured around me to the soul: the lowest deep compassed me, my head went down
7 to the clefts of the mountains; I went down into the earth, whose bars are the everlasting barriers: yet, O Lord my God, let my ruined life be restored.
8 When my soul was failing me, I remembered the Lord; and may my prayer come to thee into thy holy temple.
9 They that observe vanities and lies have forsaken their own mercy.
10 But I will sacrifice to thee with the voice of praise and thanksgiving: all that I have vowed I will pay to thee, the Lord of [my] salvation.
11 And the whale was commanded by the Lord, and it cast up Jonas on the dry [land].

vul1914 (vul1914) - Vulgate 1914 UTF-8 (sacredbible.org)

1 Et præparavit Dominus piscem grandem ut deglutiret Ionam: et erat Ionas in ventre piscis tribus diebus, et tribus noctibus.
2 Et oravit Ionas ad Dominum Deum suum de ventre piscis.
3 Et dixit: Clamavi de tribulatione mea ad Dominum, et exaudivit me: de ventre inferi clamavi, et exaudisti vocem meam.
4 Et proiecisti me in profundum in corde maris, et flumen circumdedit me: omnes gurgites tui, et fluctus tui super me transierunt.
5 Et ego dixi: Abiectus sum a conspectu oculorum tuorum: verumtamen rursus videbo templum sanctum tuum.
6 Circumdederunt me aquæ usque ad animam: abyssus vallavit me, pelagus operuit caput meum.
7 Ad extrema montium descendi: terræ vectes concluserunt me in æternum: et sublevabis de corruptione vitam meam, Domine Deus meus.
8 Cum angustiaretur in me anima mea, Domini recordatus sum: ut veniat ad te oratio mea ad templum sanctum tuum.
9 Qui custodiunt vanitates frustra, misericordiam suam derelinquunt.
10 Ego autem in voce laudis immolabo tibi: quæcumque vovi, reddam pro salute Domino.
11 Et dixit Dominus pisci: et evomuit Ionam in aridam.

web (web) - WorldEnglish.Bible — CC0 modern update of ASV

1 Then Jonah prayed to the LORD, his God, out of the fish’s belly.
2 He said, “I called because of my affliction to the LORD. He answered me. Out of the belly of Sheol I cried. You heard my voice.
3 For you threw me into the depths, in the heart of the seas. The flood was all around me. All your waves and your billows passed over me.
4 I said, ‘I have been banished from your sight; yet I will look again toward your holy temple.’
5 The waters surrounded me, even to the soul. The deep was around me. The weeds were wrapped around my head.
6 I went down to the bottoms of the mountains. The earth barred me in forever; yet you have brought my life up from the pit, LORD my God.
7 “When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the LORD. My prayer came in to you, into your holy temple.
8 Those who regard vain idols forsake their own mercy.
9 But I will sacrifice to you with the voice of thanksgiving. I will pay that which I have vowed. Salvation belongs to the LORD.”
10 Then the LORD spoke to the fish, and it vomited out Jonah on the dry land.

ylt (ylt) - Bible.com YLT98 plain UTF-8

1 And Jonah prayeth unto Jehovah his God from the bowels of the fish.
2 And he saith: I called, because of my distress, to Jehovah, And He doth answer me, From the belly of sheol I have cried, Thou hast heard my voice.
3 When Thou dost cast me <FI>into<Fi> the deep, Into the heart of the seas, Then the flood doth compass me, All Thy breakers and Thy billows have passed over me.
4 And I--I said: I have been cast out from before Thine eyes, (Yet I add to look unto Thy holy temple!)
5 Compassed me have waters unto the soul, The deep doth compass me, The weed is bound to my head.
6 To the cuttings of mountains I have come down, The earth, her bars <FI>are<Fi> behind me to the age. And Thou bringest up from the pit my life, O Jehovah my God.
7 In the feebleness within me of my soul Jehovah I have remembered, And come in unto Thee doth my prayer, Unto Thy holy temple.
8 Those observing lying vanities their own mercy forsake.
9 And I--with a voice of thanksgiving--I sacrifice to Thee, That which I have vowed I complete, Salvation <FI>is<Fi> of Jehovah.
10 And Jehovah saith to the fish, and it vomiteth out Jonah on the dry land.

Explanations by Age Level

Explain Like I'm 5

A long, long time ago, there was nothing at all - no earth, no sky, no animals, no people. It was all dark and empty. But God was there! God is so powerful that He can make anything just by speaking. So God said "Let there be light!" and BOOM! There was light everywhere! God saw that the light was beautiful and good. He called the light "day" and the darkness "night." This was the very first day when God started making our wonderful world!

Explain Like I'm 10

Before anything existed - no planets, stars, or life - God decided to create the universe. The earth started out as a dark, empty place covered with water. But God's Spirit was there, ready to bring order and beauty to everything. When God spoke and said "Let there be light," light immediately appeared because God's words have incredible power. God looked at the light and was pleased with what He had made. He organized time by separating light (day) from darkness (night), creating the first 24-hour period. This shows us that God is organized and purposeful in everything He does.

Explain Like I'm 15

Genesis 1:1-5 establishes fundamental theological truths about God and creation. The Hebrew word "bara" (created) indicates creation from nothing (ex nihilo), demonstrating God's absolute sovereignty and power. The phrase "without form and void" (tohu wa-bohu) describes a state of chaos that God transforms into order. The Spirit of God "hovering" or "brooding" over the waters suggests active, caring involvement in creation. The creation of light before the sun (created on day 4) indicates that God Himself is the ultimate source of light and energy. The establishment of day and night creates the framework of time, showing that God operates within orderly patterns while transcending them. This passage refutes both atheistic materialism and pantheism, establishing that God is both transcendent (separate from creation) and immanent (actively involved in it).